into town, she’d offered the house to Ellery and her fiancé, Josh, but her daughter hadn’t wanted to live in the country. With her career in fashion up in the air after a missed internship, and Josh potentially going elsewhere for residency, it didn’t make sense to hold on to the family property. Time for someone else to make a home in the farmhouse.
“You’ll recoup and then some, but I can’t believe you’re selling this place,” Clay said, looking around at the bucolic pasture with the old barn that she still needed to clean out. “We had some good times out here.”
“Yeah, well, Ellery’s not too happy about me moving, but she doesn’t want the house, so . . .” Daphne wiped a hand across her brow. They needed a cold front soon. October in north Louisiana often felt like coming out at the wrong end of Saint Peter’s gate.
Clay chuckled. “You mean Ellery’s not getting her way?”
Daphne snorted. “Shocking, right? I don’t want to live out here by myself any longer. Time for a new start for me and Jonas.”
Hearing his name, the old hound rose from the shade of the oak tree and ambled over. He pressed himself against Daphne’s leg, sat down, and issued a big sigh.
Both she and Clay smiled at the older dog. Jonas, named for Ellery’s favorite boy group when she was younger, would soon be settling his old bones at the new small patio home being built in Bordeaux Village. Daphne was excited about this next step in her life. With clean lines and a gorgeous cobbled courtyard, her new place would be the blank slate she needed to launch a new Daphne. No longer was she merely Ellery’s mom or Rex’s wife. She was a successful artist and author. Every time she remembered that, she wanted to pinch herself. It was almost like a do-over for her life.
“A new start’s always good. Still, this place is just what I want when I get ready to settle down,” Clay said, longing lacing his words.
“You’re too young to settle down,” Daphne said, glancing at him. His shirt still hung open, and the sunglasses he’d pulled on when they’d walked away from the house kept her from seeing his emotions. He looked exactly like what he was—a guy with the world in his hand.
“Not that young. I’m twenty-five, and I’ve played pretty hard for the past few years. Kind of tired of that life.” He shrugged a shoulder. “Even Ellery’s getting married.”
“But not yet,” Daphne said, thankful her daughter hadn’t insisted on a wedding within the year. With Ellery’s fiancé in med school and her own career on hold, the last thing her daughter needed was the hassle of planning a wedding. Once Ellery got a satisfactory job and Josh got through at least his second year of medical school, they could look at planning a wedding.
“Yeah, but I’m tired of the life I’m leading. It gets old, and I’m ready to find someone who wants to stay home and not party,” Clay said, hooking a thumb in his waistband, which, of course, drew her attention to the lighter skin revealed at his waist.
She pulled her gaze away and vowed to complete the dating profile she’d started on MadeForMe but never finished. No more looking at Clay Caldwell like he was . . . a man. He used to swipe beer from her fridge and play badminton in the side yard, for heaven’s sake. He was a kid. Okay, not technically. But a kid.
“Well, I need to run some errands. I can put Jonas in the laundry room if you want,” she said, smoothing her damp hands against her shorts. She had planned on tackling a new proposal for the holiday series but had gotten distracted by boxing up the kitchen. Updated tile and kitchen counters would go in once Clay finished with the bathroom and closet. So much to do to get ready to turn the house over . . . but she needed to drop off her father’s new medication, then pop in to her ex-husband’s heating and AC–repair company to leave him a few tax files he’d orphaned in the hall closet and called about.
“Nah, leave him outside. That’s what you want, right, boy?” Clay gave Jonas a scratch behind his ears. The dog immediately flopped over and offered his belly to be scratched. Clay squatted and obliged.
“Now you’ve done it. He’ll have you giving him belly rubs every day,” Daphne said,