Maggie Moves On(58)

“I want to die here. My headstone will say ‘She bought everything.’”

“This is my sister’s place,” he said with pride.

Maggie tore her gaze away from the table. “Why do you keep introducing me to your family, Sy?”

“Because despite your inherent rudeness, I like you. And I like them.”

“You know, I’m worried enough about you managing your expectations about us. I refuse to take responsibility for any misconceptions your family develops,” she warned him.

“I take full responsibility,” he promised. “Now, come meet my sister Niri. She and her best friend started this place two years ago. At first, we all thought it was just so they could continue spending every second of their lives together. But they’ve really got a knack for it.”

“You can say that again. Sy!” The wonder in her voice had him stopping in his tracks. “Look at that bed.” With something close to reverence, she stroked a hand over the rich finish of the bed’s carved headboard. It looked almost like a picture frame, with dramatically carved edges around a rattan-looking insert. It managed to look both tropical and French country at the same time.

“Now, that’s a step up from a cot,” he observed.

“I want it,” she breathed.

“Get it. I can think of more than a few reasons to have a big, comfortable bed in that room of yours. Namely, the fact that your cot is gonna get awful crowded when Kevin and I spend the night.”

She shot him a downright disagreeable look. “You’re supposed to talk me out of it. Remind me that there’s a budget and that a stager will have something that fits the room.”

“Darlin’, you’d have to be blind and plain ignorant not to put this bed in that room. And from where I’m standing, you’re neither of those things.”

They were made for each other.

“I have to think about it.” Her sigh carried with it the weight of responsible self-denial that Silas didn’t understand.

He put down her treasures and wrapped his arms around her from behind. “Can’t you see it, Mags? It’s early morning, and the sun is just coming up. You’re waking up with my mouth on you right about here.” He dropped a kiss at the base of her neck. She shivered.

He could see it. The way he’d roll over her, covering her with his body. Running his hands over her as she slowly warmed to the day.

“Maggie Nichols, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” Silas’s little sister ruined his vivid fantasy. With great reluctance, he released Maggie and turned to make the introductions.

“Maggie, this is my sister Nirina and her partner / best friend Kayla. Niri, Kayla? Meet Maggie of YouTube fame.”

“Hi,” Kayla said, handing Maggie a spiral-bound book.

“Are you asking for her autograph?” he stage-whispered.

Niri smacked him in the gut. “Maggie, Kayla and I put together a proposal on how Kinship Mercantile can help you in the renovation on the Old Campbell Place.” She’d done that same move in some form or another for two and a half decades. But now his baby sister was all grown up and having her own baby. It made him feel a touch lightheaded.

“I put together a proposal in case our paths crossed,” Kayla announced, tapping the paperwork Maggie held.

“And if we hadn’t crossed paths?” Maggie asked.

“We’d have shown up at your front door with margarita fixings and a proposal,” Nirina said.

“Damn. Maybe I shouldn’t look at this without tequila.”

“In that case,” Nirina said, snatching the proposal back, “we’ll see you at your place at seven.”

Maggie blinked. “Oh. Uh.”

It was nice to see Niri’s steamrolling wasn’t limited to family. Silas had been on the receiving end plenty of times.

“I guess I’ll supply the food then,” Maggie said, still looking a little shell-shocked.

“I don’t suppose y’all would need a landscaper present to—”

“No!” Nirina and Kayla said together. “Ladies only.”

He winced. “It’s just that I only recently started kissing this beautiful boss of mine, and I was hoping to get in some more practice.”

It was Maggie’s turn to elbow him in the stomach. She looked mortified.

“Ooh, sorry, Sy. I’m afraid we can’t let our new best friend keep kissing you until we’ve dissected every single thing about you,” Niri said in mock sympathy.

“It’s what we do,” Kayla agreed.

“I expected you both to be on my side,” he complained.

“Just goes to show you how little you know about women,” Niri pointed out.

Maggie was laughing now.

“Hey, now! Let’s not do any damage to the fine opinion Maggie’s been building of me.”

“Then I definitely won’t tell you that Sy once bet two of his friends he could pee on an electric fence longer than they could,” Nirina said to Maggie.

“Nirina Angela, if you want that very expensive designer crib you’ve been not-so-subtly hinting about since you peed on that stick, you better find some nicer stories about me real fast,” he warned her.

“Forget everything I said,” she announced, eyes dancing. “Just think of Silas here as Mr. Right.”