Page 52 of Proof

One love. It had been his sign-off ever since she first knew him. And he was right.

Not being a particularly patient person, Luna decided to do some searching on her own. She Googled Brendan. Nothing. She Googled his wife. Nothing. She went to LinkedIn and sent a message through their site. That could take a few days. She drummed her fingers on the table. She had to do something to busy herself. There was still a lot of stuff to sift through, but she’d left the box of mementos at home. More drumming. Maybe she’d ask Cullen if he needed some help. Besides, she wanted to interrogate him about his dinner with Chi-Chi. She fixed a cup of cappuccino for him and signaled to Wylie. “Come on, pal. Want to go to the dog park?”

He let out an enthusiastic Woof!

Luna walked to the sliding doors, and Wylie made a beeline to the designated doggie area. Ziggy and Marley were already sitting in the shade of a white oak. During the construction, Ellie had made it a point to keep as much of the vegetation as possible, especially the trees. The landscaper built the gardens around the foliage.

Cullen was at his workbench when Luna entered. “So? How did it go?” she asked.

“How did what go?”

“The dinner you were planning for Chi-Chi.” Luna folded her arms and tapped her foot. “Spill.”

“I’ll have you know, little sister, I told her Saturday night after we left your place.”

She gave him a shove. “Get out!”

Cullen was beaming.

“I gather she took it well?”

“Yes, as a matter of fact, she did.”

“So? Details, please.”

“I don’t kiss and tell.” Cullen made a gesture of locking his lips and tossing the imaginary key over his shoulders.

“Oh, man. Don’t do that to me,” Luna whined.

“I am a gentleman. If Chi-Chi wants to share anything with you, that is her prerogative. I, on the other hand, choose to remain silent.”

“Ugh,” Luna snorted.

Cullen was quite amused at his sister. And after his conversation with Chi-Chi, he was in a very fine mood. Almost light on his feet.

“I am going to assume you have taken the relationship to a new level.” She raised her eyebrows.

“Get your mind out of the gutter,” he chided.

“Oh, stop. That’s not what I meant. And that is not something I want to know about, either.”

“Let’s just say we have come to a mutual understanding about our feelings for each other.”

“Thank you! That’s all I wanted to hear.” She gave him a big hug.

“So what brings you to my humble workshop, besides harassing me?”

“I thought maybe you could use some help with my dresser.”

“Actually, that’s not a bad idea. Do you want to do a complete update reno, or a restore?”

“I’m thinking an update. The past is the past.”

“Good. I’ll strip it down. Meanwhile, look through the paint chips and the hardware samples. It’s a simple shaker style, so you could do a lot with it.”

Luna flipped through the paint chips. “How about a red lacquer with Asian design pulls? I can put it in my dining room and use it as a sideboard.”

“Excellent idea.”

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