He raised an eyebrow. “Let me guess. Instead people talked about the scandalous things their neighbors were doing.”
“Something like that.”
She tapped on a waist-level brick with a drawing of a bird on it.
“Yours?”
“It’s actually the demo for anyone who wants to understand how the system works.”
She pulled out the brick, revealing an open cavity behind with a slender book tucked in place. After pulling it out, she fanned the pages, showing him they were blank.
“We know which slots are currently vacant, but have no idea which ones belong to which person. That’s why we have them put a mark on the brick so they can identify it later. A lot of people come in every session and add to their diaries. A few people have been doing it for years.”
“What if someone doesn’t come back to take their diary?”
She shrugged. “I always thought they would stay here forever but if the wall has to come down, that’s not an option.” She paused. “I guess we’ll find out when some of the diaries aren’t claimed.”
“You’re going to have people come and get their diaries before the work begins?”
She nodded. “We’re going to give them a couple of days to do that because when the bricks are taken off, the diaries will be exposed.” She looked at him. “You sure you can’t put the supports in without taking down the bricks? Isn’t there a way to add something on the outside? Like vertical beams we strap on. We could wrap the wall or, you know, something.”
One eyebrow rose. “You’re telling me how to do my job?”
“No, but I’m suggesting there could be options.”
He nodded slowly. “With your vast construction experience. Makes sense. What did you have in mind?”
She stared at him. “I don’t have a plan,” she began, only to pause.
“Any thoughts of the load those beams could handle? Steel is probably our best bet, but it’s going to look like crap.”
“But you could do it?”
He looked at her. “No.”
“Then what was your point?”
“I don’t tell you what books to keep in inventory and you don’t tell me how to do my job.”
She bristled slightly. “I’m in charge here.”
“Not of my project. You hired me for a reason, Jax. I’m good at what I do. When I say something has to be done a certain way, it’s because that’s the right way to get the job finished. I don’t cut corners. I do quality work. You’re going to have to trust me on that. If you can’t, then I’m not the guy to be working on your store.”
His gaze was steady. She tried to stare him down but he didn’t blink. In the end, she was the one who looked away.
“So you’re saying we have to take down the bricks,” she said, conceding the point.
“I am. It’s necessary so we can get to the wall behind the PO Boxes. The house wasn’t designed to carry that much weight. You’re lucky there haven’t been major structural issues. We’re not like San Francisco, but we do get earthquakes. As it is now, anything over a three-point-five is going to send that wall tumbling and it’ll bring the roof with it.”
She shivered. “There’s a happy thought. Okay, you’re the expert. The wall comes down. I just wish we didn’t have to deal with it all.”
“With two shifts of my team working, we should be able to do it all in less than two weeks. It’ll be the most disruptive part of the job, but it will be over quickly.”
“So like a shot of Novocain at the dentist?” she teased.
His smile was slow and surprisingly sexy. “Something like that.”
A woman in her early thirties walked by. As she passed them, she looked directly at the contractor. “Hello, Marcus.”
