by Jenna Byrnes
“Hell no. I took them.”
She laughed. “Did Bailey care?”
“Nope. She said it was all going to Goodwill.”
Sarah nodded. “Mandy got some stuff, too. Bailey was very generous with her.”
Doug downed the last of his beer and said, “If I come to dinner do I have to hear about the wonderful Bailey Montgomery the whole time?”
“No, you don’t. You can listen to me complain about the leaky faucet in the bathroom and the cracked window in the back room that needs to be replaced…”
“Much, much better.” Doug followed his sister down the stairs and pulled his door shut.
Bailey put Mandy to work the next day boxing up pots and pans while she met with the realtor and walked her through the house. Jane Barnes was a tall woman with glasses, her blond hair pulled tightly into a bun. She looked prim and fussy, but after spending a few minutes with her, Bailey decided she was actually quite nice and seemed very knowledgeable about the real estate market. Jane made notes about the house and everything that needed done to it. Bailey cringed as the list grew longer—repainting inside and out and a new roof were the major items of concern.
The ladies ended up in the backyard and Jane turned to Bailey. “I’m going to be up front with you, Ms. Montgomery—”
“Bailey, please.”
“Okay, Bailey, this is how I see it. The house needs major repair. Yes, it’s a nice place, and it might be worth the investment if someone really wanted to fix it up. But this has grown into a very desirable neighbourhood in the past few years since your mother bought here. I have clients that would snap this property up in a heartbeat.”
“I’m not sure what you’re saying,” Bailey told her.
Jane said carefully, “A lot of people might want this land.” She glanced around. “Not that many will want the house. If I were you, I’d sell it as is and let the new owner remove the house and build their own.”
Bailey looked at her. “Remove the house? You think someone would tear it down?”
Jane nodded. “I know they would. I’m positive, if we market it properly, that we can get you as good a deal for the land as we could if you spent a lot of time and money fixing the place up.”
“That’s something to think about,” Bailey mused. “I didn’t realise the house was in that bad of shape.”
“It’s not that bad,” Jane said unconvincingly. “It just doesn’t exactly fit in anymore, given the direction the neighbourhood is going.”
Bailey bit her lip and thought about it.
“The nice thing would be the convenience for you. Once you got your mother’s things moved out, you’d be done. You wouldn’t have to stick around to deal with a contractor and oversee the work on the house.”
“That would be nice,” Bailey nodded. “I’m anxious to get home.” She walked around the yard a bit and finally said, “I need to think about it. Can I call you when I’ve decided?”
“Of course. What you do will make a difference in how we market the place. If you choose not to worry about the house, I’m quite certain we can sell the property quickly.”
“Okay.” Bailey led Jane inside, and the woman picked up her briefcase. “I’ll be in touch.”
“I’ll look forward to hearing from you.” Jane shook her hand and left.
Bailey looked at the sky as it started to open up. Big raindrops turned into a downpour in a matter of minutes. She closed the door and went to the kitchen where Mandy worked on boxing up pans. “How’s it going?”
“Fine,” the girl replied. “I found these cookie sheets—if you don’t want them, could I have them?”
“Sure.” Bailey shrugged and opened the fridge for a soda. “Want one?”
Mandy nodded and said, “Thanks,” as Bailey handed it to her. “Your mom and I used to bake cookies together. They were so good and always came out perfect. Missy said it was the cookie sheets, but I think it was Missy.”
Bailey chuckled. “Let me guess—oatmeal chocolate chip?”
Mandy smiled. “Yeah. Sometimes we put walnuts in them too. Uncle Doug always swore he could smell them cooking and he’d stop by on his way home from work. He likes walnuts.”
“Pretty good nose to smell them cooking that far away.”
The girl giggled. “Actually, he stopped by here most days on his way home from work.”
“Oh yeah?” Bailey ran her fingertip over the edge of the cookie sheet and thought about that. Apparently this family did watch out for her mother, maybe more than she realised. She wondered about including them in the decision she had to make about the house.
“Wow, it’s really pouring.” Mandy looked out the back window.
“Yeah, it is.” Bailey snapped out of her thoughts and looked outside. “I don’t want to haul this stuff downtown in the rain. It can wait until tomorrow.”
“Sure, whenever.” Mandy nodded. “This looks like a good day to stay inside.”
“I think so too. Why don’t we finish up in here and then get some lunch? Maybe this afternoon we can tackle mom’s bookshelves.”
“You bet,” the girl agreed, and they finished boxing up what Bailey didn’t think she would need.
They ate salads and finished off Sarah’s apple pie for lunch. The bookshelves were in the front room, and Bailey dragged several boxes in and began sorting. They took frequent breaks to look through the books and it took them all afternoon to empty the shelves.
There was a knock on the front door, and it opened before Bailey could get to it. Sarah stepped in and peeled off her dripping raincoat. “Hey you two. Sorry to barge in, but you’ve got a flood going on above your door.”
Bailey stepped over and looked out. The gutter was pouring water out directly over the entrance. “Oh geez. What a mess.”
“Probably just needs to be cleaned out,” Sarah commented. “Wow, look at the books.”
“Yeah.” Bailey smiled at Mandy. “We started leafing through them and didn’t get them all boxed up.”
“Oh, my girl loves to read.”
Mandy stood up and pointed to a full box. “Bailey’s giving me all these! Can you believe it?”
Sarah raised her eyebrows, and Bailey chuckled. “Unless you don’t want them, of course. Most of them are classics. I thought she could read what she wanted and then donate them somewhere later, if she likes.”
“Wow, how nice of you. You’re being very kind.” She looked at her daughter. “Why don’t we take off for today? You’ll have to leave the books until the rain stops.”
Bailey went to the front closet and pulled out one of her mother’s jackets. “Here, Mandy. It’s not waterproof but it’ll help.”
“Oh, thanks! I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Sure, see you.” She turned to Sarah. “We’re making great strides!”
“Wonderful. See you later.” They headed out and Bailey watched them get in their car before she closed the door. She remembered that she was going to talk to Sarah about what the realtor told her, and slapped her forehead. Oh well, she decided, it could wait.
* * * * *
Bailey heard pounding the next morning and looked at her clock. It was seven a.m., but still much too early for her liking. She remembered to put on a robe and slippers before she went to the front porch this time.
Doug was on a tall ladder, reattaching the gutter and cleaning debris out of it.
“What are you doing?” she asked him, inanely. Stupid question! It was obvious what he was doing. Something about this man had an effect on her brain. She didn’t seem to be able to think clearly while staring at his ass in tight jeans.
He looked at her. “Reading the paper and eating a bear claw,” he replied, and then smiled. “So you do have a robe.”
Bailey gave him a dirty look. “Why are you here? Didn’t I make myself clear that I don’t want your help?”
“Well gee, that was before the truce you made with Sarah and Mandy. They’re all high on you now—in fact Sarah insisted I come
clean this thing out before work. She said it was dangerous, and it’s supposed to rain again today.”
She glanced at him sceptically. His boyish grin made it hard to discern if he told the truth. “Sarah insisted you come over here at this obscene hour and start pounding on my house?”
He grinned. “The pounding was my idea. She just asked me to clean out the gutter.”
Bailey went back inside the house and returned with a broom, shaking it at him. “Come down from there. I don’t need your help and I don’t want it.”
Doug grinned again and climbed down the ladder. “Be careful with that, you might make me fall.”
“Oh, that would be too delicious to be true. I’d like to see you fall on your ass and get knocked down a peg or two.”
“You’re just trying to get me on my back,” he teased.
She felt her face redden. The comment stung even more because it was partially true—as angry as he made her, she couldn’t keep from mentally undressing the man every chance she got. The muscles in his biceps rippled. She could only imagine those strong arms, hands planted firmly on the bed on either side of her, holding the weight of his body above hers. “What an arrogant jerk!” she sputtered.
He shook his head. “You are too much. As gracious as your mother was, I can’t believe she never taught you better manners.” He took a step closer to her. “But then I’ll bet she tried, and you were too fucking rude to pay attention.”
“Ooh, watch the swearing. You might get struck by lightning or whatever happens to you Christian folk when you’re naughty.”
He smiled grimly. “My sister is the angel in the family. I pride myself on being the devil. And you are a person who obviously needs someone to swear at her so she can understand what the hell they’re talking about.”
She took a step closer to him. “Fine then—fuck you. I don’t need anything from you. I wish you’d get that through your thick skull.”
“Yeah, like you’re going to climb up the ladder and clean out the gutters?”
“Why not?” She grabbed one side of the ladder and stepped onto it.
“Get down from there,” he scoffed. “You’re wearing pyjamas and slippers, for Pete’s sake.”
She climbed up a couple of steps, and he came and stood below her. She looked down and said, “Trying to catch a peek? Sorry, I’m wearing underwear.”
“Get down from there right now,” Doug insisted. “You don’t have to prove anything to me. I believe that you can do whatever you want. Just get down.”
“I like it up here,” Bailey climbed higher.
He reached for her ankle and she shook her foot at him.
“You’re going to make me fall,” she teased him. “Maybe you want to see me flat on my back.”
“This is not funny. Come down now.”
Bailey laughed and started to say something about him bossing her around when she lost her balance. She reached out and grabbed the gutter, which pulled loose, and tumbled to the ground still clutching it.
Chapter Three
Doug reached for her but it happened so fast, the next thing he knew Bailey was lying sprawled out across the steps. “Shit!” he swore. “Are you okay?”
She groaned. “No, I’m not okay. I fell off the god-damned ladder.”
He knelt next to her. She’d been right, he did enjoy seeing her flat on her back. He shook his head to clear the sexual thoughts. “And whose fault was that? You had no business being up there in the first place.”
She gave him an irritated look. “Neither did you, asshole. I told you I don’t want or need anything from you.”
“Fine.” Doug stood up and reached for his toolbox. “I’ll be going then.”
“You could at least help me up.” Bailey looked at the guttering in her hand and tossed it aside. “And I suppose you could re-hang that stupid thing.”
He reached for her hand and yanked her to a standing position. “Oh, why certainly, ma’am, since you asked so nicely.”
Bailey scowled at him and took a step, wincing.
“What?” he snarled at her. She irritated the hell out of him at every turn, yet he couldn’t help imagining himself tugging off that robe and stripping her gorgeous body naked.
“I think I twisted my ankle,” she replied a little more softly.
“Let me see.” Doug knelt in front of her again and touched the ankle gently. “Doesn’t look broken.”
“I said I twisted it,” she muttered. “I suppose you’re a doctor too?”
Standing again, Doug shook his head. “You are probably the most unpleasant woman I’ve ever run across in my life, which I find totally amazing, seeing as how your mother was probably the most pleasant woman I ever met in my life. Geez, your apple didn’t just fall far from the tree, it hopped a plane to another state.”
Bailey glared at him. “Fuck you and the horse you rode in on, buddy. I’ll tell you what, don’t fix the gutter. Just get the hell out of here and don’t come back.” She turned away from him muttering, “You’re one to talk. Your sister and niece are so sweet, and you’re the biggest jerk on the face of the earth.” Bailey took one step and grimaced. “Damn it!”
“You probably shouldn’t walk on that,” Doug told her quietly. He reached down and picked up the broom she’d carried out earlier. “Maybe you can fly in to the sofa.”
Bailey’s eyes lit with fury and he laughed, ducking to avoid her swinging arm. “Come on.” Without waiting for her approval, he swept her over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry and headed into the house.
“Put me down!” Bailey slapped at his butt, the only thing she could reach in the position he held her.
“As you wish.” He deposited her on the sofa, grinning. “You need to stop that, you’re getting me all excited.”
She growled at him. “If you touch me again, I swear I’ll get a knife and cut every ounce of excitement from your body.”
“Ooh,” Doug made a face. “Nothing kills a hard-on quicker than talk of knives.”
“Get out of here!”
“I’m going. Christ you’re bossy.” He stepped into the kitchen and opened the freezer. Grabbing a bag of frozen vegetables, he pulled it out and tossed it to Bailey as he left. “Put that on your ankle. Should help with the swelling.”
She glared at him and Doug smiled to himself. Why did he enjoy tormenting her so? She was rude, irritating and a total bitch, he knew that for a fact. He also knew his hard-on was not gone—all he had to do was think of Bailey and it returned painfully. That idea intrigued him, and at the same time it pissed him off.
Bailey nursed her ankle until Mandy showed up, then she let the girl fuss over her for a while. She insisted on phoning her mother, who left instructions for Bailey to stay off her feet and informed them she would bring dinner over when she got off work. Bailey did as Sarah suggested, and by evening her ankle wasn’t so sore.
“Pizza always makes me feel better,” Sarah smiled at her when she entered, carrying two pizza boxes.
“That was very nice, but you didn’t have to do it,” Bailey said.
Sarah tossed Bailey a look as she passed through to the kitchen. “I wanted to do it. Can you get used to the idea of people helping you out now and then, perhaps?”
“I don’t know, but I’ll try.” She made her way into the kitchen where Mandy flipped open a pizza box.
“What kind do you like, Bailey?”
She shrugged. “I’m not picky. I usually get Canadian bacon and mushrooms. But I’ll eat anything.”
“Hey, that’s Uncle Doug’s favourite, too!” Mandy exclaimed.
“Imagine that,” Bailey muttered, accepting a slice of pizza on a plate from Sarah. “So we do have one thing in common.”
Sarah chuckled, picking at her own pizza. “I’d say you have a lot more than one thing.”
“No way.” Bailey shook her head. “He’s the most stubborn, pig-headed—” She looked up at Sarah. “Oh, well, maybe I see what you mean.”
Sar
ah laughed and squeezed Bailey’s shoulder as Doug knocked, coming in through the kitchen door. “Speak of the devil.”
“That would be me, I assume.” He planted a kiss on his niece’s cheek and took a plate of pizza from his sister. Tossing his leg over the back of a kitchen chair, he sat.
Bailey glared at him and he grinned at her as he ate.
She made a face and then said, “While you’re all here, I wanted to discuss something. I met with Jane Barnes, the realtor, yesterday. I wasn’t expecting what she told me, and I thought maybe I could bounce it off you guys.”
“Let me guess,” Doug remarked, picking a mushroom off his pizza. “You need a new roof and the whole house needs paint.”
Bailey nodded. “That, plus a few dozen other things. But she said something else—did you know the neighbourhood has increased dramatically in value since Mom bought here? Jane said this property is quite desirable right now.”
“Then you should be able to get a good price,” Sarah commented.
“Possibly, but that wasn’t what I meant.” Bailey continued, “Jane thinks whoever buys this property is not going to want the house. She thinks I shouldn’t do anything to fix the place up, and sell the property as is.”
“So they can tear it down?” Sarah asked, surprised. “It’s a beautiful house!”
“I know,” Bailey nodded. “But she said it’s no longer suited to the neighbourhood. The fact is, I’m probably going to get the same amount for the place whether I spend the money or not, so why bother?”
“Missy loved this house,” Mandy said softly.
“I know she did,” Bailey agreed gently. “But it’s a matter of economics.”
“It’s Bailey’s decision.” Sarah put a hand on her daughter’s shoulder.
She watched the exchange and then looked at Doug, who hadn’t spoken yet. “What do you think?”
“Does it matter?”
She shrugged. “Apparently it mattered to my mother, so I’m asking.”
“Well, I like the house. But that’s just me. It would suck to invest a lot of money in the place and then have someone tear it down.”
