Page 207 of Hidden Nature

“She’ll wait,” Sloan told him as she moved by him, “since you’re what she’s waited for.”

He turned at that, caught her in a hug. “Man, it’s nice having a sister.”

Inside, Tic bounded downstairs, sniffing the air.

“Not for you, pal.” She walked back to the kitchen, stowed the foot well out of doggie reach before she bent down to greet him.

“What a good dog. Why don’t you take me upstairs so I can see what’s going on?”

He went with her, then raced up the steps. And stopped halfway to look back as if telling her to hurry up.

She heard the echo of voices, so walked with Tic into Nash’s unfinished main bedroom and into the en suite.

He’d repurposed an old buffet for the vanity, added a more contemporary touch with new pulls on the drawers and cabinets so the matte black popped against the light natural wood. She assumed CJ had installed the two white stone vessel sinks on the long black slab that showed subtle graining of green and white.

They’d framed out and drywalled the WC, framed in the closet area.

But the star of this particular show shined in the wet room area. He’d tiled the entire area in a herringbone pattern that showed off the color variation and movement of the tile. From delicate green to deepest forest.

Now he stood on a ladder installing the second of two big, matte-black rain showerheads. She noted he wore a very new O’s fielder’s cap.

CJ stepped back to examine her work on the wall jets, nodded.

“You’re gonna have water coming at you from everywhere.”

“That’s the idea.”

“That big-ass tub you got comes in, we’ll get that plumbed, but I’m done here today. Hey there, Sloan. You ever see anything like this?”

“I can’t say I have.” She looked up at Nash as he looked down at her. “Bold move, Cotton,” she said, and made him laugh.

“Yeah, and we’ll see if it pays off.”

“Oh, I think it has. It’s stunning.”

“Got the idea from your shower. It’s the same tile, but in green.”

“This makes my shower a pretty phone booth. Good going on the floor. The white, hints of green and black.”

“Heated, too,” CJ told her. “The whole damn thing. Got steam in there, a speaker for music. It had a TV and fridge, hell, I’d live in it.”

Nash stepped down from the ladder. “We couldn’t have done it without you, CJ.”

“That’s God’s truth. I’m grabbing a Diet Pepsi from your fancy kitchen on my way out.”

“All you want. Tub and toilet coming in the end of the week.”

“We’ll get to them.”

She stopped to rub at Tic. “You’re a good job dog. You deserve a big treat.”

At the word, Tic yipped, wagged, bounced. And CJ shot Nash a grin as she left with Tic rushing out with her.

“She got him to do that. And if you don’t come up with the treat fast, he goes nuts.”

“I’m glad you said your place. I wouldn’t have wanted to miss this. I saw this”—she tapped the vanity—“in progress, and boy, did it turn out.”

“Worth the effort. I’ve got paint samples for in here, the closet, the bedroom. You can weigh in. But right now, I’m seriously ready for a beer.”

---