“What about you? You’re not going to laze around all day, are you?
“Of course not. I’m going to have a few more muffins first.” I snagged another one, wondering if Lila had made them. If they were, I would actually have a third, even though I shouldn’t. “Are these cinnamon and sugar?”
“Yep, from Chapter & Crumb. Lila and Sage brought them over this morning. Aren’t they delicious?”
The idea that Lila had been so close while I’d been just asleep upstairs made my dick half-hard just thinking about it. I stuffed another bite of muffin in my mouth and tried to refocus.
“Yeah,” I cleared my throat. “They’re really good. I’ll be going over to the Willets’ place. They’re having me do a bathroom remodel. I’m going to quote it today.”
There was no reason to be idle while I was here, whether it was for six months or a couple of years. I might be able to establish an office for Holt Construction here, while also maintaining the operation in Idaho with Jett’s help.
“That sounds good, East. I’m glad you’re getting out there and staying busy. You always do your best when you’re occupied.” She gave me a gentle smile.
That was the truth. Not having a project in sight wasn’t good for me. I’d stew or spin in my thoughts when I wasn’t working. Even as a kid, I had been that way. Levi and Maggie had recognized that in me right away. I paused at the door with a water bottle in hand as Chloe opened the door.
“Big brother, you off for the day?” she asked, her braid swinging as she gave me a hug.
“Yep. Gotta make that money, Lo.” I brushed a kiss over her hair and gave her a tiny shove over to the table. “Watch out for those muffins. They’re dangerous.”
“Yeah, yeah. I’ll bet you already had your share.” She scoffed.
She was still a petite thing, but I could see hints of Maggie in the shape of her face and the blue of her eyes. Chloe was a force to be reckoned with, and anyone who crossed her didn’t know what they were in for.
“Maybe so,” I agreed.
She fussed around Maggie for a while before gathering everything they needed for the day. She didn’t need my help, but I still went ahead and walked them out to Chloe’s SUV, settled the crutches into the back, then climbed into my truck, dialed Jett on speaker, and headed toward the Willets.
“Hey boss, what’s cooking?” Jett answered easily after just two rings, the sound of buzz saws and chatter loud in the background.
As I drove along the winding backcountry roads, we exchanged pleasantries and discussed basic business. Jett had been working for me for over four years, and we madea great team. He balanced me out perfectly. He had a remarkable head for business, but he was also a genius with people. Better yet, he was a structural engineer. He could have worked with any reputable firm, but he enjoyed the freedom of working for me. I even offered him a partnership in the company, but he wouldn’t take it. Instead, Jett worked for a generous salary that he had certainly earned, along with a well-deserved bonus.
“How’s the family doing, then?” he finally asked.
We’d been talking the entire drive, and now I’d parked outside the small craftsman bungalow that belonged to Jack Willets and his wife, Marie, before Jett managed to pivot the conversation to the personal side of things.
“Getting better every day, man. Maggie is tough. She’s been a rockstar in therapy. I think,” I hesitated a little, trying to square my thoughts.
“You’ll be staying?” he filled in the blank for my pause. “Look, man. It’s cool. We can make this work. Family comes first. This project is almost finished. It’s looking great. You’ll need to make one more trip up here, maybe two, before it’s finalized. After that … we can reassess. We have a few bids to consider. We could try to pick things up there.”
“I was thinking we could branch out a little. Do projects in both places?” I grabbed the notepad from the door panel. “If you were okay continuing to manage the Idaho side of things?”
“Really? I think that’d be great. You’d be down for that?” I could tell he was already excited by the prospect. “We could make it work.” Then he got serious. “Thatwould mean video calls East. I know you hate it, but you’re going to have to get used to it.”
“Fine,” I grumbled. “I’ll work on it. Listen. I’m going to bid on a kitchen remodel right now. Go work on your shit. I’ve got to make money so I can pay your lazy ass,” I grumbled, but I was thrilled. I could make this work if Jett was on board.
He laughed. “Sure. Sure. I’ll get right on that, and I’ll tell the guys you said hey.”
I clicked off the line feeling better than I had before we’d talked. Things were in a good place. Jett would handle things there, and yeah, there’d be some growing pains. He’d have to pick up all of the slack in Idaho, but if he could, maybe we’d both benefit in the long term if things really picked up here, too. I’d really need to look at his salary and increase it to reflect the different dynamic we’d have. And video calls. I fucking hated them, but if I had to … yeah. I’d make it work.
Settling my brain to the job ahead, I headed up to the door.
19
Lila
The store was packed tighter than usual for a Thursday, the line curling past the pastry case and spilling into the book stacks. I should have been laser-focused on the register, on how the pastries needed to be refilled, and on setting up a new display for my crime fiction section, but my mind had a bad habit of wandering.
I was still keyed up about who could be out to hurt me. It was making me paranoid in the worst ways. I hadn’t been able to sleep at my place yet, and instead had been staying at Sage’s, taking advantage of her hospitality and apparently the fact that her ficus was lonely.
