Chapter 8
We watched as Hendrix climbed into his pickup truck. A bunch of people had come outside during the ruckus so this was definitely going to be the subject of every conversation I had over the next few days.
I glanced over at Tana. “Your brother is still a dick.”
She laughed. “The doctor said the condition is chronic.”
“This time tomorrow the word on the street will be that Hendrix saved me from a wild animal. What do you want to bet?”
Tana acknowledged the point with a rueful smile. “That’s life in a small town. Welcome back.”
The last thing I wanted was to be the subject of the town gossip mill. After the awkward milkshake moment, silence had settled over the diner, which meant everyone had noticed the contentious exchange. Just one more thing to add fuel to the fire.
I had actually been having fun until he showed up. I hadn’t really wanted to come out when Tana called, but I’d only bought a few essentials at the grocery store when I arrived and I was already tired of scrambled eggs. She’d promised it would be a low-key lunch where we could pig out on diner burgers just like in high school.
When Carter had shown up ten minutes into our pig-out, he hadn’t waited for an invitation but just planted himself at the table. Not that I minded. The last time I saw him he was a scrawny teenager with a chip on his shoulder. Now I could tell he was completely built beneath his cotton T-shirt.
“Are we going to talk about it now or just keep pretending you didn’t send my mortal enemy as a potential roommate?”
Tana shrugged her shoulders. “He needs the room. I never said he wasn’t a jerk. I just said he can afford the rent.”
Carter had just walked up in time to overhear the last part of her sentence. He looked between the two of us. “Rix is going to be living with you?”
He wasn’t exactly quiet and several people standing nearby glanced over with interest. I sighed. By this time tomorrow, everyone in town would be talking about me and Hendrix living in sin.
Meanwhile the only sinning between us would be when I finally murdered him and hid his body in the woods. But in a small town, the truth didn’t matter nearly as much as what people wanted to believe.
“No, Tana just thinks he should. I’m renting a room to help pay for the repairs to Gran Grace’s house. It’s in pretty bad shape.”
Carter reached over and squeezed my arm. “If you need any help, like a loan or something?—”
“Oh no. I’m okay. I’m going to do some of the repairs myself to save money. But I might need both of your help when it’s time to repaint. I’ll pay you in pizza and beer.”
“We’ll be there,” Tana promised. Her eyes flashed to the side. She’d noticed that Rix still hadn’t left either.
God, that cocky bastard. What was he even doing? Hadn’t he caused enough trouble? I tried to pay attention to what Carter was saying but my mind was stuck on Rix’s face when he’d first approached our table. He’d already looked pissed off before he even walked up.
Did he just walk around perpetually annoyed and go out of his way to inflict his bad moods on me? Well, I wasn’t going to let his mood swings influence how my day went. I’d had a plan, sort of, when I woke up this morning and I wasn’t going to let anything derail it.
I glanced down at the puppy in my arms. Nothing other than a five-pound ball of fluff, anyway.
“I’m going to the store. I need to get some food for this little guy.”
“Okay. Call me later?” Tana stroked the top of the puppy’s head before she waved goodbye.
On impulse, I pulled out my phone and took a selfie making sure the puppy’s sweet little face was visible. Billie loved dogs as much as I did so I figured she’d get a kick out of seeing him.
After a moment of hesitation, I sent it to my father as well.
Our communication over the years had gotten a little better but we still had a somewhat distant relationship. After the divorce, he’d kept up his visitation for the first year but after that his visits were increasingly sporadic.
To her credit, my mother hadn’t bad-mouthed him at all. She’d explained that his deployments made it hard for him to maintain a consistent visitation schedule. However, once he’d retired from the Air Force and moved back to Louisiana, it was obvious that he considered us part of his past. A part that he’d clearly wanted to forget.
I sighed and stroked the puppy’s soft fur. “It’s just you and me for now, huh?”
The little dog snuggled closer into my neck. He’d been lulled to sleep by all the activity and his chunky little body was a comforting weight on my shoulder. I was not going to get attached. His owner would probably show up looking for him soon and I’d have to give him back. But until then, I got to cuddle him.
Not a bad deal.
* * *
When I was little, having a dog wasn’t practical since we moved so much.After the divorce, the timing never seemed right either since New York City apartments weren’t exactly known for being spacious. She definitely hadn’t wanted the fuss of cleaning up after an animal once she’d moved into Christian’s pristine penthouse.
This was all to say that although I’d always wanted a dog, I had little practical experience with how much stuff dogs needed to be safe.
I’d meant to get just a few things, but the pet section at the general store was overwhelming. Food, beds, bowls, leashes, and an array of toys that would make any toddler jealous. Not to mention all the grooming products I needed to clean him up. My bank account was going to chastise me later, but when I looked down at Meatball sprawled comfortably in his little bed, I couldn’t regret any of it.
It was a bad idea to name him, but I felt terrible just calling him the puppy. Plus, I got a laugh out of it every time I remembered him attacking Rix for his meatball sandwich. He had a home with me forever just for providing that little gem of blackmail material.
“What should we do first, huh? Bath or play?”
He huffed out an exhausted breath so I figured both options were a no. I wasn’t sure why he was so dang tired. I was the one who’d just given my credit card a workout.
I decided to make some found dog flyers first so I wouldn’t have to feel guilty about absconding with someone’s dog. Yes, I could have hung around the diner a little longer to see if his owner showed up but honestly, if they let him wander off so easily I wasn’t thrilled with the idea of giving him back.
“But I have to at least try to find where you came from. So flyers it is. God knows I’ve learned my lesson about Facebook.”
The flyers were simple, just a picture I snapped on my phone, and the location where he’d been found. Instead of putting my number, I created a new Gmail account and used that. I hadn’t thought an innocuous little Facebook post would be seen by many people, but I hadn’t taken into account how quickly it could be shared and reposted.
After the roommate fiasco, I was using an abundance of caution.
Since Meatball was still snoozing, I used the time to answer some emails and work a little bit more on my renovation budget.
Carter had given me the name of several contractors in the area so I left a message for each of them. Hopefully at least one of them would get back to me soon. After that, I spent some time researching average prices for each of the items on my renovation list.
The more I learned, the more confident I was that I could fix some of these items myself. As I inserted the estimates on my spreadsheet, I realized I was singing softly under my breath while I worked.
Gran’s house still needed a ton of work, I was unemployed and definitely going to be broke soon, but at the end of it all, I was smiling. I’d been smiling for hours.
Small victories.
* * *
After about an hour, it was time for a break. I rolled my neck to relieve the tension of sitting hunched over my laptop for so long and then glanced down at Meatball. He was still fast asleep in his new bed with his little legs sticking straight up in the air.
It was the perfect opportunity to get started on my list.
I’d tried to be as comprehensive as possible, but I was sure there were things I’d missed. Either way, the more things I could do myself the better my chance of getting through this renovation without having to sell a kidney or something.
The porch was number one on my DIY list.
Tiptoeing upstairs so I wouldn’t wake up my new little buddy, I made my way to my room to change into something I wouldn’t mind getting dusty. The jeans I was wearing were my favorite pair and I definitely didn’t want to mess them up. The porch needed to be power washed, but I could hammer in all the loose nails first. I figured that was a great place to start. How difficult was it to swing a hammer?
My mind drifted to Hendrix. If he could do it, obviously it wasn’t that hard.
I didn’t have many choices since I’d only brought one suitcase with me, but I did find an old T-shirt in the closet that I’d left here on a visit while in college. I rubbed the edge of the material between my fingers, remembering those early visits. I’d tried so hard at first, coming home at least twice a year. I’d hang out with Tana and just spend time here, thinking about Gran Grace.
But then at some point things had gotten busier and busier and it had been too hard to get away so often. My visits fell to once a year and then finally not at all. Then it seemed easier to just stay away. Or maybe I’d just gotten used to pretending I was fine. Pretending that it didn’t break my heart every time I came home and then had to leave again.
I undressed quickly and pulled on the shirt. There was more in this closet than I thought. It was like a time capsule. I pulled out a pair of leggings that I used to wear to sleep in and put those on, too. Then on the top shelf I found a box filled with old accessories. I laughed as I pulled out a jumble of necklaces. I had always been hopeless at separating them once they got tangled. There was also a red bandana in the box. I shook it out. This would work to cover my hair. With my kinky curly texture, I preferred to only style once a week.
I definitely didn’t need a head full of dust to wash out later.
When I went back downstairs, I moved through the kitchen to the utility closet. I’d seen a hammer in there when I was getting the mop out and I was pretty sure I’d seen a pair of gardening gloves, too. When I found them, I slipped them on. Hopefully that would protect me from splinters. I would need to go to town for supplies for the bigger projects, but at least I could get started.
As I walked through the living room, Meatball was still snoring softly, so I made sure to close the door behind me as quietly as possible. It was a beautiful day, and I was grateful that this part of Virginia didn’t truly get hot until July. Right now, it was picture-perfect late spring weather with just enough breeze to carry the scent of the violetberry bushes from the side of the house. They were a particular subspecies of the American beautyberry that only grew in and around Violet Ridge and Gran had been very proud of them.
It was nearing the time when they would be ripe. Maybe I would make a pie in her memory.
I shook my head. I was already getting distracted. This porch was in dire need of some TLC.
I approached the first plank of wood and knelt to examine it. It was only protruding a little, so I braced my hand about a foot away from the nail and then swung the hammer.
Crack.
It went in perfectly. I smiled. It was silly but it felt great to actually start on a home improvement project. Planning was my forte, but it was a little harder to actually execute. But this wasn’t that hard at all. I moved down a little to the next protruding nail and brought the hammer down.
Crack.
For the next few minutes, I hammered in any nails that were loose. Then I sat back to survey my work. This side of the porch was looking pretty good!
Okay, it was still in desperate need of a good cleaning but that was probably something I could do myself, too. I wasn’t sure where to buy one of those powerwash machines but maybe one of the neighbors already had one.
I looked over to the other side of the porch. The boards were much worse on that side. Some were actually lifting, and there were even a few spots where the wood had warped and you could see spaces in between. Maybe I couldn’t fix all that so easily, but I could at least get the loose boards flat again. I picked up the hammer and then walked past the stairs. Then I took another step and one of the boards made a loud creaking sound.
“Okay, that doesn’t sound too good,” I muttered.
Then there was a terrible crash and the world disappeared. After a few seconds where I was pretty sure I was dead, I peeled one eye open and looked around warily.
Thankfully I wasn’t dead, just waist deep in a hole. I had fallen through a weak section of the porch.
I looked around carefully taking stock of the situation. It had happened so fast I was lucky I’d managed to catch myself. As it was, I’d let out an unholy scream they had probably heard all the way in the center of town.
Meatball was barking and I could hear his little paws scratching at the door. It was a good thing I’d left him inside. The thought of him falling into this hole was terrifying. At least I could get myself out.
I braced my arms on the side that seemed relatively sturdy and tried to hoist myself up. I thought I was in decent shape, but my arms burned from the effort. I’d fallen so far down that I couldn’t get the leverage to lift myself up. With each attempt, I grew more exhausted.
Okay, maybe I couldn’t get myself out.
What was I going to do? I hadn’t brought my phone with me so I couldn’t even call anyone for help.
Just then I heard a shaky voice say, “What in the world was that?”
The voice sounded vaguely familiar but at that point I would have welcomed a visit from the devil himself if it meant getting help.
“Hello? Is someone there?” I yelled.
The face that popped around the edge of the porch was such a relief that I could have cried. It was the next-door neighbor. She had lived next to Gran Grace since long before I was born.
“Miss Pauline! I’m so glad you’re here. I need your help.”
She lifted the glasses hanging on the chain around her neck and then squinted at me. ”Charlie? Is that you?”
”Yes, ma”am. I was trying to fix the porch, and the boards must have been loose.” I tried in vain to pull myself out again but this time a sharp pain shot up to my shoulder.
She came closer, clucking softly. ”Maybe I can pull you up.”
I paused. Miss Pauline had to be in her eighties by now. There was no way she could pull me up without hurting herself.
“Maybe you can call someone for me? I’m not even sure who to call. Not the police. Oh, call Santana! Or maybe her dad.”
Miss Pauline waved her hand dismissively. “No need for that. I’ll call the fire department. Whenever my Eddie falls, they come and get him right up. They also got Agatha Kitty when she was stuck in a tree.”
”Agatha Kitty?” I asked hesitantly.
”My cat, dear,” she explained. “I’ll just go call right now. Not to worry.”
“Miss Pauline, you really don’t need to bother the fire—” But she was already gone.
“Great. Just great.”
So far, I was zero for two. After flooding the bathroom and now falling through the porch, I was starting to think this whole project was doomed. Now I was going to have to smile politely while a bunch of firefighters snickered behind my back.
I heard footsteps before Miss Pauline appeared again. ”Don”t worry, dear. They’ll be here soon.”
We chatted while I tried to see if there was anything below me I could use to push myself up. My foot felt like it was touching something, but I couldn’t get a good foothold to try and jump out. After what felt like forever but was probably only another ten minutes, I heard a familiar voice.
The last voice I ever wanted to hear.
Rix’s face appeared over the porch railing. “Well, what do we have here?”
I looked over at Miss Pauline. “I thought you called the fire department.”
She nodded. “He is the fire department. He got Agatha Kitty right down. She didn’t even scratch him.”
“Yeah, I’ll just bet all the kitties love him,” I muttered.
Rix shook his head. “Ma’am, I’m actually not with the fire department anymore since I hurt my shoulder last year.”
Poor Miss Pauline looked so confused. “Well, you come every time I call?”
“Of course I come. We’re friends, aren’t we?”
Miss Pauline beamed up at him. Rix looked over at me with a smug smile.
I rolled my eyes. “My leg is stuck. And my arms are really hurting from trying to hold myself up.”
Rix knelt next to me and peered at the cracked wood. “What were you doing, anyway?”
“Trying to fix the porch. I was hammering the loose nails.”
He examined the area where I’d fallen through. “The wood may have been too weak to withstand it.”
I glared at him. “You would just love to make it my fault, wouldn’t you? Except I hadn’t even started on this side when I fell in.”
He grunted. “You know if I lived here, I could have gotten you out right away.”
I glared at him. “You’re trying to blackmail me into letting you move in?”
He frowned. “Of course not.” Then he grasped me under my arms and with a grunt pulled me straight up. My foot snagged slightly on something, something I didn’t want to think about, but with another tug I was free.
Hendrix deposited me gently a few feet away from the broken section of wood. “Are you okay?”
I really wasn’t so sure, but I nodded anyway, hoping it would convince him to leave faster.
“Despite what you think of me, I don’t want you getting hurt, Charlie.”
Suddenly he raised his voice so Miss Pauline could hear. “I’m just saying it’s much safer to have a roommate, don’t you think, ma’am? It’s good for a woman to have a man about the house.”
Miss Pauline clapped her hands. “Oh, you’re going to be staying here. How wonderful.”
I rubbed at the scratches on my thigh. When I’d fallen through, the rough wood had torn a hole through my leggings. “Miss Pauline, he’s not staying here.”
“In my day couples couldn’t live together. But I suppose things are different now,” she continued.
“We’re not a couple,” I interrupted.
“It’s probably for the best. I was wondering how you’d get on in this big house all alone, Charlie.” Miss Pauline rambled on as if she hadn’t heard a word I’d said.
Rix smirked.
I sighed. What could I expect? Small towns were slow to change and people like Miss Pauline were from a different time. She didn’t mean any harm but good lord, it was like being drop kicked back into the 1950s.
And of course, Rix would play right into that.
Miss Pauline finally noticed my ripped leggings. There were several scratches on the skin underneath that welled with blood. “I’d better get the first aid kit. We don’t want those scratches to get infected.”
“Yes, ma’am. Thank you.”
While she bustled away, I examined the damage. Why hadn’t I just worn my jeans? Then they’d be messed up instead of my skin. This home improvement thing was more dangerous than I’d anticipated. If I was going to be doing this kind of work, I would need to get appropriate clothing.
And buy life insurance.
Suddenly Meatball started barking again. He’d stopped eventually when no one had come to let him out but now he seemed to have gotten a second wind. Either that or he’d heard Rix’s voice. I understood. The sound of that deep baritone made me want to scream my head off, too.
Rix glanced at the door warily. ”You brought the dog home with you?”
“Where else was I supposed to take him?”
He shrugged. “I figured you were taking him to the vet.”
I leaned back and hissed as the movement brought my attention to a whole new range of aches and pains. I would definitely be paying for this little adventure tonight.
“I will eventually. He can stay with me until I find his owner. All he does is sleep anyway.”
Rix grunted. “If I lived here, I could get this patched up quickly. This isn’t very safe. What if the dog had fallen in?”
“You are really laying it on thick, huh?”
In the distance, a door slammed, and we could hear Miss Pauline’s voice. It sounded like she was fussing at someone. Probably her husband. Or maybe the cat.
Rix glanced over his shoulder at the sound. “I know you don’t want to hear this but renovating a house can be complicated. When you get quotes, it would help to have someone look them over and make sure you aren’t getting taken for a ride. If I moved in here, I could at least take care of some of these smaller projects for you and help you pick the best company to go with.”
“I appreciate that but that doesn’t mean you need to live here. We would kill each other inside of a week!”
“Look, I need a place to crash where I don’t have to see any members of my immediate family naked or hear them having sex. It’s just until I can find something else. I can pay above the market rate for rent. Hell, I’ll pay anything just to get some peace and quiet in the mornings at this point.”
“I don’t know.”
He must have sensed my weakness because he knelt until we were at eye level. “I can be an adult about this if you can. This is a good deal for both of us.”
I hated to admit it, but he was right. So far everything I had touched had turned into a disaster. Rix might be a jerk, but he was a jerk who knew his way around a hammer. As much as I might hate the idea of him being around any more than necessary, maybe I needed to accept some help before the roof caved in.
“Fine.”
Miss Pauline’s voice suddenly seemed to get closer. Hendrix looked over in the direction of the noise.
“Fine. Does that mean we’re doing this?” he asked.
I nodded. “We’re doing this. God help us.”
He ignored the last part. “I’ll go get my stuff. We can figure out the rest tomorrow. Van will be happy to know he can bang in the morning with no witnesses.”
Despite everything that made me smile.
I just hoped we weren’t making a huge mistake.