Matt felt his brain go momentarily fuzzy. “How can the kitchen not be a priority? You cook here. You spend most of your time in here. You store your food here. It should have been the first room you worked on.”
“I don’t need the kitchen. I toast Pop-Tarts or bake an egg. I don’t live in here. I live in my bedroom. Or now that the living room’s finished, I spend time in there.”
“You did your bedroom first. That’s insane. Everybody knows you renovate the kitchen and bathroom first.”
She stomped over to him and poked his chest. “Excuse me, but last time I checked this wasn’t your house. I can start wherever I like. And I wanted a bedroom I could sleep in.”
“Women.” He threw up his hands in disgust.
“You did not just say that.” Jena’s jaw dropped in horror.
“Trust me,” Matt said before turning back to stripping the wall, “I have two sisters. I know all about the fickle workings of the female mind.”
“Are you for real?” As she opened her mouth, to no doubt berate him, there was banging at the front door.
“Food. Great.” Matt strode past her and down the hall to the front door. As soon as he opened it, he regretted it. “Oh, hell no.”
“Hey, Don Don. Where’s your girlfriend? We want to meet her.” His younger sister Claire thrust a bag full of hot food at him before pushing past into the house.
“Does Mum know you’re shacking up with someone?” Megan, Claire’s twin, asked as she followed her sister.
“Get out,” Matt ordered them. “Couldn’t Dougal find anyone else to deliver the food?”
They gave him identical grins, each equally wicked. “We volunteered. Where is she?”
“What were you doing in the pub anyway?” He stomped down the hall after them.
They turned to him in unison. “We’re twenty-two, Don Don, not kids anymore. Don’t you just hate it?”
Aye, he bloody well did. He growled at them and they laughed.
Jena chose that moment to appear in the kitchen doorway. She was obviously still fuming. Her eyes went wide when she spotted his sisters. Most people had the same reaction. They were tall, blonde and beautiful. Unfortunately they were also evil. When they were six, they’d declared that their mission in life was to drive him mad. So far they were right on target.
“You must be Jena.” Claire held out her hand. Jena took it, looking a little bewildered. “We’ve seen you around now and then, but haven’t managed to say hello. Sorry about that. I’m Claire, Matt’s sister. That’s Megan. We came to rescue you. We figured that seeing you’d been alone with Don Don for an hour now, you’d probably need rescuing. Am I right? I am. I know. You don’t need to confirm it.”
Jena looked a little stunned before laughing loudly. The sound did strange things to Matt’s stomach, which he immediately attributed to hunger. With a grumble, he barrelled past the women and into the kitchen.
“Jena, come eat. You can’t live on cardboard.”
“Oh my sainted aunt, what crawled up his bum?” he heard Megan say.
“I think it was a Pop-Tart,” Jena said, and the three women laughed.
With a frown, Matt dug out the meal Dougal had sent over. Beef, gravy, mashed potatoes and baby veg. Nothing fancy, but beautifully cooked and no doubt delicious. The chef at The Scottie Dog knew what he was doing. Matt had checked him out the minute he’d arrived in town. It took a lot to impress Matt where food was concerned. He took his stomach very seriously, and the guy at the pub could be trusted.
“Jena,” he shouted. “The food is getting cold.”
He heard more laughter and knew his sisters were filling Jena’s head with rubbish. It was their gift. One of them. Along with driving him insane, getting into trouble and attracting unsuitable men.
The moment the three women walked into the room, Matt knew Jena had sided with the twins. It was to be expected. Women always stuck together.
He dished out food for Jena and pointed at the table. He was actually surprised when she did as she was told. Matt sat at his spot and dug in. Experience told him that the best reaction to his sisters’ interference was to ignore it. Sometimes it even worked.
“What’s the story with you and Don Don?” Claire asked with an evil glint in her eye.
“Why do you call him Don Don?” Jena at least was eating. For some reason, Matt felt relieved that she was getting some decent food in her. A person could not live on sugar-coated card.
Claire gave him a mischievous smile. “Didn’t big brother tell you?”