Chapter 10
Fox pulled into the parking lot of his office. His boss had texted him early that morning to ask him to stop by before heading out to check on his jobs.
He hadn’t slept well last night, and his head ached slightly. He chalked it up to worrying about his current relationship situation. The dinner had been okay, but Brooke seemed distracted most of the night.
“Hey, Maeve,” he said, stepping into the office foyer. “Boss said he wanted to see me?”
The office wasn’t anything fancy. All the company needed was someone to answer the phones and file paperwork. His boss sat in an office behind her desk working on bids.
All the billing was done at the main headquarters in a building out in Wellesley. He’d only been there a couple of times and always felt underdressed. It’s where their clients met with the developers.
“Sure thing. Have a seat, and I’ll let him know you’re here.”
Fox smiled to himself. Maeve had the most Bostonian accent he had ever heard. His was tempered by growing up in Maine. Once when she had too much to drink at the company Christmas party, he couldn’t understand her at all. He took a seat on the old leather couch in the corner to wait.
“Do you need a cup?” It came out cuhp.
“I had two this morning. That should do me,” he answered. He pulled out his phone and began to scroll through his email.
“Addams,” his boss bellowed from his office. Fox jumped hard enough he dropped his phone. He had just scooped it off the floor when his boss appeared at the door. “You’ve got a request.”
“A request?”
“Yeah, that rich lady in Beacon Hill is waiting for you. Guess you did her friend’s place.
She’s an important client. We play our cards right, they own rental property all over town.
Make sure you don’t fuck it up. Here’s the address.
” Fox took a piece of paper from his hand.
“Just do the measurements and stuff for the bid. Some designer is supposed to meet you there with the mock-ups.”
“Sure. What time do I need to be there?” Fox asked.
“You should just make it if you leave now,” his boss answered, checking his watch.
“Guess I’ll head that way then. See you later, Maeve.”
“Sure thing, kid,” she answered.
He punched the address into the GPS app on his phone on his way to the truck. Snapping his phone into the holder, he pulled out of the parking lot heading across town.
He racked his brain for who could have recommended him. Most people don’t even bother to learn his name, much less refer him to someone else. Usually, he’s just another nameless face in a group of workers.
The traffic was not on his side, so he pulled up to an austere-looking townhome five minutes past when he was supposed to have been there. He quickly grabbed his notebook and tape measure before jumping out of the truck.
At least he managed to find a place to park not too far away. When he reached the door, an anxious-looking woman pulled it open before he could knock.
“Traffic?” she asked.
“Yeah, sorry.”
“I’m Heidi with The Ossman Design Group,” she said, sticking out her hand.
“Fox Addams.” They shook hands, and she turned to lead him through the house. They met a tall, slim older woman standing just inside the main living room.
“Mrs. Anderson, this is the contractor. He’s here to take measurements for the proposal.” She nodded but didn’t offer her hand. “And this is her son, Edmund.” He did offer his hand. “This is Fox Addams.”
“Fox as in the furry red dog creature?” the man asked with a sneer.
“Actually, my name is short for Foxworth, like the town in Maine.”
“How creative,” the man said drolly. “Mother asked me to be here—for safety, of course.”
Fox wondered if it was really to watch the valuables.
“To be honest,” Edmund continued quieter, “I’m not sure she felt she would be able to answer any questions you might have. She’s usually drunk by this time of the day.”
Fox took a step back in surprise. Why would anyone tell a complete stranger that? He heard Heidi giggle uncomfortably and turned to follow her.
They silently climbed a set of stairs to the second floor with three bedrooms on it. Each had an en suite bath that she wanted remodeled. He flopped open his notebook and began taking notes as Heidi described what needed done to each room.
Edmund stood near watching every move with a look of interest. “How long have you been wielding a hammer?” he asked while Fox kneeled to look in a low cabinet.
“I’ve been working construction since high school.” He pulled his measuring tape off his belt. “I’ve been a supervisor for about six years now.”
“No interest in moving up?”
Fox chose to ignore the question rather than answer it.
What he really wanted to do was shove Edmund out a window.
That was frowned upon though, so he continued to add figures to his rough sketch.
The guy bothered him. He didn’t feel like he was a direct threat, but there was just something about him that didn’t sit right.
“I think I have everything I need for these three bedrooms and baths. What else?” he asked.
“The primary bedroom suite takes up the third floor,” Heidi answered, leading him to more stairs.
They stopped at a pair of double doors on the third floor that she threw open. Edmund pushed past them and flopped on the bed. He placed his head on his hand like he was posing for a modeling job—except he was no model.
Edmund was as average as men came. He was around five foot ten with light brown hair and eyes. His features were more round than angular. The extra thirty pounds he carried didn’t help him either. He had, however, perfected the bored, pampered look.
Fox glanced at him before turning back toward Heidi as she explained the changes to be done to the room. He could feel eyes trained on him as he moved around the room with his tape measure and notebook. When they moved to the en suite bath, Edmund moved to lean against the doorjamb.
“All right. No changes to the first floor?” Fox asked.
“They decided that will be phase two,” Heidi answered.
“I do have one more thing,” Edmund said as he glided back across the bedroom.
“I didn’t talk to you about it, Heidi, but I’m sure Mother won’t mind.
” They followed him from the room. He turned and smiled at Fox.
“Just up the stairs at the end of the hallway. Why don’t you wait here,” he said to Heidi before disappearing up a narrow stairwell behind a door.
“Call 9-1-1 if I don’t return,” Fox murmured to her. She bit back a smile as he moved toward the stairs. He found Edmund standing in a large attic surrounded by boxes and a Christmas garland hanging from the rafters. “What were you thinking?”
“Can you make this into a private lounge? A mancave, if you will.”
“Maybe. Let me take a look around, and I’ll let you know.” Fox moved around the room taking measurements and checking specification requirements to convert the room. Edmund followed on his heels.
“Most mancaves are in basements or garages,” Fox continued. “You have good clearance up here. It’s going to depend on the insulation and if permits will allow. Do you want us to add this to the current project bid or as an addendum?”
“You can add it. I’m certainly not paying for it,” Edmund answered.
He took a step closer to Fox, so they were almost touching.
“I mean, it will be mine someday. There’s no telling what I can get up to up here.
” His hand grazed down Fox’s arm so slightly, he wondered if it was simply his imagination for a moment.
“Okay. I need to get back to the office so I can start on the work.” He turned back to the steps and climbed down quickly. He found Heidi anxiously pacing the hallway.
“You had me worried,” she whispered.
“You weren’t the only one,” he agreed. They quieted as Edmund joined them. Fox followed Heidi down to the main floor where they found Mrs. Anderson. After thanking her, they left through the front door. Edmund followed them out the door, preventing Fox from saying anything more.
Fox took his copy of the plans from Heidi and climbed in his truck. As he turned the corner at the end of the block, he glanced in his rearview mirror. Edmund still watched with a smile on his face.
He decided instead of driving straight back to the office, he would check on one of the other sites since he wasn’t far.
The boss wouldn’t get around to crunching the numbers for this job until later in the week anyway.
There was no reason to hurry back. He wove through town and circled the area several times before he found parking down the street.
Flipping open his notebook, he started to review what progress he could expect when he toured the building site. It was a full remodel on an old office building. A group of attorneys had bought it and wanted it turned into a multi-use building.
It was old enough to require a refit of all electrical and plumbing, not to mention bringing the bathrooms up to code. He had assigned one of the better foremen to the project, though, so he wasn’t worried.
He jumped at the tap on his window. Looking up, he found soft brown eyes looking back at him. He quickly rolled the window down.
“Hey, I thought this was your truck,” Bailey said.
“What are you doing here?”
“I had a doctor’s appointment across the street. I noticed you parked here when I came out. Have you had lunch yet? There’s a cute little diner around the corner.”
“No. Lunch sounds good.” He rolled back up the window and opened his door. She took a step back to let him out. “Is everything okay? With the doctor?”
“Yeah, just my yearly physical,” she answered.
“Sorry, it’s none of my business.” He motioned for her to lead the way.
“It’s fine. Nothing to report.”
“You would report though if something was wrong, right?” Her gaze met his as she waited at the crosswalk. He could feel the warmth in his cheeks. “I mean if you needed help or anything.” A smile stretched across her lips. “You can just ask if you do. Please tell me to stop talking.”
She laughed and placed her hand on his forearm.
“I like when you talk. Also, thank you.” She removed her hand, and he had to fight not to pull it back to where it had rested.
Everywhere she touched, he could feel his skin tingle.
He knew he couldn’t cross that line, but he wanted to rip it to shreds and march across it.
“This is it,” she continued when they stopped in front of a quintessential Boston diner.
It had a bar in a U-shape in the middle of the room with booths around the outside.
He was willing to wager they made a hell of a breakfast omelet.
He’d keep that in mind next time he was up here.
Bailey weaved through the room until she found an empty booth in the back.
“What’s good here?” It was like a repeat performance of the last time they had lunch.
“I’ve only eaten here once before. I don’t remember what I had, but I remember it was good. I think you’re safe with whatever you choose.”
She dipped her head to study the menu while he studied her. She had dressed up for the doctor. A floral print dress with a V-neck accentuated her assets perfectly. For a moment, he found himself jealous of the doctor.
“So, this doctor. He an old guy?”
She looked up from the menu with a smile. “He’s happily married with kids and grandkids,” she answered. “Why?”
“Just making conversation.”
“Conversation, huh?”
“Yeah, might be in the market for a new doctor.”
“Are you? In the market for a new doctor?” she teased.
“Not really. No.” He found his smile matching hers. That was the thing about Bailey, he never felt anything but happiness from her. It was another world from Brooke, and it was becoming a problem. “Though, you never know. How old did you say?”
She laughed, and in that moment, all was right with his world.