Stupid fucking, Mikey. Way to not keep your cool.
I almost told him that he was the best lay I’ve ever had.
I’ve never been weird about telling someone how good they are, but I’ve also never had the kind of sex I have with Scott. The mind-blowing sort that’s left me knowing he’s so much fucking better than any of the women I’ve been with. Which is a lot.
Although, he deserves to know. He deserves a lot better than he got from that fucking ex of his or his father.
I don’t know why it grates on my nerves the way they’ve treated him, but I guess I’m starting to feel a little protective. He doesn’t understand what an amazing guy he is and how lucky someone would be to have him in their life.
I’m kind of shocked that I’m standing at one corner of Kate’s house with Otis, my buddy from Habitat for Humanity, and rather than being concerned about the mess Kate’s in, all I can think about is Scott.
He didn’t leave my hotel room last night, which gave us the opportunity to make up for lost time—something that was even better than I’d anticipated.
As Otis jots down notes on his clipboard, his mouth twists. His eyes are hidden beneath the bill of the cap he wears, which has his company logo sewed on the front. “Definitely got termites. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. But it’s not as bad as it could be. They’ve pretty much ravaged the foundation of this corner of the house. And from what I saw outside, I’m not sure how high they’ve gotten, but you’ll know when you start ripping shit apart. I’ll get back out here with my shit tomorrow and take care of them. Between this and the damage that you showed me earlier from that leaky roof, you’ve got some serious work you’re gonna have to get done.”
“That’ll cost an arm and a leg, probably. Was thinking I might do it myself.”
I keep going back and forth about it, but my job is flexible enough, and at least then I wouldn’t feel like we were being screwed over by guys who could take anything from six months to a year to finish the repairs.
“How long do you think something like this would take me?” I ask him.
He clicks on the button at the end of his retractable pen before tucking it in the pocket of his navy blue button-up. “Eh… depending on the extent of the damage, maybe three months.”
“Damn.”
“What? You’re not excited about sticking around in Atlanta for a bit? Come on. It’ll be fun. We can meet up and have some drinks like the good old days.”
“I might take you up on that.”
“And if you need any help with this, you know how to reach me. I just wish I’d been in town last week when this was all going down. I could have saved you and your sister a lot of trouble.”
“My sister was a little over-excited about this place. She has a lot going on in her life, and this was her first time buying, so she kind of made a few mistakes because she was blinded by some of the better aspects of the property. And I was so busy trying to finish up this big project at work that I didn’t do what I needed to help out, so I guess this is what I get.”
“Mikey, it’s a nice place. Once you repair the damage, you’ll both feel like she made a good investment. But you’ve got to throw about ten grand at it, I figure. At least.”
I take a deep breath, reminding myself that it’ll be worth it once Kate is moved in and in the house of her dreams.
“Cost four times that if you have contractors come out here.”
“Don’t I know it.”
“I don’t envy the workload you’ve got ahead of you, but if you need help, even just in the beginning with brainstorming how to figure this mess out, I can help you out. And if I don’t know the answer, you know I’ve got friends in low places who I can ask.”
“Thanks, Otis.”
“No problem. Anything for you, Mikey.”
I keep reminding myself this could be worse, but that doesn’t make me feel much better.
Still, I know what I have to do. I can work out a deal with some people I know for supplies they get from wholesalers. And if Scott’s willing to chip in with the help, we might actually be able to take this on ourselves with a modest amount of assistance from some of my old friends in town.
Despite how frustrating this all is, I keep reminding myself that the sooner I can get this done, the sooner Kate and Roger can get out of our parents’ house and spend some time in their own place, a place where they can start their lives together.
I run some ideas past Otis about executing the project, and he offers me some suggestions. “It’ll be just like the good old days,” he says, slapping my arm. I can tell he’s trying to ease my tension about the whole thing, but that won’t be happening. Not today.
When we finish up, I drive my rental car back to my hotel and call Scott because I’m not going to promise Kate anything unless I can get some of these details in place.
I don’t doubt Scott wants to help, but I want to make sure I can make it fair for him. I don’t need to monopolize his time when he has his own work he has to take care of.
