Chapter 10
Chapter Ten
N ick cruised around the block to kill some time before pulling up at the Andrews home.
He knew this particular client appreciated a perfectly-on-time appearance.
He’d be glad to get the appointment off his list—and to have a specific reason to call Kat tonight.
It’d taken all kinds of self-control to hold off for two days.
He hoped that hadn’t been a critical error on his part.
Kat’s mother appeared at the door moments after Nick rang the bell.
“Mr. Summers. Please come in.”
Nick smiled and stepped inside then followed Mrs. Andrews to the living room. The furniture had been pushed to one side and the large area rug removed.
“Looks like you’re getting ready for the wrecking crew.”
She turned and motioned toward a chair. “Yes. Construction is scheduled to start this afternoon.”
“Sounds good.” He drew the contract from his briefcase and handed it to her. “These are the design features and costs we’ve discussed. Just need your autograph and partial payment for materials.”
Rebecca took the document and slipped on a pair of tortoiseshell reading glasses. Most people gave the contract a cursory once-over, but she seemed to be settling in. Nick figured it was the attorney in her and not any indication that she had concerns.
“While you take a look at that, I’ll go over these measurements.”
Her eyebrows shot up. “Haven’t you already done that?”
“Yep. But I always do a re-check. Measure twice, cut once, the saying goes.”
“Of course,” she murmured, turning her attention back to the contract.
Nick grabbed his measuring tape and tablet and began reviewing his earlier notes. Looked good. He went over the details, visualizing the finished pieces installed. The whole wall was going to look amazing.
“Have you chosen the tile yet?” he asked.
Rebecca glanced up. “Oh, yes. The white with blue detail Susie showed us.”
“Great.” Nick watched as Rebecca lifted the pen and began writing her name on the agreement.
He turned back to the fireplace to hide his fist pump.
The tile would look great and maybe a warm gray wall.
The neutral color would be the perfect backdrop for a piece of colorful art.
“One of Kat’s landscapes would look great up there. The bright colors would–”
“Excuse me?”
Swiveling at the hard sound of Rebecca’s voice, Nick found narrowed eyes on him. Wait. Did he say that out loud?
“What do you mean?”
“I, uh, was wondering what kind of piece you plan to put above the mantel.”
Rebecca stood and removed her glasses.
Her piercing stare bore into Nick’s skin like a sharp dagger.
“Yes, but you mentioned Kat’s paintings. As in my daughter?”
Thinking fast, Nick tried to cover, but he’d given himself away. “Yes. She’s very talented.”
“You’ve seen her work?”
“Yeah. Just a couple of pieces. I’m sorry, I don’t remember what was above the fireplace before.”
“How did you do that? See her artwork?”
Damn. He tried to change the subject, but Rebecca wouldn’t let it go. Nick took a deep breath before speaking. “I happened to see her in New York when I was there last week. We had dinner.”
Rebecca stared at him, arms crossed, brow furrowed. “You had dinner with my daughter?”
“Right.”
“And her art?”
“Ah, no, we had coffee with her art.” Apparently, she missed his attempt at humor. She didn’t even crack a smile.
“What does that mean?”
“After dinner she showed me a couple paintings she’d done.” He deliberately kept the details vague.
But her expression went positively glacial. “You had dinner then went to her apartment?”
Sweat beaded at the back of Nick’s neck. “Yes. We had coffee, and I saw some of her work. I guess we have a common interest.”
“I see.”
He wasn’t sure she saw at all, but he knew for sure she wasn’t pleased.
“How did you happen to meet up in New York?”
“I was interviewing for a TV segment on interior design. For HomeBuild–”
“And in a city of what, eight million people, you just happened to run into my daughter?”
Nick managed what he hoped sounded like a laugh.
“No, it wasn’t an accident at all.” He tried to keep his voice smooth and matter-of-fact.
“We’d texted a couple of times after I met her here, and she mentioned she lived in the city.
Look, I don’t want you to get the wrong idea.
I happened to be in town. I’m not very familiar with the city and asked her for some recommendations on places to eat.
She graciously offered, and I invited her to dinner. ”
“Ah. Very good. Well, I’m glad she was able to help.”
God, he was sweating all over. He picked up the contract before she could change her mind. “Let me put away my things, and I’ll get out of your hair.”
“No rush. Let me write that check. You know, it’s quite stressful having her so far away. We have to keep such a close eye on her. Sometimes she goes off her medica–” She broke off before giving Nick a brittle smile. “Well, she’s a little fragile, that’s all.”
Fragile? Kat was on medication? Is that what she was going to say?
“Can I expect a preview of the work before you install? A checkpoint as you go along?”
Before Nick could process her comment, Rebecca changed subjects again.
“Of course,” he told her. “When would you like to see it?”
“Before you stain anything, I think.” She held out the check—just barely—and he had the feeling she wasn’t a hundred percent keen on letting it go.
What was her problem? It forced him to take a couple of steps toward her. “Sounds good. I’ll get the materials and start right away.”
He took the check from her hand, reeled in his tape measure, and shoved it all into his bag. Whew . He couldn’t get out of there fast enough.
But the encounter stuck with him the rest of the day as he struggled to make sense of it.
Was she trying to scare him away? Why would she do that?
He thought of his own mom’s response when he told her about seeing Kat.
She’d been delighted, encouraging. Rebecca Andrews had been standoffish from day one but had never given him any indication that she disliked him.
And so what if Kat was taking meds for something?
Lots of people were. She hadn’t mentioned it, but also gave no indication that there were any issues.
And living alone in New York City and holding a demanding job, she seemed anything but fragile.
Nick tried to clear his head and concentrate as he browsed the specialty woods at his favorite Denver lumber company, inspecting the pieces with a critical eye.
He had a six-week window to finish the Andrews project, but he wanted to shave down that time so other decisions would be made around the bookcases and mantel.
The fireplace would be the focal point of the room.
He loaded the wood for the mantel into the truck he shared with his dad and got on the highway midday, eager to avoid the rush-hour traffic that seemed to get worse by the week. With a little luck, he wouldn’t be trekking back to Denver for a while.
* * *
Kat pulled her hair into a messy bun and adjusted the screen on her computer, waiting for Nick to connect. Moments later, his face appeared on the screen with that lazy grin of his, and her pulse went crazy. The man looked flat-out sexy in a black turtleneck sweater.
She gave a little wave. “Hi! How’d it go today?”
“Got a signed contract and a check.”
With a clap of her hands, Kat let out a squeal. “Oh, my gosh, I kept thinking about that meeting all day.”
“Nice to know I was on your mind.”
The warm timbre of his voice sent tingles up Kat’s spine. He’d definitely been on her mind—more than he should’ve been considering the work she had to do. And surely would’ve been even without the meeting with her mother. But maybe his ego didn’t need to know that.
“Glad it worked out. Did you tell her about the HomeBuilders interview?”
He hesitated a beat before answering, making her wonder if it hadn’t gone completely smoothly.
“I mentioned it, but she didn’t seem impressed. The thing is, it brought the conversation around to New York.”
Kat frowned. “What do you mean?”
“I mean I screwed up and mentioned I’d seen you in the city.”
“Oh.”
“She went a little frosty.”
Kat’s face burned as indignation mixed with embarrassment.
Her mother was such a snob. The shame of having her daughter meet up with a carpenter in public.
Hopefully she hadn’t said anything rude or demeaning.
“Hmm. You probably just caught her off guard,” Kat tried to cover. “My mother is not a fan of surprises.”
“Maybe just protective. Hey, do your parents visit a lot?”
“Not at all.” Kat scoffed. “My dad’s been here a couple of times, but my mother’s only been once. She took about ten seconds to look at my apartment then spent three days shopping and going to Broadway shows.”
“Oh. Huh.”
“Huh, what?”
“She made it sound like they keep in pretty close touch, that it’s stressful to have you in the city.”
Kat sputtered a laugh. “Seriously? She must be losing her mind.”
“I don’t know. Something was off. I’m not sure the HomeBuilders thing even registered when I mentioned it. Oh, well. Not a big deal.”
“They’re supposed to come for my show. And they’re bringing Nana. I can’t wait. It’ll be so nice to have her here.”
“That’s great.”
“At least I’ll have one person here who’s genuinely interested.”
“Make that two. And I’m sure you underestimate,” Nick assured her.
Kat caught her breath. “You…you think you’ll be in New York around the time of my show?” She didn’t want to assume.
“Of course. I mean…if that’s okay with you.”
She couldn’t contain a smile. Apparently, he expected to still be in touch with her. “I just don’t want you to feel obligated. I mean–”
“Kat, I’d hate to miss it.”
“Okay.” Her voice went a little breathy. There was an awkward pause in the conversation, and Kat wished she could step into his arms.