Then when he moved away, they eventually just lost touch, and Robyn assumed her grandma would have forgotten all about him. She should have known better.
“Well, Grams, while I appreciate your concern for my relationship situation, there won’t be anything like that happening. Ben is going to help me fix up my house—that’s it. Since my budget is a bit smaller than some of the work required, I’m going to have to help as much as I can. And I’ve agreed to let him stay at the house while he’s here, so he won’t have to pay rent on a hotel room.”
Her grandma dropped her cookie onto the table and her mouth opened in shock. “You’re staying at the house together? Robyn!”
Robyn took a deep breath and shook her head. “No, he’s staying there. Vicki and I still have the apartment for another month, so I’ll stay there. Hopefully most of the work can be done in that time before we need to move into the house.”
“Well I should certainly hope so.”
Robyn laughed as her grandma nodded her head dramatically, then picked her cookie back up to dip into her coffee. She loved these days when she could come out to her grandparent’s ranch to just sit and spend some time visiting them. Her grandpa was sitting in the living room in his chair, with his head behind his newspaper. It was just so comforting to be here, like she’d done so many times as a child.
“I’m still not too sure how it’s going to be living that close to Mom and Dad again, but I’m sure I’ll get used to it. Besides, they’re still a block down the street, so it’s not like they’ll be able to see in my front windows or anything. That house is worth it anyway.”
Her grandma chuckled to herself. “You always said you’d have that house someday, even when poor Marion was still living there. I’m sure at times she almost felt like she should be moving out just so you could have it.”
“I don’t know why I loved that house so much. There’s just something about it that speaks to my heart, you know?” Her cheeks heated up as she shrugged. “I know it’s silly.”
Her grandma reached over and patted her hand. “I don’t think it’s silly at all. You spent a lot of time there with Ben when you were younger, so maybe you associate the house with someone you’ve always trusted and cared about.”
“Grams…” Robyn leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms in front of her chest, raising an eyebrow in her grandmother’s direction.
“Gertrude, for heaven’s sake, leave Robyn alone. Isn’t it enough you’ve already somehow managed to get almost half of your grandchildren matched up within less than a year? Keep yourself busy with their marriages and upcoming babies.”
Robyn’s laughter escaped as her grandpa’s words made it from the other room. She quickly covered her mouth as she watched Grams shoot a frustrated look toward the open doorway. “You just never mind, Harley. I’m just a concerned grandmother making sure my beautiful granddaughter doesn’t miss out on the chance to find the happiness we have.”
Robyn laughed again at the annoyance in the words that went completely against what her grandma was saying about being happy at this moment.
“I’d love to have what you and Gramps have someday, but right now, I’m busy with work and getting this house done so I can move in. There really isn’t going to be much time to think about anything else. Besides, I’m still young. I have plenty of time to find my happy-ever-after.”
“I know you do, dear. Just make sure that you’re not so busy focusing on other things around you that you miss out on something that could be wonderful right in front of you. Sometimes, I worry that all my grand-daughters are so independent and strong that they’ll be looking the other way when their chance for love comes along. I know you’re fine on your own, and that you don’t believe you need a man to make you happy, but sometimes you don’t realize just how much joy true love can bring to your life.”
“Don’t worry, Grams. I’m not opposed to finding love with someone when the time is right. And even though the Quinn women have been raised to be strong and independent, we aren’t foolish enough to let our own pride stand in the way of love. Look at Brooke. And Roxie, and Maggie, and Heather…” She grinned when her grandma put her hand up to stop her.
“Okay, I get the point. I know you girls are all going to be all right. But, just promise me this. You won’t let yourself be too caught up in the house renovations, and the memories of the boy Ben used to be, to see that maybe he could become the man who would make you happy in the future. Don’t forget to look closely at what’s right in front of you.”
Robyn knew her grandma wouldn’t give up, so she just smiled and nodded. The Quinn women were independent, and they were also fiercely stubborn at times. And that was the trait they inherited from this woman sitting across from her. Any more arguments with her would be futile.
“I promise, Grams. The next time I see Ben, I’ll make sure to get up real close and check out how well he fits into his jeans to make sure I’m not missing out on something…”
From the other room, her grandfather’s loud roar of laughter drowned out her grandma’s gasp.
Robyn just innocently smiled at her grandma and took another bite of her delicious cookie. She loved the woman, but sometimes the only way to get her grandma off a topic was to throw her off kilter a bit.
Besides, she was sure her grandma would faint right off her chair if she admitted that she already had noticed how nicely his jeans fit.
Chapter Four
“Okay, Robyn, I’m sure there’s no one in the world who loves this old house more than I do, but I think even I’m ready to admit defeat. I can’t believe that a few years of having it rented out could leave it looking so bad.” Ben reached up and wiped the sweat from his forehead and leaned against the partially dismantled cupboards. “There is absolutely no way we can sand the paint off these cupboards and reuse them.”
Robyn peeked her head out from behind the cabinet door she was working on removing. She was sitting on the floor in a pair of scruffy old sweatpants, with her hair pulled up into a mess on top of her head and sported the biggest pair of safety goggles he’d ever seen.
Most men would have laughed at the sight, but he was smarter than that. He knew she’d probably throw the screwdriver at his head if he did. Besides, he was almost sure he’d never seen a woman look as stunning as she did right now, safety glasses and all.
“Ben, you can’t give up already. We’ve barely even started. I’ve already told you I don’t have any money for new kitchen cabinets with all of the other stuff I need to do. These cabinets are in perfect shape, other than the bright orange color.”
She went back to work, turning her back to him.
“This orange will never come off, Robyn. Plus, I’m pretty sure the brightness is burned into my retinas anyway, so even if we did somehow pull it off, that’s all I’d ever see. I’ll make you new cabinets that will look way better than these.”
She sighed so loudly, a mound of dust blew up into her face as she looked back at him, making her cough. “I don’t have the money for new cabinets. I’ve told you this so many times.”
Ben just rolled his eyes and shook his head. “Consider them my housewarming gift. It will probably take me far less time to build new ones than it would to try getting this horrible paint off.”
Robyn stopped working and stared at him. “You would do that for me?”
He ignored the way his heart skipped a beat at seeing the smile she was giving him. He just shrugged nonchalantly. “It won’t be that hard. I’ve done custom cabinets before.” The truth was, it would be much more of a job than he was letting on, but for some reason he’d just said he’d do it without thinking. He wanted to give her something nice, knowing there was no way these old cupboards would be what she deserved. He was just doing it to honor his grandmother’s house, nothing more. Even as he said it to himself, he knew it wasn’t completely true.
She jumped up and clapped her hands together. “Well then, I guess we don’t need to dismantle these gent
ly anymore.” As she said the words, she walked over and grabbed the sledgehammer he’d set by his toolbox near the door. She promptly came back and swung it hard into the end of the base cabinets, leaving a huge hole in the orange wood.
He laughed and shook his head before reaching out to take the hammer from her hands. “Robyn, you can’t just go swinging the hammer around like that. We need to have a plan.”
Robyn had always been the adventurous one when they were kids, the one who would convince him to do things he knew might not be a good idea. But he always went along with her. Everyone said that was why they were such a good pair—he tended to overthink things, while she didn’t think them through enough. They balanced each other out.
“Well, my plan is to get these horrible cupboards out of this kitchen as soon as possible, so I don’t have to pretend I like them enough to make them work.”
He crossed his arms over his chest and squinted at her. “Why didn’t you just admit you didn’t like them and ask me to make you the cabinets in the first place?”
“Because I told you, I didn’t have enough money. And you would have made me take it from somewhere else in the renovation to pay for them. So, I was just going to make do until I had more money someday.”
He wanted to reach out and wipe away the streak of dirt she had on her cheek, but something held him back. Years ago, he’d have laughed at her and pointed it out without thought. But now, something just felt different between them. Even though being around her now was as comfortable as it had always been and it seemed like they’d never been apart, the truth was, they weren’t children anymore.
And every time his gaze fell on Robyn, he wasn’t sure he’d be able to see her as that little girl ever again. She’d become the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen, and it was taking everything he had not to make a fool of himself around her.
“I’ve talked to some of the guys on my crew and they’ll be here at the beginning of the week. So if we can get the demo done over the next few days, they can get straight to work on the bigger jobs I’ll need help with. I’ll start working on the cabinets as soon as they get here. We need to discuss where you’ll want to put everything.”
She lifted her safety goggles and rested them on top of her head. He couldn’t help but smile at how she just didn’t care how she looked to other people. Robyn had never been the type to worry about appearances. While most women would never be caught standing here like this, Robyn was completely at ease in her skin. And that made her even more beautiful.
“Well, I don’t think I’ll move anything. Maybe we could put in a bigger pantry cupboard over on that wall, but I want the sink and everything else right where it was. I like being able to look out at that big tree in the backyard while I’m doing dishes.” She gasped and quickly looked at him. “If we’re taking them out anyway, does that mean I can get a dishwasher put in?”
She was so excited about something so simple, and it made his heart jump. Until now, she’d obviously just accepted she wouldn’t have a dishwasher and didn’t even care. There weren’t many women out there who would ever be fine with that.
He laughed and nodded. “I was planning on putting one in for you anyway. We aren’t living back in the Stone Age. Adding a dishwasher really isn’t that hard to do.”
The excitement on her face was worth more than any amount of money she might be paying him for this renovation. Getting to spend time with the girl he hadn’t even realized how much he’d missed until now was just an added bonus.
This was one job he knew he was going to enjoy every moment of.
Chapter Five
“What ever happened to that pizza place we used to go to after our baseball games? When I drove into town earlier, I noticed the building was torn down. I can’t imagine how a place like that would ever go out of business. It was the best pizza I’ve ever had. Even when I moved into the city and had access to all the best pizza franchises, I always craved the ones from the little shop in Quinn Valley.”
Robyn finished swallowing the bite she’d just taken, then quickly wiped her mouth before answering. “You mean Luigi’s? I forgot about that place! The building actually burned down when I was about sixteen. The owners were older by then and didn’t want to go through the hassle of rebuilding and opening up again. They really did have the best pizza, though, didn’t they?”
She leaned over and grabbed another slice of the pizza they were having on her front porch. It was a beautiful evening and after all the hard work they’d put in demolishing the inside of the house for the renos, they had decided to share a pizza for a late supper.
Her eyes darted over to peek at Ben who was leaning back in the Adirondack chair beside her. He was glancing around the street out front, obviously letting his thoughts trail back to when he’d lived in town and spent time on this very porch with his grandma.
She’d had so much fun today, laughing and talking about their lives back then. They’d also shared a bit of what they’d been doing over the years and she couldn’t believe how quickly they’d been able to get back to how things had been with them growing up. Ben had always been easy to be around and today had reminded her of why she’d missed him so much when he’d left.
“So, do you have a girlfriend back in Lewiston?” Immediately her cheeks burned with embarrassment. Why had she blurted out a question like that? What if he took it the wrong way and thought she was asking out of interest herself? Was that what she was actually doing?
Quickly she met his gaze. “I mean, she might not like it that you’re away this long to work on this job. Although I’m sure with your work, she’s likely used to you needing to be out of town sometimes.”
Stop. Talking. Robyn.
The words flashed through her mind as she turned away and took a huge bite from her pizza to prevent herself from saying anything else.
But Ben didn’t seem fazed at all, or aware of her discomfort. He just shrugged before reaching in to grab another piece of pizza. “No girlfriend at the moment. Last time I tried that, things didn’t work out well.”
She almost laughed out loud as she watched him and realized he was still the same guy who was oblivious to the possibility that a girl might have a slight interest in him.
When he looked at her again, she couldn’t help noticing how green his eyes were. Had they always been that bright?
“How about you? Will there be some guy showing up on the doorstep wanting to fight me for sitting here and eating pizza with his girlfriend?”
This time, she did laugh out loud, shaking her head for emphasis. “No way. The last guy I dated, neglected to mention he wasn’t ready for a real relationship, so he was keeping his options open with about three other women at the same time.” She shuddered at the memory. “Let’s just say he convinced me that sometimes being single was a lot less of a headache, much to the dismay of my poor grandma who wants all of her grandchildren married within the year.”
He chuckled to himself. “How is Grandma Gertie? I might have to take a visit out to the ranch while I’m here to get a batch of her oatmeal chocolate chip cookies.”
“Oh, I’m sure she’d love to see you. But you might not want to be around her any more than you need to or you might be the next one on her ‘list’ to get married off.”
He brought his eyebrows together in confusion. “I doubt she’s going to care whether or not I’m getting married.”
“She already cares.”
Now he lowered his hand that held the pizza slice and stared at her. “Why does she care if I’m married or not?”
Robyn realized too late she should have stopped while she was ahead. Now how was she supposed to tell him that her grandma thought Robyn should be marrying her old elementary school friend.
She swallowed hard and tried to think of how to explain it without too much embarrassment to herself. “Well, it seems that Grams always thought you and I were going to end up together. When she heard you were back in town, she was almost giddy with exci
tement that after all these years maybe…” Her cheeks were so hot now, she was sure the glow from her skin would be enough to send signals into space.
Maybe if she just kept her eyes on the car that was driving down the street, Ben wouldn’t notice. She just needed to think of something quickly to change the subject.
Suddenly, her eyes fell onto the tree at the corner of the house next to the garden shed. Her mind flashed back to a day years before, when she and Ben were on their hands and knees digging a hole in the dirt beneath it.
“The time capsule!”
Ben was still staring at her with his mouth partway open, when she swung her eyes back to look at him. Now he looked even more confused at her abrupt change of topic.
“What?”
“The time capsule. The one we buried under that tree just before you moved away. We promised that you would come back in ten years and we’d open it together. We would have only been about thirteen then, but I completely forgot about it until now. It’s been way past ten years, Ben.”
He slowly leaned forward and turned to look toward the tall tree. She took in the outline of his jaw, covered in a dark shadow of stubble. His baseball cap was a bit ratty, but it suited him perfectly.
“I forgot about that thing too. But I’m sure my grandma probably dug it up and threw it away as soon as she had the chance. I’m surprised we didn’t end up killing her precious tree by digging that giant hole next to it. Remember, it was just a small tree she’d planted a few years before.”
He looked back at her with a small grin. “Surely you don’t think…”
Robyn jumped up and laughed as she ran toward the front steps. “We have to look.”
She could hear him stomping down the steps behind her. “I’ll grab a shovel from my truck.”
Her heart raced with excitement. How could she have forgotten about this? At the time, she’d been devastated, knowing her best friend was moving away. His grandma had given them the idea to make a time capsule and bury it with the promise to open it up in ten years. That way, they’d know they were always connected.
Remembering Romance: Quinn Valley Ranch Book 17 Page 2
