I did a little dance while Lady stared at me. “That’s amazing! Thank you. I have so many great ideas for your new place.”
“Can you come over today and we’ll discuss them? I’ve got some free time.”
It would take me a few hours to draw some sketches and find the right swatches, but it could be done. Never say never to a woman with a future staring at her.
It was now 8:05. “I can be there by eleven. Does that work?”
I could hear the smile in Hadley’s words. “Absolutely. See you then.”
My front porch was a sight.In the daylight you could clearly see the black, charred streak that ran top to bottom beside the door.
Though it was tempting to pull out my golden hammer and smack away at the boards, I decided against it. I would just have to fix it later.
“Come on, Lady,” I called as I walked to my truck.
Lady scurried through the grass, smelling the white clover that grew in big weedy patches. When she lifted her nose from the grass, she stared at the white cat across the street, who blinked lazily at us.
“It’s gonna show its butt,” Lady said. “Just watch, Clem. Wait for it.”
The last thing I was interested in was staring at a cat’s poop hole, but a quick glance never hurt anybody. Sure enough, as soon as my gaze flickered to the window, the cat showed me its backside.
“That’s attractive,” I said sarcastically.
“No, it isn’t.”
I patted my thigh. “Come on, Lady. We’ve got more important things to do than to get all worked up over some feline derriere.”
Lady grudgingly followed me to the truck. I put her inside and climbed in.
It was duly noted that the feline kept her bottom stuck in the window until we passed.
When we reached the barn, Hadley was waiting for us beside her SUV. “Thank you so much for coming on short notice.”
I slid from my truck with Lady in tow and placed her on the ground. “Thank you for calling me. I know I had some competition that I had to beat out for the job.”
Competition as well as an arsonist. Which reminded me—I needed to call Tuney Sluggs about the incident.
But anyway, with me getting the job at Hadley’s, hopefully the tension with Crystal would either disappear or at least lessen. You know, once she figured out that it would be harder to steal my business than she originally thought.
She smiled widely. “Well, you may have had competition, but you were the best woman for the job.”
“Thank you.”
“Come on”—she linked her arm through mine—“I can’t wait to see what you’ve got.”
We strolled into the barn while Lady chased crickets through the grass. “Be careful of snakes,” I called to her.
Lady paused in her overly ambitious chase to cock her head at me.
Hadley shot me a puzzled look. “Do you think she understood what you meant?”
“Oh, I think she did,” I replied, a whimsical smile on my face. “I think so.”
We discussed my ideas for the kitchen, bathroom and the loft master bedroom. Then we moved to the stables, and I took the doorknob from my purse. I could hardly wait to show her my surprise.
“So I picked this up at Architectural Scavengers, hoping that you would offer me this job.”
Hadley eyed the knob curiously. “A doorknob? It’s so pretty.”
