Page 24 of Brushed By Moonlight

Affairsin every sense of the word, but I didn’t elaborate.

I waved at the junk that had been heaped inside the barn over the years — everything from decades-old farm equipment to building supplies, furniture, and two beautiful old carriages.

“So, all this needs to be sorted or binned.” I motioned to the dumpster I’d had trucked in the previous week.

Henrik looked affronted. “You mean to say, you expect us to perform unskilled labor?”

I nodded firmly. “Yes — unless you have relevant skills. Does anyone know anything about plumbing, for instance?”

When no one moved, Bene raised his hand. “I know how to flush.”

I sighed and made a mental note. Maybe no gold star yet.

“Roux and Bene, please start there. Marius, over there, please. And Henrik…” I shot him a thin smile and pointed up. “You get the loft — or should I say, the attic?”

Bene snickered.

“I’ll circulate to let you know what we’re discarding and what we’ll keep,” I continued. “The goal is to eventually clear this central space.”

That area was big enough to rig up both of the carriages at once, and the roof was highest there. Someday, it would make a hell of an event space, with stables branching out in two long wings. Right now, though, it was a hell of a mess.

Roux whistled, spotting the classic car in one corner.

“Is that what I think it is?”

I nodded. “1933 Jaguar SS100. We called it Chitty Chitty Bang Bang when we were kids.”

Judging by their expressions, I’d just committed classic car blasphemy akin to calling theMona Lisaa doodle.

“This is at least a decade older,” Henrik sniffed, probably speaking from personal experience in that era.

“We want to use it for weddings, but we’ll have to get it fixed first. Right now, it’s—”

“Off-limits?” Bene guessed.

I nearly saidYou bet your tawny ass it is, but a lightbulb went off in my head.

“Yes — off-limitsexceptto the person who clears the most junk today. I’ll let him sit in it when we’re done.”

“Just sit?” Bene pouted.

With offended looks and grumbles, they set about work. But boy, did they work. Quickly. Efficiently. Effortlessly — lifting and moving items I would barely have been able to budge by myself.

Apparently, a chance to outcompete one another and sit in a classic roadster was motivation enough.

I spent a few minutes directing Bene and Roux, then moved to the corner Marius had claimed.

He held up a six-foot steel lamp with one hand. “Trash or keep?”

Three new words uttered just for me, all in a low, gravelly voice that electrified my girl parts.

“Trash,” I said. “Please.”

He chuckled. “That ugly?”

I nodded. “Hideous. Unless you want it for your room.”

He shook his head. “Got everything I need. Or, almost.”