Not So Easy (The NOT Series Book 4)

Chapter 15

“What are you doing here?” I asked when I pulled up in front of the house and found Darnell walking toward me.

He shrugged. “I don’t know. Cal called and said I needed to come over.”

I received the same message by text. So much for thinking he just wanted to see me. Truth be told, I was happy to have a reason to stop by. Work had been so busy it felt as if this project was happening without me.

As we made our way to the front door, a sense of dread slid up my spine. “I hope this isn’t anything bad.”

Nothing major had gone wrong so far. In fact, Calvin claimed to be ahead of schedule, which JoJo said never happened. She claimed he was pushing them like a madman, paying overtime to anyone who would stay late. I considered letting him know I was fine with whatever condition the house was in when I took up early residence, but part of me kind of wanted a functioning kitchen along with the bathroom.

Selfish, but if the team was willing to work over, who was I to stop them?

When we reached the porch, Calvin stepped out of the house and held up a hand. “You need to walk around back.”

My schedule had prevented me from stopping by for more than a week. It had also kept me from seeing Calvin. We sent texts every day, but despite my constant requests, he refused to send me pictures of the house. If I pushed hard enough, he’d send me something like a hammer on the floor.

“Why can’t we go inside?” I asked.

“Floors are going down.”

I was pretty sure the floors had gone down earlier in the month. “The floors were supposed to be done by now.”

“They’re going in today.”

Smelling a rat, I stared into his eyes trying to determine if he was telling the truth. The man was stone cold. He must have been really good at poker.

“Why are we here?” Darnell asked.

“We found a few things while putting the posts in for the deck.” He stepped between us and led the way through the narrow side yard.

The addition was fully built and closed in. Windows were in and all that appeared to be missing was the siding. As we rounded the corner, an overwhelming mix of awe and pride brought tears to my eyes. I’d pictured this in my head a thousand times, but to see it for real. To see my dream literally coming to life tightened every muscle in my chest.

“These were buried in three different places in the yard,” Calvin said, drawing my attention away from the looming addition. As I joined them at the deck, he said, “After finding the first two, we brought in a metal detector to see if there were any more. That’s when we found the third one. Have either of you seen these before?”

Three metal boxes, rusted and half covered in mud, sat in a row on the deck. They were rectangular, about three or four inches tall, and not quite a foot long.

“They don’t look familiar to me.” I looked to Darnell. “How about you?”

He shook his head. “I’ve never seen them either. They look older than we are, so I bet they were buried before we were born. What’s in them?”

Calvin crossed his arms. “That’s what you’re here to find out. Since Donna owns the land, whatever is in these things belongs to her, but it felt like you both should be here to open them.”

If Pops put these in the ground, then whatever was inside didn’t only belong to me. “You want to go first?” I asked Darnell.

“Let’s open a couple at the same time.” I could tell he had the same Christmas morning feeling that I did.

What were we going to find? Time capsules? Pictures or trinkets from previous generations of the family? We didn’t have much family history beyond Pops and Bammy’s parents, all of whom were born in the south and migrated north after the war in search of a better life than what they could get in Mississippi and Alabama.

Somehow both families had landed in Pittsburgh, allowing Bammy and Pops to meet, and making it possible for both me and Darnell to exist. Amazing how many pieces had to fall into place for us to be in the world at all.

There were no locks on the boxes, but the latches were nearly rusted shut. Calvin handed us each a screwdriver to pry them open. Once the latches both gave way, Darnell counted down and we each lifted a lid at the same time.

And both stood in stunned silence.

Calvin leaned forward when neither of us spoke. “What is it?”

“Money,” I said.

“A lot of money,” Darnell added, pulling a stack from his box. “Looks like tens and twenties.”

I lifted my stack and carefully scanned the bills. “Dar, these are hundreds.”

He quickly reached for the other box, prying the latch in seconds and flipping open the lid. “There’s more hundreds in here.” Withdrawing the treasure, he looked at me with eyes wide. “Why did Pops bury this money? Mom has talked about times being tight back in the day. This makes no sense.”

“Are you sure it was him?” Calvin asked. “What’s the dates on the bills?”

We each took a closer look at the money. “Mine are all in the seventies.”

“Same here,” said Darnell. “Definitely Pops.”

We needed input from someone who knew more than we did. “Let me call Dad.”

With a few swipes on my phone, I had him on the line and put him on speaker. “Dad, I’m at the house with Darnell and Calvin. Do you know anything about Pops burying money in the backyard?”

“Money?” he repeated, sounding as shocked as we were. “You found money?”

“Calvin’s crew did,” I explained. “We haven’t counted it yet, but there are three metal boxes with a large stack of bills in each. A couple of them have hundred dollar bills.”

“What the…” he trailed off. Seconds later, Dad burst out laughing and the three of us stared at each other in confusion.

“Dad, what’s so funny?”

Once he regained control, he said, “That explains so much.”

“Explains what?” Darnell asked.

“A couple of times a year, Pops would go out and dig a hole in the backyard. I asked Mom once what he was doing and she said, ‘Trying to dig his way out of a divorce.’” Dad started laughing again. “I always wondered what she meant. Now we know.”

“She knew,” I whispered, thinking of all the years she’d made a dollar stretch farther than anyone I’d ever met. “They never told you this was out here?”

“No one told me,” Dad replied. “Dar, you need to ask your mom. She might have known, but if she did, then so would everyone else. So I’m guessing none of us knew.”

Aunt Jackie was the gossip in the family. No way would she have kept something like this to herself.

“She’s at work, but I’ll ask when she gets off.” As a nurse at the local children’s hospital, Aunt Jackie didn’t like getting calls during working hours. This might be an exception to the rule, though.

Still amused, Dad said, “Let me know how much it is once you count it. This’ll be a fun story at the next family cookout.”

This was more than a fun story. This was real money. Found in my backyard.

“What should we do with it?” I asked.

“It’s your money. You bought the house, so you get whatever comes with it.”

That didn’t seem fair. Dad and his siblings had gone without because Pops had been crazy enough to bury what looked to be a lot of money. Money that would have gone even farther back then than it would now.

“But this is yours and Aunt Jackie’s.”

Dad was not swayed. “Use it for the house. That’s what it should have gone for anyway. I don’t know how many times something broke and Mom would duct tape it or tie a string around it or tell us just not to use it. All while mumbling about that worthless man and his damn shovel. Another mystery statement solved.”

I looked to Darnell, brows arched in question.

“I’m good with that,” he said. “The money belongs here.” Turning to Calvin, he said, “Just do something nice with it.”

“I’ll do whatever Donna wants.”

Feeling as if I’d been handed a great deal of power, I rubbed my forehead. “We’ll see once we’ve counted it. I’m not sure it’s right for me to keep all of it.”

“Then let’s head up to the porch and count it,” Calvin suggested.

“Why can’t we go inside and do it?”

“The floors?—”

“—are going in,” I finished. “You’re a terrible liar, you know that?”

“I’m not lying.” Again, he offered no readable facial expression.

More curious about the buried treasure, I let the topic go. “Fine. Then we’ll count it on the porch.”

My brain could hardly processwhat we’d just discovered. “Three thousand dollars.”

“Three thousand four hundred and eighty-five to be exact.” Darnell laughed as if this was all a joke. “Imagine how much Bammy could have done with this money.”

Calvin pulled out his phone. “Let’s see what three thousand in the seventies means in today’s money.” A few swipes later he let out a long whistle. “Over twenty-eight thousand dollars. Holy moly.”

“That would have been life changing money for them.” I closed the lid on the box in front of me. “What was Pops thinking?”

“He was thinking he didn’t trust the banks.” Calvin closed the other two boxes. “The real question is, how do you want to spend it?”

My gut said this wasn’t my money to spend, but Dad and Darnell had a point about the funds going toward the house.

“Do you think Aunt Jackie will want some?” I asked Darnell.

“Ma will tell you the same thing me and Uncle Ronnie did. Use it for the house.” He rose off the milk crate he’d been using as a seat. “Totally worth cutting out early on that pickup game. I can’t wait to tell Tiff. She’s not gonna believe it.”

As he stepped off the porch, I said, “Hey, have Aunt Jackie call me.” Regardless of his assumption, I still wanted to talk to her directly before making any decisions.

“Will do,” my cousin replied as he strolled up the sidewalk.

From my own milk crate, I stared at the boxes as if they might explode. Bammy’s life could have been so much easier. She’d never complained, and had always made the most of what she did have, but what a difference this would have made.

All I wanted was to turn back time. To go back and give her the money so she could do whatever she wanted with it.

“She’d want you to have it,” Calvin said, reading my mind. “You’re the only one who loves this house as much as she did.”

Overwhelmed, I dropped my head into my hands. “I wish she was here to tell me what to do.”

A warm hand squeezed my shoulder. “You’re doing great. The house is coming back to life because of you.”

He was giving me too much credit. “You’re doing all the work.”

“You helped take down that wall.”

I should be doing more. Not the heavy lifting, of course, but more than a little demo and painting my own bedroom. “I’m sorry I haven’t been around. I’m taking every extra job that comes my way in case we need more in the contingency fund.”

“Donna, you don’t need to worry about the budget. The foundation is good. The house is level.” He ticked each item off on a finger. “We’ve had heavy storms and there’s been no water issues in the basement. The termite test came up negative. You don’t have anything to worry about.”

The renovation wasn’t my only source of stress. I still needed to pack up my apartment and studio, and I still didn’t know if I would be able to run the business out of the house yet.

“What about the zoning? Do we know yet if I can have a studio upstairs?”

Calvin offered a half grin. “I was going to surprise you with that one.”

Bolting to my feet, I nearly pulled him up by his overalls. “Have you been holding out on me?”

He took his time getting to his feet and it was all I could do not to shake the answer out of him. Once upright, he slid his hands into his pockets. “I got the letter this morning. You’re all clear for the studio.”

The sudden news stunned me for a good five seconds before I yelled, “Holy crap!” Then, without thinking, I grabbed his face with both hands and dropped a loud kiss of joy on his full lips. The moment I pulled back, I realized what I’d done. “I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have done that.”

Pink danced along his cheeks as his smile widened. “Remind me to give you good news more often.”

Now I was blushing.

“I need to go upstairs and map out where I want everything.”

Before I could step around him, Calvin cut me off. “You can’t go inside.”

“Why not?”

“You just can’t.”

This was my house, so… “I want to go look at the studio.”

“I told you. The floors?—”

“Calvin Hopkins, if you lie about those floors one more time.”

He had the nerve to roll his eyes. “Okay, fine. The floors are done, but you still can’t go in.”

What the heck was he up to? Reality set in. They weren’t ahead of schedule at all. The place probably wasn’t even halfway done.

“You do know I’m moving in the last week of August. That’s five weeks from now.”

“The twenty-sixth. I know.”

“So I’m going to see the place no matter what it looks like at that point.”

Calvin nodded.

I considered my options. If I really pushed, what would he do? What could he do? Would he physically keep me out? Carry me to my car? The thought sent a zing down my spine, which I ignored. Then I remembered I had a key. I could come back tonight and he’d never know.

Relaxing, I shrugged. “Fine. You win.” I turned to collect the metal boxes. “Let me know when I’m permitted access again.”

“Donna.”

Shoving a box under my arm, I pretended that him saying my name in that sultry tone had no effect on me. “Hm?”

Calvin spun me around with one finger on my arm. “Please don’t come by when I’m not here.”

Dang it. He really could read my mind. With him flashing those puppy dog eyes, how was I supposed to sneak in behind his back and not feel horrible about it? The curiosity was killing me.

“I agreed to stay out of the way. I never agreed to stay out entirely.” Resorting to whining, I pushed out my lower lip like a toddler. “Why can’t I go in?”

“Just give me a week, then you can walk through the whole thing.”

That didn’t seem like too much to ask. I was mostly booked for the next week anyway. Hugging all three boxes to my chest, I accepted my fate. “Fine. A week. But I’m coming back next Friday, and I will be going inside. Agreed?”

“Agreed.” Calvin caught one of the boxes as it fell. “I’ll help you get these to the car. What are you going to do with them?”

“Take them to the bank, I guess. I’ll deposit the money into my savings until I can talk to Aunt Jackie.” I needed her approval before spending anything. Regardless of who owned the land, this was hers and Dad’s before it was mine.

“If she says the same thing your dad did, we can talk about options.” He opened my passenger door and stepped back so I could drop the boxes. “You’ll need to decide soon, though, so we can work the changes into the project.”

Based on the initial timeline, there was three months of work left. That seemed like lots of time to decide how to use the money. Then again, he was the expert. If Calvin said we needed to decide soon then I wouldn’t argue.

“I’ll think about it and try to have an answer next week.”

I turned around to find very little space between his body and mine. When Calvin leaned forward to place the third box on the seat, he was so close I forgot to breathe. Deep brown eyes lingered on my lips for several seconds and I attempted to swallow my heart back into my chest.

“Waiting a week to see the house doesn’t mean we can’t see each other before that,” he said.

Picturing my calendar in my head, I said, “I’m free Tuesday night.”

“I’ll pick you up at six?”

Mouth dry, I nodded my agreement. The affect this man had on me was getting scary.

He stepped back and I nearly followed. “See you then.” That grin would be my undoing, if the rest of him didn’t shatter me first.

I nodded again and could see that he was enjoying this a little too much. Clearing my throat, I closed the car door and walked around to the other side. Digging deep for my non-existent swagger, I said, “Don’t be late.”

“Oh, I won’t,” he said with a salute.

How did he manage to be smug and cute at the same time? My heart beat like a drum for several blocks, long after I’d lost sight of him in the rearview mirror. Were we really doing this? That impromptu kiss had been nice. I wouldn’t mind doing that again. And again.

“Woman, you have got to get a grip,” I said to my empty car. Looking down at the money boxes, I mumbled, “Now to figure out what to do with you.”