Thankfully, Hazel pulls up, stopping at least Everett continuing to egg the group on.
“Thank God,” I say softly.
“Great. She’s going to yell at us about something or add another project on.”
“You. She’s going to yell at you.”
“No shit.” Hazel opens the door, and Everett speaks quickly. “Hazel, how are you? Killian and I are done with the kitchen demo and we were just helping ourselves to the extra beer you had in the fridge. Didn’t want it to go bad.”
She laughs softly. “You’re such a humanitarian, Ev. Truly, I don’t know how anyone around here could survive without your generosity and help.”
“You took away my free coffee, so I’ve opted for beer.”
Hazel turns to me. “Thank-you for being here, Killian. I know you’re busy and dealing with so much. I truly appreciate it.”
“Of course,” I say, happy she’s not yelling at me.
“What the fuck?” Everett cuts in. “You’re thankinghim? I’m the one who’s doing all the damn work. Killian just stands there with a hammer wondering if he can bang anything that’s not his publicist.”
“Watch it,” I warn.
“Sorry, bro. She makes me hostile.”
Hazel tilts her head to the side. “I would thank-you, but…you know, I’d rather not.”
Everett scoffs. “Fine. See how you do when I stop coming by.”
“You forget, Everett Finnegan, I’m not afraid to call Violet,” Hazel warns.
This is going to get ugly if I don’t step in. “Is there anything we can do before we take off to help make this next week easier for you? I know it’s hard to live through construction.”
She smiles. “Thank-you, but I don’t know. At this point, I’m just hoping we can get the kitchen done first.”
That was not the original plan. She said she wanted the bathroom done first before she decided she wanted to knock down the wall in the living room to make it an open floor plan.
“Uhh.” Everett lifts his hand like he’s in school. “That’s not what you said.”
“It’s what I meant,” Hazel says as though that should make any sense.
“Right, but that’s not what you said. So, we’ve been working on the bathroom, like you…said.”
Hazel sighs heavily. “Is it done?”
“No, what the fuck do I look like, Bob the Builder? I don’t have a crew. I have Killian, who—” he leans in, talking out of the side of his mouth “—isn’t all that handy, if you know what I mean.”
“I’m happy to leave,” I offer.
“Ignore him,” Hazel says quickly. “I’m pretty sure you know more than him.”
“Considering I helped flip houses in Boston, I would say I do.”
Hazel takes the beer from Everett, downing the rest before handing him the empty bottle. “Can you maybe switch gears to the kitchen? Remove that wall.”
Everett rubs his hand down his face. “We can’t remove the wall, Hazel. Not until we have someone check if it’s loadbearing. Not to mention, I think a water line runs through it. The last thing we want to do is cut that.”
“You think? You don’t know,” she retorts.
Everett looks to me. “Any help?”
