McCormick's Creek Sweet Romance

by Jen Peters

  “Uh, hang on a sec.” Justin dusted his hands across his jeans. “If you’re not doing anything, Mom makes an awesome Sunday dinner after church. Why don’t you join us?”

  She stilled. A family dinner, with some sort of strange thing going on between her and Justin? Plus a pile of strangers all related to each other. No thanks.

  He must have seen her answer in her face. “Come on, it’ll be fun,” he pled. “You already know Mom and Robin.”

  This was true—she knew them and liked them. But who else would be there? In her experience, family gatherings were not a pleasant thing. And how stilted would it be between her and Justin? Surely he had felt it too, whatever it was.

  No way. She needed to keep things to a working relationship.

  “Sure, sounds good,” was what came out of her mouth.

  Chapter 7

  Justin changed out of his church clothes and drove to Mrs. Vanderhoof’s. Cat opened the door before he could knock.

  “Does this look okay?” she asked quickly. “Is it too much?”

  She was beautiful, her jeans dressed up by a peach colored sweater, her hair down in honeyed waves, with tiny gold earrings adding a sparkle. “It’s perfect,” he said. “You’re perfect. Just be yourself. It’s only family.”

  She let out a breath and nodded. “Right. Only family.” Then her breath sucked in again and her eyes widened. “I don’t know how to do family. My family doesn’t know how to do family.”

  He knew her dad wasn’t around, but she did have a mom and at least one brother. How could her family not “do family?”

  It didn’t matter. Justin put his hands on her shoulders and squeezed. “It’s okay, Cat. This is an easy-going, no-pressure family, even for Sunday dinners. Mom, Robin, and me, and now you. And maybe my Aunt Carol. It’s going to be fine.”

  He watched her begin to relax on the drive over, her mouth softening, her shoulders relaxing a bit. They passed a half-finished house on the way—Justin had done the wiring the year before—and Cat studied it until it was far behind them. Then she turned back around and started fidgeting again.

  He had to put her at ease. “So where’s Bella? You could have brought her.”

  She shook her head. “If I’m nervous, it makes her worry about me. I didn’t know how your family’s animals were, but she’s fine on her own. I gave her another tennis ball and a new chew toy, so she’ll be happy for a few hours.”

  Justin smiled. “Pip doesn’t like Mom’s cat, yaps at him for hours on end, so he got left home too. But I should warn you that my sister tends to collect stray animals, so you never know what you’ll find.”

  They pulled in at his mother’s ranch house, the home he had grown up in. Cat took a deep breath, ran her hands down her sweater, and got out before he could get around to open the door. He steadied her with a hand on her arm, but he felt her relax as they greeted Robin and a new dog.

  The roast was just coming out of the oven. Justin’s mom put her potholders down and enveloped Cat in a warm hug. Cat might not have had a great family, but Justin sure liked that she fit into his.

  “What about me?” His mother slapped his shoulder and pulled him in, but his mouth was watering at the rich aroma, and he couldn’t suppress a hungry moan.

  “All you come for is the food.” his mother teased.

  “You got that right, Mom,” he chuckled. “Why should I suffer through my own cooking when yours is so good?” He put mashed potatoes and green beans on the table, then fidgeted while Cat helped Robin finish a salad.

  Finally they sat down, joining hands to say grace. Cat looked at him, unsure. She took his hand with a feather touch, sending a shiver through him, but pulled away as soon as his mother said, “Amen.”

  He wondered if his hands were sweaty. Covered in cooties, Robin would say. Or maybe Cat just didn’t like touching him? He sent a puzzled glance her way, but she was focused on her food. All he could do was shake off the lingering feel of her touch and dig in too.

  “Justin, you can slow down and share some conversation,” his mother admonished. “The food’s not going anywhere.”

  Oh, right. He swallowed and took a breath. Manners. Conversation.

  Cat met his eyes across the corner of the table and crooked a smile.

  They chatted about the neighbors, Mr. McCormick’s plans for the mansion, and Robin’s latest stray.

  In a lull, Cat said, “You know that huge, half-done house we passed on the way? What’s going on with it?”

  Justin shrugged. “Don’t know if it will ever get finished. The guy lost his business and let everything go, including his dream home.”

  “How sad,” Cat said.

  “Yeah, it was. But I think he’s doing okay now, and that’s how I got my truck.”

  “Huh?”

  Robin grinned. “You didn’t think he could afford a fancy rig like that, do you?”

  “Pipe down, squirt,” Justin said. Then he explained, “I finished all the wiring in the house just before the guy declared bankruptcy. He didn’t want to just give the truck back to the bank and leave me hanging, so he signed it over to me in lieu of payment—all above board—and let me take over the last year of payments.”

  “I did wonder,” Cat said. “A late model truck didn’t really fit with your need for a lot of work hours.”

  To be honest, he had thought about selling the truck and putting it toward the restaurant, but then the mansion job had come up. And it would have cost him a chunk of the truck’s value to replace it with something reliable anyway.

  But his mother’s ears had perked up. “Why do you need more hours, Justin? Are you having trouble making the payments?”

  Dang, he hadn’t planned on this coming up. “Sure, I’m working plenty, Mom. Cat sees to that, don’t you, Cat?”

  “All the hours you want, Justin,” she said sweetly. Almost too sweetly. It made him wonder just what was going through that sharp mind of hers.

  His mother wasn’t letting go though. She turned to Cat. “Mr. Blake is making the construction payments on time, isn’t he? And the project is running on schedule?”

  Cat glanced at Justin and shrugged. “We’ve had a few glitches, but yes, we’re pretty much on track. And the next draw isn’t due until the end of the month. Except for Justin, that is. He’ll get an extra payment when the electrical is done.”

  “And when will that be?” she pressed.

  “Mom, I’m fine,” Justin protested. “It’s all working just like it should, don’t worry.”

  She gave an unladylike snort. “Mothers always worry. It’s part of our DNA. But if you’re short or you need help with the truck payment, I’m sure the restaurant can help out, right?”

  Justin’s face froze. She could not spend more from the restaurant, not until he had things squared away. If she really dug into the bookkeeping, she’d find out she’d been betrayed. But how long could he keep things from her?

  Robin seemed to sense his distress and came to the rescue. “I’ve got a date Friday,” she said.

  His head whipped around. “You what?” She hadn’t had a date since she had come home from college.

  Cat snickered. “You should see your face.” She leaned forward toward Robin and lowered her voice. “We girls need to stick together against big brothers. But since you announced it here, you do need to tell all.”

  Robin got a dreamy look on her face. “He’s funny and smart and has the most beautiful black eyes and cocoa skin.”

  Justin rubbed his own eyes. He was used to thinking of her as sixteen years old, her age when he’d left home. He had to remind himself that she’d spent four years at college and surely went on dates then. But it was different when it was in front of his face. “Who is it? I know most of the guys around here.”

  Robin smiled. “Oh, I don’t think you know him. His name’s Dwayne Cole.”

  He pursed his lips—she was sure being stingy with the details. “Where are you going? Is he going to be respectful?”<
br />
  “Very respectful.”

  Justin ran his hands through his hair and growled. “Robin! Look, you have to be careful. You can’t trust just anyone, and you don’t know this guy.”

  Robin shot to her feet and leaned over him. “I’ve spent a lot of years on my own, and I can take care of myself, big brother.” She was poking her finger into his chest by then. “I’ve. Grown. Up.”

  On the other side of him, Cat was grinning. His mother was stifling laughter. Justin groaned again, silently this time.

  Then Robin backed off. “Besides, you’ll be glad to know we’re not going anywhere. We’re going to work on my car.”

  “What? You’re coming here on a first date?” All Justin’s hackles rose again. “Will Mom be here?”

  Robin’s mouth quirked up into a smile, then a full-fledged grin. And then she burst out laughing.

  “What?” he asked. His mother was smiling too, although Cat seemed as puzzled as he was. “What’s so funny?”

  Robin squeezed out the words between guffaws. “Dwayne Cole is 13 years old, and he’s in my Sunday School class. I'm going to teach him how to change the oil.”

  Justin was dumbfounded. He looked between his sister, his mother, and his co-worker, all giggling at his plight.

  He knew women stuck together, but did they all have to gang up on him at once?

  * * *

  Cat couldn’t believe how much she was enjoying herself at a family dinner. No accusations, no cutting remarks, no unwanted guests. Justin’s only touch had been holding her hand during grace, so she wasn’t dealing with unexpected tingles whipping through her, at least after that. It was nice to be able to relax.

  Except she wasn’t really relaxed. Somehow she was aware of where Justin was at all times. Somehow she wanted that electricity again. She’d been attracted to guys before, guys who also had handsome faces, lean bodies, strong muscles. Justin shouldn’t be any different.

  She took a piece of lemon meringue pie from Mrs. Cooper and wandered to the living room. Her ears tuned to Justin’s laugh with his sister. That deep chuckle that made her heart smile like it never had before.

  She paused in the middle of the room. She was falling for him.

  Of all the stupid, ridiculous, twister-by-the-tail things to consider. She wasn’t staying in town, didn’t want to stay in town. A real relationship was the last thing she needed.

  The rest of the family joined her in the living room, and she laughed and gasped in all the right places as they told childhood stories. Justin falling out of the tree in front. Robin trying to mend a bird’s leg. Hunting for just the right Christmas tree up in the National Forest.

  Just as Cat was thinking she’d be able to leave without anything unsettling happening, Justin leaned over and whispered, “Time to show you one of the cool-but-hidden gems around here.”

  She stiffened. Surely Justin couldn’t know how she felt. She didn’t even know how she felt. Maybe she was wrong. She’d been there for a while; another hour certainly wouldn’t hurt.

  Ten minutes later, they were bumping over a dirt road above the town, Justin grinning while Cat braced against the ruts. Pine and fir trees towered over them, except for a small area with brush and berry vines. They finally pulled over, and Cat followed Justin along a deer trail.

  A few minutes later, they reached a dark entrance into the mountain, about Justin’s height and framed by grayed wooden beams. It looked like the movie set of an old western.

  “This is the old gold mine,” Justin said, “the one the original McCormick started.”

  “I thought he found gold in the creek—McCormick’s Creek,” Cat said.

  “I think he did, down closer to where the town is now. But the story goes that he found bigger pieces than normal, so he went looking for the source and started digging.”

  “And struck it rich,” Cat murmured.

  “Yup. A lot of men came, families too, because the mine was more stable than the creek. The town grew up around it, and McCormick made his fortune—as much with selling supplies as with mining itself, I heard.” Justin laid a hand on the weathered timber. “Want to go in?”

  “Into an abandoned mine?”

  He grinned. “Just two steps inside. Not dangerous, but you’ll get a feel for it.”

  Cat took a deep breath. She’d never been a sissy, but also never a fool. Still, Justin knew the place. “Only a step?”

  Justin nodded and held out his hand. She took it gingerly and followed him the promised two steps in. She wasn’t sure whether her racing heart was because of him or the mine.

  It wasn’t particularly dark inside—the daylight at the entrance was strong—but it was cool and dank. Cat looked up at the broad timbers bracing the tunnel and let go of Justin to reach her hand to the damp earth wall. “How many men worked here?”

  “Maybe a hundred.”

  She peered into the deep dark beyond. “How far down does it go?”

  “About a mile, I think. A lot farther than we’re going, anyway.”

  “You got that right, buster!” She could almost see his grin in the dim light.

  They walked around for a bit, feeling the initials carved into the support beams, finding a niche for a lantern. Cat relaxed—there was so much else to think about besides Justin. She could picture men working here, muscles heaving, sweat dripping, shouting to each other.

  “They would have had railway tracks, wouldn’t they?” she mused aloud. “They couldn’t haul everything up by hand.”

  She could just see Justin’s nod. “Over there. The rails themselves were mostly scavenged, at least as far in as people were willing to go. Not much left now.”

  “Except for the history. Was your family here?”

  “A couple of them. One of my great-grandfathers survived a cave-in.”

  Cat shuddered. She knew disasters happened, but now, farther from the entrance and in truly dim light, it took on new meaning. She shivered at the images in her mind. “Come on, let’s go.”

  She turned abruptly and stumbled. Justin caught her by the hand and steadied her, but didn’t let go as they walked toward the light.

  His hand was solid and warm and felt so right in hers. Would it really be so bad to let herself fall for him? To have something more than a workplace friendship?

  They left the dim coolness of the mine, and Cat blinked against the sunlight, but she didn’t pull her hand away until they reached the truck.

  Chapter 8

  Cat pulled into the mansion’s gravel drive early on Wednesday. She’d only gotten snatches of time on that gorgeous fireplace in the last few days, and the detailed carving had a lot of accumulated dust and debris. She could use an extra hour on the painstaking task. She smiled at the thought of Justin arriving, only to find her already hard at work.

  The smile turned into a gasp of dismay as she approached the house. The kitchen door stood ajar, its window smashed. Shards of glass crunched underfoot as she pushed the door open.

  The rest of the empty kitchen looked normal: faded pink stove still looking sad, old pipes poking out here and there. She walked through to what would be the dining room, and her heart sank.

  Her big table saw was still there, along with the sawhorses, but both nail guns were gone. So were her sander, her drill, and her handheld power saw—all the easily portable tools.

  “Blasted pig’s breath!” she growled as she stomped through the rest of the downstairs. The thieves had left the smallest, non-powered things, but every power tool that could be carried was gone, including Justin’s drills.

  Cat rested her head against the wall, clenching and unclenching her fists, trying to calm the anger and frustration raging through her. Then she let loose with a wild scream and kicked the kitchen door jamb. Over and over, until the pain in her toes was enough to penetrate her fury. So much for the protection of thick leather boots, she thought wryly.

  She took a deep breath and sank down to the floor, and that’s where Justin found her te
n minutes later. From there she watched him go through the same process, exploring the house, discovering what was missing, yelling and cursing and finally going outside to kick the tires of his truck. She was glad he wasn’t kicking something in the house—he had the steel-toed boots to do some serious damage.

  She watched him pull out his phone. Calling Javier the Cop, she presumed. She thought idly that they should let Mr. Blake know, but she didn’t want to give him cause to wonder how professional she was if she couldn’t keep the site secure. Then again, word might get back to him through the small town gossip system.

  She flexed her foot, wiggling her sore toes again, then went outside when the police car pulled up.

  By the time they answered Javier’s questions, the policeman’s face had darkened considerably past his normal Hispanic tint. Between the value of the stolen tools and actually breaking into a house, this was a lot more serious than stealing a few boards and a roll of wire from a shed.

  Javier promised to find the culprits, and Cat and Justin trudged back inside.

  “What now?” they asked at the same time, making Cat smile for the first time since she’d opened the kitchen door.

  “Javier’s not going to find them, is he?”

  Justin frowned and shook his head.

  He looked worried, and Cat couldn’t blame him. There was a sense of violation that she hadn’t felt on a job site before. But there wasn’t much else they could do to secure the place— without expensive, complicated high tech options, a determined thief could get in most anywhere.

  She looked around at the unfinished work. “At least the framing crew brings their own nail guns,” she finally said. “They should finish up the third floor today.”

  Justin nodded and picked up a lone screwdriver.

  Cat stuck her hands in her back pockets and sighed. “Okay then, I’ll file an insurance claim, and after the framers get here, we can go shopping.” She looked at Justin. “Does that mean a trip down to Salem or Eugene?”

  “If we want the same quality, yeah. Or we could rent whatever Mac has at the hardware store. They’re not the greatest, but they’d do for a while.”