Page 23 of Pinch of Love

“Fine. I’ll take the house and the dog.”

“But?” he asked tentatively.

I shook my head. “No buts... other than I want to close in two weeks. I’m going to need every single day before winter hits to work on this place.”

“Great. I’ll let them know. It shouldn’t be a problem. In fact, they’ll probably be relieved that it’s behind them.” My cousin stepped out of my reach and turned to face me. “So, you said that you had to drop off someone before our appointment.”

I gave a quick nod. “I did say that.”

“Did you finally take my advice?” His brows waggled, and I grunted my answer.

“Then who’d you have to drop off in the morning?”

“A tenant.”

“Yeah?”

I averted my eyes away from Marcus and back to the house. I knew what he was thinking and wasn’t going to fall into his trap.

“Does the tenant happen to be a she?”

“What are you getting at?”

“Just curious why you’re hanging out with a guest at one of your rentals. That’s all. Was there an issue with her pipes or something?”

I studied my cousin as paranoia crept in. He couldn’t be in on it, right?

Or was he?

Was that clog not as innocent as it appeared?

Had the Sunshine Breakfast Club infiltrated my own family?

I eyed him suspiciously. “Are you sleeping with someone from the Sunshine Breakfast Club?”

He frowned. “Why would you ask that?”

I shook my head. “No reason. Listen, just get me the papers to sign, and let’s get rolling.”

“Awesome.”

I turned to my Jeep, and my cousin started up again. “Hey, when are you coming to get Chewie?”

Might as well get it over with.

“How about now?” I hollered over my shoulder. “I should probably let Chewie start to settle in.”

My cousin didn’t answer, but when I got in my Jeep, he gave a thumbs-up sign as he climbed into his truck.

I glanced at the house once more and let out a deep breath, wondering if this was the sign I’d been waiting for.

Probably not.

The truth was that I wasn’t waiting for any sign.

I already knew I’d been lucky enough to have love once. I didn’t need to test the waters again.

This house and this dog would be distraction enough while Maya was in town, and I could just get back to the life I understood.