Chapter Thirteen
Standing in the driveway of what would soon be Sandra Lynn’s home, Paxton placed his tools in the bed of his truck, then stretched his aching muscles, twisting and turning from side to side. A couple of the crew had called in sick, so he’d strapped on his tool belt and worked inside today with his brothers and several of the volunteers.
Straightening, he turned to gaze at the house and caught Sandra standing on what would be the front walk, her hands on her hips, making similar stretching movements as he’d just done, her gaze never leaving the home. Not wanting to disturb her, he leaned against his truck and indulged in admiring her for a moment. One quality he admired in anyone was hard work, and Sandra had proven herself to be a very hard worker. Not only did she work all morning at the Cut n’ Curl, she came to the job site every day, even when it wasn’t required of her, and then she’d go home and care for her son and help her mother.
His mind wandered to last night. She worked so well under pressure. His mother would have been barking at everyone. Not that she didn’t love her boys as much as Sandra Lynn did, but his mother tended to frazzle easily. Sandra Lynn stayed perfectly calm under pressure. Probably got that from her mother. The woman was sopping wet from dealing with the sink and then had pitched in to help with her sick grandson. He’d never been happier to lend an assist in his life. He just hoped the disposal didn’t revolt again.
Unable to stay by his truck any longer without someone noticing, he strolled up to where she stood. “What do you think?”
Her hands dropping to her side, she turned a thousand-watt smile to him. “It’s coming along great. Even better than I envisioned.”
“Yeah?” Why did that make him want to puff out his chest like the proverbial peacock? After all, it wasn’t as if he’d done all this single-handedly. “Construction Cousins do good work.”
“You Farradays do it right. I think this house will be better built than any house in the county. Maybe in the whole country.”
Although he and his brothers had healthy egos, even he wasn’t prepared to think that much of himself. “I might give you county, perhaps even town, but definitely will be the best house on the block.”
“So you have a modest side. Good to remember.”
No one had ever called him modest before.
Her gaze shifted back to the house. “Ed would let me dream of our own home, but eventually I figured out it was just that, a dream.”
“I gather your ex liked living in an apartment?”
“I suspect what he really liked was no maintenance. He wasn’t one to enjoy hard work. Or any work.” She bit her lip as if she’d revealed a deep dark secret.
The temptation to ask more about her ex pricked at him, but what little he knew about David’s father already didn’t sit well, he was afraid if he learned more, he would only want to strangle the guy. If there was a God in heaven, Paxton would never get the chance to encounter the jerk.
Dragging his thoughts away from a man he may not have met, but who he strongly disliked, he shifted his thoughts to Sandra’s new home. “One good thing about a well-constructed new house, there won’t be any repairs, at least not for a few years.”
“I’ve been reading up on ordinary maintenance. I’ve already started looking for lawn mowers at garage sales. Might have to expand my shopping to Butler Springs.”
“You know, there are plenty of people here in town to help you with ordinary maintenance and upkeep.” He took a step closer and resisted the urge to run his finger down the side of that pretty face and promise her she’d never have to worry about overgrown lawns, leaky faucets or even a burned-out light bulb again. “That includes me.”
Her smile softened and some of the sadness that had lingered in her gaze a few moments ago faded. “Thank you, but I need to learn how to do things for myself. I need to set the example for David. I see a lot of YouTube videos in my future.”
Paxton chuckled. “Except those won’t help much when water is spraying all over the place.”
Shuddering, she groaned. “And don’t I know that for a fact.”
“Maybe we’ll have to have a few Home Ownership 101 classes for you.”
Her cheeks pinkened, and she smiled sweetly at him. “I’d like that.”
Unsure of what to do or say next, he figured there was safety in retreat. “Listen, the day is done a little early, and Jamison serves the best buffalo wings during happy hour. I mean, it’s not the dinner I owe you, but can I tempt you anyway?”
Bobbing her head, she pulled out her phone and typed in a text. Before she could look up, her phone dinged with a response. A few more taps on the phone and her smile grew brighter as she tucked the phone back into her pocket. “Now I’m free.”
O’Faredeigh’s was halfway between the construction site and her mother’s. It only took a couple of minutes to arrive. He pulled into the space by the front door. The tunes from the jukebox wafted over from across the family pub. If he was lucky, maybe he could talk Sandra into a dance. A legitimate reason to hold her close.
“Hey Paxton.” Wearing a white apron tied around his waist, Jamison came out from behind the bar. “Didn’t expect to see you in here so early. Thought y’all would still be working at the house.”
“Called it a day early.” His gaze darted away from his cousin in search of where Sandra had continued walking.
“How’s the project coming along?”
“Great. With all the help we’ve had, we’re way ahead of schedule.” He spotted Sandra stopped at a nearby table, chatting and smiling with a woman, he figured it must be someone she knew. Of course, in a town this size, everyone pretty much knew everyone.
Jamison turned his head, his gaze following the same direction as Paxton’s. “You’d better go rescue Sandra. Katie is nice enough, but her brother is a bit of a prick. Thinks he’s God’s gift to women and after a few beers, he gets a little handsy.”
Handsy? Paxton didn’t like the sound of that at all. Not one little bit.
While Sandra had lived away from home, life in Tuckers Bluff had seemed so far away and so long ago. Now, as people she knew called to her, she felt as if she’d never left home, and once again she thanked heaven that she’d come home. Surprised by the crowd at such an early hour, Sandra spotted several empty tables and attempted to cross the room to one in the far corner of the room. What could she say, she wanted some semblance of privacy for her time with Paxton.
“Sandra, hey,” Katie, one of her former classmates, grabbed her arm. “I heard you were back in town.”
Even though Katie had never been one of her favorite people, Sandra gave the woman a smile. “Hi.”
“You need a seat? You by yourself?” Katie shoved the guy beside her over and patted the seat beside her.
Sandra glanced over at Paxton talking by the door with his cousin. “I’m with someone, but thanks for asking.”
It took another moment for her to recognize Katie’s brother at her side. Another person she’d never cared for in high school. Former football player, and as dumb and annoying as the stereotypical jock. The guy looked around and turning his attention back to Sandra, what was supposed to be a smile looked more like a sneer. “One drink. It’ll be fun.”
She shook her head. “I really want to snag a table before they’re all gone.” She faced Katie again. “We’ll have to catch up another time.”
“Of course.” Katie’s smile seemed sincere. Maybe she’d turned out to be a nice person, but tonight wasn’t the time to find out.
Before she could fully back away from the table, Paxton appeared at her side and slid his hand onto her lower back. “I see a table over there.”
She nodded at him, waved her fingers at Katie, ignored her brother, and as they walked, turned to face him. “Thank you.”
“For what?” His hand was still at her back as they approached the same table she’d spied a few minutes ago.
“Saving me from having to talk any longer to Katie and her brother.” Had she been here with Ed, the man would have completely ignored her as long as he had a full drink to make love to. She tried not to think about how much time she wasted. Being here with Paxton made standing tall, and feeling safe, easy.
“Any time.” Stopping at the small table and pulling out her chair, he smiled at her. “I mean that.”
Somehow, she was sure he really did. “Knowing everyone in the place is part of the price of living in a small town. And I freely admit, a price I’ll gladly pay for David to have a safe place to grow up. Though in your case, you’re probably related to more than half of the people here.”
Quickly, he glanced around, and nodded. “That’s a fair estimate.”
A soft melody played on the juke box and Sandra found herself swaying in her seat as she read the menu on the table.
“You still like to dance?”
Her eyes popped open and she stopped swaying. A flash of memory struck her. She and Grace and Hannah and Becky at the Farraday ranch, in the family room with the music playing and the four of them, having already moved all the furniture out of the way, line dancing. The recollection made her chuckle. “Yes, I guess I do.”
A waitress came to the table. “What can I get you, Paxton?”
“Hey, Sara.” He waved for Sandra to go first, then he ordered a drink and some wings. “Do you like fried mushrooms?”
She bobbed her head. Her mother often lovingly teased, calling her a cow. You don’t eat girl, you graze.
The waitress walked away, promising to be back with their drinks, and he pushed his seat away from the table and extended his hand to her. “Shall we?”
Immediately, her gaze darted around the place. “No one else is dancing?”
He shrugged. “Someone has to be the first.”
Right. Someone. She’d be an idiot to say no. This was her chance to get close to him. Really close. Unable to make the words come out of her mouth, she simply smiled and nodded.
A popular country tune had them falling into an easy Texas Two-Step.
“You’re a good dancer.” She almost giggled as he spun her around before pulling her into him again.
“Mom said it was the best way to get girls. That or learn to play the piano. Dancing seemed easier.”
“I’ll have to remember that. Make sure to teach David to dance.”
He stared at her a long moment before spinning her out and bringing her back again. “You’d do anything for David, wouldn’t you?”
“Absolutely. Not only is he my world right now, but that’s what being a parent is all about. You bring this helpless child into the world who you have to teach how not to be helpless.”
He seemed to consider her words before nodding. “I never thought about it that way. Kind of brings home what a huge responsibility it is having children.”
“Every decision I make, I have to think about David, how it will affect him. Will it make his life better or worse.”
“I hope I fall into the category of better.”
Her smile widened. “Absolutely. You’re an amazing influence on him. And it doesn’t hurt that he adores you.”
“Nah.” Paxton chuckled. “The kid just likes me for my pitching arm and the horses.”
Her head tipped back with laughter. “There’s that too.”
“Seriously, though, I hope you know that I would never do anything to bring any harm to David.”
Oh, how she wished David’s own father had felt that way. Putting David first or considering him in any decision was not on her ex’s radar. “I do.”
He spun them around and seemed to hold her a smidge closer than a moment before. If only Paxton had returned to Tuckers Bluff for more summer vacations. Would they have stayed friends? Become something more? Would David be his son, not Ed’s? Shoulda, woulda, coulda. Instead of lingering on what might have or could have been, what she needed to learn was to enjoy the here and now. And from where she stood at the moment, the here and now was looking awfully bright.