Chapter 7
Berkley had all the windows open in the downstairs of the Queen Anne mansion.
She also had on a surgical-grade mask, and it had gone a long way in combating all the dust floating around in this place.
But it was still a nightmare of stuff everywhere and she refused to get sick on this job.
She’d learned her lesson when she’d first started clearing out homes and this was one of the larger, most interesting jobs she’d agreed to take on.
She couldn’t wait to tell Clover what she’d found…
She turned as she heard the front door opening. She’d arrived early and had discovered that Clover tended to show up ten minutes late in general. Which was fine with her since it gave her a buffer to work with.
But it wasn’t Clover who stepped into the room. It was Nick Storm. Tall, dark hair, Hollywood handsome…ugh. Too bad he was a jerk.
Her smile froze behind her mask. “Oh, it’s you.”
Uh oh, had she said that out loud? Yes, she definitely had.
He stopped in the entryway of the high-ceilinged kitchen, his eyes widening slightly. “Good morning,” he murmured, glancing around. “I take it Clover didn’t tell you I was coming?”
“Nope.” But she forced herself to adapt. She could be scrupulously professional, especially for a job this big. They were supposed to sign the contract today so she quieted the voice in her head that wanted to snark at Nick just because. “Do you need a mask? It’s dustier than you think.”
“Ah yes, thank you.” He took the one she held out and she was careful not to let her fingers touch his.
He unnerved her in more ways than one and she refused to let him get to her today. There was enough going on in her head without that nonsense swimming around up there.
She glanced at her phone as it buzzed, hid a wince. “Clover just texted.” Apparently her texting style was the same as her arrival style. Late, late, late.
“Sounds about right,” he murmured, though there was humor in his tone instead of annoyance. Which gave him a few points.
“I’ve already scanned all the rooms and have found a few very interesting items. I’m sure you know this already, but I told Clover I could only give a final estimate once I did a full walk-through. The final price will be almost double than what I originally—”
“Double?”
She cleared her throat at the interruption. Apparently only one of them was polite. “Correct.”
His eyebrows dipped down, his lower face hidden by the mask, but his expression was clear enough. “I talked to JR King Auctions on the way here and they gave me a price based on square footage. It’s less than your original quote.”
Yeah, of course they had. Those guys were thieves.
Something she thought Clover knew as well.
Apparently she and her brother weren’t on the same page.
“Okay then, it sounds like your mind is already made up. Good luck working with them.” She held back a snort, glad she hadn’t told him about the pristine lynx fur coat she’d found in one of the upstairs bedrooms.
Though deep down, she knew she’d end up telling Clover about it before JR King Auctions swept in. Only because she liked the other woman.
“Wait, I didn’t say I wanted to work with them.”
“Didn’t you?”
“I just said that they came in with a lower offer. I’m sure you can match them.”
She snorted softly, desperate to get out of this kitchen and house altogether.
The room was stacked full of boxes, and even though it was the least crowded in the entire house, she was still far too close to Nick—who somehow smelled amazing even in the midst of the musty scent lingering.
She still hated that she’d actually given him her number once upon a time.
He’d been the first man she’d considered dating since her divorce, at that. She’d been so stunned and awkward that she hadn’t been sure if she should even say yes. Then he’d never called, so it hadn’t mattered. And anytime after that when she’d run into him, he’d been weirdly cold to her.
“I don’t do business like that. I charge based on how full the house is. It would be insane to charge based on square footage. And for the record, your sister already knew that. I’m not sure what you guys are trying to pull—”
“Clover doesn’t know I called them.” He held up his palms. “I just made a few calls this morning to double-check your number.”
“Well if you’re not going to go with me, I still hope you don’t go with JR King Auctions.
I’m not telling you this for any reason other than I really like your sister.
Go with the Johnson Brothers. They’re solid and won’t rob you blind.
” She picked up her purse and was surprised when he followed her outside.
Tugging off the mask, she inhaled the crisp morning air as they descended the stairs.
“Look, I didn’t mean to offend you.”
She couldn’t hide a snort. “I’m pretty sure you don’t care if you offend me.”
His eyes widened slightly, but other than that she couldn’t read his expression. He cleared his throat. “Clover really wants to do business with you.”
Yeah, well, Clover wasn’t there, and just looking at this man had all her hackles rising.
God, why did he have to be so annoyingly handsome?
It was a crime, simple as that. “It’s pretty clear you need to get on the same page as your sister.
I was under the impression that we would be signing the contract today, but clearly that’s not the case.
Do your due diligence, call around, and figure things out.
If you two decide you still want to go into business, maybe we can talk.
” She took a deep breath, calling on all her patience.
“And if you do decide to go with JR King Auctions, don’t let them in that house unsupervised. They will absolutely steal from you.”
She could tell he wanted to argue with her, but he nodded. “I’ll talk to my sister about this.”
“Sounds like a good plan. And…” God, she should just keep her mouth shut.
“There’s a lynx coat in there that’s been preserved and worth at least a hundred and seventy-five thousand dollars—but I think you can get more for it.
” And she would have gotten a nice commission on the sale had they chosen to sell it.
“I put it in the pantry and had planned to show Clover as a surprise.” She’d also found a few other really cool items—like a vintage uranium glass vase—but the fur was the big-ticket piece.
“Are you serious?”
“Yep. Talk to you later.” Or never. She got into her Bronco and left, glad he hadn’t blocked her in.
She tried not to let the disappointment get to her, but this had been the job of a lifetime.
A historic mansion absolutely packed with untold goodies just waiting to be discovered.
She’d barely even scratched the surface of what was inside.
And anything they sold within the first two years that she’d valued for them over a certain price, she’d have gotten a sweet commission.
That clause was just in there for people who wanted to be sneaky and hold on to things until they could sell on their own.
The majority of people just wanted their homes cleaned out, everything put up for auction, and to be done with it.
Nick and Clover had bought this mansion with the intent to clean it out, update a few things, make a profit from the auction, then sell the mansion once it was staged and make an even bigger profit.
It was a huge investment for them—one with incredible return potential—and she’d been so looking forward to adding this to her portfolio.
She was a little mad at herself for telling him about the coat, but…whatever. Just because he was a jerk didn’t mean she had to be one too.
When she saw the time, she decided to head to Krystal’s place.
She was early but she could grab lattes for the both of them and spend an extra hour before the party madness started.
She was kind of surprised that Mike hadn’t texted asking her or the others to bring anything to the party but figured he must have it under control.
She’d brought some extra balloons, a party sash and crown, as well as her present as backup just in case the place wasn’t as blinged-out as it should be.
Because her big sister deserved the best.
***
“Hey Aunt B.” Jett, still wearing pajama pants and no T-shirt, hugged her as she stepped into the foyer. “What are you doing here?”
Berkley laughed lightly as she hugged him, realized he definitely needed a shower. Or deodorant. God, when had he grown into this young man? “Ha ha. Where’s your mom?”
“Ah, kitchen I think, but I’m not sure.” His twin brothers shouted for him from somewhere in the house and he ran off before she could even shut the front door.
“Teenagers,” she muttered, still not sure how her sister and Mike had handled Jett, Miles and River when they were younger. Hell, she wasn’t sure how they handled them now that they were thirteen-year-old twins and fourteen.
Because that was a lot of stinky teenage boys in one house. She shuddered, not in a rush to have kids any time soon. Not that she didn’t adore her nephews, but taking care of another human was a lot.
As she stepped into the kitchen she found Krystal sitting at the island top, drinking coffee.
“Hey, happy birthday.” She set the extra latte in front of her, then pulled the birthday crown out of her bag of tricks, ready to set it on Kyrstal’s head, but frowned when she saw the expression on her sister’s face. “What…” She glanced around the kitchen, realized it was sort of a disaster.
And there were no decorations anywhere.
And her sister was dressed adorably in an off the shoulder sparkly cream sweater, her makeup done in a way she normally only did for nights out on the town… Oh my god.
Noooo.
“Do me a favor and go get in my car?” She pulled out her keys, tossed them to Krystal who of course caught them with her panther-like reflexes.
“It’s fine.” Krystal looked close to crying though, her green eyes watery.
Oooh, noooo.
“It’s fine that they forgot your birthday?” Berkley asked it as a question because she wasn’t a hundred percent sure.
Swallowing hard, Krystal picked up the latte, her hands trembling slightly.
“My car. Now. It’s your birthday so you have to listen to me.”
“That’s not how that works but…fine.” Krystal, just looking like someone had kicked a puppy, left with the keys in hand.
“Grab your coat on the way out,” Berkley called out because they were going to be gone for a while.
Berkley waited until she heard the front door shut, then went in search of Mike, who was on his computer, working on something. She knew he had a big job he’d been working on with his new company, but come on. This was one day. Hell, it was just a few hours. “Mike, hey.”
He turned, clearly surprised to see her. “Hey. Ah, morning. Krystal’s in the kitchen I think.”
“Oh I know. I need to see you in the living room. It’s important.” She turned on her heel before he could respond. Then she stalked into the living room and unplugged the television—while her nephews were gaming.
“Hey!”
“What the hell!”
“Why’d you do that, Aunt B?”
She held up her hand, ignoring them as Mike walked in. “All of you sit down right now.” To her surprise, they actually did, watching her curiously. And a little cautiously.
Probably because she looked rabid—if her face matched her inner rage, it was a good possibility.
“What’s today, you guys?” she asked as she clapped her hands together once.
“Ah…Sunday?” Jett asked hopefully.
God, she loved that kid even as she wanted to shake all of them. “Sure is. What else is today?”
Mike, looking annoyed at her, cleared his throat. “Look, Berkley, if you could just tell us—”
“Tell you that you missed your wife’s birthday? That the whole family will be over in an hour for a party you’re clearly not ready for.”
Mike’s eyes widened as he pulled his phone out, likely to double-check his calendar.
“Oh, I’m not wrong,” she gritted out, the tether on her anger about to break free.
“Why didn’t you—”
“I know you’re not going to ask why I didn’t remind you,” she snapped in a voice she’d never used with any of them before.
“This woman loves you more than anything—pushed your big-ass heads out of her body and would literally die for you. And she makes a huge deal out of all your birthdays—I know, I’ve been to all the parties. ”
All four of them stared at her with expressions of horror, hopefully at themselves. “Your mom—and your wife—is in my car right now. I’m taking her out for a birthday brunch.” Or lunch at this point. “By the time I get back, this place better be sparkling and full of fucking cheer.”
The boys’ eyes widened.
“Don’t act shocked. I know you hear worse on TV and at school.” Okay maybe not, but whatever, she was barely hanging on to her temper.
Mike shot to his feet. “Jesus, I can’t believe—”
“Oh no. You’re not going to apologize to her with words now.
And honestly I don’t know that you’re going to fix this at all today.
I’m not married, but even I know this sucks big-time.
” The kids got a break because they were teenagers.
They could barely remember to brush their teeth some days.
But Mike… “And I’d just like to remind you that Krystal is smart as hell and so gorgeous that she can pull any…
” She’d been about to say dick but held back at the last moment when she realized the boys were still staring at her.
“Guy she wants. Literally everywhere we go, she gets hit on.”
“Ew!” Jett made a barfing sound.
“Sorry guys, your mom is hot and impressive, though that’s not the important thing.
” She was focusing all her attention on Mike, who was looking panicked and shell-shocked at the same time.
“The important thing is you don’t lose sight of the big picture of your life.
Of the person I know you love more than anything. ”
And on that note, she stormed out properly even as she group texted all her siblings except Krystal. Get over to Krystal’s house ASAP! The family forgot her birthday and the house is a disaster. I’m taking her out for a couple hours but I’ve never seen her look so defeated.
She received a barrage of texts from the other three all saying they’d be there within ten minutes. And Apollo made a couple threats against Mike, which, despite how much she normally adored Krystal’s husband, made Berkley snicker.
She also saw that she had three missed calls from Nick Storm and one from his sister. She ignored them as she slid into the front seat and tore out of the driveway.
She wasn’t sure what was wrong with her sister’s husband, but she refused to let Krystal’s day be ruined.