Designing Love: An Inspirational Romance (Sunriver Dreams Book 3)

by Kimberly Rose Johnson

  Sierra sighed.

  “What was that all about?

  She told her boss the full story, filling in the blanks Spencer had left out earlier.

  “Whoa. I’m sorry Trey went through that. But Spencer is a good guy and a good cop too. He works with Nicole’s husband, and Nicole only has good things to say about him. In fact, I probably should have talked with him about something that happened at the site Rick is working on.”

  “What are you talking about?” Her mind darted to Rick, the oldest Belafonte brother who headed up all the construction jobs.

  “It’s not really a big deal. Some equipment appeared to be pushed over. Weird things have been happening off and on for a while now. Back in November vandals spray-painted cabinets inside a new build near Bend. Rick says vandalism every now and then is normal, but I have a funny feeling.”

  “Like what?”

  “I’m not sure. It feels like more than a prank to me.”

  “Hmm. Toppling equipment is kind of weird, isn’t it?” Sierra asked.

  “I think so. Thankfully nothing was damaged, other than a gauge, which can be fixed. Nicole’s husband Mark responded when Rick called the police. If he’s on the case I know this will get resolved soon. He’s a great detective.”

  Sierra nodded. Bailey and Nicole were best friends, and she and Stephen often socialized with Nicole and her husband. Bailey and Stephen had been dating practically since Sierra had started as her assistant around Christmas, and unless she was wrong, the CEO of Belafonte Designs would soon be popping the question. Would that put her out of a job? She could see the two of them working closely together once they were married. From what Sierra had observed, Stephen had an eye for interior design as much or more than she did—but his main job was drawing up house plans. Maybe her position was safe after all. Not that Bailey ever gave her much free reign to show what she could do. Her job consisted of more grunt work than anything. She probably didn’t need to worry.

  “What’s wrong?” Bailey asked with concern in her eyes.

  “Nothing really. Other than I’m concerned about Trey. The incident this afternoon really messed with his head.”

  “I’d think it would have that effect on most people. It’s not every day a cop orders you to the ground and holds a gun on you.”

  “Praise the Lord for that.” She stood. “I’d better order pizza. Would you like to stay and join us, or do you and Stephen have dinner plans?”

  “I’m solo tonight. I’d love to stick around if you don’t mind.”

  “Not at all.” She liked her boss, although they never socialized, so this felt a little weird. Maybe Bailey was concerned about the whole thing with Spencer. But it wasn’t necessary. They were going to be fine . . . eventually. Sierra grabbed her cellphone, and placed the order for an extra large Canadian bacon and pineapple pizza.

  “I know we’re off the clock, but are you enjoying your job?” Bailey asked.

  “Mostly. I was hoping to be able to make more design decisions.”

  Empathy filled Bailey’s eyes. “Yes. And I hope that will change soon. In fact, John, Stephen’s middle brother, asked to have a more hands on role in the company—as in he’d like to get out of the office and work some jobs. If things pick up, I plan to have the two of you work together.”

  “Really?” Her pulse picked up. She’d never formally met John, but the man made her heart flutter when they’d spoken on the phone. There was something about his voice. “But doesn’t he run the business side of things?”

  “Yes, and I’m honestly not sure how it will work, but Rick and Stephen are willing to give it a try.”

  “Hmm. Interesting. So I’d be paired with him.” She winced at how that sounded. “I don’t mean as a couple.” Although she wouldn’t mind. What was she thinking? She couldn’t afford to get involved with anyone. Trey spoke the truth—she didn’t date and for good reason. She would never allow another man into their lives so he could abandon them when things got tough. She’d much rather be alone than go through that again.

  Bailey chuckled. “I didn’t think you did. Are you okay about working with John? You seem hesitant.”

  “No. I’m surprised that’s all.”

  “Me too.” Bailey stared at the screen on her phone and started typing. “I’m sorry, Sierra, but I need to go. I forgot I promised to take care of Lacy and Collin tonight.” She stood and shouldered her oversized purse. “Thanks for the cake.”

  “Sure thing. Have fun.”

  “We will. I’ll see myself out.” Bailey raced to the door and closed it softly behind her.

  Bailey’s boyfriend’s niece and nephew seemed to always need a sitter. She almost felt sorry for them, but they appeared to be happy and healthy children. She shrugged. It was none of her business, and she had enough trouble of her own without pondering her boss. What would John be like to work with? Granted there was only an off chance they’d work together. She’d been with the company for several months now, and although they were always busy, it was never more than they could handle. But maybe that was by design.

  Sierra strode through the great room and into the hall. She stopped in Trey’s doorway. “You want to come along or stay here?”

  “Can I drive?”

  “Sure.” She tossed him the keys. It made her nervous to drive with him in Bend, but Sunriver, with its single lane roads in each direction were a piece of cake, even for a young driver with only a permit. Besides, it’d give him more experience with the traffic circles that were so prevalent here and in certain areas of Bend.

  Thirty minutes later, they were home with their pizza sitting at the dining room table once again.

  “This is good. I think I’m going to like living in Sunriver if we get pizza at least once a week.” He shot her a teasing grin.

  “Mmm-hmm. We’ll see about that.” Although taking a night off from cooking once a week sounded great. “Do you like this house?”

  “What’s not to like?”

  “Good. Then you won’t mind your chores.”

  He stopped chewing, and his face went slack.

  “As long as we’re on unpleasant topics, how is your college search coming along?”

  He chuckled. “It’s only unpleasant for you, Mom. I think it’s fun. I can’t wait until I graduate and head off to school.”

  “You have a couple of years to go, so don’t get too excited.” She should be happy her son was almost ready for adulthood and excited about college. A part of her wanted to keep him with her indefinitely, but that would not be good for either of them in the grand scheme of life.

  “I know, but I need to start narrowing down my choices so I can visit the campuses of my top three.”

  “Is that what your teacher recommended?” Part of the curriculum for one of his online classes was to search out colleges that had the degree program he was interested in. She’d love to suggest he stay home and continue school online, but Trey needed the college experience. Traditional high school hadn’t worked for him, but they both had high hopes he’d find a good fit for college.

  “Yeah. Think fast.” He tossed a paper napkin at her.

  She grabbed it midair and flicked it back at him.

  “How do you do that every time? You never miss!”

  “It’s a gift.” She stood and gathered their plates and dropped everything into the empty pizza box. “I’ll do clean up tonight.”

  “Of course. Pick the easy night.”

  She chuckled, enjoying their easy banter. She’d devoted her life to raising her son. When she was sixteen and pregnant, she had considered giving him up for adoption because she wanted to finish high school and didn’t know how she’d be able to take care of him, but her boyfriend wanted “the baby,” as he always called him. Unfortunately, her boyfriend had a short attention span and abandoned them a year after Trey was born.

  She’d managed to finish high school while working part time and raising her son with the help of friends and their parents, but
it had been a struggle she wouldn’t wish on anyone. Her own parents had kicked her out when she’d needed them the most. She never wanted to be like them and determined to always be there for Trey, even if that meant she lived alone for the rest of his growing-up years. She didn’t trust a man to stick around and refused to put Trey through the kind of pain she’d experienced.

  So much had changed over the past fifteen years. Although it took her longer than the average student, she had earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in interior design, and she was proud of her accomplishments. Granted she’d been unable to go into business for herself like she’d planned due to financial issues. Then she hadn’t been able to find a job as an actual designer; but now that she’d landed a job as Bailey’s assistant, she had confidence things would begin to fall into place. At least she hoped so, because Trey would be going off to college in a couple of years. She didn’t want him to have to work his way through college like she had done or accumulate a large debt. No, she hoped and prayed she’d finally have a higher-paying job with enough money saved to get him a quality education. Housesitting for the next year would put her well on track to reach that goal since they were living here for free. Talk about a blessing. She didn’t seek out the job, but when Mrs. Drake asked she couldn’t say no.

  “Mom?”

  “Hmm.” She glanced over her shoulder as she wiped the table.

  “I want to meet my dad.”

  She sucked in a breath, closed her eyes and sat in the nearest chair. She had feared this day would come. She’d hoped since Trey hadn’t mentioned it when he was young that maybe he never would. Now what? She had no idea where Randy was. When he walked out on them, he’d never looked back. His family had left town as well. Randy’s parents had not been into being grandparents.

  “Say something.”

  “Sorry. You really surprised me.” She patted the chair beside her. “Come sit.”

  He did as she asked and turned expectant eyes on her.

  “Why the sudden interest?”

  Trey shrugged. “I’m not a kid anymore. I thought he might like me now,” he mumbled. “I don’t know. I just want to meet him.”

  Her son clearly held something back, but she didn’t dare push him. He’d tell her his reasons when he was ready. At least she hoped he would. “Honey, your dad was eighteen when he and his family left. Not much older than you are now. He was too immature to be a dad. I didn’t realize you believed he didn’t like you.” They should have had this talk years ago. Her throat thickened. How could her son think his dad didn’t like him?

  “You haven’t denied it.”

  “I know deep down he loved you very much, but he didn’t know what to do with a baby. It wasn’t personal with you. He wasn’t ready to be an adult.”

  His face changed to a pained look of disbelief. He shot up. “I’m going for a run.”

  “It’s dark.”

  Ignoring her, he darted out the door.

  She groaned and buried her face in her hands. It wasn’t personal? How could she have said something so stupid? It was very personal. Should she go after Trey or let him cool off? She’d never catch him, considering the last time she ran was in a required college PE class. Every mom instinct in her said he needed her, but this time she had to let him be. He wasn’t the kind of kid to get into trouble; however, today had been one of those life-altering kind of days.

  An hour later Trey slunk into the house. His sweaty T-shirt clung to his lean body.

  Sierra blinked back tears of relief. “Are you okay?”

  He nodded and strode to the guest bathroom. A moment later the sound of running water filled the silent tomb of a house.

  One way or another, she needed to locate Randy. He may not have wanted to be a dad at eighteen, but if her son had his way, things were about to change.

  Chapter Three

  John Belafonte hit the end button on his phone. Another messed up order. What was going on? Someone claiming to be his mother had changed a wallpaper order and shorted them three rolls. But Mom wouldn’t do that, would she? He needed to have a talk with her in person to be certain. At least today was Friday, and he could spend the weekend far from the confines of these four walls after dealing with this latest issue.

  For years he’d been happy taking care of the business side of the family company, but lately he’d grown discontent. Maybe it had to do with his mother’s failing health, or maybe it was simply time for something new. Whatever the reason, he needed a change before he burned out and didn’t want anything to do with Belafonte Construction and Design.

  The door to the office swung open and Stephen stepped inside. “Hey there. Rick said he needed the work order for the house on Killdeer. I have a few free minutes, so thought I’d take care of it now.”

  “Right. He mentioned that when he called.” John shuffled through the papers on his desk. His oldest brother rarely bothered to stop by the office since Stephen, his youngest brother, had returned home from an extended stay in France and had stepped in for Rick in some areas. “Here it is. Any more problems at the site?”

  Stephen shook his head. “I heard about the wallpaper shortage. There’s no way Mom did that.”

  “I don’t think so either, but if she didn’t, who did?” John thumbed through a stack of papers.

  “I’m beginning to wonder about Sierra. Bailey thinks the world of her, but it’s difficult to ignore the fact that things started happening around the time she was hired.”

  John rubbed his chin. “I’ve only spoken with her over the phone, but I never got any weird vibes that she was up to no good.”

  “Me neither, but I don’t know what else to think.”

  “Let’s not rush to judgment.” John couldn’t believe he was defending a woman he didn’t know, but based on their phone conversations, she seemed like a nice lady. He couldn’t picture her attempting to sabotage their company. But if not her, then who?

  “I won’t. Innocent until proven guilty is my mantra. Besides, I can’t imagine her risking her job by going to one of our sites and trying to damage our equipment. Why would she do that? She has nothing to gain and everything to lose. I wonder if an animal got in there and knocked over the equipment.”

  “It’s possible, but highly unlikely. Mark came by and suggested it was probably kids. There was no evidence that an animal had been in the house.”

  “Other than the two legged kind.”

  John shook his head. Kids had probably gotten into the house and thought it’d be fun to overturn their stuff. The phone rang. “Hold on a sec.” He answered the business line and listened to the man on the other end. “Yes, sir. That’s exactly the kind of work we do.”

  Stephen sat in an old leather chair that faced the desk and tapped his fingers on the armrest.

  “Yes. I can have someone stop by your place this evening.” He talked with the man a little longer then hung up. “Yes!”

  Stephen chuckled. “What’s going on?”

  “We don’t have the job yet, but we need this one.” Need was relative—he wanted it. The busier they were, the greater chance he had of stepping out of this office and getting his hands dirty. He needed a change.

  He wrote the address on a sticky note and handed it to his brother. “They want a huge remodel. Can you and Bailey go by there this evening at six to meet with the homeowners?”

  “Tonight? Let me check with her.” Stephen sent a text and waited.

  John watched his brother’s lips tip up and fought the surprising bout of jealousy that arose. Stephen had been dating Bailey since Christmas, and although they’d only been together a few months, he could tell they were serious. He was happy for Stephen; his brother’s first wife had died of melanoma about three years ago, and he deserved to find love again. He only wished to find love for himself, too.

  If only John’s life could be so blessed.

  “Bailey said no problem.”

  “Great.” John went on to explain what the potential client want
ed. “Call me after you meet with them. I want to know how it went.”

  “Will do.” Stephen stood. “You okay?”

  He nodded. They’d grown closer since Stephen’s return from France, but he wasn’t ready to discuss where his head was. “I’ll talk to you later.”

  “Okay.” Stephen waved then headed outside.

  The quiet swirled around him, almost choking him. Suddenly the office was a prison again. He needed to get out, even if it was only ten in the morning! He programed the business line to forward to his cell then locked up. Early or not, a change in scenery was in order. Now.

  About thirty minutes later he pulled up to his mother’s house and put his rig in park. Mom had suffered a stroke around eight months ago, and she had never fully recovered. It was a miracle she was still living, all things considered. He almost felt silly coming by to see if she had called their vendor, but he needed to rule his mother out. He rarely stopped by during work hours, but there was no rule stating she could only have visitors in the evening. He whistled a favorite worship song as he strode to the door. He rapped on the door then poked his head inside. “Anyone home?”

  Heels tapped across the hardwood flooring as Bailey walked toward him from the direction of the kitchen. “Hi, John. Did you need something?”

  He saw the confusion on her face. “I thought I’d stop in and see my mom.” There was no reason she needed to know why he wanted to visit his mother.

  “Oh. I’m sorry. Stephen took her to a doctor’s appointment.”

  His shoulders slumped. “Seriously? He was just in the Bend office a little while ago.” He should have said something to Stephen about coming here to see their mom.

  “He probably took Mona to her appointment then swung over to the office while he waited. I’m sorry you missed her. She’s been doing a little better lately. She’ll be disappointed to have missed you.”

  “I should have called first.”

  “It’s fine. I hear we have a potential new client. I’m looking forward to meeting with them this evening.”

  “Bailey.” A petite blonde stepped from the home office with her face buried in a wallpaper catalogue. “I think I found the perfect paper for the bedroom.” She looked up and stopped short. “Oh. Sorry. I didn’t realize anyone was here. Hi, John.”