Chapter 12
Chapter Twelve
ELENA
L ast night, we'd stayed on the phone texting about what I enjoyed about storms: the white caps, the bent over palm trees, and the sound of the rain pelting the window. It was nice to share that with someone. No one had ever been interested in why I enjoyed storms. And he'd said I was beautiful.
Even though we were communicating from our separate decks, it felt like we'd grown closer.
I still wasn't sure how to feel about his comment about getting the article over with. He'd apologized, and at the very least he regretted saying it at all.
But what if he meant it on an unconscious level? I annoyed him, and he wanted me out of his space. But then we'd texted on the phone until the rain had stopped and was no more than an occasional drip. It was confusing.
This morning, I woke feeling tired from staying up so late. I dressed in jeans and a T-shirt, wrapping a flannel shirt around my waist.
I hoped we'd move past drywall because that had gotten tedious.
When I arrived, the crew was already working. I found Hudson in the living room. He handed me a coffee.
"Thank you." I sipped it before I gave any other kind of greeting. "Mmm. I needed that."
"I figured you would after I kept you up so late last night."
I looked around, not seeing anyone. "Shhh. I don't want people to think we were up to something else."
His eyes sparkled with mischief. "What else would we be up to late at night?"
"Hudson," I warned, looking around again. "What will people think? That I got a story because I'm?—"
He sobered, holding up a palm to stop me. "Don't finish that sentence. We both know that isn't what happened. I was just teasing you, and I obviously shouldn't. Not after last night."
I let out a breath. "Sorry, I might have overreacted a bit."
"I didn't mean to disrespect you." His expression was genuine.
I relaxed. "I believe you."
He raised a brow. "You forgive me for being an idiot?"
I laughed. "Yes."
I looked around at the boxes of wood planks.
"Since they already did the walls and painted down here, we can work on the floors. The rest of the crew is working on installing appliances in the kitchen."
"Okay."
"When you're doing floors, you'll need to ensure the old floorboards are removed and subfloor is clean and level. The new boards have been sitting here for a few days to acclimate to the weather. So all of that is done."
Hudson moved over to the wall. "We'll start on the longest wall and install the boards perpendicular to the floor joists." He pointed those out to me and then moved toward the boxes to grab wood planks. I rushed to help him.
He knelt on the floor and gestured for me to sit next to him. "There's three ways to install floors, based on the type of flooring you're installing. This is hardwood, so we'll use nails that won't be visible on the final product.”
"Is it the nicest option?" I asked, curious about all these things you had to consider when remodeling.
"It provides a warm space, but it's harder to maintain. Engineered wood is less likely to scratch over time."
"Ah. Okay."
He smiled as he placed the boards. "I bet you're getting more of an education than you ever imagined."
"No, this is good. It's always good to be knowledgeable about things, and I love learning. That's why I'm so into reading and writing. If we all did more of it, we could change the world."
He paused and met my gaze. "You surprise me every day."
I laughed. "How so?"
"You say the most unexpected things. You think differently from me, yet you inspire me. You're amazing."
My cheeks heated.
Ralph appeared in the doorway. "Hey, boss, can you help with the stove install?"
"Be right there," Hudson called over to him.
I rose and followed him to the kitchen entrance, where I watched the struggle to fit the stove into the space.
"I measured twice. This will fit." Hudson stepped back at one point and lifted his shirt to wipe the sweat off his face.
My entire body was hot, and it had nothing to do with the temperature inside the house. I watched while they talked it out, tried different angles, and the eventual cheer of victory when they finally got it in.
Hudson grinned as he came over to me. "Did you see that?"
"I did."
"So much of my day is making things fit that don't look like they will."
I pulled out my phone and jotted down the note.
"Was that a good soundbite for your article?"
I shrugged. "Actually, yes. It was great. Insightful even."
He gave me a look as he dropped to his knees again. "Now I know you're teasing me."
"I promise I'm not." I knelt next to him.
He showed me how to install the floors, leaving space between the boards to give them room to expand. I focused on the job, and we worked until our stomachs rumbled.
"Let's grab lunch." Hudson headed toward the door.
I raised a brow. "We can leave for lunch?"
He grinned boyishly. "I'm the boss. We can do whatever we want. You want to get out of here?"
"Yeah." I stood up and brushed off my jeans. We weren't doing dirty work necessarily, but I felt hot and sweaty.
"Tacos or subs?" he asked when we were in the cab of his truck.
"Can we sit on the beach?" I asked him, rolling down the window so I could feel the breeze on my face.
"I know a food truck that's in the perfect location for that." Hudson grinned over at me, and I felt his excitement. It was like we were playing hooky from school or something.
I turned on the radio to a popular song, singing along to the words.
When we parked, Hudson turned off the engine. "I didn't realize you were one of those people who sang to the radio."
"Only sometimes."
His eyes crinkled at the corners. "The windows are down?"
I grinned. "Exactly. Conditions have to be just right."
We walked up to the truck, ordering several tacos and iced teas, then carried everything to the beach. He'd thought to grab a blanket, so he threw it on the sand. "I think this is the first time I've done this during a workday."
"How can you not do it more? It's the perk of living on an island. You have to come over to the beach as much as possible."
"I think I take it for granted. If I didn't live on the beach, I'm not sure I'd go out of my way to take a walk on it or just sit and eat lunch."
I bumped his shoulder. "Stick with me. I'll loosen you up. Remind you of the good things in life."
"I believe that."
We ate our tacos, the toppings falling in the sand, attracting some of the birds. Hudson shooed them away.
"You look ridiculous chasing birds."
He plopped onto the blanket next to me. "I want to enjoy our lunch in peace."
We finished our tacos and sipped our teas. "That was a nice break after being on our knees all morning." We'd used pads and gloves, but it was hard work.
"You're a trooper. I never expected you to last this long or even participate in the work."
"If only my Boston friends could see me now. They'd think I was crazy. Installing floors for a story and eating lunches on the beach. They'd say I was unmotivated."
"They'd want to talk you into going back."
"They think you have to be in the city to have more opportunities. But everyone there is about pretenses, and how things look on the outside. Here, it's real. Life moves according to the weather and tourist season. It's slower but more intentional. And I think that's what my old friends were missing. When you slow down, you can really analyze things and make better decisions."
"Are you making better decisions since you've been home?" Hudson asked.
"Yeah, I think I am. I'm certainly happier, less stressed. I'm still worried about keeping this job. That Valerie won't need a full-time staffer, but we'll see."
"Will you be happy writing this kind of stuff?"
"As long as I get to research people's stories and write the articles from that angle, I'll be okay."
Hudson glanced at his phone and stood, holding his hand out to me. "We should head back."
"I guess the boss can't play hooky for long," I said as I placed my hand in his. His hands were calloused from work. The roughness sent a tingle down my arm.
The breeze had picked up, and the sky was turning gray. "Is it going to rain?"
Hudson grinned as if he remembered last night. "It always seems to rain around you."
"Is that a bad thing?" I asked, my heart rate kicking up.
His eyes darkened with what I thought was desire. "It depends on what's happening, I guess."
Did he want to get me alone in the rain? I've always wanted to kiss someone as the water fell around us. Was he having the same fantasy?
Instead of asking him about it, I kept my mouth shut. I wasn't ready to voice those thoughts out loud. I was attracted to him, but I had no idea how he felt.
At the house, we got back to work and made good progress on the floor.
I was impressed that he worked alongside his crew. He wasn't just a supervisor, and he was always quick to assist someone else. I didn't think he was just putting on a show for me, because his coworkers didn't act surprised when he did it.
At the end of the day, my phone buzzed.
Valerie: Can we meet and talk about the progress of your article?
I sighed.
"What is it?" Hudson asked.
"My boss wants to talk to me about the article. I should probably outline it so I have something to share with her."
"You can leave. I'll finish up here."
"Are you sure?" I usually stuck around until everything was cleaned up and he was locking the door for the night.
Hudson nodded. "This is my job. Yours is to write an article."
"See you tomorrow then." I headed home to work on a rough outline, wishing that I was with Hudson and not cooped up in my room.
I lifted my head to gaze out the window. I wondered what Hudson was doing tonight. It had become a habit to ask him, since we were supposed to be spending a lot of time together. But tonight, I'd forgotten. Was he spending time with Shane, or did he go to the gym to work out?
Hudson wasn't my boyfriend. I didn't need to keep tabs on him, but that didn't stifle my curiosity. This relationship was unconventional, and it was messing with my head. It was probably best that I create some space between us.
For the rest of the week I worked with him during the day and then worked on the outline of the article in the evening. Doing both at the same time was incredibly helpful. I could determine what I wanted to reveal about him and his family, then figure out a way to get that experience with him.
On Friday, I met with Valerie at the office. It was a small space in a strip of businesses. We were next to one of the Realtor offices, one of many on the island.
In Valerie's office, I sat across from her. On the wall, there were framed covers of past Island Times displayed.
"How's the article coming?"
I handed her my outline for the article. "I'm getting a feel for Hudson and the rest of the Kingston family. I think my angle is how close-knit they are and how much they give back to the community. Each brother volunteers, whether it's building flower boxes at the senior center or mentoring kids." I felt good about this kind of article bringing interest to the island.
Valerie's forehead wrinkled. "That's not very sexy though."
"That's what the photo shoot is for. The glossy photos of the Kingston brothers are sure to generate interest."
"Yeah, but then they're going to read the article to get more details about their dating history, and they're going to be confused by the family angle."
"I guess I'm not understanding the assignment. Do you already have an angle you'd like me to pursue?" I didn't like asking, but it was clear she disapproved of mine.
"The article is titled 'the Island's Most Eligible Bachelors.' You should be writing about their escapades outside of work. No one wants to learn how to put up drywall." Her lip curled as she pointed at my outline where I detailed what a day for Hudson looked like.
At first, the only thing registering was panic. She didn't like my article. It was boring. All my insecurities rushed to the surface. I wasn't good enough. I didn't know how to write an interesting article. Maybe I never had. Then it quickly spiraled to me losing my job and not being able to stay here with Grams. I desperately tried to refocus on what she wanted. "You want me to spend time with them in the evening at the bars?"
She handed the outline back to me. "That would be a good start."
"Hudson doesn't spend much, if any, time at a bar. We've gone once."
"Maybe the story isn't Hudson. Just because the father said you had to focus on him doesn't mean you have to. This is your article."
"I want to respect his wishes."
"We can certainly talk about Hudson, but if the other brothers are more interesting, then we need to pursue them as well."
Just then, a text came through from Hudson.
Hudson: The family is heading to the beach tonight for a bonfire. Care to join?
"They're hosting a bonfire tonight."
Valerie grinned. "That's perfect. But don't spend all your time with Hudson. I think readers want to know more about the rowdy middle kids and the irresponsible younger ones."
"Is that what people think of the Kingstons?"
"I know you've been gone for a while, but yeah. They have a reputation for being fast and loose. I think only one of them has been in a committed relationship recently."
That wasn't what I'd observed, but Valerie was my boss. I'd take her advice and see where it led.
She waved a hand at me. "Scratch whatever you were writing and start fresh. We want to show how sexy and fun the Kingston men are, not what they do for work."
I was fairly positive they wanted their business featured, but my job, and my ability to stay on the island, was at stake. I couldn't go back to Boston, not when I was starting to love it here, and I could spend more time with Grams.
"This is your article and your magazine. I want to do this in your vision." That wasn't exactly the truth, but it was what she wanted to hear.
Valerie grinned. "Great. I'm glad we're on the same page."
I took a deep breath as I walked outside the small office. Hudson probably wasn’t going to like the change in direction of the article. But then again, we never said he had to approve it. I just didn't like the nagging sensation this was going to be a problem.