Chapter 3
Cam
“What the hell are you thinking?”
I winced as my brother Angus wobbled the large sheet of particle board. “Would you rather I did it without saying something?”
“Married?!” His voice was a touch too loud.
“Would you keep it down?” I craned my neck to make sure Lexi, our project manager, hadn’t heard Gus.
“The fact that you are worried someone will overhear us shows exactly how bad of an idea this is.” Angus pushed the board into my belly. “Maxie?”
I sighed. “Yes, Maxie. It’s a really good opportunity for us. Renovating that house will give us a lot of street cred around town.”
“We don’t need any more marketing bumps. I can’t even believe I’m saying that, but we’re barely hanging on as it is.”
I stumbled back as Gus steered us toward the truck at a fast clip. “You trying to kill me, man?”
“Sorry. You know what? No, I’m not sorry. Marrying for a business arrangement is stupid to begin with, but Maxie? Dude, you’ve had the hots for her since you were fifteen.”
“I have not.”
It was fourteen, but he didn’t need to know that. “She’s been gone for years, Gus. Just because I had a few heart eyes for her when I was a teenager isn’t a big deal.”
“It wasn’t your heart that was the issue.”
“Exactly. It’s no big deal. She needs my help.”
“So you can be her hero?”
“You know what? I’m sorry I told you.” I grunted as my finger got pinched under the edge of the board.
“Don’t get pissed at me because you’re an idiot. Does El know?”
Gus got out of the way, and I slid the board into the flatbed of the truck. I already had some pieces from my workshop wrapped for delivery.
“How am I supposed to know? I’d hope your girlfriend would say something to you.”
“I’ve barely seen her.” Gus leaned on the back panel and crossed his arms. “She’s been at Maxie’s every night this week helping her with the house for the estate sale. Maxie hired cleaners to do a once over, but they had to catalog everything.”
“Any idea why she’s selling everything off.”
“You should know, lover boy.”
“It’s not like that, man.” Even if part of me wished it was.
I hadn’t expected the zing between us. When she’d shoved me in the pantry I definitely hadn’t been thinking about a clandestine meeting.
The warm vanilla scent of her still lingered in my brain.
And the urge to find out if her skin was as soft as it looked had left me gripping the counter instead of crowding her to find out.
“Marriage though? Mom and Dad will shit a kitten.”
“I’m not sure they really need to know.”
Gus’s eyebrows shot up. “Good luck keeping that a secret.”
“It’s a business arrangement. It’s just going to be a contract thing for a year. It’s just a legal loophole for the will.”
“Who are you trying to convince?”
“Shut up. It’s just bus—”
“Right, business I got it.”
I opened the passenger door on the truck, ignoring him. Why the hell had I mentioned it at all? We’d probably just go to town hall and do a civil ceremony.
My brother and I didn’t talk on the ride out to the Nelson house.
I had some last-minute additions to the built-in library I’d done for Mrs. Nelson.
Libraries were becoming a specialty of mine lately.
Lots of empty nesters were renovating bedrooms into personal spaces.
Since reading was on the rise—especially since special edition books were making a comeback—that many men and women wanted libraries that suited their taste.
Mrs. Nelson had an affinity for romance books. She asked for a whimsical bookshelf to be added just for her fantasy books. It gave me the opportunity to do more carving than I usually afforded time to do.
As we were about to unload, Gus grabbed my arm. “Just talk to Mom and Dad first. They’ll be pissed if their first married kid is at the town hall, and they didn’t know about it.”
“Sully and Nora are getting married at Christmas.”
“I know. Not the same, but still. You know Mom will lose it.”
“I’ll talk to Maxie and see what this entails.”
“Good. That’s all I ask. El will be happy you’re helping her out. She’s worried about her.”
Gus still hadn’t told me why she was selling off the furniture. I stewed about it as I installed the pieces I’d worked on the night before. After the deal had been struck in the pantry, I’d been restless as fuck.
But my sleepless night had turned into something pretty special.
“Damn, son.”
I turned at the sound of Sully’s voice.
“Pretty nice, huh?” I smoothed my hand over the freshly varnished trim I’d just nailed in. I’d also made little easels for the books she wanted to display along the top.
He came all the way into the room and did a 360o spin. “Mrs. Nelson is going to kiss you.”
I laughed. “Maybe I’ll let her.” I tucked one of my wood varnish pencils into my pocket. “What are you doing here?”
“Just doing the final walk through so we can button up this reno.”
“Oh, cool. I didn’t realize we were done.”
“Yep. Just your little finishing touches and we’re out of here. Gus is all packed up. Do you want to go back with him or me?”
“Doesn’t matter to me.”
Sully was about to say something when Mrs. Nelson came in. She put her hands to her mouth. “Gosh. It’s even more amazing than I was expecting.” She ran a shaking hand over the shelf. “I never thought I’d have a room like this.”
“I hope it’s what you wanted.”
“More.” She grabbed onto me and hugged me. The scent of flour and gardenias nearly knocked me over. “I can’t believe you plucked this right out of my brain.”
I patted her back. “I’m glad you love it.”
“I can’t wait to put all my books on the shelves. How am I going to pick what to put on this one?” She touched the crown molding with the butterflies carved in the corners. “Your work is stunning.”
“It was inspired by one of the covers I saw in your piles. Looked like a special book.”
“It is.” She clasped her hands together under her chin. “Oh, I have a gift for you!”
“For me?”
She hooked her arm around mine and drew me out of the room.
I glanced over my shoulder at Sully who laughed and shook his head. “I’ll grab your tools.”
“I am beyond pleased. My friend Michelle is so jealous. She said she’s saving up to hire you. Her daughter just graduated college so she’s ready to attack her bedroom and make it a reading room just like mine.”
“You have our card.”
“I do.” She beamed up at me.
I followed her down the stairs and the scent of fresh bread made my stomach roar.
“This is my secondary obsession.” She patted a little glass with something bubbling in it. “This is Adrienne.”
I peered at the jar with the rubber band around it. “What did you do to her?”
She laughed. “It’s my sourdough starter.” She whipped a towel off a loaf of bread with an intricate leaf pattern baked into the crusty top. “I wanted to do a little something extra for you since you went above and beyond for me.”
“It smells amazing.”
She pushed a gift bag in front of me. “Special olive oil and balsamic as well as some sharp cheese and grapes. Hopefully you can take this to someone special for a date night.”
I peered into the bag. “You shouldn’t have.”
She waved me away. “You deserve it.” She pulled out a waxed bag with little bees on it and tucked the bread inside. “There now.”
“I appreciate this Mrs. Nelson. I know just who I’ll share it with.”
“Wonderful!” She squeezed my upper arm. “Hope she’s special.”
“She is. Thanks for this.” I took both bags. “If you have any trouble with the shelves just text or email me.”
“I will.”
I ran into Sully in the hall on the way out. Sully held back to give her the last invoice then followed me out the door. “So, who are you sharing your bounty with?”
“It could be you.”
“Not with that smirk on your face.”
I laughed. “None of your business, bro.”
“I thought you didn’t have time to date.”
“Who says it’s a date?”
Sully hopped in his truck. “Suspicious.”
I got in on the passenger side with my booty. “You’re just jealous. You want my sourdough bread.”
“I do, actually. It would win me big points with Nora.”
“Then you should have stopped at Sweet Beat.”
“Asshole.”
I grinned as I clipped my seatbelt. We spoke about the next week and hashed out the supply list for the next few jobs as he drove back to the warehouse. I was tempted to mention the Delacroix house, but decided I needed to check in with Maxie first.
I wasn’t entirely sure she’d been serious about her proposal. Maybe sleeping on it changed her mind.
I dumped the leftover lumber in the buckets for our scrap piles then left my approved order with Lexi for the following week.
After a pitstop in the locker room to shower off the sweat and change, I jumped in my truck and wound my way up Hope Street toward the mansion. In my haste for a nonchalant exit last night, I hadn’t gotten Maxie’s number.
Hopefully she’d be into a little impromptu date.
I probably shouldn’t think about it that way, but if we needed to sell a marriage, we probably needed to get to know one another.
Yeah, that’s why you’re going.
I flipped down my visor and winced at my near beard. I usually kept it pretty trim and tight, but I’d been light on sleep. I shoved a hand through my messy hair. I didn’t need to impress her for fuck’s sake.
I grabbed the food and headed up the walkway.
There was only one car parked in the drive. It was a sweet vintage Range Rover in a deep hunter green. I followed the walkway to the front porch and rang the bell.
It was a long wait. Enough that I almost turned around.
Suddenly the door swung open. She was wearing a fuzzy purple sweater that dipped off one shoulder and skin hugging black pants that showed off every inch of her killer legs. Her heavy dark hair was pulled back into a high ponytail and her face was makeup free.
“Cam? Did we have plans?”
“Nope.” I held up my bounty. “But I thought we could talk if you have some time.”
She rested her cheek against the side of the door. “Depends on what you have.”
“Fresh sourdough from—”
She snatched the bag. “Why didn’t you say so?” She turned and headed back inside, leaving me at the door.
I shook my head with a grin and locked the door then followed her scent and the sound of music.
I found her in the kitchen. She was opening up all the cupboards stacking items on the kitchen island. A piece of butcher block, a knife, two plates, and a shallow bowl quickly filled the space.
Chris Stapleton and a female singer I didn’t recognize filled the room.
I set the bag on the counter. “What have you been up to today?”
“I made some calls to antique shops in Saratoga and Albany to see if there was any interest. Oh, and fielded calls from everyone and their mother calling in their condolences.”
I pulled out the oil and vinegar. Her eyes widened. “Oh, you have everything.”
“A very nice woman set me up.”
Her eyebrow rose. “Another woman put this together for you?”
I grinned. “Yes. Jealous?”
“No. I suppose it doesn’t surprise me, actually. Women probably always want to take care of you. Those wholesome caramel colored eyes probably make them nuts.”
“There’s nothing wholesome about me.”
She raided a spice rack from between two cabinets and came back with some chili flakes and a shaker full of herbs in an unmarked jar. “Don’t pout, Cam. Use what God gave you.”
I walked around the kitchen island to stand beside her, pouring a healthy amount of olive oil into the shallow bowl. “Why don’t you cut the bread to your liking.”
Her gaze drifted from my hands to my mouth and finally up to meet my gaze. “Surprised you would let the little woman use a knife.”
“Honey, I’m sure there’s nothing you can’t handle.” I sniffed the unmarked shaker and the sharp hint of a variety spices made my mouth water. I added drops of balsamic and then dusted it with the dried herbs to let them bloom.
She cut thick slices of the crusty bread and the yeasty scent made my mouth water.
“Have any wine to go with this?”
She stacked a few pieces on each plate then nodded. “Do you have a preference?”
“I’m partial to red.”
She met my gaze. “Me too.”
While she opened a bottle, I got the cheese and grapes ready.
“Do you want to sit?”
“Not really.”
She smiled. “You eat at the counter too?”
“Single person’s prerogative.”
She handed me a glass. “So, a woman plied you with food and you found your way to me?”
“Still stuck on that, huh?” I took a sip.
“No.”
I laughed. “A very sweet, very married woman gave it to me as a thank you for a job well done.”
“What kind of job?”
“You have a dirty mind.” I leaned on the marble and picked out a grape from the bunch, then watched her as I took a bite. “Good to know.” I said as the tart grape flooded my mouth.
“If we’re married, we have to make it convincing.”
I set the glass down and leaned a hip against the counter. “How convincing?”
She licked her lips and tore apart a piece of bread. “Exclusivity at the minimum.”
“I can handle that.” I took the other half of the piece from her and dunked it in the concoction. “Does this mean we play house too?”