Kate wrote something on her paper while he noted that she had a tiny mole on one side of her pointed chin and lips full enough to beg a man’s attention. “I’d like to get my business up and running as soon as possible. The living portion is less urgent. I can sleep in the office back there or even in my new office until it’s finished.”

It was an awkward time of year to open a business. She seemed a little citified, and he wondered if she’d ever wintered on the island before. Oh, well. Wasn’t any of his business.

“Give me a day or so to think it over, and I’ll get back with you,” she said, extending her hand and shaking his.

The next day she signed the contract and moved her luggage into the old office at the back of the building. They agreed to meet that afternoon to go over renovation plans. She was waiting for him when he arrived, and he realized he was probably a tad late. She checked her watch before sitting at a padded card table she must’ve brought.

“The builder’s coming, isn’t he?” She set a manila file on the table and folded her long slender fingers on top of it.

Did she think he was hiring a crew or something? “I’m the builder.” He took a seat opposite her.

Her eyes widened, and she blinked twice, her black lashes fluttering. “But—but I thought you built furniture.”

Her eyes were a bewitching mix of green with caramel flecks. He wondered what color her driver’s license said they were. “I do build furniture. But I’ve done plenty of carpentry and plumbing and wiring. I built my house, and I’ve done room additions.”

“Do you—Are you a licensed builder?”

He found her tight little smile amusing. Did she think his walls were going to collapse or his wiring was going to burn the building down? “I’m licensed. If you want to check out my work, I did all the renovations downstairs. It was an open space like this when I bought it.”

“Oh. Well, your shop is very nicely done. I just didn’t realize you’d be doing the work, that’s all.”

Ever since that first meeting, ruffling her feathers had served as a cheap form of entertainment. He knew she’d been pleased with his work, though his pace seemed to aggravate her. She even tried to put him on a schedule at one point, telling him when he should have the drywall completed, when he should have the bathroom and kitchen plumbed. The woman lived and breathed by the agenda she had with her at all times.

Still, there was something about her.