Caleb snorted. “That’s his pathetic puppy face. He already ate, but sure.”
Mia laughed and got the cheese out of the fridge, tearing off a small piece, the cool air brushing her arm, and tossed it to Ranger. He caught it midair.
“Show-off,” she muttered, grinning.
She poured a cup of coffee for herself and sat next to her father.
“So, here’s the layout and preliminary figures for the build. Unless you make a lot of changes, I don’t see it going over that price. I have two guys who can help me start framing next week.”
Mia leaned over to look and congratulated herself for not sniffing him. He had a warm, woodsy scent that made her want to lean closer, which was ridiculous.
“This looks good,” she said, clearing her throat. “Detailed.”
“Barns can get tricky if you don’t reinforce the right areas. Especially here in Florida.”
“It looks solid,” said her dad. “Is there any chance you could use an extra pair of hands? I don’t know if you’ve met Roy Spencer. He does a lot of work around here. He’s anxious to learn about building a barn.”
Mia watched Caleb swallow hard. His eyes flicked to her for half a second, like he was looking for her approval. She kept her face neutral.
After a long moment, he finally said, “That’ll be okay. I can start him off sanding joists and hauling materials.” Mia hoped that was Caleb’s polite way of saying Roy wouldn’t touch anything that could cause the barn to fall over. Good.
“Thank you,” her dad said, his shoulders relaxing.
Caleb stood. The chair legs made a soft scraping sound against the floor. “Well, I’d better get going. It looks like you have a full day.”
“Full isn’t how I would describe it. Delivery was delayed again, staff dropping like flies, and my mixer finally gave up. Other than that, things are peachy.”
“Humph.” Caleb rolled up the plans, thoughtful. “If you’re short-staffed, I might know someone.”
Mia paused. “Who?”
“A server at the Rusty Anchor, Norah. She works fast and doesn’t mind long hours. The owner said she’s looking for extra work.”
“The Rusty Anchor? Oh, my goodness. Is that place still around?”
Caleb laughed. “Yeah. I was there the other night. Food is good, place is a little run-down, but it seems to be popular. Want me to ask her?”
Mia took a deep breath and nodded slowly. “Yes, if she’s available for Saturday night, I could use the help.”
“I’ll talk to her tonight.”
“Thank you.”
Caleb stepped outside. Ranger stood, tail wagging at Mia like she was his new favorite person.
“Traitor,” Caleb muttered, nudging him toward his truck. Ranger gave her one long-lasting look, probably hoping for more cheese, before he turned and trotted off.
“See,” her dad said, coming up behind her, giving her shoulder a light squeeze. “Things have a way of working out.”
Mia wasn’t sure that Roy wouldn’t create problems with his inexperience, but she said nothing. Sometimes things were out of your hands and you just had to go with the flow.
Caleb opened the truck door,and Ranger jumped in, but his thoughts were scattered. He should’ve been thinking about lumber costs, framing schedules, the weather—anything else. Instead, all he could picture was Roy Spencer’s face and attitude the day he came out here.
The guy wasn’t happy installing the pavers and didn’t mind hiding it. Muttered about how pointless the project was. And when Mia’s name came up, Roy’s whole attitude soured. Caleb didn’t need a primer to read people. Roy was annoyed and resentful. Toward her.
Before he met Roy, he wondered if he was more than hired help. Perhaps a husband or boyfriend she kept private.
But today, after Mr. Whitmore mentioned Roy helping with the barn, he caught a flicker of annoyance on her face.
