Rushing the Goal
Page 62

And it was. It was a big, open floor plan with a little cooking area, one main room, another room with a door, and a bathroom. The in-law who got to stay here was one spoiled in-law, in her opinion. Looking around, Lucy bit the inside of her lip.
Shit, this could really work, and it was cute.
But should she do it? She hadn’t known Benji long, but she knew he wouldn’t screw her. He also said they could do a contact, which was good. She’d want one, but was this mixing business with pleasure ? What the hell was she thinking? She was sleeping with him and he was her client. She had already crossed that line.
She was so damned professional.
Not.
“What do you think?” she said to Rayne, but when she glanced at Rayne, she was taking pictures with her phone.
“Oh, I was taking pictures so I can figure out how to put my desk.”
Lucy gave her a dry look. “I haven’t decided yet.”
“You haven’t?” she asked, a deadpan expression on her face. “You know this is the right fit for us. It’s great. Parking might be an issue, but maybe we can put in a bigger driveway?”
Lucy looked away and then looked at her phone. “I’ll be right back.”
“Okay, I’ll take pictures for you to design later,” Rayne said, so confidently that it made Lucy roll her eyes.
But she did love the place.
Walking outside, she dialed Benji’s number.
“So what do you think?”
She smiled. “I kinda love it.”
“Kinda?”
“I’m just nervous to commit.”
“Sounds like you,” he teased and she pursed her lips, glaring at the bushes.
“How much do you want a month?”
“How much can you afford?”
“My rent at my other place was fifteen hundred, but that included the upstairs apartment.”
He made a clicking noise as he thought, and then said, “Okay, so what, like, six hundred?”
She gasped. “Six hundred? That’s too low!”
“No way, I’m only worried about covering my utilities.”
“That’s with utilities? Are you crazy?”
He scoffed. “About you? Yeah.”
“Benji,” she sighed as her heart went wild in her chest. “Focus.”
“Fine. Six hundred is my final price, take it or leave it.”
She hesitated. “How do you feel about expanding the driveway? I’ll pay for that, of course.”
“There is a driveway on the other side that they used for their business,” he said, and she looked up to see that, in fact, connected to the little walkway was a long driveway. She hadn’t noticed it, probably because she came from the other way and hadn’t had to go that far.
“Oh.”
“Yeah, so it’s pretty much set up,” he said simply. “You could move in tomorrow and you’ll be fine.”
“What’s the deposit?”
“Good Lord, Lucy. Are you looking for something to make you not do this?” She paused as he laughed. “Just say yes and be good, babe.”
“I just don’t know if I want to mix business with pleasure. It makes me nervous.”
“Um, we slept with each other a week ago and I still want you to design my house, so we’re past that,” he said and she closed her eyes. “And I still very much want to sleep with you again.”
Ignoring the last sentence, she bit into her lip. “I thought that too.”
“Yeah, I just want to help out any way I can. Let me, please?”
She looked around, her gut telling her this was good as she tapped her foot. She’d be stupid not to take it. It was perfect for her. Almost like it was made for her. “And I can paint and design it any way I want?”
“Yeah, do whatever you want. I don’t need it. I had no clue what I was going to do with it, anyway. ”
She sucked in a deep breath. “Can you get a contract drawn up?”
“I already did,” he said, clearing his throat at her intake of breath. “I’ll have my lawyer get with you, and we can get the ball rolling. But like I said, you can move in this weekend if you want.”
God, why was this so hard for her? Why couldn’t she just accept what he had done and be good with it? She had never been good at accepting help, and now was no different.
“Are you sure?”
He scoffed and she could hear the smile in his voice. “Knowing that you are working behind my house daily? Yeah, I’m sure. At least this way I know you’ll be safe and you’ll be good.”
Geez, he was sweet. “But being so close, I might need you for some lifting,” she teased and he chuckled.
“If lifting you against the wall as I pound into you is one of these ‘lifting’ requests, then, sweetheart, sign me up,” he said, his voice dropping a few octaves.
“You dirty, dirty man,” she accused breathlessly as she looked up at the sky. His laughter ran down her spine as she shook her head.
What in the hell was she doing?
She was doing what she had to. This could blow up in her face, but then, maybe it could work. She had to get the ball rolling. She had to get her business back up so she could find a permanent place to stay for her and Angie. So even though she wasn’t sure if it was a good idea, she had to follow her gut. And it was telling her to say yes.
“Okay, have your lawyer get with me.”
“Will do, but is it okay if I give him your number?”