That was the most Marissa had ever flirted with me, and I liked it. I didn’t want to scare her off. The tips of her ears were turning pink as she locked the ladder in the shed.
I looked over at Nan, who was taking her blanket back to the house. “It’s almost like I’m looking at you in the future. Full of fire and energy. Plus, some home-cooked meals sound fantastic.”
Marissa leaned against the shed beside me. “Are you thinking that I’ll still drool over you when I'm eighty?” She chuckled. “I mean, Nan obviously does . . .” She grinned.
“That’s true. I have quite a way with older ladies. They can’t resist me.”
Marissa glanced at her watch. “Oh shoot! I need to go. I have dinner plans.”
She did? With whom?
What happened to the no-dating rule? She took a few steps back to the house and then turned back to me, unsure of what to do.
Nan stepped next to me and looped her arm in mine. “Don’t worry, it isn’t with a guy. It’s Rose’s birthday night out.”
Apparently, my expression was showing on my face more than I wanted. Nan nodded at the house. “How about you come fix my sink and I’ll make you dinner? I need someone to beat at Jeopardy tonight, since Marissa will be gone.”
Marissa sighed. “Nan, leave him be.”
“Dinner and Jeopardy sounds great.” I smiled. A night with Nan was sure to be interesting.
Even though Nan’s house differed from the house I grew up in, when I walked through her front door, it felt like coming home. It was smaller and simpler, but the worn floors were the same—and they held years of stories and wear. I looked over at the pile of cut timber by the wood-burning stove. It wasn’t very full. Was this their only source of heat? There was a shelf that held picturesabove the stove. I wanted to stop and examine them but didn’t want to pry.
“In here, lawyer boy,” Nan called out to sound like “lover boy” and I chuckled. I walked past the old China hutch, my feet causing it to shake and groan. In the kitchen, the linoleum floors were chipped, and the counters covered with mason jars. Nan was tying on a “Life’s better with butter” apron.
“I’ll start on peeling the potatoes if you start on that sink.” She nodded to the left. “The thing takes forever to drain.”
Great, plumbing. I hated plumbing. I looked under the sink at the neck of the plastic PVC pipe, at least it was PVC and not something older. Maybe it just needed to be cleaned out. I turned the knob under the sink, made sure I turned the water line off, and began unscrewing the pipe. As always with plumbing, the smell was atrocious and made me gag. The pipe seemed to be plugged with some type of hardened grease. After cleaning it out into the bucket Nan had provided me, I stepped outside, looking for a hose connected to the house to spray the remaining gunk out. I found a pump, pulled the lever all the way up and stuck the pipe with hardened grease underneath the nozzle.
The water pressure was something of legends as it rushed out into the pipe, blasting out all the gunk and sending water mixed with chunky grease everywhere, including my t-shirt.
Ugh. Sick!
The smell assaulted my nose. I ripped my shirt off. I would let Nan know I would be back for dinner after I changed. I would not wear this soggy, greasy shirt a second longer. I continued spraying out the gunk, then headed back into the kitchen. I reassembled the pipe, making sure I got it on tight so it wouldn’t leak, and turned the water back on. I tested the drain in the sink. Not perfect, but much better. I used the kitchen towel to dry my hands.
“Oh, wow!”
My back stiffened. That was not Nan’s voice. How was I going to explain my reasoning for taking my shirt off to cleanthe sink?
“Close your mouth hun, don’t want to catch flies.” I heard the humor in Nan’s voice as I turned. Marissa’s cheeks were pink. Her hand covered her mouth as her eyes roamed up my chest and back to the sink.
“Sorry. My shirt got all gross.”
“No apologies necessary, trust me.” Nan chuckled and came the rest of the way into the kitchen.
Marissa lowered her hand, and I watched her cheeks changed from pink to red. She looked away. Now it was my turn to gawk. She was in a black, short skirt with black strappy heels, and an orange sweater that made her skin look amazing. Her lips were brighter than normal, and her eyes were a bold color of green beneath the dark lashes that framed them. Wow! I was instantly grateful she wasn’t going out with a man.
“Oh, don’t you start now,” Nan whispered and bumped me with her hip. “Close your mouth and walk her out.”
I shook my head to clear my foggy brain. Marissa tucked her hair behind her ear and gave me a shy grin. All thoughts of shirts and leaving Hillsdale fled, and all I could think of was Marissa. I wanted her to stay here with me for the night instead of going out, but I walked her to the door instead.
Chapter Seventeen
MARISSA
I rushed towards my car,refusing to look back. Was Scott standing in the doorway looking at me? What would I do if he asked me to stay with him with his shirt off? I wouldn’t be able to control myself.
Leaving was safer. Other than I was leaving him with Nan and who knew what she would say.
