Chapter 18 #2
“Well, see there?” Edna G pointed at me. “It’s no wonder the two of you haven’t made any progress toward reconciliation.”
Edna B nodded in agreement. “You won’t recapture his heart that way, dear.”
My mouth parted, confused at the shift in conversation. “I’m not trying to recapture his heart.”
A hand on my lower back forced my gaze over my shoulder. Ben stood at my side, smiling that mischievous smile of his. “There would be no point in her recapturing it. She never let it go.”
The Ednas shared a delighted smile, as if this was the very piece of news they’d been waiting for. When he’d said to make the gossip good, I hadn’t assumed he’d meant feed into the women’s incorrect assumptions about us.
“Did you need something?” I asked, my tone brimming with enough irritation that even he would pick up on it.
Ben looked unconcerned by my annoyance. “I wanted to see if you could give me a hand real quick.” His gaze went to the Ednas. “But if you’re busy, I can find someone else.”
I didn’t even have a chance to respond before the Ednas began shooing me away. “Go on and help him, dear,” Edna G said.
“Oh, but first,” Edna B said, reaching out a hand to stop Ben. “We’re supposed to ask to see the socks you’re wearing today.”
Ben looked at me, and I gave an unrepentant smirk.
Reluctantly, he leaned over and lifted his pant leg to just above his work boots.
“Oh, look at that,” Edna B said. She leaned in slightly, squinting her eyes. “Are those little acorns among fall leaves?”
Ben gave an unimpressed nod, dropping his pant leg.
“Aren’t they adorable?” I asked, turning toward him. “Though I’m surprised you didn’t wear the golden retriever pair today. I figured since you couldn’t bring Finn to the barn raising, you’d want to be reminded of him.”
“I would have, but I wore those yesterday,” he deadpanned. “When I had to leave Finn to go to the game.”
I refused to laugh and let him claim the victory. Instead, I patted his chest consolingly. “I’ll have to get you another pair.”
He took hold of my hand, removing it from his chest but not letting it go. “Will we see you two ladies at the dance tonight?” he asked, taking a step away and bringing me along with him.
They both nodded, their gazes narrowed in on our clasped hands. I momentarily considered pulling my hand from his grip, but what was the point? They’d make of it what they wanted, regardless.
With one last wave in their direction, I allowed Ben to lead me away. “Thanks for that,” I said, not even sure if I was being sincere or sarcastic.
“I actually do want your help.”
I eyed him suspiciously. I had literally no skills required for building. The most I could claim was putting together an Ikea bookshelf on my own, and it had taken me three times longer than the estimated build time. “For real?”
“You can either hand me nails or hammer the nails I hand you. Your choice.”
“I thought you were working on the roof.”
“I am.”
I slowed, pointing upward. “You want me to go up there?”
“You’ve climbed trees taller than this.”
“But there were branches to hold on to. And I’m wearing sneakers. I don’t think their traction is very good.”
Ben directed me toward the ladder. “How about you give me your list of excuses while we climb up? If you come up with a good one by the time we get to the top, I’ll let you off the hook without a word.”
I huffed. “If I fall and die, I will come back and haunt you.”
“You absolutely should.”
Taking hold of a ladder rung, I started up, one cautious step at a time.
Ben stayed close as I climbed, and besides being slightly self-conscious about his view looking up, it made me feel better knowing he was right behind me.
When I reached the top, Carson came to the edge of the roof and offered me a hand before cautiously directing me away from the edge.
“I’m impressed,” he said. “I didn’t think Ben could convince you to come up.”
“I’m not sure I’d call his method convincing me. It was more a combination of assumption, refusing to let me tell him no, and forcing me up the ladder.”
Carson laughed, and Ben came to stand on the slanted roof next to us.
“So, what now?” I asked, looking at the mostly completed roof instead of the drop behind me. Dominic and Jaxon were at the far end, using a nail gun to secure large pieces of plywood onto the trusses.
“This way.” Ben took hold of my hand again, and we made our way toward the ridge. “Our job is to look for any edges the nail gun missed or anything that looks like it needs to be secured down.”
“Should I be insulted that you thought of me for this task? As though I have some incredible ability to pinpoint every minor imperfection?”
Ben smiled. “I actually just wanted you to see the view from up here, but if you’d prefer, we can go with that.”