It was true that life had not been kind to her lately, but it was time for her to stop the pity party and get moving. She deserved it and her kids did, too. Seeing how happy they’d been today made her heart ache. Of course, it was so wonderful to hear their laughter ring through the house but the realization that she had not heard it enough lately broke her heart. That was on her. She was the grown-up, even if she still felt fifteen, and she needed to make a good, fun life for them.
Her thoughts drifted back to Todd downstairs. He’d been so kind tonight, helping her up the stairs, sitting outside the bathroom while she got ready for bed, and then making sure she was settled. There was definitely an attraction between them. She could feel it. Maybe it was nothing more than two single adults in close proximity, after all, laying someone in their bed was kind of sexy. She’d be wrong if she denied that she wouldn’t mind running her hands through his thick hair and bringing his mouth crashing down on hers. And it would be even more messed up if she did that.
Still, a girl could fantasize in between building a better life for her kids and maybe flirt a little if she was bored. A little harmless flirting never hurt anyone.
#
Sleeping on the couch was nothing new to Todd. Waking up with a wide-eyed seven-year-old staring at him was. He did a quick double take and tried to orient himself.
“Hey, Todd.”
“Morning, Zach.” He ran his hands across his face, trying to wake up. “What’s the time, buddy?”
“Six.”
“Six, huh?” That meant Todd had managed three hours’ sleep. He sat up and stretched. “How was the camping?”
“Awesome. Livi is still sleeping. I thought I’d come check on you.”
“That’s very kind. You can come help me make some coffee.”
The kid shook his head. “I don’t drink coffee.”
“No, but I do,” he said, ruffling the kid’s hair. “And I bet your mom does, too.”
“Yeah, she’s obsessed. She’s always saying, ‘Zach, wait till I’ve had my coffee.’ She’s not a morning person. I am. Maybe my Dad was. I don’t remember.”
They padded into the kitchen, shutting the door so as not to disturb the others.
“That’s tough. My dad died when I was about your age. I remember a bit about him but not enough.”
“Yeah. I kind of hate it.”
“I bet.” Todd busied himself filling the coffee pot. He wanted to let the kid talk, but he really wasn’t his best on so little sleep.
“I’m kind of mad at him for dying. The school counselor told me that was normal. But then everyone says, ‘oh, he’s a hero,’ and I feel bad that I’m mad.”
Todd lifted the kid and sat him on the counter. “Yeah, that puts you in a tough spot. It’s okay to be sad about him being gone, but he didn’t go on purpose. He’d rather be here with you guys.”
“I know but . . .”
“But?”
“He could have chosen a different job. My friend Mike’s dad works at the bank and Chris’s dad was a plumber and Derek’s dad is a personal trainer and they’re all alive.”
Sheesh. This was tough. He didn’t want to say the wrong thing. He wasn’t really the guy for this conversation. “My dad was an electrician. He had a heart attack. Sometimes even people with safe jobs just get taken. It’s not fair, but what we have to do is make the most of all the days we have and make sure we do stuff we enjoy with the people we love.”
“I guess.”
“You know what I love?” The kid shook his head. “Pancakes. Let’s make some pancakes.”
“I love pancakes, too.”
And his face lit up. Was it really that easy? Probably not. The coffee machine pinged that it was done. If this was how it started, Todd could only imagine what a long day it was. No wonder parents of young children were always tired.
The door opened and Zach came in carefully carrying a cup of coffee. His eyes were firmly planted on the cup and his brow was wrinkled with concentration.
Sarah pushed herself up in the bed.
“Hey, buddy.”
“This is for you,” he replied, not lifting his eyes as he finished the journey across the room. The scent of bacon wafted in after him.
“Thanks. How was the campout?”
“Awesome. And Todd and I made pancakes.”
“I wondered what I could smell,” she said, placing the mug on the bedside table and pulling her son in for a warm hug. “It smells delicious.”
“It was. We all ate ours.”
She glanced at the clock and did a double take when she saw it read nine. She hadn’t slept until nine in years. Wow. “Todd says to let him know when you’re ready and he’ll bring Livi in so you can change her.”
“Right. You can tell him I’m ready whenever.”
“They’re in picking dresses out,” he said with an eye roll. “Boring.”
She smiled as he left the room to go get the others. Today was already looking better than yesterday and it was all thanks to the man who a moment later came into the room cradling her daughter with such love. She had a pile of clothes on top of her.
“We couldn’t decide.” His grin said it all. They were having fun.
“So I see. I think that might be your whole wardrobe, Livi.”
“Pretty much,” said Todd.
“Girls,” Zach said, beating a retreat.
“I’ll leave you ladies to it,” he said, gently placing Livi on the bed. “Did you sleep all right?”
“Ohmygosh. Best sleep ever. Thank you.”
He gave her a satisfied smile. “Good. I’m sure you were long overdue. Plus, pain is exhausting. How’s the ankle?”
“Much better.”
“I think you and I need to talk about the stairs in this place.” His eyes fell on Livi.
“What do you suggest? A lift?”
“Sounds like a plan.” He turned to retreat. “But we could start with some ramps.”
The truth was she didn’t have the means or resources for ramps. She couldn’t afford a builder. Another part of her felt that ramps meant this was a permanent situation. Of course, intellectually she already knew that maybe it was, but accepting and knowing were not the same thing. The doctors said with a brain injury like Livi’s she could recover or recover some of her mobility at least. It was a watch and see situation and she hated it.
“How about you wait till I’m out of bed before we discuss it?”
He just shrugged and headed out. “Call out when you need me.”
Then, she turned her attention back to Livi. “So, honey, which dress did you decide on?”
“Todd likes this one.” She held up a red gingham number.
“And what do you like?” she asked her daughter. Surely four was too young to let a man choose your clothes.
She pointed at the one Todd liked. Maybe not.
When she was dressed and Sarah had downed her coffee, she had to admit her daughter did look extra cute in the dress Todd had chosen, even if she was kind of sick of hearing Todd this and Todd that from the excited child. She didn’t want them getting too enamored with the idea of him being on tap for them.
“It’s fun having Todd here, isn’t it, Liv?”
“Yeah, really fun.”
“You know he’s just helping mommy out because she hurt her ankle, like when you were hurt and people helped you.”
“But this isn’t a hopspital.” She always mispronounced the word.
“No, it’s our home, but this way I don’t have to go anywhere.” She was trying to explain. “Todd will go home in a day or so.”
“I know,” she said, her mouth forming a small pout.
“Okay. As long as you do. Then, he’ll go back to being our neighbor, which will also be nice.” Sarah didn’t want to burst her bubble, but she didn’t want more crushed hopes. “Now, how about we get him up here to help Mommy so I can have some of those yummy smelling pancakes?”
Todd carried Livi downstairs, and
then came back and helped her into the bathroom. She draped her arm around his broad shoulders and he bent down to allow her to. She made sure she kept her eyes straight ahead because his handsome face was right there. Now he was sporting a day’s growth, and despite sleeping on her couch, he smelled of lemon and pine needles. And man. He smelled deliciously of man and that was a smell she hadn’t been around too much lately. It did things to make her insides flip.
When she came back out, he was leaning against the wall, texting.
“I hope I’m not keeping you from your work.” She was worried she was taking up way too much of his time.
“Not at all. It’s Saturday, Sarah, and that wasn’t work-related anyway.”
“Hot date?”
“Something like that.”
Oh. She felt her heart drop. Just friends, Sarah, just friends.
She was wearing a flippy floral blue skirt and a white tank top. She’d pulled her hair into a ponytail. It was going to be another hot day.
“You look very pretty. Like a bunch of flowers.”
“Thanks.” She felt the color rise in her cheeks. Was she that unused to receiving compliments these days? “The skirt gives easy access. I mean . . .” Crap.
She saw his pulse jump on his chin. “I know what you mean.”
Crap. Why had she said that? He was about to pick her up and carry her down the stairs in the skirt, with the easy access. That certainly didn’t make it less awkward.
He stared at her. She stared at him. Then, she was faintly aware of voices and banging.
“What’s that?”
“If you want to see, you’ll have to let me carry you downstairs,” he teased, stepping closer.
“Okay. Will I get a pancake, too?”
“You drive a hard bargain, but I think I can manage that.” He leaned in and swept her up in his arms again. “We seem to be making a habit of this.”
“Sorry. I honestly just want you to know that I am so grateful that you’ve stepped up to help me. I can’t even imagine how I would have done this alone.” Tears pricked her eyes, just thinking of how this could have played out.
“Sarah, I’m happy to do it. One day I might need some help, or someone else might. Pay it forward.” His eyes were on hers and they were so kind, and yet there was something behind them, something else she couldn’t read. That seemed to sum Todd up. A warm and friendly exterior but there was something else. She wouldn’t mind finding out what it was. As they bumped down the stairs, her eyes trained on his lips. She really wouldn’t mind seeing what they tasted like.
She gave her head a small shake. He was talking about a date only minutes earlier; they were just friends. She needed to get a grip. The problem was she had a grip. Her arms were latched around his neck. She could feel the muscles of his body moving beneath his shirt and she liked it, maybe a little too much.
The banging got louder, so she diverted her attention to the back of the house when he placed her gently on the floor. She held on to him. One arm on a bicep. She’d always been a sucker for a bicep. Todd handed her the crutches that were leaning against the wall at the base of the stairs, forcing her to release from his body.
She was aware that the kids were nowhere to be seen. She followed the sound of the banging through the kitchen and out the back door to the small porch.
There she saw a group of men with hammers working on her deck. Men she didn’t recognize, except one who had to be Todd’s twin brother, Mike.
She turned back to Todd, her eyes raised. “Who are they, and what are they doing?”
“I’ll introduce you in a minute, and they’re building a ramp so Livi can get in and out of the house easily, without being carried.”
“A ramp,” she repeated, looking outside. “They’re building a ramp.”
“Yeah, it’s easier to build one out here than off the front porch, and the doorframe is wider here, too, so she can get in now, and if she needs a larger chair later.”
“When? How?”
“I just sent a few texts and emails yesterday.”
“But why would they help?”
“Because I asked them to. And because you need a ramp.”
It was so simple to him but it was anything but. She was about to say something more when a group of women and children came around the side of the house carrying plates of food and wearing sunny smiles. She recognized Chloe, and there was the pretty girl with the long curly hair. Maybe she was Todd’s date?
Todd brought his fingers to his mouth and let out a wolf whistle.
“Everyone this is Sarah and Zach and Livi.” She noticed the children were on the deck beside Todd looking equally wide-eyed. “This is Kevin and Sally and their grandkids Katie, Sophie, and Oliver. Chloe you know and her fiancé, Moose, and that is my brother, Mike, and his fiancée, Marissa.”
“Hi.”
And then she was swept up in greetings and hellos.
“We thought we’d have a cookout while the boys work,” Chloe explained, as if a group of strangers coming and building and cooking in your yard was completely normal. “Think of it as an impromptu welcome party.”
There was a picnic table down on the lawn where they placed some food, and Chloe and Marissa headed inside, going straight for the fridge.
“I don’t know what to say.”
“No need to say anything,” the older woman said. “It looks to me like you’ve been doing it alone long enough.”
“And don’t worry,” Todd said. “We can actually build stuff. Kevin helped me build my tree house. Mike’s a bit useless, but we won’t give him any big jobs.”
“I heard that.” His brother gave him a glowering look but didn’t look truly offended.
“Now, how about the pancakes I promised?”
“I can’t sit around eating pancakes while everyone else works.”
“Sure you can.” Chloe turned and guided her inside. “I need coffee anyway. And Todd needs to get to work out there.”
“Who put you in charge, Chloe?” Todd asked, strapping on a tool belt. Good heavens, had he ever looked sexier? Probably not.
“We had a quiet vote while you were upstairs.” She gave him a wink. “Now scat, you should be working, we should be eating pancakes and filling Sarah in on the ins and outs of life in our town.”
She had to admit she really liked these women; they were kind and funny and really good-natured. Chloe pieced together a map of how they knew each other. Mike, Marissa, and Todd went to school with Sally’s daughter Lucy. She was the aunt of the other children. Moose was friends with Lucy’s fiancé, Chase, and so he met Marissa that way and Chloe through her.
“It’s a small world in a small town,” Sally said. “It’s a good thing and a bad thing.”
“How is it bad?”
“Well, there’s a lot of gossip,” Marissa said. “People do like to get in your business. When Mike and I were trying to find our way together, it felt like the eyes of the whole town were on me.”
“And if you make a mistake, everyone knows. I was an alcoholic for a lot of years and I did some things I’m not proud of. Everyone knows, of course, I wasn’t exactly great at covering my tracks, but even so . . .” Sarah admired the way she just came right out with it.
“On the other hand,” Chloe interjected, “when I had a crazy stalker after me, everyone rallied. That’s when I really got to know Todd, for example. He really had my back.”
“Yes, and even though it took her a long time to realize it, when I was off the rails, lots of people were keeping an eye on my Lucy, so even though she had a tough time of it, there were people waiting to catch her.”
“Wow. It sounds, complicated.”
“Complicated can be good. Isolation, which I tried for a while, is pretty lonely,” Chloe said. Then, she checked her watch. “It’s after noon. We’ve been talking all morning. Better get that grill going.”
Sally followed her outside to rally the men.
“So, this has been quite a couple
of weeks for you, how’re you holding up?” Marissa asked. “You sure didn’t need that ankle on top of everything else.”
“Honestly, these past few months I feel like I’ve literally just fallen forward each day. It sounds disgustingly selfish but the ankle has given me permission to stop, even if it’s just for a day, and to kind of get my head on straight.”
“That’s not selfish. You need a full tank when you’re caring for other people. It’s not the same as your situation but I was the caregiver for my elderly parents for a number of years. I made their meals, cleaned the house, took them to medical appointments. I loved them, but I was exhausted. I didn’t know how exhausted until I stopped.”
“Did they . . . ?” She didn’t want to ask about their death.
Marissa caught on. “Oh no, they moved down south to a retirement community near my sister. I was kind of bummed at the time, but it was best for everyone.”
She wanted to ask if Todd was like this with everyone, but she wasn’t quite sure how to go there. It just seemed to her that his kindness was above and beyond what people did for people who were practically strangers.
“It’s a bit how Todd has been since Esme passed. He did her lawns, he mended stuff, they had a drink most nights, and often dinner if he was about. It’s a big hole in his life.”
“I didn’t realize that. She was pretty independent and still working . . . I guess I just figured she didn’t need help.”
Marissa leaned back in her chair and smiled. Her long curls were bouncing around her shoulders. “She was independent. She could have paid some kid to do her lawn but that was just their relationship. It was a deep friendship that filled both their needs. She needed someone to fuss about and so did he. And those two, they’re both crazy smart.”
“Todd is crazy smart?” she asked, and her eyes popped. She looked out the window to discover he was now shirtless, his tool belt hung low over his khakis.
“And crazy hot.” Marissa laughed. “I’m allowed to say that because I sleep with his identical twin.”
“So he’s kind, he’s sexy, and he’s smart.”
Any Way You Build It: An Upper Crust Novel, Book 6 (Upper Crust Series) Page 5
