Was he really not going to say anything about the barn? Perhaps Daniel had been too forward in seeking his opinion, presuming on a friendship the other man might not reciprocate. He swallowed his disappointment and forced a smile. ‘Yes, please. Mia has some fancy plans for a boudoir, apparently.’
They carried the heavy chaise out to the yard and placed it next to the footstool. ‘Anything else we need to fetch?’ Richard asked. Feeling thoroughly miserable, Daniel handed him the list and trudged after him back into the barn.
Richard dragged a dust sheet off a matching pair of floral armchairs and sank down into one, nodding to the other one. ‘Before we get started, I think we should talk about your fancy plans, don’t you?’
Apprehensive at his stern tone, Daniel took a seat. ‘You don’t approve.’
‘That’s not what I said, son. Why don’t you tell me a bit about what brought you here? Madeline says I should mind my own business, but Mia is our heart and soul and I won’t have you filling her head with flights of fancy only to let her down.’
Daniel propped his elbows on his thighs and stared at the floor between his feet. What could he say? If he let Richard see everything inside him, then he would have to admit his failures to himself at the same time. He didn’t want to look back; he wanted to move forward. But if you keep hiding from the past, how will you ever get over it?
A warm hand came down on his back and Richard’s voice sounded close to his ear. ‘Talk to me, Daniel. Let me help you, son.’
The words poured out—every ugly hidden thing from the past few years. The drink, the drugs, the faceless girls and his own stupid arrogance. Like lancing a boil. He spoke of his fears. Of the bone-shaking terror that he had burnt out his gift, thrown away the God-given talent his dad had been so proud of. His dad. Oh, his dad. The tears came next, gut-wrenching sobs that shook his entire body. And through it all, that strong hand never moved from his back.
Calm at last, he moved on to his hopes for the future. ‘I want to help people like me. Give them a space to breathe, a safe place where nothing matters other than their art. I’m not the only one, I’m sure.’ Now he thought about it, he could recall the glazed and dazed expressions of at least a dozen other artists he knew. That same jaw-gritting determination to cope because it was what you needed to do to get on. To get noticed, to be a personality rather than letting the work speak for itself. How many youngsters fell by the wayside because they couldn’t hack it? How much talent was lost to the harsh competitiveness of the art world?
‘And Mia?’
He glanced up at Richard through red-raw eyes. ‘I love her. Body and soul. But in the end, it’s not up to me what happens between us. Butterfly Cove is my home now. I’ll work side by side with her and take only as much of her as she is willing to give me.’
Richard patted his shoulder. There was no censure in his eyes, just a warm, familiar twinkle. ‘That’s all I needed to hear. Come on, let’s see if we can find the rest of the stuff on the list.’
Feeling lighter than he had in months, Daniel scrubbed his face with his hands then stood up. He’d said it out loud. Admitted what he’d been feeling for a while. He was head over heels in love with Mia Sutherland. Sending up a silent prayer that she might one day return his feelings, he followed Richard’s lead and began to search through the heaps of junk to find the things she wanted.
The sun warm on her back, Mia stretched and wiped her brow as she surveyed the decimated border in front of her. The weeds had run rampant and although she would never have much of a green finger, she had followed Madeline’s instructions to the letter about what to cull and what to keep.
Mia looked across to where Luke was cursing and doing battle with the old lawn mower for the third time that day. He had seemed happy to turn his hand to every task Madeline gave him. She couldn’t see Aaron, but the noise of an electric hedge trimmer pinpointed his location somewhere deep in one of the overgrown thickets.
Daniel and Richard were still in the barn. They’d been in there for a long time, only appearing now and then to haul out various pieces of furniture Mia had earmarked for the next bedroom. She had decided on an exotic boudoir theme after discovering a beautiful chaise longue under an oilcloth in the back of the barn. It would be a room to tempt and delight the senses, full of different, luxuriant materials, scented candles and lush greenery.
The name in her notebook was the harem room and she wanted the space to be one of utter indulgence, something for couples to use. The room was in the back wing of the house, which would offer some privacy to the occupants. Mia was toying with the idea of turning the room between it and the beach room into a sitting room so that it was a completely private haven for whoever rented the space.
She decided to speak to Luke about it, see if he could come up with some alteration ideas to expand the bathroom so she could install a small steam cabinet as well as a shower and a large bath. She looked across again and smiled at his crow of triumph as he got the stubborn old petrol mower going again.
They had been blessed with a bright day but the sun wouldn’t last for too much longer so Mia headed towards the house to prepare dinner. She waved at Luke and pointed towards the kitchen so he would know where she was. She kicked off her muddy boots in the doorway.
Dinner was a calm, quiet affair and no-one objected when Mia placed a pack of cards on the table with the pot of tea and some shortbread afterwards. A quick discussion established a couple of games they all knew although it soon became apparent that there was some familial licence in the rules they each played to.
An easy hour passed and Mia felt much more relaxed with these men in her home. Aaron started to yawn as he surrendered his final hand. ‘I’m bushed. All this sea air and honest work is doing me in. I’ve never been ready for bed before 10 p.m. before.’ He laughed around another jaw-dislocating yawn.
Luke looked wide awake despite his exertions in the garden so she fetched her notebook and started to discuss her plans for the harem rooms with him. He dived head first into the distraction and they headed upstairs whilst Daniel promised to clean the kitchen. Aaron retired to his bed.
Luke surveyed the three rooms that would comprise the suite and started scribbling furiously in his own notebook. Mia sat quietly with her hands curled around her knees, which were drawn up under her chin. He was a live wire and when he set his mind to something his level of concentration and focus was a little daunting. Mia shivered as she tried to imagine being the sole focus of that much energy. She decided that it was too intense for her.
Daniel was so much more matter of fact about things. He was a good foil to her more sensitive nature. Mia watched the wild blond curls of Luke’s hair fall over his forehead again and he shoved them away in an unconscious movement. He was an impressive man, thick through the shoulders, like his brother, in contrast to Daniel’s taller, more slender build. They were all men who would make a woman feel safe and sheltered.
Mia stood up and stretched her aching body. The work in the garden was starting to take its toll and she wanted a soak in the bath and half an hour with a good book. She patted Luke on the shoulder and left him to it with an instruction that the space was his to do with as he pleased. He flashed her a sweet, shy grin before he bent back to his sketches and calculations.
She paused on the landing and saw that the lower floor was in darkness and only a soft light was spilling down from the third floor. She urged her weary, sore legs up the stairs to find Daniel clad in a T-shirt and jogging pants, sprawled in the middle of his bed with all the pillows propped beneath him.
He had certainly made himself at home in the little bedroom next to hers. A laptop rested across his knees and clothes hung over the back of a rocking chair he’d come across in the barn. The iron-framed bed he sat upon was a sea of flowers and lace; she ought to buy him some more suitable bedding. The green set had been washed and left on the bed downstairs