The Next Always

Read The Next Always for Free Online Page B

Book: Read The Next Always for Free Online
Authors: Nora Roberts
through the doorway. And ran straight into Beckett.
    His hands came up to steady her. She wondered if she looked as surprised and flustered as he did. Probably more, she imagined, as the hammer slotted in his tool belt probably wasn’t jamming into his hip.
    “Sorry,” they said in unison, and she laughed.
    “Me, first. I wasn’t looking where I was going. The size of the bathroom in there put stars in my eyes. I was coming to find you.”
    “Find me?”
    “We probably should have before we came up, but everyone seemed so busy. I need to know which room this is before I move in.”
    “Before you . . . Ha.” Jesus, his brain staggered under the scent of her, the feel of her under his hands, the misty lake color of her eyes. “You’d probably like it better when it’s finished.”
    “Paint me a picture.”
    For a half second he took her literally, and wondered if Owen had picked up the paint yet. Deliberately, he made himself step back. Obviously, his IQ dropped fifty points if he touched her. “Well . . .”
    “It’s your design.”
    “Mostly. Oh, hi, Avery.”
    A laugh danced in her eyes. “I thought I’d swallowed an invisibility pill. I can’t believe the transformation here, Beck. The last time I was in here, it had broken windows, broken bricks, pigeons, and ghosts.”
    “The windows and brick weren’t as big a chore as the pigeons, believe me. We’ve still got the ghost.”
    “Seriously?”
    He winced, adjusted his dusty ball cap. “Don’t spread that around, okay? Not until we figure out if she’ll be a liability or an asset.”
    “She. Honeysuckle.”
    His eyebrows lifted. “Yeah. How do you know?”
    “Years ago, brief encounter. It gets cooler and cooler.” At his expression, Avery zipped a finger across her lips, then her heart.
    “Appreciate it. Anyway, this one’s Titania and Oberon.”
    “The copper tub.” With a swish of skirt, Clare beelined for the bathroom space.
    “The big-ass copper tub,” Beckett confirmed, following her. “Along the wall there. The tiles will accent it, play off it, with coppery and earthy tones. Heated floors. All the baths will have heated tile floors.”
    “I’m going to cry in a minute.”
    More at ease, he smiled at Clare. “Shower there. Unframed glass doors, oil-rubbed bronze fixtures. Heated towel rack there, another feature in all the baths. Two copper-vessel sinks, each on this kind of foresty-looking stand, copper drum table between. The lighting picks up the organic feel with a vine pattern. John over there.”
    “The famed magic toilet,” Avery commented. “Word’s out on those. It’s like a bidet and toilet all in one,” she told Clare, “with automatic flush— and the lid lifts when you walk up to it.”
    “Get out.”
    “At your service.” Grinning, Beckett stepped back into the bedroom. “Bed there, facing out into the room. Iron, open-canopy four-poster, in copper and bronze tones with a vine and leaf pattern. She’s a beauty.”
    “Like a bower,” Clare murmured.
    “That’s the plan. We’re going to drape it some, or our fabric people are. Dresser there, flatscreen above. Whitewashed nightstands, and these woodsy lamps. We need a bench under the windows, I think. Soft green on the walls, something flowy on the windows—we’re doing dark wood blinds throughout for privacy, and we’ll work on window treatments. Toss in a few accessories, and that’s a wrap.”
    Clare sighed. “A romantic bower for two, midsummer or midwinter.”
    “You want to write our brochure copy? I wasn’t actually kidding,” he said when she laughed.
    “Oh.” Obviously taken aback, Clare looked around the bare room. “I could help if you—”
    “You’re hired.”
    She hesitated, then smiled. “Then you’d better give us a very thorough tour. In stages,” she said with a glance at her watch. “I’ve only got a few more minutes right now.”
    “I’d really like to see the kitchen space. I can’t help it,” Avery said.

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