Sawdust and Mistletoe

by Michelle Pennington

  Chapter Four

  Ava carefully avoided Olivia’s eyes as she walked into the Garland’s house the next morning. She handed her a cup of her favorite cocoa and held up the box of donuts from their favorite shop.

  “Well, aren’t you looking nice today?” Olivia asked

  Ava sighed and walked past her to put the donuts on the kitchen counter. “I knew you were going to say that.” She opened the box and pulled out a maple glazed pumpkin donut. “Mrs. Garland will be back today. You know I always try to look nice when our client is going to be here.”

  “It doesn’t have anything to do with our new handyman?”

  “No.” She took a big bite of the donut

  “Sure about that?” Olivia smiled and wiggled her perfectly shaped eyebrows.

  “Pretty sure.”

  Olivia grinned.

  “Fine. Whatever. All I did was curl my hair and put some makeup on. It’s professional.”

  “And totally effective. That purple cardigan is gorgeous, by the way.”

  “Thanks. So, let’s get started by getting some of our mess and supplies cleaned up and moved out to the garage so that the house doesn’t look like a wreck when she gets here.”

  “Sure. Can we please listen to Christmas music today?”

  “That’s what your ear-buds are for.”

  “Not when I’m working inside with you. You know we need to be able to communicate.”

  “And you know it drives me crazy to listen to Christmas music all day long.”

  A deep voice spoke over their heads. “Really? Who are you, Scrooge?”

  Ava turned quickly and let her eyes sweep over the cause of all her nervous energy. Man, Hunter was even more handsome than she remembered. How was that possible? Maybe because he wore a blue and green plaid shirt today instead of black and red. The colors made his slate blue eyes pop. But she was going to play it cool, even if it killed her.

  “Good morning. And no, I’m not Scrooge. But Christmas is all I do this time of year, and it gets old really quick.”

  “That is the saddest thing I’ve heard all day.”

  “It’s 8:00 in the morning.”

  “I’ll let you know later if you still hold the record.”

  “You do that. Ready for your assignment?”

  “Ready and waiting.”

  “I need you to figure out a way to widen the mantle over the fireplace in the dining room to hold a nativity scene. It needs to be really secure so we don’t have anything disastrous happen.”

  “Like the whole thing coming down and smashing on the floor.”

  “Exactly like that.”

  “On it,” he said. He walked through the kitchen into the adjoining dining room and pulled out a measuring tape.

  “Ava,” Olivia whispered. “Stop staring at his butt and get to work.”

  Startled, she said, “I was not staring. I was just thinking.” Then she stuffed the rest of the donut in her mouth.

  Olivia walked off, laughing. “I know exactly what you were thinking.”

  Ava rolled her eyes and got to work sweeping up the glitter and tree needles around the big tree in the entryway. Soon, Jingle Bell Rock blasted through Olivia’s blue-tooth speaker. Ava wanted to strangle her assistant with the nearest garland. But an hour later, as Ava gathered up trash and empty boxes, she caught herself singing along to Frosty the Snowman. She groaned and yelled, “Olivia! I’m going to kill you if that song gets stuck in my head all day.”

  A deep chuckle behind her alerted her to Hunter’s presence. “Agh! Why are you always sneaking up behind me?”

  Hunter held up both hands in a sign of innocence. “I just came in to ask for supplies.”

  “I’ve got some odds and ends of plywood in the back of my van. Why don’t you see if any of it will work and I’ll get some cash ready for you to go get anything else you need. It’s unlocked.”

  A few minutes later, with the sitting room looking nice, Ava felt satisfied. Nothing like a burst of productivity to put you in a good mood. That was when Mrs. Garland walked in the front door.

  “Oh, my heavens! Ava, I love it. It’s so beautiful.”

  Olivia’s eyes met Ava’s in worry before she ran to turn off her music. Ava took a deep breath and went out to the entry hall.

  “I’m so glad you like it, Mrs. Garland. Of course, there’s still some more work to do, but it’s coming along nicely I think.”

  “Definitely. I’m so glad I didn’t let Marcia talk me into letting her do it this year. She always does things the way she wants, but you do them the way I want, and you always know what I’ll like.”

  “I do my best,” Ava said, determined not to comment about her boss.

  “And the best is what I want.”

  Just then, Hunter came in carrying a piece of plywood. He paused when he saw Mrs. Garland. Ava almost laughed when his eyes got really big. She’d forgotten how shocking Mrs. Garland was when you weren’t used to her.

  Mrs. Garland was in her late 40’s, but she dressed like a teenager. Today she had on a short red sweater dress that barely covered her rear, tight gold leggings, and gold heels. Her hair was bleached within an inch of its life, with black roots making a dark shadow in her bumped up ponytail. The only thing longer than her fake eyelashes were her stiletto heels.

  “And who is this yummy bit of man-flesh?” Mrs. Garland asked in her loud, carrying voice.

  Ava’s mouth opened slightly at these words, and it took her a moment to answer. “This is Hunter. He’s our handyman this week.”

  “Good with your hands, are you?” Mrs. Garlands voice purred with insinuation.

  Ava looked over at Olivia, whose face was red from trying to stifle her laughter. Or was it shock? “Hunter, let’s go outside and check on those supplies you needed. We’ll be right back, Mrs. Garland.”

  He followed even though he already carried a few pieces of plywood under one arm. He was probably glad for the escape.

  Ava matched her pace to his and looked up at him. “I’m so sorry. I can’t believe she said that.”

  “That’s the lady who lives here?”

  “Yes. She’s the client.”

  Their footsteps fell in sync as they walked to her van out front. Hunter set the boards down and leaned against the back door. “Well, I’m not so surprised anymore that her husband punched through the wall. Clearly, he’s married to a crazy person.”

  Ava bit her lip. “I feel really bad about what happened in there. I know how awful it is to be treated like that.”

  “It’s not your fault that she’s out of line, Ava, but thanks.”

  “I’ll understand if you don’t want to finish the day.”

  “It would take a lot more than that to scare me off. I like working with you.”

  His eyes were bright as they met hers. She couldn’t look away, “I like working with you, too. Let’s just try to avoid the client. Why don’t you work in the garage for a while?”

  He nodded and she went back inside, feeling anxious. If only Mrs. Garland would go away.

  In the kitchen, Ava took a sip of her cocoa, hoping it would steady her nerves, but it was cold. Groaning, she dumped it down the sink and tossed the cup in the trash.

  She needed sugar so she opened the donut box and picked out a chocolate frosted cake donut. The first bite was magical, but as she took the second bite, Mrs. Garland came into the kitchen, followed by Olivia. Ava noticed how tight Olivia’s expression had grown, clearly a sign that her friend was anxious about the situation.

  They worked with Mrs. Garland a lot since she was a close friend of the boss. Mrs. Garland was constantly changing her home’s design or staging homey decorations to impress her husband’s wealthy business connections. But after spending so much time in the Garland’s home, Ava and Olivia were well aware of how volatile she could be.

  Without asking, Mrs. Garland grabbed a powdered donut and took a big bite. Ava watched in awe as the powdered sugar stuck in her red lipstick. She
chewed for a minute and said, “I’m so glad I came home a day early. Just think, I might never have seen your hunky new guy.” She took another bite and licked her lips. “I was just telling Olivia here that it’s been a long time since I’ve seen a man with real muscles. You know, not the fake ones from going to the gym, but the kind that comes with real work.”

  Ava tilted her head to one side, puzzling this one out. Olivia met her eyes and shrugged helplessly. How could they get Mrs. Garland to leave Hunter alone?

  Ava clearly needed to straighten Mrs. Garland out on a few things, but as diplomatically as possible. “Hunter has a lot of work to do today if we are going to finish on time.”

  She laughed and walked over to the fridge. To Ava’s horror, she pulled out a half-full bottle of wine. As she filled a glass, Ava couldn’t help but glance at the clock. It wasn’t even ten o’clock. If she started drinking this early, it wouldn’t be long before Mrs. Garland lost what few inhibitions she had.

  After taking her first sip, Mrs. Garland waved a hand toward Ava. “Don’t worry, honey. I won’t get in his way. Nothing better than watching a man work.”

  Ava looked at Olivia, desperate for help, but her friend looked as helpless as Ava felt.

  Mrs. Garland took another messy bite of her donut and carried her glass of wine with her as she said, “I’m going upstairs to shower and change. Early morning flights can make you feel less than fresh, if you know what I mean. But Ronnie demanded I come home. You know how husbands are.”

  When she was out of earshot, Olivia said, “Should we call Marcia?”

  “No. You know they’re besties. What would she do anyway? This is Mrs. Garland’s home. She can drink if she wants. We just need to get done as quickly as possible and get Hunter out of here.”

  “You know how she is, Ava. She’s going to be drunk by noon and you know it.”

  “Maybe we should hide it all.”

  “Sure. The last thing we need is to be accused of stealing her alcohol.”

  “Good point. Well, come on. Full speed. Let’s get this done.”

  Thirty minutes later, she’d finished suspending several dozen snowflakes at different lengths of fishing line in the bay window of the kitchen and Olivia had finished placing all the garlands and swags around the house. They made quick progress, working at double speed as a sense of impending doom settled over the house.

  Ava was halfway under the big tree tying the ribbons on the tree skirt when the front door opened. She heard firm, widely spaced footsteps and knew they belonged to Hunter. “I’m in here,” she called out to him.

  “I’ve done as much as I can do out there. I need measurements.”

  Ava wiggled out and stood up, smoothing down her sweater and hair. Before she could answer, she heard the racket of heeled shoes clacking down the stairs. They both turned to see Mrs. Garland, clinging to the handrail, wearing black lingerie. As lingerie goes, it was long and tasteful, but that didn’t change what it was. It might not be sheer, but it was still suggestive.

  “Oh, holy cow. For real?” Ava said, not caring if Mrs. Garland heard her.

  Hunter had turned away, and he looked like he wanted to gouge his eyes out.

  “Go back to the garage. I’ll bring you the measurements.”

  He didn’t hesitate. He went. He didn’t even pause when Mrs. Garland called out to him, “Where are you off to in such a rush?”

  “What on earth are you doing?” Ava asked her.

  “Doing? I’m not doing anything. I just wanted to be comfortable.”

  “You’re wearing a negligee.”

  “Isn’t it lovely? I bought it on my trip and I hadn’t tried it on yet. It felt so lovely against my bare skin, I decided to leave it on.”

  “But there’s a man working here today.”

  She grinned and elbowed Ava as she walked into the kitchen with her empty wine glass. “It didn’t escape my attention, honey. And I doubt I escaped his.”

  Ava heard her laughing as she opened the fridge door.

  “Olivia!” Ava yelled.

  She came running from the sitting room. “What?”

  “We’re taking an early lunch today. In one hour. Get done what you can.”

  “Why what’s going on?”

  “I think our client is hoping to seduce our handyman.”

  “No way.”

  “Yes way. And I have a feeling that if we don’t get him out of here soon, we may never see him again. And I wouldn’t blame him one bit.”

  Chapter Five

  Hunter’s boards were all laid out, his saw set up, his tools handy. There was nothing else he could do without measurements. But the last thing he wanted to do was go back in that house and retrieve them. Creeping up to the door, he slowly opened it and looked around. Luckily, Ava and Olivia were tying a garland to the banister on the staircase that faced the door.

  “Ava,” he said, whispering as loudly as he dared.

  She came down the steps and whispered back. “What?”

  Hunter raised his voice slightly, but kept an eye on his escape route in case Mrs. Garland came back. “You never brought me the measurements.”

  “I’ll go get them,” she said, turning and heading toward the dining room. Even disturbed by memories of the woman who owned this place, he couldn’t help but watch Ava’s graceful walk. Her hips swayed slightly, but her stride was purposeful and direct. He’d never realized before that he could find someone’s walk attractive. Of course, it might be because she had great legs too.

  Hearing a snort of suppressed laughter, he looked up and saw Olivia laughing at him. Hunter’s lips twitched until he gave in and grinned.

  “Caught you,” she said.

  He held his finger to his lips. “Shhh.”

  Ava came back then with a paper in her hand. Maybe he could test the waters a little—see if she was attracted to him too. But then Mrs. Garland came out of the kitchen and saw him. This was definitely not the time to figure it out. He escaped to the garage.

  Hunter read his numbers and tried to decide which set of cuts to make first. He was just marking the length he needed on the plywood when he heard the unmistakable sound of heels clacking over the concrete. He closed his eyes and prayed she wasn’t coming for him.

  “So, this is where you’ve been hiding.” Mrs. Garland’s voice was like thick syrup.

  “Not hiding. Doing my job. Excuse me.” He turned his back on her and went over to his table saw. Her heels clacked towards him as he positioned a board and turned on the saw.

  “Ooh, power tools.”

  Hunter rolled his eyes. He’d never been so glad to feed a board through a saw and drown out the world in the screech and grind of the metal cutting through wood. This was not a good time to be distracted though, so he hoped she’d find something to do besides bother him. While he finished the cut and checked the length, she walked over to the other side of the garage and pulled out a lawn chair. She opened it and plopped down, crossing her legs in a way that exposed one of her thighs. She lit a cigarette and held it in one hand while crossing her other arm across her torso in a way that lifted her chest higher.

  Revolted, Hunter got the next board and stretched his measuring tape along it, but the numbers didn’t make sense. He had to look at them twice before figuring out what he was doing.

  For the next fifteen minutes, he worked while Mrs. Garland smoked and watched him. How was she not freezing to death? It was only 40 degrees.

  Finished with his work, he bent down to unplug his saw but straightened when he heard steps behind him. Before he could move away, however, Mrs. Garland wrapped her arms around him and squeezed tight.

  Enough was enough. Hunter pried her arms apart and stepped away. “Don’t touch me again,” he said. He strained to keep his temper in check but didn’t know how long he could.

  “Oh, come on, honey. It’s cold out here.” He heard the slur in her voice and figured out what had caused her to lose her inhibitions. If she ever had any.
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br />   “Then go inside and put some clothes on. I’m sure you have closets full of them.”

  “I thought you’d like this.”

  He was about to tell her exactly what he thought of it when Ava burst through the door at the back of the garage. “Come on, Hunter. I’m taking you to lunch.”

  Hunter raised his eyebrows but didn’t say anything. He just followed Ava to her van. This was a definite improvement in his situation, and he wasn’t going to question it.

  Ava didn’t say anything during the drive. Hunter glanced over, wondering if he should start a conversation, but decided against it. Five minutes later, she pulled into the parking lot of a Mexican restaurant called Las Palmas. They got out and walked toward the entrance, but as Hunter opened the door for her, Ava stopped with a dismayed look on her face. “I didn’t even ask if you liked Mexican food. Do you want to go somewhere else?”

  Her bewilderment and sweetness were both more charming than she probably realized, but he felt bad that she was flustered. “This is great.”

  “Oh good. You’ll love it.”

  They were shown to a table quickly, and Ava took off her coat and draped it over the seat of one of the empty chairs. “I can’t believe that just happened. I know you told me it wasn’t my fault, but I can’t help that I should have figured out a way to stop it.”

  Hunter smiled to reassure her. “Hey, relax. Someday we’ll think this is funny.”

  Ava tilted her head as the word someday drifted between them like a lazy snowflake. “Will we? Well, regardless, she was way out of line. I can kind of understand why she did it. She’s an aging woman with too much money, a distant husband, and an alcohol problem. When a guy like you appeared in her house, she was bound to try to get your attention.”

  “A guy like me?”

  Ava rolled her eyes. “Yes. You know what I mean.”

  He hoped he did, but wanted to hear her say it. “Not really. Elaborate, please.”

  “You know, good looking, young, strong—and single, right?”

  “If you’re asking if I’m single, yes, I am. Are you?”