Love Thy Neighbor by Sophie Wintner Read Free Book Online Page B

do with this? Look at your ceilings and those wood beams. Structurally you really wouldn’t have to do that much to make this place amazing.” Her adrenaline pumped as she roamed through the space. “Some new lighting… We could completely separate your studio from your living space… Give you some privacy.”
    “You just read my mind.” He smiled bigger than before. “That’s exactly what I’m after. I’m tired of living in my studio and bringing my studio home with me. If you could turn this place into a real home for me, I’d be forever in your debt.”
    “If that’s what you want, then we can make it happen.” For the first time in months, she felt a bit of her old self begin to surface. “Can I see the upstairs?” she asked, eager to keep exploring his magnificent loft.
    “By all means. After you.” He gestured toward the spiral staircase.
    “These must be a real challenge after a night of drinking,” she said, gingerly taking the stairs and gripping the banister.
    “They seemed like a good idea when I bought the place,” he said, trailing behind her.
    When she reached the second level, she stepped into a seating area that doubled as storage space and led into the master bedroom. The king-size bed was perfectly made, which told her that either Mr. Sexy was a neat freak, or he hadn’t slept there the night before. She was pretty sure it was the latter. What she didn’t have to guess about was his duvet cover. It was expensive. The man had good taste.
    “The deck’s this way.” He opened the French doors off his bedroom, and the view looked eastward, out at the city. He had a gas grill in the corner, but no table, no chairs.
    Nikki could picture the deck flooded with flowers and plants, an herb garden in the corner. She’d transform it into a piece of paradise.
    “This is spectacular,” she said.
    “You should see it at night. You get a view of the whole skyline.”
    They went back downstairs and he offered her a cup of coffee.
    “I see you’re into recycling,” she said, gesturing to the six blue recycling bins lined up beneath the counter. “Those are a bit of an eyesore—we could find a better solution for them.”
    “Just as long as I have ’em,” he said.
    “You’re very conscientious about Mother Earth, aren’t you?”
    “Aren’t you?” he asked.
    She thought about her trash bag filled with wine bottles, paper plates, plastic cups. “Ah, no,” she said with a sheepish smile, “I don’t recycle. I’m a bad person.”
    “Why don’t you?” He sounded more curious than accusatory.
    “You really do care about the environment.”
    “I’ve never understood how people can’t care about it. It sustains us, it helps us thrive in every possible way, and we take it for granted and suck its resources dry.” He stopped and shook his head. “Sorry, didn’t mean to lecture you there. I’ll get off my soapbox now.”
    She smiled to reassure him it was okay. She’d never really given the whole “save Mother Earth” thing much thought. She’d also never met anyone who was as passionate about the subject as Dallas.
    “So,” she said, trying to lighten the mood, “we should do a proper walk-through. I’ll take some measurements. We’ll go room by room and talk about exactly what you want, and after that I’ll work up some preliminary ideas and an estimate. And don’t worry—I’ll give you the friends and family discount.” Hell, his space was so spectacular she would have paid him to design it.
    “Sounds fantastic.” He handed her a cup of coffee.
    She looked at him and smiled. The more she got to know Dallas, the more she liked him. There was so much more to him than being a sexy package.
    “You know,” she said, leaning against his marble counter, “I think you made Matthew pretty jealous yesterday.”
    “Really? What makes you think so?”
    “He kept asking about you. Wanting to know how I knew you… Did you really live right across the hall from me…