Will laughed, his shoes soundless on the dark laminate flooring that made the room even brighter than all the windows.
“You and Lexi could move there and I can move into your place,” Ethan said.
“One step at a time. Let’s get these two settled,” Will said.
Nick could see why he was so good at his job. He was focused and driven and had an organizational bent that rivaled Ellie’s. When he’d reached out to Will, asking if he’d check out the house and give him honest feedback on the property and neighborhood, Will not only agreed but didn’t tell Lexi, so there was no chance of the surprise being ruined.
“I need to get ready for tonight,” Nick said, looking at his two new friends.
“It’s time to bring in Lexi and my sisters,” Will said.
Nick hesitated. He wasn’t used to having a couple people at his back, never mind a whole group. It’d been him and Ellie, and sometimes Colt, for so long.
“Trust him,” Ethan said, looking up from his phone. “You want tonight to go perfectly, you bring in the experts. Lexi doesn’t have Maisie’s creative flair but Will’s sisters do. Combine that with Lexi’s knowledge of her best friend and it’ll set the perfect stage.”
“Come to think of it,” Will said, stepping toward Ethan. “This guy is pretty good at setting a romantic stage himself. He and Maisiewere instrumental in setting up Side Tap when I was determined to get Lexi back.”
“Sometime soon, I want that whole story,” Nick said.
“Soon. Just not tonight. Call in the backups.”
HOURS LATER,NICK PACEDthe foyer, unsure when he’d last been this nervous. The irony hit him hard, stopping him in his tracks. It’d been less than three weeks ago that the woman tying him up in knots right this moment had talked him down. Hell, she hadn’t even had to speak. Just seeing her had untangled everything inside of him and made it work properly.
His phone rang and part of him was scared to look, scared to see if it was Maisie saying she didn’t really want to go look at a house without him.
It was Ellie.
“Hey,” he said.
“You okay?”
She’d been another rock for him and he was so happy he was going to be closer to her and Asher.
“Just waiting for her to show up.” He glanced out the window beside the door. The driveway was still clear.
Will had picked him up at the airport.
“I’m so happy for you. And now you’re close enough that Asher can come stay with you for a while. Like practice for when you and Maisie—”
A strange sound left his throat, stopping his sister’s words. “Can I get through this first, please?”
Ellie giggled. “You’ve got this, Nicky.”
He smiled. “It’s okay to grow out of being a brat, you know.”
“Don’t count on it, big brother.”
Nick heard a vehicle pull up to the house. “She’s here. I gotta go.”
“Yay! Good luck! Not that you’ll need it.”
Nick stuffed his phone in his pocket. He’d told Maisie the real estate agent would meet her at the house to show her around, asked her to FaceTime him when she arrived so they could see the house sort of together.
Maisie knocked and Nick’s heart lurched.
Time to open the door on the next chapter.
Chapter Thirty-Three
