Read Home Matters (A Ripple Effect Romance Novella, Book 1) for Free Online Page A

careful, she could trip, fall into that gaze, and become lost forever. Maybe she already had.
    “Fine,” she heard herself agreeing. “But don’t you dare poke fun.” She started to hand the pad over, but pulled it back.
    Pete dropped his jaw in pseudo surprise. “Who, me?” He pressed a hand to his chest. “I would never.” Olivia held tight to her sketchpad, hitting him with an unwavering stare. Pete assumed a penitent expression. “Okay, I would. But for the next thirty seconds, I promise to be the perfect gentleman.”
    Part of her warned her not to trust him, while another part urged her to share, to show the creative side of herself that she both admired and protected, and to prove she wasn’t just a pretty face. She loosened her grip.
    As if stealing a coveted piece of meat from a sleeping grizzly bear, Pete reached out with wary anticipation and slid the sketchpad from Olivia’s grasp.
    Twirling a lock of hair around her finger, Olivia’s teeth cut into her bottom lip as she watched him sift through the pages, rotate the pad one way, then the other, appraising each rendering with a critical eye. As he did, the look on his face slowly changed, growing more serious by the moment.
    A bolt of panic ripped through her chest. “What’s wrong?” she asked, her confidence meter taking a dip into the negative. “You hate them, don’t you?”
    “Huh? Oh, sorry.” Pete looked up, shaking the wooden gape from his face. “It’s just that these are really…” he paused, his lips working as if trying out different responses before committing to one. “Amazing,” he decided. “I thought you were lying at your screen test when you said you’d had design training.” He tapped a finger to the open page. “But clearly, you weren’t. You’re very talented.”
    White-hot pride broke through the uncertainty shading her ego. “Really?” It shouldn’t have, but his opinion mattered. Pete nodded, his focus still pressed to one of the images she’d created. Then, for reasons unknown, she didn’t want to lie anymore. “And, you’re right. I fibbed at my screen test. I did major in art, but not design.”
    Pete looked up and sent her a questioning look. “Then how did you do this?”
    She shrugged. “I close my eyes and watch as the room takes shape in my mind. Once I begin to sketch the design, the details and colors start to materialize. The more I layer, the more ideas I get, and the room just comes together.”
    Pete flipped back to a previous page. “Well, Peaches, training or not, you have a gift.” He drew a finger lightly over the drawing. “I like the way you used half-walls and pillars to define the formal dining. And, included the portrait of Great Aunt Iona. I thought Eleanor had something new in mind for over the mantle.”
    Expelling a longsuffering breath, Olivia thought about how Eleanor seemed determined to ignore every request the couple made regarding their home, insisting that she knew better. “She does. I get that Aunt Iona was a beastly looking woman, but she’s still the Calhouns’ kin,” she said. “I think we should respect that.”
    Pete pressed a paint-splattered hand to his chest as if stilling a missed beat. “Wow, she does have a heart.” He sent Olivia a quick wink before turning another page to reveal a different room. He pointed to two spots on the page. “I like the way you kept these niches by the front door. Back in the old days they put candles in these nooks for light.”
    Straightening her back, Olivia stretched for a quick peek at her design. “I didn’t know that,” she said and settled back. “But what I do know—thanks to Eleanor—is that it’s not called a ni- t -ch, it’s a n- ee -she, and don’t you dare pronounce it wrong.” She imitated a look of superiority. “And don’t even think about accidentally calling her a ‘decorator’ instead of a ‘designer.’”
    A knowing smirk played with Pete’s lips. “You didn’t.”
    Olivia’s