I grabbed the bottle of Dawn dish detergent.

Peep?

“If it’s safe for wildlife being saved from oil spills, it’s safe enough. They use it on seabirds.”

That seemed to reassure her.

I cleaned one corner. The bedspread under the sleeping baby improved considerably. Encouraged by the progress, I washed away the rest of the grime.

The poor kid still looked as pale and stiff as an auction paddle. The artist didn’t have much technique. I set the painting next to the sink to dry, just as the doorbell rang.

“Probably Bram.”

We flew to the door, Lai Fa literally, and came face-to-face with Trey.

Determination flattened his lips as he looked past me. “Are you alone?”

“If this is about business, you need to talk to my lawyer.”

His gaze snapped to mine. “Do you want me to leave Diya?”

The question surprised me so much that I drew back, which he took as an invitation.

He strode past me, and when he saw that nobody else was there, he whipped around. “I need you.”

A few weeks ago, I would have fallen for that line and the desperate tone with which it was delivered. But I had changed since Violet’s death. I wasn’t quite a warrior woman riding her horse naked into battle, but I was more than I had been when I’d left LA.

“You need me for what?”

“Look, Diya and I… I’m sorry.”

I shook off the hand he put on my arm. “No.”

He bent his head in that looming-over-people stance of his. “When did you become such a bitch? You used to be a nice girl.”

“I used to trust you.” I flashed him a sweet, sweet smile. “Then I wised up.”

“You’re being vindictive. You owe me another chance.”

“I don’t owe you anything. Get out of my house.”

“You’re still grieving. You’re not thinking straight. Let me explain.”

“I swear, if you’re not out of here in the next thirty seconds…”

He opened the door, but stopped on the threshold. “You could marry me. Then we’d own both Ludington’s offices together. We could open a third one in Seattle. Expand. I feel like with you, I could build something. I’m talking about serious money.”

My phone rang. For the moment, I ignored it. I might not have known yet how my future would unfold, but I knew one thing: Trey was not going to buy me. I put a hand to his chest and shoved him out. “Go away.”

I closed the door and locked it. Bam. Spanked and walking away red assed, as Sergei would say. I luxuriated in the moment another second before I picked up the phone.

Strena said, “Vivian has the flu. I need you to stand in as her replacement.”

The gears grinded in my brain as it switched tracks. “I can’t be naked in front of people.”