Love Under Construction

by Mills, Britney M.

  It seemed as though everything Colton had said at that opening meeting, she was now just realizing. Taking a sip from a water bottle someone handed her, she sat up against a building, still feeling the chill and exhaustion down to her bones. She hadn’t worked like this in a long time, but as long as she could help stave off the damage to others’ homes, she’d do it again and again.

  As many people were slowing down for the evening, Becca had an idea and hurried back to her house. Going into the nursery out back, she trimmed several different flowers and brought them back to the worktable in the flower shop. Pulling out paper, she started wrapping them in small bouquets and layering the bundles into a basket. She walked out and started looking for people on the street, handing them to anyone she saw.

  “These are beautiful, Becca,” Jenny Hinckley said, smelling the bouquet. “What do I owe you?”

  Becca raised a hand and shook her head. “No charge. I just hope it’s a bright spot in this long day.”

  She left the woman with a smile and moved on to the next house. House after house, she was happy to see the smiles and a little bit of relief at the thought that their houses weren’t going to be damaged even more. Tara Jones handed her umbrella to her as she came to her house, thanking her for the quick work she’d done to help solve the problem.

  Out of flowers, she moved past Town Hall and up the hill to the pond, curious as to what it looked like now after all of the water. Several men walked past her on their way back to town, and she smiled at them all before continuing on. When she got to the top, she saw Colton was the only one left.

  She stood behind the trees, trying to decide if she should just turn around and head back to town or stay and say something to him. He’d been nothing but sweet the past few days, and she was beginning to think he wasn’t anywhere near the person Peter had become.

  Taking a step forward, she smiled. “All the other ones left. You’re still here?” she asked, curious.

  Colton turned and smiled at her, and she had to move forward to keep her legs from buckling at the sight. “Almost done. Just got this last couple of boards to put in, and then we should be good.”

  “What is it you’ve done here?” She stepped next to him, trying not to stare at his eyes. They seemed to keep her mesmerized, and the fact that he wasn’t there to stay caused her to pause. She’d admired the work ethic he’d shown over these past two days, and it seemed he was turning into the knight in shining armor she’d always pictured as a young girl. But once he went back to Denver, she couldn’t go with him. In fact, the thought of crossing the border of the county turned her insides into a knitted cloth.

  “We worked to build up the bank and then put this little wall up.” He stepped to the side and waved his arm around, acting like a model on one of those reality game shows. She had gone down to help with the cleanup of some of the nearby houses after they’d placed enough sandbags the day before and hadn’t come back up until now.

  Becca walked up to it, glancing over at the pond below. It had gone down several inches in the past day. “This doesn’t look like a little wall. Is it kind of like a dam?”

  Colton nodded. “Just to help the town in case it ever rains like that again. When the water starts to fill in the pocket below, it raises up the wall, and then the pressure from the water causes the wall to stay up, holding back the flood. I remembered hearing about it at a convention my boss sent me to last year, and I convinced the people this would be the best thing for the future.”

  “You didn’t ask me.” She felt a little hurt that he hadn’t at least included her in the project. But that was ridiculous. It wasn’t like she was in charge of the town or anything, but he’d seemed concerned about her opinion on other things.

  “We decided when we were cleaning things up. Are you okay with it?” He looked worried, and he reached his hand out and touched her upper arm, sending tingles sizzling through her body.

  She shrugged. “As long as it helps out the town, I guess that’s a good thing, right?” A sudden bout of worry shot through her. “Why are you helping us out? You don’t even live here.”

  “Does that matter? When people are in need and I can do something to help, isn’t that what I’m supposed to do?” He stared at her, the seriousness of his expression drawing her in, causing her to focus on his lips.

  Her heart thumped out a few beats, and she was curious as to what his lips would feel like on hers. She shook her head a bit to clear the thoughts and then said, “Yes, I guess you’re right.”

  He turned and looked at her basket with her umbrella in it. “Are you Red Riding Hood, going to visit her grandmother?”

  With his loud chuckle, Becca rolled her eyes, enjoying the teasing expression on his face. “No, I just figured I’d deliver some bouquets of flowers to help some of the people have a good night.”

  “That’s a good idea. I’m sure after all of the worry, your flowers brought them some joy.”

  Their eyes locked, and a tumultuous sea roared to life inside her, leaving her not knowing which way or what she was feeling.

  She pointed to the dam. “Well, this will definitely give people in town some peace of mind.”

  The sun had gone down at that point, and the sky was quickly darkening.

  “Did you come up here for some reason?” Colton asked.

  “No, I wanted to see how things were, and I like to look at the pond sometimes. It helps calm me down, just like the fountain. It was one of my mother’s favorite places to go.”

  Colton’s hand reached for hers, warm against her cold fingers. “You miss them a lot, don’t you?”

  Becca nodded, a tear falling without her permission. “More than I care to admit. My brother was a lot of fun to hang out with, and sometimes I can still hear all their voices in my house. Not in a creepy way, just memories.”

  “I can understand that. At least you knew they loved you, though.” His smile was sad, and she knew he was thinking about his father.

  “They did that for sure. I remember inviting them over for a weekend to my apartment in Salt Lake. We laughed and played games until much later than we should’ve. But it’s still the best last memory I have of them.” She paused and then said, “Are you heading back to town?”

  He gave a quick nod. “I’ll be down in a minute. I just want to soak up the last bits of this.”

  “Are you leaving town?” Becca blurted, panic filling her chest.

  He shook his head. “No, but it’s so peaceful right here, and it’s about the perfect temperature.” He stepped over to one of the benches that had resurfaced from the receding water and sat down, tipping his head back to look at the sky.

  Becca turned to look back at the trail to town and then glanced over at Colton, trying to decide what to do. She finally sat next to him, keeping some space in between. It was quiet for several moments, until the cold air seeped through the thin jacket she was wearing and she shivered.

  “Do you want my jacket?” Colton said leaning forward and unzipping the jacket he wore.

  Becca held out her hand. “No, I’ll be all right.”

  “She says with teeth chattering.” Colton grinned. “Not on my watch.”

  He slid over and wrapped the jacket around her shoulders, not moving away after. The instant warmth from the jacket helped her body warm up, but her teeth-chattering took a few more minutes to calm down.

  Colton wrapped his arm around her and pulled her next to him, adding another heat source to her chill body. She couldn’t help but smell his cologne on the jacket, and she took in little breaths, hoping he wouldn’t see her enjoying it. That was the last thing she needed right now.

  “I can see why you’d want to come back here, after college, I mean. This place is beautiful.”

  Tingles shot up her back and through her arms, not the effect from the cold. Peter had never said anything like that, and Becca just hoped Colton wasn’t lying about it.

  “Yes, it’s beautiful. And the small-town community mak
es you feel like you’re home. I was only in the city for a while, and while I enjoyed it, I never really got that settled feeling like I could live there forever. The minute I came back home, I knew this was where I had to be.”

  Colton nodded. “Did your fiancé want to stay here?”

  Playing with the zipper on his jacket, Becca said, “He always claimed he did, but I don’t think it was the truth. He’d grown up a few towns over, and I think once he saw what the city was like, he couldn’t go back to the small-town life.”

  “Look!” Colton said, and Becca raised her eyes to where his finger was pointing. A shooting star crossed the sky, and she couldn’t help but smile.

  “I haven’t seen one of those in a long time.” She looked up at him and found he was staring at her.

  “Me neither.”

  With only a brief hesitation, he leaned forward, his lips touching hers. The kiss was light at first, feathery and gentle, chasing away any lingering cold in her body. He slowly pulled back enough to look into her eyes, gauging her reaction.

  Missing the warmth of his lips on hers, Becca moved forward and pressed her lips to his with more force, reaching her hand behind his neck and bring him even closer. The energy flowing between them was stronger than anything she’d felt before, her chest feeling as if fireworks had been lit inside.

  When he pulled away, he smiled at her, and heat rushed to her cheeks. “I should probably get you home. We don’t want to be out too late. You never know what will happen at this pond.” He winked at her, and she wasn’t quite sure what he meant by that comment. She wanted him to kiss her again, but she knew he was probably right.

  They walked down the path, not saying anything. Becca was sure he could hear her heart pounding in her chest. A ways down the trail, he captured her hand, intertwining his fingers with hers. Electricity shot up her arm, and she turned and grinned at him.

  Never did she think she would feel like this for a builder again, but here she was, underneath the stars, walking back into the town that held her heart.

  She just hoped Colton wouldn’t break it.

  Chapter 19

  By the time they made it out of the woods, Colton wondered why he’d never felt like this before. He’d surprised himself by leaning in and kissing Becca, but it had been a kiss like he’d never had before. Her lips were so soft, and she’d never thrown herself at him like most of the girls he’d known.

  He didn’t want to break the feeling with words, so they made it back to her house before he said anything.

  “I hope you’re all right.” He looked into her eyes, hoping she didn’t feel ashamed for the kiss.

  She leaned up on her tiptoes and touched her lips to his again. Pulling back, she smiled. “I’m more than all right. Thank you for tonight.” She stepped away and walked inside, waving to him before she shut the door completely.

  He turned around, ready to jump off the stairs, when he saw someone staring through the window across the street. He wasn’t sure what Becca felt about the neighbors knowing they’d kissed, so he walked casually down to the corner and fist-pumped the minute the street was empty.

  He wasn’t sure when he’d known it, but he really liked this girl, and he hoped her reciprocation of the kiss meant she had feelings for him too. It had been so long since he’d dated anyone, really dated anyone, that he wasn’t sure what happened next. And the fact that he wasn’t some high-powered CEO and she still wanted to hang out with him was something. He would just have to figure it out as he went along, hoping he wouldn’t screw up.

  He couldn’t help but wonder about the future. Becca was pretty set on staying in Sage Creek, and he was starting to love the place as well. If the subdivision went through, he’d have plenty of work for the next couple of years, but what would happen after that? Would he be able to make a life here in this small town?

  Moving in the direction of his hotel, he was ready for a hot shower and some time to remember that kiss.

  * * *

  The next day, he didn’t see Becca until late, as he’d gone to help clean out some of the basements that had been flooded. The people were generous and oftentimes brought him lunch or dinner or drinks, and he was very grateful for it. The hard work helped him pass the time, knowing that he’d see Becca at the council meeting that night. They hadn’t had a chance to talk about her opinion on the land, and he hoped it had changed from all the information he’d shared with her.

  After a quick shower and change, he hurried back to the center of town, tucking in a button-up shirt before walking into the building.

  “You clean up nice,” he heard someone say. Turning, disappointment washed over him as he saw it was Susie.

  “Thank you. Are you on the town council?”

  She shook her head. “No, I just thought it would be fun to sit in on it tonight.”

  Colton nodded, wondering what could make someone sit through a boring meeting like this on a weeknight.

  He moved in the direction of the council room, and when he walked in, his eyes met Becca’s. He couldn’t help but grin like a little schoolboy.

  She smiled back and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, the rest of it cascading over the table. She turned to look down at her papers, a red flush creeping into her cheeks. He hoped it was the result of thinking about their kiss because it had been hard for him to get the memory out of his head all day.

  The meeting commenced shortly after, and the subdivision was first on the docket. “Has everyone had time to study the subdivision proposal?” Mayor Watkins asked.

  All the heads at the table nodded, and he continued. “Are we ready to put it to a vote?”

  The guy that was so angry the week before spoke up, and Colton had to do everything he could to not roll his eyes. “With the amount of rain we sustained this last week, I’m worried that adding extra houses will make the ground less stable for the town.”

  Standing up, Colton raised an arm and said, “Less stable? The subdivision is all the way at the other end of town. There’s no way—”

  “Please sit down, Mr. Maxfield. This is the time for the council to discuss.” The mayor winked at him and smiled, trying to reassure him it would be okay.

  “I don’t want to give my consent without having all the proper tests conducted. I would like to hire people to study the soil and the water, making sure that any extra houses will be sustained,” the angry man continued.

  Extra tests? That could take months, and with the summer starting, Colton knew his boss wanted to get started on the project as soon as possible. They could usually get the house sold by the time the house was framed, and it was difficult to do much work in the snow.

  Raising a hand, Colton started again, “Mayor, Town Council, I urge you to make a decision soon. There are a lot of people who’ve been looking at the plans and have shown interest in these properties. These people can help make a difference in this community and keep it from dying. They can help to dig out the houses when it floods and contribute to the overall economy. But we prefer not to start working on things when it's wintertime.”

  With more firmness this time, the mayor used a hand to signal for Colton to sit down. “We will take this into consideration, Colton. Now, I must ask you again to keep silent, or you’ll be asked to leave the room.”

  Sitting back with his arms folded against his chest, Colton blew out a breath. He needed to focus. This was why he was in this town. It was his livelihood, and without it, there wouldn’t really be a future with Becca anyway.

  After several more minutes of discussion, the council voted for the requested tests to be conducted and that a final decision be made within the next two weeks. It wasn’t the best answer Colton could have hoped for, but a matter of days was a lot better than three months down the road. The man who’d been debating didn’t look pleased with such a quick turnaround, but it was a good compromise for both sides. Plus, that meant Colton would be in town for the Founder’s Day Festival.

  Pulling out his p
hone, Colton texted his boss the news.

  Two weeks? That’ll be the final answer, though, right? Adam replied.

  That’s what the mayor said. If we have everything ready to go, we shouldn’t be too far behind.

  It took a few more minutes before his boss answered again.

  I’m counting on this. Make it happen, Colton. You’ll get a bonus once this goes through.

  He’d never been one to worry about getting a bonus, but with the future he pictured in his head, he’d have to put down roots in Sage Creek, and every little bit he’d saved over the years that hadn’t gone to his mother would hopefully go toward that future.

  Chapter 20

  Toward the end of the meeting, Becca had a thought. The council had talked about the weather and where things could be allotted to build up the town again. As per usual, the budget didn’t stretch as far as she wanted it to, making her brain work overtime.

  She hadn’t said much at the meeting, knowing there had been enough protesting against the subdivision, and she found that part of her wanted the subdivision to go forward now as it would be a way for her to see Colton more. But that was selfish. Would the new homes be for the best in their small town?

  But what about the realization that the town needed young blood to help pump life back into it? Colton’s ready smile and chocolate-brown eyes distracted her from across the room, reminding her of all the work he’d put into helping the town.

  “Is there anything else we need to discuss? Becca, what did we miss on the agenda?” the mayor asked, bringing her back to the present.

  “In regards to the flooding, I thought it might be a good idea to hold an old-time bake-off or raffle that would raise funds to help those with property damage. We could hold it at the Founder’s Day Festival, and it would be something the community could come together on.”