Which was how the crew of the Starship Enterprise ended up in the garage.
It was like that in every room. Sophie helped and so did Maddie, although she had pretty much insisted that all of her toys were “keepers,” something that, much to Lucas’s amazement, she somehow got away with. Seemed even the cleaning commando was no match for his young daughter, a fact Lucas found endlessly entertaining.
Once they’d whittled each room down to only the items that made the final cut, the real work began. In the world of professional organization, nothing could go back in a cabinet or closet without first being bagged or boxed and then tagged. Lucas had no idea where Paige had found a label maker on the island. For all he knew, she traveled with one, something that wouldn’t have surprised him in the least. The woman was out of control. So much so that he half expected to end the night with a label on his manhood. Then again, turnabout would be fair play, and just the thought of exploring and playfully labeling every inch of her had him moving the boxes at a faster pace. The sooner they were done, the sooner she was all his. At least until six, which was the start time she’d negotiated in exchange for clocking out no later than ten.
They’d started with the kitchen, working their way through the main floor on the first day before moving upstairs on the second, until there was only one room left.
The master bedroom.
Going through the bedroom he’d shared with Jenny was something that was long overdue. He’d left their room exactly as it had been the day she died. But if he was serious about moving on with his life, he knew he had to face that dust-covered bedroom.
Paige had walked with him to the door. “Are you sure?” she’d asked. It was the only time in the nearly forty-eight hours of whip cracking that he’d seen a chink in her commando armor. He knew if he asked her to, they would have skipped that room entirely. But it was time. Lucas knew it, but more than that, he was at peace with it.
“Yes, but if it’s alright, I think I’d like to do this room on my own.”
“Absolutely,” she’d replied. Then she’d smiled at him and squeezed his hand, a small gesture that perfectly conveyed the concern and understanding he saw reflected in her eyes. Surprisingly, it didn’t take him as long as he thought it would to go through the room. Clothes were donated, furniture was dusted, and everything else was boxed up to share with Maddie one day. When he was finished, he followed the sound of the Jonas Brothers only to find Paige and Sophie in Maddie’s room. He’d watched from the door as the three of them danced around the room with Maddie’s favorite toys, before being dragged into the mayhem. Lucas didn’t consider himself much of a dancer, but he was fairly confident his moves were better than Stinky’s, and either way, his humiliation was a small price to pay for the smile it put on his daughter’s face. The look Paige had given him was pretty fantastic as well, although in a completely different way.
Impromptu dance parties aside, restoring the house to its former splendor was a lot of hard work, but in the end they’d somehow managed to turn the Copper Lantern Inn back into a rental property worthy of its website. Paige insisted the job was far from over—according to her, boxes stuffed under the bed were a no-no—but even she had to admit the place looked pretty great.
Only problem was, it took every bit of the time Paige had left on the island. Lucas could have thought of at least a hundred different ways he would rather have spent that time, and pretty much all of them started with getting her naked.
They’d followed his “no work or clothing after ten” rule both nights, although Paige had tried her best to convince him to work overtime the first night. He’d turned those protests into sighs and moans that made him grateful his daughter had gone home with her aunt, a fact that had the added benefit of allowing him to maintain the no-clothes rule until well after dawn.
The days were long and the nights were short, and before he knew it, Paige was leaving.
On her last day, they’d overslept, which not only ruined his plans to bring her breakfast in bed, but made the entire morning a confusing rush. They’d scrambled to get ready, her throwing things haphazardly into her suitcase and him running from room to room making the beds. If there’d been time, he would have cracked a joke about how they’d somehow swapped personalities, but they were at T-minus twenty minutes before the ferry was due to dock.
When Lucas finally came downstairs, he checked the clock. Five minutes to spare. Paige was already waiting by the door, her suitcase at her feet and Leonardo in her arms. He reached out to stroke the pup. “I half expected this little guy to be in your suitcase.”
Paige laughed. The sound wrapped around his heart like a warm embrace. But then it struck him that, in all reality, he’d probably never hear it again, and just like that, the embrace turned into a choke hold.
“Believe me, I thought about it,” she said. “But I think Mr. Rochester is quite set in his ways as an only child.”
“Don’t go yet,” Maddie squealed as she ran down the hall toward them. “I have a present for you, Paige.”
“You do?”
Maddie’s curls bounced as she gave an exaggerated nod. She brought her hand from behind her back and held out the stuffed avocado that was one third of the merry band of misfits she dragged with her everywhere she went. Those toys were her prized possessions. And now she was giving one to Paige.
Paige blinked. “You want me to have Stanley?” She looked about as shocked as Lucas was that Maddie was willing to part with him.
Maddie nodded again.
“Are you sure?” Paige asked.
“Yes. I want you to have something to help you remember us. And Stanley has always wanted to travel the world,” she said as if avocados collected passport stamps. “He can start with Chicago.”
“Thank you, Maddie. I’m honored to be Stanley’s traveling companion.” She took the stuffed avocado from Maddie, trading her for Leonardo. “Promise you’ll take good care of him?”
Lucas wasn’t entirely sure if Paige was referring to him or the dog.
“Deal.” Maddie held out her hand for Paige to shake on it. Lucas smiled to himself because while the handshaking thing was probably going to get real old, real fast, it was obvious that Maddie had taken to the woman who had turned his life upside down. Literally and figuratively. And while he hated to admit it, it was just what he needed.
“Only if you promise to come back and visit,” Maddie added before letting go of Paige’s hand. “Maybe next week?”
Paige’s smile faltered. “I’d love to, kiddo, but Chicago is a long way from here…”
Maddie opened her mouth, but her protest was cut off by a knock at the door.
Paige’s gaze darted to Lucas. “Looks like my ride is here.”