Hell, I’d be a lot better off if they’d never existed at all.
That’s what I was thinking about as I held a nail against a two-by-four and swung the hammer in my hand. Not even the satisfying crack of metal driving into wood helped.
“What’s got your panties twisted this morning?” Levi asked, stopping next to me to check on my progress.
“What the fuck are you talking about? I’m fine.” I held a second nail in place, ready to deliver another punishing blow.
He stepped closer, his shadow blocking out the light behind him. “You saw Peyton last night?”
Who the hell had told him? In the years away, I forgot how quickly word could travel through a small town… faster than a wildfire, but just as destructive.
I lifted the hammer and drove another nail into the board with a little more force than necessary. “What’s it to you?”
Levi laughed. “Cut the attitude, man. I just wanted to make sure you’re okay.”
“Of course I’m okay,” I lied. Like hell I’d tell him how wrecked I’d been since I saw her sitting at the head of the table at that damn meeting. Or how I’d been hard for hours last night after feeling her hand in mine. I’d underestimated the hold she still had on me and was starting to think this town might not be big enough for both of us.
“If that’s how you want to play it.” Levi nudged the box of nails closer to me with the toe of his boot.
I grunted, unwilling to give him any more info. Since I’d been back in Mustang Mountain, he’d gotten his own business going and we’d been flipping houses together. We’d fallen into a comfortable routine, though I was eager to get some jobs on my own and start making a name for myself.
A good name for myself this time around.
“How’s the bathroom coming?” I asked, changing the subject.
“I’m at a stopping point. They gave me the wrong tile when I picked up materials. Any chance you need to run into town this afternoon?” Levi asked.
“Because you forgot how to drive?” I joked.
“No. Brooklyn has to make a delivery and could use an extra set of hands.”
Even though he and Brooklyn hadn’t been together very long, I envied the relationship they’d built. I thought I had that once, would have bet everything I owned that what I shared with Peyton would have stood the test of time. Hell, I’d never been more wrong.
“I’ve got you covered, man. Let me finish framing this in, and I’ll head over.”
“Thanks. I’m taking off. She’s been texting me all morning. It’s a big job, and I think she’s nervous.”
“When are you going to give that woman a ring?” I teased.
He grinned. “Soon, man. We both want a big family and we’re not getting any younger.”
Even though most of the guys we’d graduated with were already married with a kid or two, hearing Levi’s news hit harder. If I’d done things differently, maybe I’d be the one leaving work early to meet up with my girlfriend. Maybe that girlfriend would be Peyton. Maybe I’d even be planning on asking her to be my wife.
I shoved the ridiculous thought out of my head. No way would her dad ever let her get within fifty miles of a wedding dress if I was the one who’d be standing at the end of the aisle. He’d had it out for me from the start. Wasn’t my fault that he and my dad had some unfinished business. Though Dad refused to talk about it, and I never got the chance to ask Mr. Winslow what was behind his longstanding hatred of anyone with my last name.
Fuck it. I didn’t come back to Mustang Mountain for Peyton. I came back to finally put down some roots. Turns out as much as I thought I’d like living on the road and following the wind wherever it decided to take me, I’d had enough. When I’d thought about all the places I’d lived and where I felt the most at home, Mustang Mountain was at the top of the list.
I wrapped up the framing and shut down the job site for the day. Levi had loaded the boxes of tile into the back of my truck. Shouldn’t take more than a few minutes to swap them out, then I could get back to the cabin I’d been staying at and put in a few hours of work on the renovation.
The parking lot was busy for a late afternoon. As I stood in line at the customer service counter, I recognized the guy in front of me as the one who’d been awarded the job for thefestival grounds. He wasn’t from Mustang Mountain, but Levi said he’d been beating out the locals on more and more jobs because he didn’t mind cutting corners. Shit like that always blew back on a guy.
When it was his turn, he set his elbows on the counter and leaned forward. “Give me a yard of fill dirt. I need it delivered to that house over on Elk Trail that the Winslow girl has listed.”
The guy at the corner arched a brow. “Are you re-landscaping?”
“Something like that. The foundation’s sinking, and the whole yard needs to be regraded. I’m helping her save big and avoid a pricey foundation repair.” He smiled as he said it. Might have been genuine, but to me he looked like a cat who’d just swallowed a big, fat canary.
I couldn’t keep my mouth shut. “You know, if you’ve got cracks in the foundation, you’re probably better off just doing the repair now. You’ll save yourself a headache in the long run when the house settles more.”
