Page 25 of Meet Me at Sunset Cove

Her cheeks flared pink. “The viewers would.”

He sniffed.

“Look, I know it sounds crazy,” Daisy went on, “but this could be good for both of us. You get the house, I get content, and six-ish months from now, I’ll either be out of your hair or we’ll be married.”

Was that a joke? Hunter didn’t laugh.

She let out a breath, looking around awkwardly. “Okay then…no joking allowed.”

Hunter studied her for a long moment, his jaw clenched. She would wreck him again. His eyes traveled up the banister behind her, settling on the old front door of the house. He exhaled a heavy breath. “Fine. Let’s say I consider this ridiculous plan. What exactly did you have in mind for renovations?”

Daisy’s face lit up, and she bounded up the remaining steps. “Okay, I have a lot of ideas. Can we do a walk through?”

Hunter eyed the phone in her hand. “Off camera.”

She blinked, and then his words clicked. “Oh, ha ha. Yes. Off camera this time. Promise.” She shot him a warm smile and waved toward the door as if to say, ‘after you!’

Hunter reluctantly opened the door and stepped aside, allowing her to enter. As they walked through the foyer, Daisy’s enthusiasm bubbled over. “We could open up this space, create a more welcoming entrance. It should be bright and inviting, so we replace doors?—”

Hunter barked a laugh. “Absolutely not.”

Daisy froze, her hands still splayed in the air as though painting the picture inside her head. She let her arms fall. “Okay. No problem.”

She turned toward the stairs and gestured toward the faded, floral stair runner. “I think it goes without saying that the matching carpet and wallpaper have to go.” She stepped toward the heavy wooden banister. “This banister too. It’s pretty, but it’s too bulky for the space. Totally distracts from the room.”

Hunter shook his head. “The carpet stays. The banister stays.”

Daisy’s brows pulled together. “Thecarpetstays?” She pointed at it as though he must be confused. “This carpet.”

“It’s vintage, Daisy. It was installed with the house.”

Daisy gave him a look of complete disbelief, her rosy lips parted slightly. “Oh, I’m so sorry, I didn’t realize you had so much attachment to a strip of carpeting so aged that you can’t even tell it was once a lovely peach floral. From the 1960s—not the late 1800s. Which you would know if you had gone to design school like I did. Would you like to throw a little funeral for it? Pay your respects?”

Hunter remained unmoved.

Daisy clicked her tongue. “Okay.”

As they walked through the house, Daisy continued her tirade of ideas. “We could move this door to the opposite wall and turn this drawing room into a pantry. Oh, and in the kitchen, imagine continuous granite counters and backsplash, add an overhang on the island for seating.”

“No,” Hunter said flatly to each suggestion. He wasn’t going to inherit the house just to have it completely changed, wall to wall.

Daisy continued until they reached the sunroom, and Hunter quickly closed the door. “This room is off-limits,” he said gruffly.

“What?” Daisy gaped at him. “Hunter, it’s the focal point of the house. Every person who watches the show will be looking forward to the sunroom renovation.”

“No.”

Finally, Daisy’s perpetual optimism seemed to crack. “Why did you call me out here if you were just going to shut me down?”

Hunter’s jaw ticked. Whyhadhe called her out here? It was obvious this was never going to work.

“Were you just looking to get the last word? To pay me back for supposedly stealing your career by getting my hopes up and shutting me down?”

Hunter felt his throat go dry. That’s not what he’d intended at all.

Her eyes flashed as she continued, “Well, news flash. I have NO idea what you meant when you said I stole your designs. I never did that. But I wouldn’t expect you to believe me.”

“Good,” Hunter replied coldly. “Because I don’t.”

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