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  She tried to smile as photographers took their pictures and reporters yelled out questions. She hoped that she at least appeared composed and confident, because she felt anything but those things on the inside. What had she done? Did she really think she could pull this off? Maybe her mother was right? Maybe she should have agreed to let go, sell the company and start over in a different career. But something deep down had told her that she could do this. She clung to that hopeful ember and straightened her spine.

  “Ms. Lowman, have you heard from your father? Does he know you entered the contest?”

  “Do you know where your father is hiding?”

  “Have you given any evidence to the police?”

  The smile on her face threatened to fade, but she hung on to it. She wouldn’t let their questions take away from her moment. Because this was about her, not her father. This was about her talents and abilities. Her time to shine, not to hide in shame.

  John leaned down and whispered into her ear, “Just keep smiling.”

  She gave a short nod and hoped that this would be over soon. She could see the brothers clapping, Tiny beaming while Biggie wiped at his tears with a faded red bandanna.

  Finally, the announcer gathered the five teams in a lopsided circle and handed them all manila envelopes. “Inside the packet, you’ll find the address of the house you’ll be working on along with the keys. Your budget is included along with a list of preapproved subcontractors.” He turned to Cassie. “I’ve already approved the Buttucci brothers’ application to work on your team.”

  “Thank you. I’m pleased to know that,” she replied.

  “We will have an in-depth meeting Monday morning at nine at the foundation’s office to go over everything that is required of you. In the meantime, go out and mingle. Talk to the press. Congratulations to all of you.”

  Cassie glanced around, unsure of what to do now. She wasn’t interested in talking to the press since they wanted to focus on her father instead of her. She spotted Beckett looking as shocked as she felt. She took a step toward the contractor and he flinched. She’d heard the vet had returned from Afghanistan with PTSD, but she hadn’t seen evidence of it until now. He waved to her, so she approached him. “Congratulations, Beckett, on making the top five.”

  He stared at her for a moment and said, “Thanks. You, too.”

  “They paired you with Lauren Sterling, so you’re in good hands.”

  He took a step away. “I guess.” He glanced around at the group of people waiting to talk to them. “I gotta go.” And he disappeared into the crowd.

  The stage started to clear as Cassie turned to John. It probably wouldn’t hurt to address one of the elephants in the room that stood between them. “What I said earlier about not wanting to work with you...”

  He held up his hand. “I know you didn’t mean it.”

  “But I did. Still do.” She winced and tried to use better words. This wasn’t the way to start a working relationship. “I hope that we can find a way to work with each other, because it’s going to be a long, fruitless endeavor if we can’t.”

  “I don’t doubt that we can work together, Ms. Lowman. But I believe we both need to make a commitment to each other and this contest right now.” He held out his hand. “I’m going to give my very best, and I hope you will, as well.”

  She shook his hand. “I never give anything less than all that I have.”

  With their hands clasped, she had the feeling that this was the beginning of something...different.

  * * *

  JOHN HELPED CASSIE off the platform, and the members of the press surrounded them, yelling questions and pushing in from all sides. When John had met Cassie earlier, he hadn’t put her name together with the contractor who had been accused of embezzling from his own company though never proven. However, he couldn’t hold her father’s alleged crimes against her. If anything, it would bring more attention to them during the contest. Maybe they could come up with a strategy to use that to their advantage.

  “Miss Lowman has no comment about her father at this time,” John said into the microphone closest to him. “But we’d be happy to discuss making the top five teams tonight.”

  After a few moments of Cassie fielding inquiries about her experiences in rehabbing houses and him explaining his design credentials, the members of the press started to recede into the crowd. Clearly they weren’t going to get the story they’d hoped for. Cassie turned to him. “Thank you for that. I still don’t know what to say about my father.”

  He gave a shrug, as if it didn’t matter. “This is about us, not him. And the sooner we established that with the press, the better.”

  But she still looked up at him as if he was a hero. Her two big friends approached them, and the slightly smaller one picked her up by the waist and swung her around. “I knew you could do this, kid.”

  She squealed and demanded that he put her down. Once on her feet, she waved her hand at them. “John, these are the Buttucci brothers Luigi and Mario. Better known as Biggie and Tiny. They are the best in the construction business I’ve ever known, and we’re lucky that they’re going to be working with us. They do everything: demolition, electrical, plumbing. But where they really shine is in painting. They don’t need tape or edges. Steady hands, that’s what they have.”

  John shook their hands in turn, wincing slightly at the pressure of each clasp. They seemed to be sending him a warning about not only themselves, but Cassie, too. He could see the protective stances they had with her, sandwiching her safely between them. He gave each of them a nod, hoping they could understand that he wanted only the best for their team. “It’s great to meet you both.”

  They grunted, then looked back at Cassie. Tiny wiggled his eyebrows up and down. “Someone said you got the keys to the house. Wanna go see it now?”

  It would be nice to get a sneak peek at the house that was going to consume all their attention for the next few months. John nodded. “I’m in.”

  They each drove their respective cars to the run-down neighborhood and parked on the curb under a tall oak tree that mirrored others that lined each side of the street. John stared up at the house, which seemed to have a small porch that listed to one side. Cassie took a few moments to change out of her heels and into work boots that she had apparently kept in her truck.

  John was the first to walk up the cracked pathway to the small, rickety porch. He put a hand on a wrought iron column and winced as it shifted with very little pressure. He didn’t need to have construction experience to realize what that probably meant. He turned to the trio behind him. “The porch’s foundation is possibly an issue.”

  Cassie walked up the few steps and put the key in the lock, taking a deep breath before opening the door. She brought out her phone and turned on the flashlight feature. John mirrored her actions and shone his cell phone’s light on the roof above the porch. Abandoned birds’ nests, as well as cobwebs that spread their silky strands between joists, decorated the corners of the porch.

  John hoped that the rest of the house would prove to be a diamond in the rough. They continued their tour. The carpet squished beneath their feet. Cassie bent down and touched the dampness. “Looks like we’ll have plumbing issues, too. A burst pipe, maybe. Or looters stole the copper pipes.” They walked into the kitchen. “And they stole the kitchen cabinets.”

  He stared at the exposed pipes and noted the sink was missing, too. What had he gotten himself into? He gave a shrug. “Well, on the bright side, that’s less demolition we have to do.”

  “And the more we have to replace with an already limited budget.” She brushed past him.

  John stared out the window at the moonlit backyard full of weeds and overgrown grass. Another thing on their to-do list.

  Cassie returned. “Four bedrooms that are in decent condition, but we’re going to have to gut the bathroom.” She crossed
her arms and leaned against the wall. “I don’t know what I expected, but it wasn’t this.”

  “You’re not giving up already, are you?”

  She lifted her eyes to meet his, and her spine straightened. “Something you need to know about me. I don’t ever give up. Got it?”

  “Me, either.”

  At a loud noise from the living room, they rushed there to find Biggie standing knee-deep in a hole, having apparently crashed through the floor. John walked over and held out his hand to help him out.

  Cassie squatted and peered at the floor, where a large gaping crater now yawned. “Definitely have to replace these floors.”

  John suddenly felt as if he was in way over his head.

  CHAPTER TWO

  THE OFFICES FOR the Belvedere Foundation were located in a skyscraper in downtown Detroit. Cassie had to pay ten dollars to park her truck in a multistory concrete lot. She hated to hand over the money but had given up trying to find a free, open spot on a side street.

  She slammed the truck door shut, then looked down at her outfit. She didn’t have to be as dressed up as she had the night before at the launch event, but she couldn’t show up in her usual T-shirt and jeans, either. After consulting with her sister, she’d chosen a plain white cotton shirt and a pair of beige pants that her mother had probably stuffed in her closet at some point. It wasn’t fancy, but she wanted to look as if she belonged.

  Because despite everything that had been printed about her in the morning paper, she deserved to be there. Didn’t she?

  Two security guards met her in the lobby of the glass-and-chrome skyscraper and directed her toward the Belvedere Foundation’s boardroom, where the meeting was to be held. She felt tempted to pinch herself to make sure she wasn’t dreaming all this. She’d really made it this far in the contest, and all that was left was to win the entire thing.

  Opening the heavy door to the boardroom, she quickly scanned the crowd before she strode in with a confidence that she didn’t quite feel. Better to fake it from the beginning. Some heads turned toward her, but then the people returned to their conversations. Ignoring the dismissal, she tried to focus on the advice Andie had given her over the phone that morning. “You earned your place, Cass. Don’t let them take it from you. Instead, you show them what we Lowmans are made of. Grit and determination.”

  “Grit and determination,” Cassie mumbled under her breath as she squared her shoulders and headed for a long, narrow table to the side, set with a continental breakfast. She loaded her plate with fresh fruit and a cinnamon roll rivaling the size of her head, before she moved down the table to the large carafes that held coffee and hot water for tea. She poured a mug and held it up to her face, inhaling the heady scent of coffee beans. Ah, ambrosia for her soul.

  “Hey, partner.”

  John was pouring his own cup of coffee. “Good morning to you. How did you sleep?”

  He gave her a wry grin and shrugged. “I couldn’t sleep. I had so many ideas bubbling in my brain that I stayed up late drawing different sketches of the house.”

  “Sketches are good.”

  He took a long sip of coffee, then sighed. “We’re going to need a coffee maker at the house since I subsist on caffeine and pizza. And that’s on a good day.”

  She laughed and nodded. “Me, too.” She had an old percolator that she was in the habit of hauling to each work site because she couldn’t get through her day without regular infusions of caffeine.

  “Well, we have one thing in common at least.” He glanced at the others in the room. “Is it just me or do you feel like we’re the underdogs in this contest? That the contestants have dismissed us already as competitors?”

  It was what had kept her up the night before, tossing and turning as she mulled over her doubts. True, she had made it this far, but now what? She felt as if she and John had lost already before the contest had even started. “You’re not imagining that. I feel it, too.”

  She noticed his brown eyes held a golden gleam in them. “We could use that to our advantage, you know. Let them underestimate us. And in the meantime, we’ll swoop in and take the top prize.”

  She wished she had such confidence. “Do you really think we could win?”

  Before he could answer, Christopher Belvedere swept through the door, flanked by a pair of assistants presumably, and called for everyone’s attention. The rest of the contestants took seats around the main table that dominated the room. John found them two available seats and used his free hand to pull her chair out for her before sitting down himself. Mr. Belvedere stood at a lectern at one end of the table. “Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. If we could all listen up, we can begin this first meeting.” He nodded at his assistants. “We’re passing around information sheets with the rules and regulations for the contest. Much of this is a repeat of what we discussed during your interviews, but I’d like to go over each item and address any questions.”

  A thick sheaf of papers was dropped down on the table, next to Cassie’s plate. She skimmed the first page as she bit into a fresh strawberry. Most of the text was standard rules and regulations for renovating a house. Permits would be pulled, inspections made regularly. She didn’t have a chance to read it all before Mr. Belvedere started talking.

  “First, let me congratulate you all on being chosen. You are all part of an elite group of builders and designers, the cream of the crop in Detroit.”

  The affirmation made Cassie’s heart want to sing out. See that? She was special.

  “Second, since this is the premier contest there may be unexpected challenges for you and us as we navigate these unchartered waters. The mayor has assured us that he will assist us in the necessary bureaucracy of the city’s agencies. That being said, I am also here to help you in getting permits arranged, inspections cleared, and so on. Do not hesitate to reach out to me or my office.”

  Seated across the table from Cassie, Beckett raised his hand. “I have a question about the security of these houses. Is there anything in place to protect our work?”

  Mr. Belvedere cleared his throat and spoke again. “All of you were chosen not only for your talent and skills but also for your integrity. We have confidence that no one will be stealing ideas or anything else.”

  Several people turned to look at Cassie, and she bristled under the attention. She wasn’t here to take something that didn’t belong to her, but to prove that she had what it took to keep her father’s business going until he returned and was exonerated. She shook her head and muttered, “Why do I feel like there’s a target on my back?”

  John inclined his head toward hers and whispered, “Like I said, we should use that to our advantage.”

  The meeting continued as they reviewed the packet of information, including a list of vendors who were helping to sponsor the contest and would provide deep discounts. She perused the names and gave a nod. She knew many of them from previous jobs, so she could vouch for the quality of their materials.

  The doors to the boardroom opened, and several assistants walked in with large cardboard boxes. Mr. Belvedere smirked. “And here is our first challenge in the contest. As you know, homes are getting smarter as more technology is used to enhance the lives of those who live there. We want these homes to use cutting-edge digital devices to make them safer as well as more practical. In each box, you will find a suite of technology to be incorporated into your projects. Home connectivity and security systems that will bring these residences into the twenty-first century. This is a step up from current systems sold, the next generation of symbiotic connectivity. With this technology, the families that move into your homes will be able to make their lives easier with a simple spoken command.”

  A box was placed in front of Cassie and John. She rose to her feet and opened the lid, groaning at the sight of a bunch of computerized circuitry. She’d never been good at this part of the job. Give her a
piece of pipe to replace or a socket to install, any day. But electronics and cable? She shuddered at the thought.

  John stood next to her and perused the items in the box, as well, and shrugged. “I installed my own home sound system, so maybe I can help the experts. Won’t we have to plan where we want the walls before the cables can be placed correctly?”

  “Yes. And, how will all this fit in with your ideas?”

  He stared at her, and she swallowed her irritation. His eyes didn’t waver or show any doubt as he answered, “We’ll make it work.”

  She nodded and sat back down.

  Mr. Belvedere tapped a pen on the lectern. “We’ll have more challenges as we go along, and I look forward to seeing how you incorporate them into your designs. In the near future, you will also be assigned a family who will be gifted the home at the end of the contest, so keep that in mind as you design.”

  He wished them good luck, reminded them of the three-month deadline and left the room.

  John packed everything back into the box and placed the lid on top. He checked his watch before his gaze landed on her. “Do you have plans now? I thought we should go over some of the sketches and get a jump on where to start.”

  “I’m all yours.” She frowned at how that sounded. “I mean, I’m free. Do you want to go to the house to do that? We need to start determining what stays and what goes before demolition tomorrow.”

  He finished his coffee, then placed the empty cup on the table. “No, I want to get some real food. Do you know Lolly’s on Grand Boulevard? We could meet there and have lunch.”

  “Great,” she replied, following him as he carried the tech box out of the building.

  * * *

  JOHN HELD THE door to the diner open for Cassie, and they took a booth near the back. He waved to a waitress, who brought over a full carafe of coffee and placed it on a ceramic stone in the center of the table. “Ah, Marie, you know me so well. Leave your no-good husband and marry me instead.”