I start to hang up when I hear him say, “You have no idea how much you’ve disturbed me.”
“Goodbye, Colin,” I say, wondering what he means.
“Goodbye, Maggie. Can I call you later just to discuss the book?”
“Of course,” I answer, hanging up. Please don’t let this be a giant can of worms I’m about to open.
3
Colin
“Everything okay?” Ernie, the house foreman, asks me as he walks by with a hammer in his hand.
“Sure.” He stops, turning to me. I’m covered in sweat and sawdust.
“Looks to me like someone is having an issue. Woman trouble is my guess based on the look on that face.” I don’t know how he can always read my moods, but the man has a gift.
I started volunteering over a year ago at Habitat for Humanity. To start, I was just looking for something to take up my weekends, but now I truly love the feeling of giving back. Ernie was the foreman on the first house I worked on. He had been a former construction foreman looking to volunteer in his retirement. He recognized instantly that I barely knew what a saw was and took me under his wing. Now I can plumb a joist with the best of them.
“I think we need to have a sit-down after we’re done here today,” he says.
His idea of a sit-down is heading to the pub to drink beer while bullshitting. Right now, that sounds like the perfect idea. Most weekends I pull my weight on a project fine, today I’ve been working like there is a demon on my tail.
I figure if I can’t work Maggie out of my brain, maybe I can drown her out in beer. I know I have to stop contacting her, but I can’t seem to find the courage. Right now, our interactions are the only reason I get up in the morning.
“Sounds like a plan,” I say, returning to work. Later I have to remember to call my sister to scream at her. I can’t believe she blabbed. Wait, yes I can. I just can’t believe I trusted her not to.
When Maggie called to ream me a new asshole, just the sound of her sultry voice made my throat seize and my dick hard. Damn, I’m a complete mess. But then, I have been for years now around her.
“Rhett, get your head out of your ass.” One of the guys I work with on a regular basis is grinning at me.
“What?” He points to the wall where I have left a six-inch gap between pieces of drywall. For fuck’s sake!
* * *
“So am I right? Is it a girl?” Ernie asks over the rim of his glass. I’m seated at a table in the bar with Ernie and Andy, one of the other older guys from the site. Ernie wasted no time getting down to the problem.
“Okay. Between the two of you, you’ve been married somewhere around a hundred years right?” I ask. Andy punches me in the arm but he grins.
“It just seems that way some days,” he announces.
“Truth!” Ernie agrees. “We’ve never seen any evidence that you have a hard time with the ladies though. We read the papers. So what’s up?”
I roll my eyes, “You can’t believe everything in the paper.” They give each other knowing glances. “Fine, I’m a manwhore. Happy?” I ask. Wow, that sounds so much worse when you say it out loud.
“So what’s the problem?” Ernie asks.
“I’ve met someone. Well, actually I’ve known her for a while. I guess I’ve been getting more acquainted with someone. Fuck, I don’t even know what I’m doing.”
“Oh no,” Ernie answers, raising an eyebrow at Andy.
“Yeah, I know. Problem is she’s my little sister’s friend so she’s always been extremely off-limits. She also thinks I’m a player. No, wait. She actually called me one.” They sit considering a moment.
“What’s this girl like? She is of age right?” Andy asks me, holding his hand up for another round.
“What the hell! Yes, she’s of age! She’s not off-limits because of that! She has this incredible mind that calls my bullshit exactly what it is. And when I say she’s beautiful, the word doesn’t even begin to do her justice.” Looking up at the ceiling, I search for the perfect words to describe Maggie.
“Oh and she’s so fucking smart with this fiery attitude that just makes me want to hang on every word she says. I sat last weekend talking to her for hours, but it didn’t feel long enough.”
