by Leslie North
“Everything’s fine here, really, okay? I don’t want you to worry about a thing. I told you right from the start, the barn is totally my thing. I’m going to take care of everything. You won’t have to lift a finger.”
“Yeah, I remember you saying that, but it’s kind of a lot, don’t you think? For one person to take on?”
“I’m very resourceful. I’m pretty capable, actually.”
“I bet you are,” he said mildly. He had no doubt she was up for cleaning and painting the place on her own, but it needed a hell of a lot more than that. Someone had to deal with everything from holes in the roof to a seriously scratched floor—and problems just about everywhere in between. It didn’t take a genius to see that a job like this one was going to require some contractors. The barn was all well and good for nostalgia’s sake, but that’s not what they were talking about anymore. They were talking about a genuine business, and for that to work they were going to have to comply to certain building safety standards; standards he very much doubted Virginia was going to be able to meet on her own.
“It’s actually going really well,” she insisted, almost like she could read his mind, “this is just the planning stages, that’s all.”
“Right, I gotcha. I’m just going to take a look at the walls outside, if that’s okay with you. Just tinker around with things.”
“Um, sure. Okay. I’m not doing anything out there right now,” she said uncertainty. He picked up a hammer from his toolbox, which she must have liberated from the shed without asking permission, and headed outside. He managed to work for about ten minutes before Virginia poked her head around the open door of the barn, her forehead furrowed in concern.
“What’s going on out here?” she asked lightly. She sounded like she was trying to come off as nonchalant, but it was too easy to see through her act. He was playing with her toy and she wanted to know his intentions.
“I’m just checking out the structure. If I’m being honest, I’ve got a few concerns about the integrity here.”
“Oh, come on, there’s no need for that, is there? I think everything looks just fine.”
“Look, I know you love the place and that’s great, but the people who have their weddings here aren’t going to have that same sentimental attachment. They won’t look at it and fall right in love.”
“It just needs some sprucing up, that’s all! When I decide on some paint, it’s going to look about a thousand times better.”
“Paint is great, but it doesn’t do anything for the structure. A venue needs a good foundation. Gotta have that if people are going to be safe here.”
“You think it needs a new foundation?” she asked, frowning in concern, “That sounds like kind of a big deal.”
“Like I said, it’s important,” he answered, down on his knees now and really exploring the wall in earnest. He could tell by the rising pitch of her voice that she didn’t want him going any further with this. In his humble opinion, though, refusing to acknowledge serious problems was exactly the kind of thinking that got people in legitimate trouble. Slapping a coat of paint on the barn and calling it a day was no better than trying to fix the check engine light on your car by filling it with a tank of gas.
“Okay, Jonah,” she continued with her hands on her hips, “but that sounds expensive. Not only that, but it sounds like it’s going to take a flipping long time.”
“Time doesn’t matter, Virginia. When you need a job done right, you’ve gotta invest the time. I—”
“Look, I’ve already booked the first customer and I really need everything to be ready, so I don’t think this is the right time to get into something like that. Let’s just agree to leave it for now, okay?”
Jonah shook his head and took the hammer to the wall one last time. It was one of those good measure things, just to make a point. It never occurred to him that he would do any real damage, not with just one more swing of a hammer. What happened had him just as astounded as Virginia was.
“Oh my God! Jonah, what did you just do?” she yelled, her hands flying up to her hair.
“That’s a good question,” he answered vaguely. There was really no other answer to give. The chunk of wall caved in on the ground did plenty of talking all on its own.
6
“That’s right, girl. Just one foot in front of the other. We’re going to find a rhythm, you and me. Don’t you worry about a thing.”
Jonah took the great beast by her lead and led her from her stall and out the open barn door. He was grateful to be working in the new barn again after the fiasco from the night before. If there had been any doubt in his mind before as to whether or not he wanted to be involved in the wedding barn renovations, it was long gone now. Paint and fabric were things he didn’t know one thing about. He was good with his hands, that was true enough, but Virginia had made it clear from the start that their two businesses were supposed to remain separate. The idea that they might start blurring the lines already made him more than a little bit nervous. Taking a horse to the ring? That was right up his alley. It might have been work, but it was work he knew and it made him happy to do it.
“Hey, Jonah, what are you up to out here?” Virginia’s voice called in the steadily deepening twilight. He turned to look at her as he shut the gate to the ring, tipping his hat as he did so. The air was sweet and hot, the earth still baking from its prolonged entanglement with the sun, and Jonah thought he caught the scent of Virginia’s lavender perfume mingling with the scent of hay. She had her thumbs hooked through the belt loops of her cream-colored trousers, and she was tapping one foot nervously. Her eyes, overly bright in the dimming light, moved from his face to the horse and then back to his face again. She seemed nervous to Jonah, and his horse was picking up on the same vibe, stamping her hooves restlessly and shaking her head from side to side.
“I’m just working with one of the horses, sugar. Trying to get her acclimated to people. She gets a little skittish from time to time.”
“Huh, I don’t think I’ve ever really thought about that,” she said, wrapping her hair around one of her fingers.
“Thought about what?” he asked.
“I don’t know,” she squirmed, “that horses got nervous just like people do.”
“Sure, horses are pretty amazing creatures. They’re a lot deeper than people give ‘em credit for.”
“That’s awesome. Maybe you can teach me something more about them some time.”
“Maybe I can. Hey, Virginia?” he said, as gently as if she was a spooked horse herself.
“What’s up?” she asked, her voice breaking a little on the end.
“What brought you out here tonight?”
“Oh! Um, I just wanted to ask you something. I kind of need your help.”
“What kind of help?” he asked a little warily. His conversation with Katie the morning after he and Virginia had made their deal popped into his head involuntarily.
While he waited for her to respond, Jonah held fast to the horse’s lead, putting her through her paces. Looking into her soft brown eyes was infinitely easier than looking at Virginia while she tried to figure out what it was she wanted to say.
It had always been like that for him, or at least long enough that it was difficult to remember a time before. Animals were easy: easy to love and easy to work with. It was people who proved to be the real, maddening mystery. It was people who were fickle and quick to anger and so often confusing for a man like Jonah. He was glad to have his horses, his work. Even while he enjoyed having Virginia around, he was glad to have his horse there, too.
“Jeez, you really are good at this, aren’t you?” she asked, changing the subject yet again. It was surprising. He didn’t get the impression that a woman like Virginia spent much time feeling unsure of how to say what she wanted to say. But if this was how she chose to stall, he couldn’t say he minded. He’d be lying if he said he didn’t appreciate being appreciated by a beautiful woman.
“I don’t know,�
�� he finally said, “I guess so. It’s not really all that impressive. Working with horses is just kind of my thing. Always has been.”
“Yeah? I think that’s so cool, though,” she said with a nervous laugh.
“It’s a living, that’s true enough. It’s what I know, anyway. I’m the kind of man who should stick to what he knows, I guess.”
“Really? Are you sure about that?” she asked, the agitated quality of her voice kicking it up a notch, “Because I was kind of thinking something different.”
Jonah stopped what he was doing and turned so that he could fully regard her while she struggled with whatever it was she needed to say. She was perched right on the edge of the fence now, her legs hanging over the side and swinging back and forth like she was a kid. It hit Jonah with a momentary flashback of the way the girls had done back when they were all still children and working with the animals had been about ninety-nine percent about impressing the ladies. Come to think about it, Virginia had been there more than a time or two back then. She was popping up in his memories more and more often these days.
"Virginia?" he said softly, running a hand along the horse's flank soothingly. She was picking up on some of Virginia's anxious energy because the longer the two of them danced around what she wanted, the more antsy the mare became.
“Um, yes? I’m disturbing you. I must be, right? I’m sorry, I’ll go inside and let you do your job. I don’t know what I was thinking. I should know better than to interrupt somebody in the middle of his work.”
“No, that’s all right. I don’t want you to go anywhere. But how’s about you go on and ask me what you want to ask? I think we’ll probably both feel better once you do.”
“It’s just…” she started then stopped, twisting her long locks around one finger and chewing on her lip in a way that made Jonah wonder for a minute what it would taste like against his tongue.
“Just what? Come on, now. We’re husband and wife, remember? Thought you were supposed to talk to each other once you got hitched. Least that’s what I hear. Not speaking from any kind of personal experience, you understand. Don’t want to make matters confused.”
“Jonah Grant, are you making fun of me?” she asked, her eyes lighting up and her nervous hands stopping their twisting. He managed to keep a straight face for a minute, stone cold even, and then his mouth cracked into a small smile.
“Well, I might be. Just a little. Thought it might help lighten the mood. Don’t rightly know, seeing as I don’t do a lot of joking.”
“You don’t say?” she said dryly.
“I do. Anyway, did it help? Think you might go ahead and spill the beans?”
“It’s just that I was wondering if you might be interested in taking on a bigger role in my business.”
"A bigger role?" he asked, that wary, uncomfortable feeling creeping up on him again. This was how it happened. He knew that. He had nothing against Virginia, but he wasn't sure he was ready to be fully roped into whatever new scheme she had cooking.
“Kind of, yeah,” she said uncertainly, “It’s just that I’ve really started getting into the repair end of things and it looks like it’s going to be a bit more complicated than I expected at first. You know, one of those more to it than meets the eye kinds of things.”
“Repairs have a way of doing that. A way of sneaking up on you, I mean.”
"Right! That's exactly what they do!" Virginia exclaimed so loudly that the horse let out a dismayed whinny and tugged a little at her lead. Jonah made a clicking sound to calm her down, and Virginia gave an apologetic wince.
“So then what were you looking for from me?” he prompted. He was going to pull this entire conversation out of her if it was the last thing he did.
“Well, the repairs aren’t just more extensive than I was expecting. They’re going to be a whole lot more costly than I thought at first, too. I was thinking that if you might be willing to help out with some of them, it could take some of the financial pressure off.”
“Right,” he answered speculatively and in a way that he hoped came off as noncommittal.
“I’m not trying to overburden you or anything. I just really underestimated this whole thing. I guess I sound like an idiot, don’t I? Who takes something like this on without doing her research?”
“Come on, now, Virginia. Don’t do that.”
“Do what?” she asked glumly, “Tell the truth?”
“You’re not an idiot. I saw that notebook. You did plenty of research into weddings. You just didn’t research enough building repair. Sounds like things just got away from you, is all.”
“You can say that again,” she said, laughing shakily. In the steadily thickening dark, her eyes peered at Jonah in a way that made him feel like she was looking right through him, and he couldn’t help but shiver. They were beautiful eyes, there was no doubt about it, and there was a feeling he couldn’t quite describe that came from having them zeroed in on him.
"Can I just ask a question, though?" Jonah asked carefully, painfully aware that doing so might explode the whole situation, "With no judgment, you understand."
“Of course you can. Although, just for future reference, prefacing a question that way kind of implies that it’s going to be a rough one.”
“Not meant to be, I promise. I’m only wondering, you’ve been talking to a lot of contractors.”
“I have,” she smiled wanly, “but that’s not a question.”
He couldn’t exactly say she was wrong. It wasn’t a question and what he wanted to ask was something he didn’t figure he could say without coming off like the world’s biggest jackass. Because what he wanted to ask her was how, after talking to at least a half a dozen contractors, she hadn’t gotten this situation figured out yet? That, and whether or not she remembered the conversation they’d had where they had promised they would keep their two businesses totally separate.
“I’m just wondering why none of them panned out?” he finally said, wincing a little at the way the words sounded out loud.
“I know. It sounds pretty pitiful. It’s just that none of them felt right. This project means so much to me—I want anyone I’m working with to understand that, to feel how special it is.” She bit her lip and looked away. “That probably sounds silly to you.”
"No," he answered, coming to a decision right there while he spoke, "and I'd be happy to help. Why don't you show me the books and the list of repairs? We'll start sorting things out from there."
She nodded and waited patiently while Jonah put the horse back in her stall. The two of them headed towards the house, neither one of them able to think of much to say. There was a weight on Jonah's chest now that he'd agreed to help her with her business, but he was surprised to find that it wasn't altogether a bad feeling. It was a long time since he'd felt needed. Hell, he might never have had that particular sensation. He was always so determined to be self-sufficient, to not need anyone, that he didn’t let anyone close enough to lean on him. As it turned out, it wasn't entirely unpleasant. It was an odd, kind of foreign thought, and it followed him into the house and to the back where Virginia's makeshift office was located.
“All right now. Let’s see what we’re working with.”
“Sure,” she answered hesitantly, her eyes wide and refusing to look at him directly, “but you really don’t have to go through everything, you know? I don’t want this to turn into a total time suck for you.”
“Come on, Virginia, it won’t. But I’ve got to see what’s going on here if I’m going to help you, right?”
“Sure, right. I guess.”
She didn't sound at all convinced, though, and after Jonah got a good look at the accounts, he understood why. When he looked back up at her, he couldn't quite keep the surprise out of his face. Virginia was again pointedly looking anywhere but at him, and he had to reach out and touch her hand to get her to give up the ruse.
“Virginia, why didn’t you tell me?” he asked once he was able to get his beari
ngs enough to say something.
“I didn’t see the need,” she faltered, her hand flinching and jumping where he had touched her, “I thought I would still be able to take care of everything the right way.”
“But the split of your grandmother’s money is way off. The distribution isn’t even. No wonder you’re having trouble financing everything. You didn’t give yourself enough.”
"Look, I should have told you, I know that. I just wanted to make sure you had enough to get those studs. Everything you want is riding on that, and I know that. I just figured I would find a way to cut corners so I could make up the difference."
“You didn’t have to do that,” he said uncertainty.
“It’s your dream,” she said simply, shrugging her shoulders, “I wanted you to have that. It’s what I promised at the start of this crazy thing. If you hadn’t agreed to marry me, this money wouldn’t be here for either of us.”
“Shit. I had no idea,” Jonah said, stunned.
“Again, this is where I have to point out what a moron I must seem.”
“No. That’s not what I meant at all. And you’ve got yourself a deal, Virginia.”
“A deal?” she asked, her eyes flying to his face and positively lighting up.
"That's right, a deal. I'll help you out, anyway I can. We're going to take care of this. I want you to have your dream, too."
Virginia grinned and let out a peal of laughter. She closed the small amount of distance between them in a second flat and threw her arms around him, hugging him to herself tightly. After a short hesitation, he swung an arm around her and hugged her back. And for a minute, just for a minute, the urge to kiss her was overwhelming.