I saw pity in her eyes. “I’m sorry, Sutton.”
“I’m not. The only thing I’m sorry about is the years I wasted on Jack. It’s time to move on—and that’s exactly what we’re going to do. Come on, let’s go get that paint.”
Doing a little happy dance, Harlee started for the paint counter, an extra pep in her step. I glanced around the hardware store and paused when I saw Brody near the front, checking out. He was laughing at something the cashier said. Then he looked over at me and our eyes met. It was only for a fleeting moment…but I found myself replaying it over and over in my head as Harlee and I headed back to my house.
Brody walked through the entire house, adding to my list of all the things that needed fixing. As I stared at one of the wires in a light switch that had obviously been cut, it was all too clear that my ex had done a good portion of this to cause me heartache.
I hope you choke on water, you asshole.
Brody frowned and looked over at me. “Sutton, it’s going to cost you a fortune to hire someone to do all of these repairs. Let me do it.”
I shook my head. “I’m not going to let you do all of this for free.”
He exhaled, rolling his eyes. “Fine. Then you can pay me in home-cooked dinners.”
I folded my arms over my chest. There was no way I was going to allow Brody to do all that work for a few meals. And the last thing I wanted was to be indebted to anyone. “Home-cooked dinners?”
“Yeah.”
“How about I pay you twenty bucks an hour, and I throw in a home-cooked meal every now and then? That’s all I can afford right now.”
Brody’s brows furrowed slightly before he relaxed his features. “We’ll work it all out. I’m going to head back to the hardware store and pick up a few things while you ladies start painting.”
“I’ll go for you!” Palmer shouted as she looked up at us from where she was perched on the floor. She was cutting in around the baseboards with white paint and had more paint on her than she did on the wall.
Brody laughed. “I take it you’re not a fan of painting?”
Palmer stood, shook her head, and handed Brody the paint brush. “I used to love it. Now it’s too damn tedious. I’ll trade you. You give me the list, and I’ll get everything for you.”
He reached into his back pocket for his wallet.
“No, you’re not paying for it, Brody,” I said, pushing his arm down.
“Let me buy some of this stuff up front.” He pulled out an American Express card. “You can pay me back later.”
I started to argue, but Palmer had already taken the card from Brody’s hand. “Let him pay for it, Sutton. He makes a lot more money than you do. You’re barely breaking even at the store.”
My face, neck, and ears felt entirely too hot. I shot my sister a dirty look. What she said about the store was true, but I didn’t want Brody to know that.
Brody chuckled. “I always thought you were the smartest, Palmer.”
She gave him a wink. “You always did call ’em like you see ’em.”
I rolled my eyes. “Go to the store, and get back here. You’re not getting out of painting.”