He shrugged.
“It’s an antique, Hudson,” Maverick explained. “Vintage.”
“Okie dokie.” Hudson circled the desk. “No way will that fit through the door.”
Kneeling, Maverick examined the underside. “If we remove the top, we can carry out the pedestals and the top in sections.” He slapped Hudson’s back. “Nice job, my man.”
Hudson grinned. “The power of the cookie. My God, I love sugar.”
Laughing, Carly got busy unscrewing the top of the desk. Once separated, the guys leaned it against the wall.
“Hey, lookie here, a secret compartment,” Hudson said peering inside. “There’s something in there.”
With the top removed, the right side of the antique desk revealed a hollow corner that, when pulled out, was large enough to store file folders.
“Did you know about that?” Maverick asked.
“No,” Carly said as she slipped her hand inside.
Hudson grabbed her arm. “Spiders!”
Squealing, Carly yanked her hand out. Hudson started laughing and she punched him in the shoulder.
“Still afraid of spiders,” Hudson said when he’d stopped laughing.
“I’m gonna get you back when you least expect it.” After giving him a playful glare, she slid her hand into the hollow space and extracted a large white envelope with a string closure tied into a neat figure eight. There was no writing on either side.
“Oooh, cool,” Hudson said. “Maybe your grandpa stashed a wad of cash in there and I’ll get a finder’s fee.”
“I had no idea this was here.”
“Open it.” Hudson popped the last morsel into his mouth.
Carly unwound the string and peered inside before showing him. “Sorry to disappoint, Hudson. No money.”
He scrunched up his face. “Just a bunch of papers. Bummer.”
Carly stashed the folder in her computer bag while the guys wrapped both pedestals and carried out the desk in sections. After loading Hudson’s truck, they followed her home.
Hands on hips, Maverick surveyed her living room. “Where are we setting it up?”
Carly glanced around. “I didn’t realize how large the desk is and how small my house is.”
“What about the lower level? It would make a great addition next to the pool table, or even in that far corner,” Maverick said with a wink.
As they gazed into each other’s eyes, Carly imagined them on the cherry desktop, him beneath her, while they connected in the most intimate of ways. The longer they stared the harder her heart pounded.
“Helloooooo,” Hudson said.
Carly blinked. “I’m sorry, what?”
Hudson chuckled. “You two are pathetic. The desk?”
“I’ll make room here.” She slid the Ficus tree out of the way.
The guys moved the pedestals into place and Maverick set the desktop over both. As he secured the pieces together, Hudson opened the secret compartment.
“Now that you know about this, you can stash all sorts of goodies in here. But you better shine a flashlight before you go sticking your fingers inside.” He waggled his brows. “Spiders, Carly, spi-ders.” His playful expression made her laugh. “This has got to be the coolest thing I’ve ever seen.” He slid the desk door closed. “Sorry to bolt, but I’ve gotta get to work.”
