Her chest expanded, and she smiled at him, even though his eyes were already locked back onto his computer screen. “See you soon.” She was amazed at how those three words buoyed her spirits and caused her heartbeat to quicken.I could get used to this.
Tessa and Paul had talked nonstop all through dinner and not just about his travels, which fascinated her. Paul was curious about Tessa’s life, which she argued was much less interesting than his, but he didn’t agree. He said Tessa’s life in Mystic Water was charming, and she made him tempted to slow down and rethink having a life that offered comfort in more ways than just having a home. In the moment, she hadn’t been brave enough to ask him if he was considering staying in Mystic Water on a more permanent basis, but the dream fluttered around in her heart.
Now Tessa rubbed her belly and slumped against the passenger seat as Paul parked alongside the curb in front of Honeysuckle Hollow. “Lady and the Tramp has done me in. I can’t believe I ate two helpings.”
Paul unbuckled his seat belt. “I counted three. The fifth piece of bread was especially risky, but you finished it like a champ.”
Tessa moaned. “I may not be able to move. Think I can hammer in nails from here?”
“Not unless you have extendable arms.”
Tessa unhooked her seat belt and opened her door. She held her arms straight out in front of her. “Arms extend!”
Paul’s laughter billowed over the hood and slipped into her heart. Tessa closed her eyes and smiled. He walked around to her side of the car. “I sense a malfunction.” Then he grabbed her hands and pulled her out. “Next time, should I limit how many times you fill your plate?”
Tessa narrowed her eyes. “Don’t you dare.”
Because the front porch had been destroyed by the bulldozer, Charlie had created a ramp from the yard to the front door using a large sheet of plywood. The difference the cleaners made was immediately noticeable. Tessa’s shoes no longer left dust tracks on the floor. Gone were the lacy cobwebs from the corners and the stairwell. The dank smell of mildew had faded, leaving behind a faint scent of lemon cleaner. Tessa also smelled the blooming honeysuckle in the backyard.
Paul stepped up beside her and nodded. “Definitely an improvement. One step closer to seeing how great this house is going to shine when we’re all done here.”
Tessa startled beside him; her eyes widened.We’re? He just lumped us together. In a sentence.
Paul walked toward the stack of plywood left behind by Charlie. He opened a box of screws and tested the weight of the power drill in his hand. “I say we get started, or we’re going to lose the light.”
We’re, Tessa thought again.Twice. Me and him. Together.
“Hey, Tess, am I losing you to a food coma?”
Tessa blinked. “Huh?”
“You look dazed.”
She tucked her hair behind her ears and felt a flutter in her stomach. “No, I’m good.”I’m just thinking about you and me being a we.“Let’s get started.”
Paul and Tessa walked through the house, taking inventory of which windows needed to be boarded up, but it was clear when they finished that Charlie had already done most of the work. She had measured the windows and cut the plywood panels to fit.
“Charlie is your contractor, right?” Paul asked as he squeezed the trigger on the drill and it whirred.
Tessa nodded. “She apprenticed under a local contractor who does great work. He says she’s good people, and I trust his judgment.”
“Charlie’s a girl?” Paul said.
Tessa huffed. “You say that like girls can’t be contractors.”
Paul whirred the drill. “I’m surprised, that’s all.”
“I’m only giving you a hard time because when I first met her, I thought she was the maid service.”
Paul chuckled. “She knows what’s she’s doing. She’s given us corrosion-resistant screws that are longer than two inches, which means they’ll hold fast into the framing, and they’ll be easier to remove than nails. She also picked galvanized panhead screws because of their flat-bottomed heads that won’t sink into the plywood and weaken it.”
“I have no idea what any of that means.”
Paul held out the drill. “Do you know how to use this?”
“Sure.” It couldn’t be that difficult, could it? She squeezed the trigger and winced.
“I’m going to regret this, aren’t I?”
