by L. C. Davis
Fixer Upper
L.C. Davis
Contents
Also by L.C. Davis
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Also by L.C. Davis
About the Author
Copyright © 2020 by L.C. Davis
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Also by L.C. Davis
Wolf Conan & L.C. Davis Books
Undercover Alphas
Gray
Jayce
Lionel
L.C. Davis Books
The Mountain Shifters Series
His Unclaimed Omega
His Reluctant Omega
His Unexpected Omega
His Runaway Omega
His Second Chance Omega
Their Omega
His Reformed Omega
His Verum Omega
His Reclaimed Omega
Alpha, Beta, Omega
His Taken Omega
His Reclassified Omega
The Great Plains Shifters Series
A Cowboy for Caleb
Darren’s Second Chance
A Mate for the Alphas
The Vampire’s Omega Series
The Vampire’s Omega
The Vampire’s Wolf
Lightbearer
With thanks to my beta readers, ARC team and Patreon Patrons.
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Chapter 1
Sawyer
“It’s me or the job.”
Those five words heralded the end of the one serious relationship I’d ever been in.
And I really, really thought Trevor was the one, too. He was the one alpha I’d met who was more turned on than intimidated by the fact that, at six-three and two-hundred pounds of solid muscle, I was far from the typical omega stereotype. He didn’t mind that I worked with my hands as a carpenter, or that I was too independent to be told what to do by a boss or a lover.
At least, that’s what he led me to believe.
Three years into our relationship, he started wanting a baby just like every other alpha. It wasn’t the baby I had a problem with, really. Unlike most omegas, I’d never fantasized about having a family, and I didn’t have Baby Rabies, as my brother-in-law put it.
Still, I would’ve done it because it was what Trevor needed to be happy, and I loved him.
I guess he just didn’t feel the same way.
When he did the one thing he’d promised he would never do, by giving me an ultimatum to choose between the carpentry business I’d built from the ground up and him, my heart broke into so many pieces even I couldn’t put it back together.
It wasn’t even the job itself. It was the fact that he cared so little about our relationship, about everything we had built together, that I was expendable if I didn’t give up a huge part of my identity just to fulfill his wishes.
I’d always thought compromise would be enough when you found someone you really loved, just like it had been for my parents, and for my brother Chase and his mate Jeff. Turned out, I was wrong.
Three months after I packed my things and left the apartment we’d shared for two years, I realized that was the problem. I loved Trevor, but to him, I was nothing more than an interchangeable object that could easily be swapped out for someone who fit the role better.
And so I’d sworn off alphas. For good this time, as much as my family didn’t want to accept it. Who needed a mate anyway? I had a small business to run, and a crew to manage. The real estate market in Princetown was booming, which meant I had plenty of referrals coming my way.
My phone was ringing off the hook now that it was spring and everyone was moving, so I wasn’t surprised to see a familiar number pop up on my phone. Caleb was another omega, and we’d been friends throughout high school. Princetown wasn’t exactly small, but it was intimate enough that everybody knew pretty much everybody else, which had made my breakup even more awkward.
“Hey,” I said, propping the phone against my shoulder as I smoothed out the blueprints in front of me. I was short-handed today, since two of my guys had called out sick, so I was having to do three people’s jobs at once, but that just came with the territory of being a business owner. “What’s up?”
“I’ve got an emergency on my hands, and I was hoping you could help,” Caleb said in his most entreating tone.
I looked up from the blueprints to focus on the call. “A real estate emergency?” I asked doubtfully.
“Yes,” he answered without a hint of sarcasm. He always had been a tad bit dramatic, but he was a friend, so I would help him out if I could, even if I didn’t have the time. “One of the other agents with my office just called and asked for a referral for an inspection. He’s got some big shot alpha investor from the city who wants to make a purchase on a property he’s been trying to get rid of forever, and he wants the inspection done today.”
Yeah, that sounded like an alpha alright. “I don’t really do inspections anymore. Why don’t you tell him to call Brad?”
“He already tried,” said Caleb. “Brad’s mate went into labor last night, so his hands are full. Please say yes?”
I sighed. “You don’t have to whine. I’ve gotta finish up a couple of things, but I can be over there in…” I glanced down at my watch. “Twenty, give or take.”
“Thank you! You’re a lifesaver,” Caleb said, breathing a sigh of relief. “And I already kind of told Sean you’d do it.”
“You what?”
“I’ll text you the address!” he said brightly, hanging up before I could argue. I let out a growl of discontent and wrapped things up to head out.
I didn’t know why I ever put up with alphas in the first place. They said “jump” and expected the whole damn world to move.
As my bike grumbled to a stop in front of the two-story house I had driven past a few times on my way to other sites, I knew I had my work cut out for me. Or rather, whatever poor sucker Caleb's friend had roped into looking at this property had his work cut out for him.
Even from the outside, I could tell the place needed work. The gutters were in poor shape, and that usually meant corresponding decay inside. I immediately recognized the house plan as one similar to about a dozen others I had worked on, and those had all needed extreme renovation.
From the look of the sports car in the driveway, I doubted investment was going to be any real issue. With Princetown being a growing city, I was used to seeing new developers coming to town, buying up properties and flipping them for a premium. Not that I could complain. They kept me and my crew in work, but I could still roll my eyes inwardly.
Ever since I'd been a kid, begging my dad to help me build a treehouse in the backyard, I had loved construction and carpentry. The idea of working with your hands, the satisfaction of building something from nothing to completion. Especially seeing the smiles on people's faces when they walked into the house he barely even recognized, or when I was commissioned to restore a historical building. Those had always been my favorites.
For me, houses were more than just a place to lay your hat. They were the treasure chests where people stored their lives and
all their most precious memories. It was a bit ironic, then, that at thirty-two, I found myself no closer to building a family that would require one than I had been when I first started my business.
I shrugged out of my melancholy and went to knock on the door. Not a moment later, Sean answered and he looked immensely relieved to see me. Thank you so much for coming, Sawyer," he sighed.
"No problem," I said, stepping into the foyer. The place didn't look too bad, at least not on the surface. I knew better than to think that meant the bones were intact, though. Some of the worst damage I’d seen in my career had been covered up by superficial coatings of fresh paint and crowning. "Where's the buyer?"
I could hear someone talking in the kitchen, a deep, husky voice. It was a voice that instinctively made me shiver, and forget, even if it was only for a second, that I had sworn off alphas and their sultry voices that only ever seemed good at speaking lies.
He came out a second later, still talking on the phone pressed to his ear. Something about an acquisition downtown. So he was a real estate mogul.
He looked the part, too. He was even taller than I was, probably six-five at least, and he had a strange blend of professionalism and intimidation that was working for him. With slicked black hair, chiseled features, and piercing blue eyes that locked on me suddenly, he was definitely good-looking.
Hell, that was an understatement, and he was muscular enough to fill that suit out and make it look worth whatever exorbitant price he had probably paid for it.
He stopped talking and flipped his phone shut without a word. He walked over to me, reaching out a large hand. "You must be the inspector."
"I am," I said, returning the handshake. Definitely firm, but not in one of those weird arm wrestling competition ways most alphas seemed to feel the need for around me. As if to prove I wasn't as tough as they assumed I thought I was. As soon as they caught a whiff of my scent, they usually questioned my job title, too. "I’m Sawyer Miller."
"Sawyer," he said thoughtfully, mulling over my name. "I'm Devon Rice. It's a pleasure to meet you."
I pulled my hand back and tried not to think about how good my name sounded on his lips. "So," I said, looking purposely at Sean since Devon seemed to have forgotten his agent was there. "Have you guys already looked around?"
"We have, but—"
"I'd love to hear your thoughts as you go through," Devon interrupted. He had the most intense gaze ever. Too bad he was rude. Some omegas were turned on by alphas acting like others didn't even exist in their presence. I wasn’t one of them.
"Sure," I muttered, trying to sound as unenthused as I was before I walked into the adjacent room. "Usually start with the living room."
Devon followed me, and I tried to pretend like I didn't notice him as I walked around with my checklist. Of course, he had other plans.
"So, have you been an inspector for very long?"
I stifled a sigh, but I didn't look up from the clipboard. "On and off. Kind of goes hand in hand with construction."
"You’re in construction?" This time, he failed to hide his surprise, even though there wasn't as much incredulity in his tone as there was curiosity. "With which company?"
"Mine," I answered, ticking off another item on the list. I peeked around the windowsills, looking for signs of mold. They were poorly insulated, so if he didn't want to spend a fortune on electric, that was going to have to be fixed. The guy looked like he had deep pockets, so I wasn't going to be shy about telling him.
Devon raised an eyebrow. "That's impressive."
This time, I couldn’t help but show my irritation. "They do allow us to do things other than run daycares and pop out babies, you know."
My bluntness actually seemed to catch him off guard, and I was willing to bet not much did. Satisfying, but I reminded myself this was Sean’s client, and I needed to be on good behavior, even if he was a typical alpha douchebag. He was just better at hiding it than most, for the first few minutes at least.
Instead of huffing and puffing like I was expecting, he just gave a low chuckle that was entirely too appealing. "Touché. I didn't mean any offense. It’s just rare to see an omega in your line of work. "
"None taken," I said, walking into the dining room. I looked at the ceilings, frowning when I saw a dark spot over the stove. It was probably smoke damage, but it had been wiped down, so it was hard to tell. It could have been a leak, so I was going to have to go to that spot in the attic to check.
To his credit, Devon was relatively quiet as I made my way around the rest of the house, even though he still made a few attempts at small talk. I knew I was probably being rude, but alphas were a pigheaded and egotistical lot, which made it especially important not to give them the wrong impression. Maybe if I'd followed those instincts when it came to Trevor, I wouldn't be in this mess.
I walked out into the upstairs hall once I was finished with all the rooms and started to pull down the ladder leading up into the attic.
"Here, I've got it," Devon said, reaching past me to give some unsolicited help pulling the ladder all the way down. "These things can get rusty."
This time, I didn't even bother to mask the glare I sent him over my shoulder. "Yeah. I know," I said through gritted teeth, putting my foot on the first rung. I climbed up, hoping I wasn't going to cave to the temptation to push him down.
Unfortunately, he followed me up and into the narrow attic room. Just the musty smell alone told me there was gonna be a lot of remediation work ahead of whoever took this gig. The attic window had a crack in it, and it looked like it had been leaking moisture for some time.
"Be careful," I said, walking over to the window. I could hear the floorboards creaking behind me, and while I was no featherweight, Devon was definitely sturdy enough to go through if he stepped in the wrong spot. Especially if my suspicions about the mold were correct.
I heard him mutter something, followed by the sound of wood splintering and his feet shuffling as he narrowly escaped the rotted wood that pitted out below him. I caught his expression just in time to see how startled he was, and I couldn't help but smirk.
"These things can get flimsy,” I said flatly.
He just snorted a laugh, but I could tell his ego was bruised. At least he wasn't the kind of guy who flipped out when he was embarrassed.
I wrote down a few notes as I studied the window.
"What's the damage?" he asked, watching me. I couldn’t help but feel like he was still a bit too interested in me and not as much in the house, but it was better to pretend I had noticed. "Does this place need a lot of work?"
"It does," I admitted. I handed him the carbon copy of the notes I always gave to prospective buyers. "This is just labor and parts for all the essentials. There’s still a laundry list of things I'd take care of before I moved in, but that depends on what your goal is for the property."
"So would you say it's worth the asking price?" he asked quizzically. I was surprised he actually seemed to value my opinion.
"That depends, too," I said, folding my arms. "This house has surprisingly good bones, but you're still gonna need to get a remediation crew out here to look at those walls. There is a chance the mold is just superficial, and the crack in that window hasn't been there long, but it could be upwards of twenty-k worst case scenario. It's a good neighborhood with good schools, and property values tend to go up over time, so if you’re looking to invest in it as a home for the long term, I'd say sure. If you're looking for property to flip in a month or two, there are better ways to make some quick cash."
My answer seemed to surprise him. He rubbed the stubble on his jaw, an admittedly attractive trait, and thought about it for a moment. "I see. Well, thank you for your candor."
"It's my job," I said, following him back down the ladder. He looked like he was going to offer his hand, but thought better of it. Smart man.
Once we were in the kitchen, Sean approached, looking eager. "Well?" he asked hopefully. "Any findings?"
I couldn’t help but feel for him. I knew this property had probably been a pain to unload, and he was a relatively new agent, so they weren't giving him the prime properties. Still, I wasn't gonna lie, and he knew that. Not even to an annoyingly presumptuous alpha from the city.
"A few," I said, about ready to go into the laundry list of problems I found when Devon interrupted me.
"I'll take it."
Sean looked as surprised as I was. His jaw even hung a little slack. "Really?" He cringed at his own question. "I mean, that's wonderful! I'll draw up the offer right now."
"Thanks. Make it the asking price," Devon said casually, typing something out on his phone. Poor Sean looked like he was going to jump out of his skin, but he nodded and scurried off into the kitchen to draw up the paperwork.
"Asking?" I asked doubtfully. "You saw that list I gave you. They'd come down another ten at least."
"I'm not interested in haggling," he said, slipping his phone back into his pocket.
"That's surprising, given your line of work," I said flatly. The only reason I could think of him making a move like that was some boneheaded attempt at impressing me, and I couldn’t think of any reason he'd care enough to do that.
He gave me a knowing smile. "I’ve been doing this a long time myself. Once I've made a decision, I never quibble over the details. And I always get what I want."
There was no doubt he was talking about more than just the house, and I wasn't surprised. I could see most omegas throwing themselves at him, ego aside. Hell, that was a bonus to most.
"Well, good luck with that," I said, feeling around for my keys.
"Wait," he said, following me over to the door. "I'd like to hire you to do the repairs."
