working been at Douglas High, she’d pretty much have to be caught doing something obscene with a farm animal to get fired.
“Maybe I
can
do it.”
“Think about it,” Mallory suggested. “With your name, you can make a shamrock logo. Kelley Realty. Has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?”
Juliana nodded, letting them talk her into the idea more with every word.
“Amber is great with putting together stuff like logos.” Ben pulled his wallet from his back pocket and fished out a business card, which he set in front of Juliana. “She made these for me.”
The card for Carpenter Contracting looked as if it had been professionally designed and printed. Had he not told her his daughter designed it, she would’ve thought they were done at a professional print shop. “Nice. Think she’d do something like that for me? Shamrocks are a good idea.”
“Maybe you can do green blazers instead of blue,” he added.
“Nah,” Juliana replied. “Tacky blazers aren’t my style.”
* * *
Connor balked at the estimate. At least Indianapolis had a lot of competition, so prices there had tended to be more competitive. This place wanted to charge him an arm and a leg for a couple of sturdy yard signs.
“Let me think about it,” he finally said.
“Suit yourself.” The clerk shrugged and turned back to his workstation.
The bell above the door jingled as Connor walked out of the store, a quaint symbol of just how small Cloverleaf was. One of the reasons he’d come here. He needed to simplify his life. What he didn’t need was overinflated prices for the swag required to get Wilson Realty off the ground. Until he actually achieved a decent cash flow, things were going to be tight. He better learn to accept that.
For what seemed like the millionth time that day, Juliana Kelley crossed his mind. He’d decided to search for her as soon as he had enough listings that he was confident his new firm was off and running sufficiently to make him a decent choice of a date. Or a boyfriend.
Or a husband.
Funny, but that thought didn’t frighten him as it always had in the past. Considering how he’d avoided any kind of permanent attachment, even having the idea came as a surprise. Of course, he’d never been husband material before, not with his checkered past. Had he tried to commit to a woman, he would’ve destroyed that relationship the way he’d flushed the rest of his life down the crapper.
When he was finally ready to hunt her down, would she reject him? For all he knew she believed he was nothing more than a one-night stand and didn’t want anything serious. He’d just have to convince her otherwise, no matter what it took. While his budget might limit the number of roses he could send, he’d find other ways to win her over.
After crawling into the driver’s seat of his car, Connor picked up the folded newspaper. He’d used a red pen to make a pecking order for the fizbos he wanted to visit. He just wasn’t ready quite yet.
The closing on his house was tomorrow. Then he needed to get his furniture out of storage and move in. The place was barely livable, but he wasn’t choosy. The short sale was cheap, had plenty of room, and could be renovated and flipped for a nice profit. All he had to do was live and work through those renovations—and sell enough other houses to pay for it.
Cloverleaf was a fresh start, a chance to make something good of himself. It might be too soon to think of a relationship, but there was something about Juliana. She called to him on too many levels to ignore. He was clearheaded enough to know that was rare. Unique. Special.
When they’d made love, he’d tried “sweetheart” on for size. It didn’t fit. Since her hair was the first thing he’d noticed, he’d wanted to call her “Red,” and when it slipped from his lips it felt right. Now it was the name that popped up every time he saw her face in his mind’s eye.
Red.
Chapter Seven
“Are you sure you want to do
“Maybe I
can
do it.”
“Think about it,” Mallory suggested. “With your name, you can make a shamrock logo. Kelley Realty. Has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?”
Juliana nodded, letting them talk her into the idea more with every word.
“Amber is great with putting together stuff like logos.” Ben pulled his wallet from his back pocket and fished out a business card, which he set in front of Juliana. “She made these for me.”
The card for Carpenter Contracting looked as if it had been professionally designed and printed. Had he not told her his daughter designed it, she would’ve thought they were done at a professional print shop. “Nice. Think she’d do something like that for me? Shamrocks are a good idea.”
“Maybe you can do green blazers instead of blue,” he added.
“Nah,” Juliana replied. “Tacky blazers aren’t my style.”
* * *
Connor balked at the estimate. At least Indianapolis had a lot of competition, so prices there had tended to be more competitive. This place wanted to charge him an arm and a leg for a couple of sturdy yard signs.
“Let me think about it,” he finally said.
“Suit yourself.” The clerk shrugged and turned back to his workstation.
The bell above the door jingled as Connor walked out of the store, a quaint symbol of just how small Cloverleaf was. One of the reasons he’d come here. He needed to simplify his life. What he didn’t need was overinflated prices for the swag required to get Wilson Realty off the ground. Until he actually achieved a decent cash flow, things were going to be tight. He better learn to accept that.
For what seemed like the millionth time that day, Juliana Kelley crossed his mind. He’d decided to search for her as soon as he had enough listings that he was confident his new firm was off and running sufficiently to make him a decent choice of a date. Or a boyfriend.
Or a husband.
Funny, but that thought didn’t frighten him as it always had in the past. Considering how he’d avoided any kind of permanent attachment, even having the idea came as a surprise. Of course, he’d never been husband material before, not with his checkered past. Had he tried to commit to a woman, he would’ve destroyed that relationship the way he’d flushed the rest of his life down the crapper.
When he was finally ready to hunt her down, would she reject him? For all he knew she believed he was nothing more than a one-night stand and didn’t want anything serious. He’d just have to convince her otherwise, no matter what it took. While his budget might limit the number of roses he could send, he’d find other ways to win her over.
After crawling into the driver’s seat of his car, Connor picked up the folded newspaper. He’d used a red pen to make a pecking order for the fizbos he wanted to visit. He just wasn’t ready quite yet.
The closing on his house was tomorrow. Then he needed to get his furniture out of storage and move in. The place was barely livable, but he wasn’t choosy. The short sale was cheap, had plenty of room, and could be renovated and flipped for a nice profit. All he had to do was live and work through those renovations—and sell enough other houses to pay for it.
Cloverleaf was a fresh start, a chance to make something good of himself. It might be too soon to think of a relationship, but there was something about Juliana. She called to him on too many levels to ignore. He was clearheaded enough to know that was rare. Unique. Special.
When they’d made love, he’d tried “sweetheart” on for size. It didn’t fit. Since her hair was the first thing he’d noticed, he’d wanted to call her “Red,” and when it slipped from his lips it felt right. Now it was the name that popped up every time he saw her face in his mind’s eye.
Red.
Chapter Seven
“Are you sure you want to do
Similar Books
