She extended her hands. “This is as good as it gets. I don’t do perky, and I don’t do chipper. Take it or leave it.”

He frowned. “Take or leave what, exactly?”

He seemed to want her to say it out loud, probably so he could feel victorious. Well, fine. “Me.” She sighed heavily. “I’ll marry you, Leo. I’ll be your wife.”

…

If those words sounded strange, forced out through gritted teeth, the ones Leo was about to utter next weren’t any less shocking.

“Look.” Leo waved the bright blue folder he held, the hallmark of Blossom Glen’s biggest (well, only) realty office. “I have an appointment in fifteen minutes with a realtor. Why don’t you join me? We could discuss the terms of our arrangement.”

Her eyes narrowed suspiciously. “With a realtor?”

He rolled his eyes. “No, with each other. I’m buying a house.”

“You’re buying a house?” She sounded surprised. “That’s a pretty permanent decision.”

He tried to shrug nonchalantly. “Call me an optimist. Maybe you could give me some input.” She looked wary, so he added, “Yeah. I mean, you’ll be living there too.”

“I live in a one-bedroom apartment above the garage of a very old Queen Anne. I don’t know anything about buying a house.”

“Well, you’ve lived in one, right?” He grinned. “That counts. Plus, I’m looking for something that has the potential to have a great kitchen one day. You can appreciate that.” He didn’t know why he’d offered for her to come with him. As a peace offering? He guessed it was just his nature to be positive. To start off on the right foot.

That is, if he could bear her quips, one-liners, and all the other ways she planned to torture him.

He walked over to his convertible and tossed the folder into the back seat.

Her eyes strayed to his Nassau Blue car and then back to him before she followed.

The top was down on this perfect day. “I think I’ve got an extra ball cap in the glove box if you don’t want to get your hair mussed.” Maybe she was that kind of woman; he didn’t know his future wife at all.

She tossed him a frown over her shoulder as she headed to the car. “Isn’t the point of having the top down to feel the wind in your hair?”

Oh. Okay, so she wasn’t worried about her hair after all. That was kind of refreshing.

She was walking around the car, examining it carefully from every angle. In fact, she seemed to have forgotten all about his appointment. What on earth was she doing?

But at least she looked like she was going to get in the car—maybe. He walked around to the passenger side and opened the door for her before she could change her mind.