The Troublemaker Next Door

by Marie Harte

  “Oh, God. We really did.” Her eyes sparkled, and she laughed in spite of her horrified words.

  They spent the next hour with the gang, but this time Flynn danced with Maddie, keeping the hounds at bay. Every time they touched or locked gazes, he seemed to fall a little more under her spell.

  And he didn’t care who watched them or who knew it.

  ***

  Three weeks later, Maddie was grimacing at the mess of her accounts. She’d been dipping into her savings more and more. Between advertising, a website she’d insisted she pay full price for from Abby, and a new laptop, she continued to lose more than she made. That didn’t even take into account the furniture rental expenses she hadn’t counted on, but she’d needed to make the first few jobs for Linda perfect, to prove that the first house hadn’t been a fluke.

  Three days after the open house on the Howe project, the house sold for its asking price. The success had boosted her confidence, but these setbacks worried her.

  Her phone buzzed, and she dropped everything to reach for it. Another note from Flynn. He’d been gone the past three weeks on a job for a friend in Anacortes. She hadn’t expected to miss him so much, yet she looked forward to every one of his messages. She read this one and smiled to herself.

  I need to add to my collection. Wear a pair of red panties this Friday.

  She texted back, What’s in it for me?

  The phone rang—an actual call. “Hello?”

  “Maddie, honey, do we really need to talk about this?” Flynn’s deep voice turned her into a pile of mush.

  “Now, Flynn, it’s only a few more days until we see each other. Keep it together.” She paused, in a mood to tease. “I have to say, I’m looking forward to finally going down on you.”

  He groaned. “Why say things like that now? When you’re too far away to make good on your promises?”

  “Promises? I’m just making conversation.” She heard his muttered curse and grinned.

  “Plan to make that happen, you little witch. But you have to be wearing those heels and a red thong next time.”

  “In your dreams.”

  “Every night.”

  She laughed. “So how’s the job going?”

  “Well, it’s Wednesday night and I’m hanging out by the sewer while Brody makes a few calls. How do you think it’s going?”

  “Ew. Sorry I asked.”

  He chuckled. “Actually, this is a great project. I was hesitant to take it, but I’m glad Brody talked me into it. The money is phenomenal, but even better, we’ve made some new contacts. This development they’re building is classy. They want everything done right, and their philosophy is quality over cost. The best fittings, the best materials, and they want the best service to go with it.”

  She liked the pride she heard in his voice. He exuded confidence. Hearing him talk like that, who wouldn’t want McSons working for them? “So you only have a few more days?”

  “Another week and a half, actually, but Brody and I are taking the weekend off and coming home.” He paused. “I thought I’d swing by Friday night and take you out for a bite. It’s been a while since I had dinner with a pretty face. Brody wears on a guy, you know?”

  “Not having any fun with the girls up north, hmm?” She kept it light, but deep down she didn’t want him to find anyone else.

  “Nope. Just me and my ugly partner. What about you? I heard from my aunt that my cousin thinks you’re hot. You been sucking up to Theo lately? Seen Ted hanging around?”

  “No Ted, and Flynn, get real. Theo’s a kid. A nice, strong young man who’s too useful to me to have sex with him. And just saying his name and the word sex together makes me cringe.”

  “Wait a minute. He’s too useful to you to have sex with, but I’m not?”

  “Yes. No. First of all, your cousin is too young for me. You and I have an arrangement. We’re friends who have an intimate knowledge of one another and don’t get bogged down in messy emotions.”

  He snorted. “That’s a mouthful. And speaking of mouthful, I’m planning on driving around town with you on Friday before dinner. Plenty of time for you to take care of me since I’m so useless, don’t you think?”

  “You have a one-track mind.” She tried but couldn’t sound annoyed. “I like it.”

  “I’ll pick you up at eight. Be ready.” He disconnected the call in a hurry.

  Maddie shook her head and returned to work. An hour later, she was ready to pull her hair out. It would have helped if she’d accepted Abby’s offer of free tech support, but Maddie didn’t want to take advantage. Like Vanessa, who’d offered her a discount rate on her accounting services that Maddie hadn’t accepted, Abby would receive full payment for services rendered.

  Gardners didn’t take charity. Hell, she’d grown up watching her mother work herself to the bone to provide for the two of them. Michelle Gardner didn’t take advice or money from relatives or friends. Maddie liked to think she’d evolved from her mother. She took as much advice as she could, though she only followed what made sense. When it came to money, however, all bets were off.

  She’d always made her own way, and she refused to stop now. She just needed to settle down and figure this out. After several jobs for Linda, she had less than she started with financially, but a lead on several other projects. The problem with staging boiled down to logistics. She’d pieced together what she could, in addition to adding Flynn’s cousin to her labor force before the teen started interning with McSons Plumbing.

  Robin and Kim had loaned two of their employees and staging resources to get her business started. The help had been more than welcome, and Maddie treasured her friends for supporting her. Yet Gardner’s was her business, and she’d better fix her own problems before they grew too big to handle.

  She spent the rest of the night and the next day coming up with ideas while she sketched a few designs for the house she’d been hired to stage for a major showing next week.

  “Hey, come see this.” Abby’s voice preceded her into Maddie’s room. She looked around and frowned. “It’s a mess in here. You need a real office.”

  “Ya think?”

  “Don’t be sarcastic, Ms. Crabby. Take a break and come see your new website.”

  Maddie followed Abby downstairs to the office. Since Abby had accepted the smallest bedroom without protest, Maddie and Vanessa had conceded her the sunroom. Abby kept it organized and ran her business with a skill Maddie envied.

  “You know,” Abby said, looking around, “I can make some room for you in the corner. Just move the desk from your room down here. We can find a filing cabinet or shelving to help you.”

  “Nice offer. I might take you up on that. It’s just easier for me right now because I know where everything is upstairs. I’m kind of too busy to move everything around.”

  “Busy. That’s such a great word. I love being busy. Means I can afford to eat.” Abby grinned. “But think about it, Maddie. How awesome is it that you’re already hard at work again in your own field? Do you have any idea how hard it is to do what you love and get paid for it? You took a crappy situation and turned it around all in the same minute. I mean, well, not really, but it’s not like you’ve been out of work for a year. You’re right back in the game! It’s so exciting to think of being your own boss, isn’t it?”

  Exciting? More like nerve wracking. But at least Maddie had what promised to be a nice income, if she could figure out how to better manage her operating costs. “Yeah, yeah. Now show me this website.”

  Abby had taken her ideas and plied them into the perfect electronic venue. “I couldn’t get you Gardner’s as a domain name, because it’s pretty popular, believe it or not. But I did get you MGardner’s dot com. Close enough. You’ll just have to add that to your business cards later. Now check it out.”

  She’d included everything Maddie had asked for and more. An appointments and scheduling page, contact listing, places for her to show off her portfolio, services and estimates, and a
n additional page for a link to Madison Gardner Designs, Maddie’s future design boutique.

  “Oh wow.” She hugged her friend until Abby squeaked. “Thank you so much. This is terrific! When does it go live?”

  “Soon as you give me some pictures for your portfolio section. You need to ask Linda if you can use the photos from the Howe house too. Those would be great because they’re recent. And a few testimonials from Linda, Robin, or Kim would work. I’d ask you to get something from Hampton’s too, but screw them.”

  “Yeah, screw them.”

  Maddie all of a sudden felt the pressure to succeed. Stupid, since she’d already been working for a few weeks. But the website would be global, putting herself out there for real. An office space—not her bedroom—and business cards with her website address, a new graphic design just for her, for Gardner’s…

  She felt so official now. It wouldn’t be a private failure if she didn’t succeed. Everyone would know she couldn’t handle being her own boss.

  It hurt to breathe.

  “Whoa. What’s that panicked look?”

  “Sorry,” Maddie rasped. “Just feeling the reality settle in. I can do this. I’m fine.”

  “Exactly. Don’t let fear drag you down.”

  Maddie huffed, her tension easing as she repeated her inner mantra. I can do this. I am not afraid. “Funny, but I remember you freaking out when you started. It’s tough when the money’s tight.” And you’re missing Flynn. Her conscious mind booted him right back out. Ack. This is not about him. I can do this.

  “You’ve been working for over a month.” Abby shrugged. “I’m not seeing the problem.”

  “I’m not making the money I need to be self-sufficient. I can’t do it just on staging, not at this rate.”

  “Do you need a loan?”

  Abby barely had two dimes to rub together. “No! I don’t want your money. I want my money.” She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I just need to look at what I’m doing and fix problem areas.” She swallowed hard and admitted, “It’s tough, sometimes, when I’m talking to Flynn, and he’s got another job. He’s so successful. Confident and handsome and working all over the place. I’m trying not to compare myself to him.”

  “Don’t. Give yourself a break. You’re just starting out. At least you were smart enough to save for your future.”

  “Yeah.” And look where that’s gotten me. I’m going broke. She wasn’t, but it felt like she was. Terrified of ever reaching the panic line she’d invisibly drawn over that account, Maddie jumped at every shadow lately. She didn’t know why, but she felt like her mother. Alone, struggling to make ends meet, underqualified for the really good work, because she no longer had the backing of a high-name firm behind her. Yet she had so many more options than her mother had ever had.

  “Why do I seem to have the worst timing?” Vanessa’s drawl made the situation go from bad to worse. The queen of competent, she who ruled the land of never-makes-a-mistake. Of course she’d come home early from her spinning class in time to hear Maddie confessing a bit of self-doubt.

  Annoyed and wishing she’d never moved in with her stupid—perfect—cousin, Maddie growled, “Go away, Vanessa.”

  “Free house. Besides, this is Abby’s office, not yours.” Vanessa wouldn’t shut up. “What the hell crawled up your ass today?” She paused, and her eyes gleamed with mirth. “You’re missing that man of yours, aren’t you? So much for hoping you’d be a new independent woman.”

  “Oh, fuck off, Vanessa,” she snapped. “This isn’t about Flynn. I’m just having a bad day.”

  Abby looked startled, but Vanessa didn’t flinch. She walked right into the room and sat on the floor, stretching her toned legs. “So what started this tantrum, Abby? She not getting enough action from Flynn?”

  “Not now, Vanessa.” Abby glanced worriedly between them.

  Furious at the thought of Vanessa insulting Flynn, who’d been nothing but nice, Maddie cut in. “Flynn has nothing to do with this.”

  “Please. You’ve been pouting since he’s been gone. Your cell rings and you jump to answer it. You have it bad for the playboy.” Vanessa’s disgust came through crystal clear.

  “Just because you’re one cold bitch doesn’t mean the rest of us have to be.”

  Vanessa stopped stretching and looked Maddie right in the eye with an icy blue stare. “I’m a rational adult who doesn’t give up just because things are hard. Man up, Maddie.” She sneered. “You have man problems. You have money problems. You’re not good enough and never will be. Wah wah wah. Join the fucking club.”

  Maddie blinked. Vanessa sounded surprisingly bitter. Unfortunately, she wasn’t done. “It’s called life. Deal with it. All I know is my free time is too precious to spend it listening to you whine about how scared you are. Everyone’s scared of failing. But sometimes you have to put on your big-girl pants and step up to the plate. You want your business to succeed, talk to the right people and figure it out. But stop with all the drama. It’s giving me a headache.”

  Vanessa rose from the floor, graceful as always, and stalked out of the room and upstairs. A door slammed and classic rock boomed above.

  “Somebody other than you had a bad day.” Abby pushed her hair back behind her ear. “Wonder what crawled into her Nikes and died.”

  Maddie didn’t know what to think.

  She wiped her cheeks dry, no longer weepy. “Thanks, Abby.” She hugged her. “You’re such a good listener. But I’m not talking to Vanessa until she apologizes. You can tell her that for me.”

  “Ah, sure. But I’m going to wait until tomorrow. Vanessa is on a tear, and I’m too small and cute to be crushed under one of her size elevens.”

  She and Abby shared a laugh, then Maddie walked upstairs and fell into bed. For once, she didn’t dream about the future, Flynn, or her mother. And she didn’t wake up until her alarm rang at seven the next morning.

  Chapter 14

  Friday morning, Maddie felt a buzz of energy she hadn’t felt in weeks. She exercised, ate a healthy breakfast involving more than a box of cereal and milk, and cleaned up after herself. Vanessa had already left for the day—good riddance—but Abby sat at her computer with a steaming cup of coffee by her side. She waved at Maddie and kept writing.

  Maddie took her time in the shower, concentrating on all the positives in her life. Vanessa could be a real bitch, but she had a point. Dwelling on the negative didn’t help anything.

  That afternoon, after a business meeting with Kim that really helped her put her worries into perspective, she felt more like the old Maddie, the woman who knew her worth and made damn sure others knew it as well. Kim had started from the ground up. Maddie couldn’t have asked for a better example of how to make a design business work. Readjusting her time and budget, she’d figured out how not to lose so much money on her jobs. She should have talked to Kim weeks ago, but she’d also needed to learn by experience. Now it was time to put her plan into practice. She’d be a success because she had to be.

  Of all Kim’s advice, one piece she’d said had stood out, because it sounded like something Maddie’s mother had said. “One thing to remember, Maddie. Don’t lose yourself in work. Because one day you’ll look up and see life has passed you by. It’s Friday. Go get laid, have a terrific meal, then get back to the grindstone on Monday. Really. What do you have to lose?”

  Kim’s words wouldn’t leave her all day. She had a valid point. Hell, so did Vanessa. If Maddie didn’t believe in herself, could she ask anyone else to?

  That thought in mind, she readied for her night out with Flynn. After checking herself three times in the mirror, she grabbed her bag and went downstairs to wait.

  In the living room, Abby sat on the couch watching television. She muted it when she saw Maddie. Abby stared at Maddie’s blue heels, jeans, and leather jacket over a silk tank. Her sly expression promised trouble. “You look all spiffed up. Where are you going?”

  “Out. With a guy, Miss Nosy.”r />
  Abby tapped her fingers on her knee, glancing from Maddie to the discreet overnight bag sitting on the floor next to her purse “Hmm. Anyone I know?”

  Maddie shrugged. Under her jacket, the deep V of her shirt shifted enough to advertise she wasn’t wearing a bra. But Abby’s attention seemed focused on Maddie’s bag.

  “Let me rephrase that. Where is Flynn taking you?”

  Maddie sighed. “He’s just a friend.”

  “Yeah, one you’re boinking. Just tell me this. Is he hotter without his clothes on, or with?”

  “Without.”

  “You lucky, lucky whore.”

  “Abby!”

  Abby moaned and fell back on the couch. “Do you have any idea how long it’s been since I’ve seen a penis? I mean, one not on the Internet?”

  “And whose fault is that? I keep telling you it’s past time you reentered the dating scene.”

  “Please. You’re supposedly not even dating. A friend, my ass. You and Flynn are doing it. You like him, he likes you. You’re dating.”

  Maddie inhaled and let her breath out slowly. She would not let Abby ruin her good mood. “No, we’re not. Dating implies rules, compromises, and time spent reassuring fragile male egos. Flynn and I aren’t like that. We actually have fun together.”

  “Outside of the bedroom?”

  In the club, actually. She cleared her throat. “Yes. As a matter of fact, we had fun a few weeks ago walking around downtown. Not holding hands or making goo-goo eyes at each other.” Technically they had held hands, but Flynn had called that a leash. So it didn’t count. “Just talking and window shopping. Nothing major.”

  Abby sat up and stared at her. “Guys don’t window shop. Especially not guys like Flynn McCauley. It was a date.”

  “It was not.”

  “So okay. What are your plans for tonight then? And that bag? That’s overnight equipment, sister.” Abby’s tone had gone from hard to teasing.

  As annoyed as Maddie wanted to stay, she knew Abby just wanted the best for her. “So what? I might spend the night. Like a sleepover.” She batted her eyes. “His mom said it was okay.”