“He’s happy I’ll be so close to The Catch, but you know him, he wanted to float me the money to rent the biggest, most extravagant space we could find.”

I chuckled. “Of course, he did.” But Bell would never take him up on something like that. She needed to make her dream of owning a furniture shop full of her painstakingly restored pieces happen all on her own. And I respected the hell out of her for it.

“How are things at number crunchers?”

My lips twitched. Bell had never thought accounting was exactly thrilling. But I loved it. While the world was shades of gray, my job was all black and white. Every problem had an answer, and I could always find it.

But there was a flicker of jealousy whenever Bell spoke about her new shop. I’d considered going out on my own more times than I could count. Thoughts of getting out from under my ogre of a boss and steering my own ship were incredibly tempting. But every time I imagined taking that first step toward owning my own business, I balked. What I had now was what was best for me. A stable salary, health insurance, a 401k.

I gave my head a little shake. “Everything’s good. My client load has eased up now that Karen is back from medical leave—”

A loud whistle pierced the air. “Ladies, what did I do to deserve to be greeted with such a sight?”

I bristled at that low, rumbly tone and immediately straightened from my stretch. “It’s called being a peeping Tom, and I’m pretty sure it’s an offense punishable by jail time in all fifty states.”

Crosby grinned, his whiskey-colored eyes twinkling with mischief. “You wound me, Brown Eyes, and after I went to all this trouble to bring my favorite ladies lunch.”

I scoffed. “Sorry, but we’d rather not be a part of your harem.”

Crosby winked at Bell. “I love it when her sass comes out. Ford sent me over with all of your regular orders.” Bell might as well have melted on the spot.

I elbowed her in the side. “Don’t fall for his winks and charm just because he mentioned your man.”

She laughed. “Sorry, you’re on your own with this vendetta. I like Crosby, and I love the panini that I’m pretty sure is in one of those bags.”

“See, she likes me. It’s only a matter of time before you come around.”

“Look what the tide dragged in, my favorite fella.” Harriet shuffled forward, but Crosby crossed the grass to make it easier for her to reach him, bending so that she could press her lips to his cheek. Why Harriet had chosen Crosby McCoy as her lawyer, I would never understand. And try as I might to get her to consider someone else, she’d never budge. She adored the man-boy.