by Coleen Kwan
“Tell me more.”
Taking another scoop of ice cream, she settled herself more comfortably on the couch. “I was a sophomore, and everyone around me seemed to be dating or hooking up, except me. I’d packed on the freshman fifteen and then some, which only made me feel worse about myself. Justin and I had shared a few classes before, and I’d managed to talk to him without making a fool of myself. When we started hanging out, just him and me, I was so flattered. Justin was a good-looking guy. He could’ve asked any girl out, but instead he chose to spend time with me.”
Caleb remained silent, loath to say anything that might make Lily shut down now that she’d finally opened up.
“We weren’t actually dating,” she continued. “Just spending time together. Then, one night, we, uh, hooked up, and after that, well, it felt like we were a couple, and my friends assumed we were a couple, so I did, too.”
“But Justin didn’t?” Caleb couldn’t help interjecting.
She shook her head, gazing at her empty spoon. “I found out later that he’d had a few one-night stands while we were together. When I confronted him, he was very uncomfortable at first, but then he started saying things like we’d never agreed to be exclusive. I mean, come on! We were spending at least one night a week together and talking on the phone and meeting for lunch and all. My friends all thought we were a couple. He was just trying to make excuses for his bad behavior. Thinking back, I realized he’d become evasive, canceling dates or showing up late. But I was oblivious, until I found another girl’s underwear in his bed. Stupid of me. I suppose if I’d dated more I would’ve picked up on the signs.”
“Lily, it’s not your fault. It’s his for being a complete scumbag. You’re not still hung up on this jerk, are you?”
“No.” She hesitated a moment. “I guess the memories got churned up because of what happened tonight. I don’t think about Justin at all.”
He wasn’t so sure about that. The way Lily’s eyes had darkened when talking about Justin, he could only conclude that her boyfriend’s cheating still affected her, if only subconsciously. She must have really loved the guy. The thought made his stomach contort.
“Okay, so where do we go from here? Do you want to give the dating a break? Fire me as your dating coach?”
She pushed out her chin. “Oh, I’m not going to let Grabby-hands Greg drag me down. No, I’ll continue with my dates, and I’d like you to continue…if you want.”
“Of course I do. I hate giving up. I’m gonna get you the guy you deserve.” That didn’t come out the way he’d intended. “I mean, you deserve the best, and I’m gonna make sure you get it.”
“Thanks. And thanks for coming by and checking up on me. I didn’t mean to blab on so much about Justin. Must’ve been tedious for you.”
“Not at all. I’m glad you told me.” In fact, it was alarming how much more he wanted to learn about her.
They looked at each other. As the quiet of the night enveloped them, making the chirping insects outside sound louder, he became aware how close they were sitting.
She glanced away first and rose to her feet, gathering up her spoon and the tub of ice cream. “It’s getting late, and you probably want to go.”
He didn’t, but he stood anyway, handing her his used spoon. “Call me if you need anything,” he said, pausing at her front door. “Anything at all.”
Her lashes fluttered as she looked up at him, and for a few beats he was sharply aware of her, noticing her pulse ticking at the base of her throat and the dim porch light casting a soft glow over her skin. He didn’t want to go. He wanted to stay. Wanted her to talk to him, confide in him, need him.
But she stepped back into her house, and the screen door shut, nearly thwacking him on the nose.
“Goodnight, Caleb.”
“Goodnight.”
The door closed. He frowned at it, wondering if she’d open it again. But she didn’t, and after several more seconds, he had no choice but to turn and walk away.
…
The Black Pan diner had been serving up good, unpretentious food for generations, and on a Sunday morning it was doing a brisk trade. Caleb set down his coffee mug and looked at the older man sitting opposite him.
“Thanks again for meeting with me, Mr. Baker,” he said.
Bill Baker grunted as he chewed on a mouthful of pancake. “You should thank Lily,” he said in his habitually gruff voice.
“Yes, I have,” Caleb responded before digging into his own stack of blueberry pancakes.
A craggy, no-nonsense man, Bill Baker was dressed in denim jeans and a plaid shirt that looked like he’d bought them from Wal-Mart. His blunt, worn hands and rugged features told of a lifetime of hard work, but his brown eyes—startlingly similar to Lily’s—held a spark of humor that hinted he wasn’t tough all the way through.
Bill asked Caleb about his family. Happy to comply, Caleb chatted about his dad and stepmom, his sister and her husband and baby daughter.
“Uh-huh.” Bill nodded. “So she’s the one married to that celebrity carpenter, is she?”
“Yup, Derek Carmichael. He and I are buddies from way back.”
“Good to hear.” Bill cut off a piece of bacon before continuing, “Family’s important, don’t you agree?”
“Absolutely, sir.”
“My daughter means the world to me.”
Caleb set down his fork as he tried to interpret the look in Bill’s sharp eyes. Was he giving him a warning? Don’t mess with my daughter or else? Warmth prickled beneath the collar of Caleb’s shirt. Could Bill tell that he’d had…certain thoughts about Lily?
“Lily’s a terrific girl,” he answered in a rush.
“Yes, she is.” Bill chewed on his bacon, eyeing him in silence. “How do you know her again?”
Belatedly Caleb remembered that Lily didn’t want her dad to know about her dating woes. “We got to talking at the chili festival.”
“The chili festival.” The older man continued to scrutinize Caleb. “And you and she are just friends, is that right? Nothing else going on?”
Caleb shifted his feet and cleared his throat. “That’s right, sir.”
Bill nodded. “Don’t mean to be nosy, but I like to be clear on these things.”
“Sure, I understand.”
Bill took his time cutting up his pancake into neat squares. He ate them one by one, studying Caleb until the tension was clawing at Caleb’s gut.
“I suppose you know I’ve been talking to Oliver Marsh,” Bill eventually said.
Caleb let out his breath. “Yeah, I know that.”
“You acquainted with Marsh?”
“Sure. Not too many contractors around Pine Falls.”
If he was inclined to, he could tell Bill about the complaints he’d heard from some of Oliver Marsh’s ex-clients, people who’d turned to Caleb to rectify the problems, but it wasn’t his style to bad-mouth a rival, and besides, Bill was a veteran in the industry and was probably aware of everyone’s reputations. But Caleb did have one advantage over his competitor that he could reveal.
“I have a business plan, if you’d like to see it.”
Bill’s bushy gray eyebrows rose up. “A business plan, eh? Sure, let me take a look.”
Caleb pulled the copy from the document wallet he’d brought with him and handed it over. Bill pushed his plate to one side, perched a pair of reading glasses on his nose, and began leafing through the document.
“Not bad,” he said after several minutes of careful reading. “Not bad at all.”
“Lily helped me,” Caleb couldn’t help confessing. “A lot, actually.”
“Yeah? I’m not surprised. She wouldn’t have set up this meeting without making sure you were prepared.” Bill closed the report and folded his hands on top of it. “So, young man, tell me how you think this partnership would work. How would it benefit both you and me? What future do you see for us?”
Finally, some questions he was eager to answer. He spoke for s
everal minutes, outlining how he thought he could add value to Bill’s business, the ideas he had for expansion, how their different strengths complemented each other. Bill listened carefully, only interrupting once or twice for clarification. At the end of it, Caleb leaned back in his seat. According to the clock on the wall, he’d been yammering on for more than twenty minutes, although it only felt like five. He thought he’d expressed himself well; he only hoped he hadn’t bored Bill.
Far from looking bored, the other man was leaning forward with an eager expression.
“I’ll be honest with you.” Bill rubbed his rough jaw. “If I’d met you earlier, you’d be first in line, son, but Oliver Marsh got to me first, and I’m not one to ditch a feller just because a better offer comes along.”
Caleb’s spirits hovered between hope and disappointment. On the one hand Bill had called him “son”—that had to count for something—but on the other, he was a man of his word, and Caleb couldn’t fault him for that.
“I understand,” Caleb replied, glancing down at his coffee mug to hide his letdown. “But I’m grateful you listened to my spiel.”
“Hey, don’t throw in the towel so fast. I haven’t agreed to anything with Marsh yet. He’s still doing a trial job for me. Maybe you’d like to do one for me, too?”
“Hell, yeah—I mean, yes, I definitely would, sir. Whatever you want. I can start today.”
Bill chuckled. “Nice to see you’re eager, but you might not be so happy when I tell you the details. See, I have a tight deadline to meet, and I’ve lost a couple of project managers. I need two homes finished in four weeks’ time. Oliver has taken over one of them, and I was thinking maybe you’d like to do the other. The electrical wiring and plumbing are done, but you’d have to oversee all the sheetrock, flooring, painting, kitchen and bathroom fit out. You can use contractors you’ve worked with before, or you can use my workers. It’s up to you. But Oliver has a two-week head start on you. Still interested?”
“Sure am,” Caleb said without hesitation. “Give me the details, and I’ll start right away.”
“Well, I’ll give you the address so you can take a look, but tomorrow is soon enough to start work.”
With his rival two weeks ahead of him, Caleb needed every day he could get, but he didn’t want to start off on the wrong foot. “Okay. Guess I’ll wait until tomorrow.”
“Here’s the address.” Bill scribbled something on a business card and slid it across the table. “Stop by my office tomorrow morning, and I’ll go through all the details of what the clients want.”
Caleb pocketed the address. “Seven a.m. okay?”
Bill nodded. Everything he’d said sounded encouraging, but Caleb sensed a hint of hesitation from the older man.
“Are you sure you’re up for it?” Bill asked. “Because if you’re not, I’d rather you say so right now.”
“Yes, I’m up for it,” Caleb said firmly.
“I was going to tell my clients the house would be delayed by two months, but if you’re sure, I’ll tell them it’ll be ready in six weeks’ time. That’ll give you a two week buffer.”
“It’ll be done in four weeks.”
The other man still looked unsure. “One more thing. I’ve heard you’ve got a bit of a reputation as a ladies’ man.”
Caleb sat upright in his seat. “Huh?”
Bill flapped his hand, his face scrunched up and tinged with pink. “I don’t hold that against you. What you do in your spare time is your business. As long as it doesn’t affect your work.”
Caleb gripped the edge of the table. “I don’t know about being a ‘ladies’ man,’ but I can assure you that it has zero influence on my ability to meet my deadlines.”
“Well, that’s good to hear. Just wanted to clear that up,” Bill said, wiping his mouth with a paper napkin. “Okay. So I’ll see you tomorrow at my office at seven sharp.”
“Yessir, seven sharp.”
Caleb drew in a breath. He’d done it. He was in with a chance. Now, he just needed to make sure he didn’t blow it.
…
Lily rummaged through the bag of odd yarn balls and fabric scraps she’d bought from a recycling center, sorting them by color. She needed more orange for her latest project, she decided. Orange was the color of joy, creativity, happiness; she could do with some positivity after her flop of a date. But every cloud had a silver lining. If Greg hadn’t overstepped the mark, Caleb wouldn’t have come rushing over to comfort her.
She’d been more angry than fearful, but Caleb’s reaction had surprised her. He’d made her feel special. She’d made a mistake with Greg, but Caleb had shown her that not all men were jerks.
However, Caleb wasn’t one of her dates. He only cared about her the way he would for his sister or any other female relative. She had to keep that in mind and not let herself get carried away.
She picked out a ragged ball of orange yarn. As she went in search of her crochet hook, a knock sounded on her front door. When she opened it and saw Caleb standing on her porch, her heart kicked up.
His face was alight, and he appeared to be fizzing with excitement.
“I just finished meeting with your dad,” he said, rocking back and forth on his heels.
Lily smiled. “It went well?”
“Oh yeah. He was really impressed by the business plan, all thanks to you.”
“That’s great! So you’ll talk more, discuss the nuts and bolts?”
“Well, I’ll have to pass his trial first.” Caleb pushed his fingers through his hair. “I’ve got to finish a house for him in four weeks. Oliver Marsh is doing one, too, but he’s got a two-week head start on me.”
“Right. You think you can make it?”
“Of course I can.” He leaned a hand against the doorframe, angling his body closer to her, his face alive with anticipation. “Wanna go for a drive with me?”
Her heart did another reflexive skip. The word yes leaped to her lips. What wouldn’t she like more than a Sunday drive with a gorgeous guy like Caleb? But just in time she tamped down her enthusiasm. She didn’t want him thinking she had nothing better to do.
“Where are you planning to go?”
“Your dad gave me the address of the house. Thought I’d check it out.” His gaze lowered to the ball of yarn in her hand. “But maybe you’re too busy?”
Who was she kidding? Of course she wanted to go out with Caleb.
“Nothing that can’t wait,” she said. “Just give me a couple of minutes to get ready.”
Five minutes later she was in his truck and on the road. Caleb drove them out of Pine Falls, heading for a new subdivision a few miles away. The day was bright and sunny, the trees bursting with fresh growth, the fields blooming with flowers. The sound system of Caleb’s truck thumped out The Kills. The cab of his truck was huge, but he was a tall man with a larger-than-life presence that no one, least of all her, could ignore.
She closed her eyes, enjoying the breeze in her hair and the sunshine on her face. For a brief second she imagined herself going for a drive with her boyfriend. Cut it out, she chided herself. Caleb wasn’t relationship material. Daydreaming about him was not allowed. But it was difficult not to, especially when he was so close to her, his solid, denim-clad thigh mere inches from her hand.
Frowning, she surreptitiously pinched her arm, turning her head to gaze out the side window, away from temptation. Luckily, they soon reached their destination, a large two-story house surrounded by others in various stages of construction.
They got out and tramped around the site. Having accompanied her dad to hundreds of building sites, Lily had come properly prepared with sturdy boots that didn’t mind the dirt and debris.
“It’s a big house,” she said after they’d peered through the windows on the first floor. “And there’s so much to do. Are you sure you can finish it in four weeks?”
“Course I am.” Caleb was busy taking photos and tapping notes into his smartphone. “And I’ll do a better job t
han Oliver.”
She studied his intense face, noting his concentrated focus. “I wish I had your confidence.”
He glanced up from his phone. “You think I’m all hat and no cattle?”
“No, of course not. But you don’t seem to harbor any doubt that you can pull this off.”
“Well, of course I have my doubts, but I can’t let that scare me off. No risk, no reward.”
“Nothing seems to scare you off.”
He slipped the phone back into his pocket, his attention zeroing in on her. “How do you know that? Maybe I’m just better at hiding it.”
She gazed back at him. What was he thinking? What was going on behind those fervid, cobalt-blue eyes of his?
“Maybe, but I think you were born with an unfair amount of self-confidence.”
“Is that your theory?” He folded his arms, his expression alive with interest. “Well, don’t tell anyone this, but I’m not always so sure of myself.”
“That’s hard to believe.”
“I don’t always get the girl, you know. Sometimes I strike out, just like everyone. Sometimes I have to hold back, for other reasons.”
“Like what?”
His gaze flitted over her. He gave a small shrug. “Y’know, sometimes I have to be sensible.”
Was there a hidden meaning behind his words? Was he referring to her? It almost seemed like he was flirting with her. If so, two could play that game. She needed the practice anyway.
“Not too sensible, I hope. I mean, you still know how to have fun, don’t you?”
“Well, sure. I used to goof around all the time.”
“Really? What kind of goofing around are we talking about here?”
“Things like jelly donuts in nail pouches, or getting a rookie to do a prank seismic test. One time, I filled a buddy’s car with Styrofoam peanuts right up to the windows. You should’ve seen his face.” Caleb chuckled as he rubbed his jaw. “I must’ve been a real pain in the butt sometimes. Haven’t done any of those pranks for a while now.”
“That’s a shame.”
“Lily, are you egging me on?”
