She nodded and gulped water.
“You looked ready to hump the sink.”
She snorted and choked on her water. She had been thinking about humping, but not the damn sink. He leaned his ass against the vanity and crossed his arms while waiting for her to finish choke-laughing.
After taking a deep breath, she said, “My mind wandered, but rest assured, while it’s been a while since I’ve hooked up with someone, your bathroom fixtures are safe.”
Color rose in his cheeks. He probably didn’t think she’d answer so honestly, but she was too old to put up any kind of pretense. By the time she’d reached thirty, she’d stopped playing games. Once she’d crossed the line over forty, she’d decided to own it. She was a healthy woman who enjoyed sex. She had no reason to deny it.
Of course, she also had no desire to admit to Trevor that it had been him she was thinking about.
“Anyway,” she continued, “the pile upstairs is gone. Is there something here I can help with?” She took a moment now to actually look at the progress he’d made. In the hour that she’d been hauling garbage, he’d managed to get walls back in place. “Wow.”
“What?”
“You really are fast. When I saw this room with no walls, I thought for sure you’d be in here for days getting drywall up.”
The corners of his mouth lifted. “There’s still a long way to go, but getting the walls back up is a good feeling. Progress in a positive direction.”
Callie nodded. Progress in a positive direction. She needed to find some of that for herself. Which started with her finding some other guy to ogle.
Putting the cap back on her bottle, she said, “If you don’t need me, I’m going home. I need a shower and ibuprofen.”
Trevor’s face sobered and he reached out. “Did you hurt yourself?”
“No. I’m fine. Muscles will be sore tomorrow, that’s all.”
“You sure?”
“Yep. And if the ibuprofen doesn’t work, I’ll just have to call Sven the Swedish masseur to come take care of me.” She winked and backed out of the room.
“Sven, huh?”
“Leave my fantasies to me.”
…
Trevor watched Callie sashay out of the small bathroom, covered in dust and with dirt smeared on her cheek. Her ponytail flopped crookedly, but she was cute. When she’d offered help, he’d imagined her hightailing it back to her place, but she’d stuck it out. He tossed his empty water bottle on the pile of trash.
He didn’t know what was going on between them, but it was making him uncomfortable. In more ways than one. He shifted his dick in his jeans. Callie had always been Lisa’s hot friend. Not that Lisa wasn’t beautiful. But Callie was alluring in an untouchable way.
And he hadn’t been imagining her staring at him tonight. Even if she was horny, she’d never once looked at him like that. He should’ve kept his mouth shut instead of egging her on, but he liked her straightforward attitude. About everything. She seemed much less untouchable these days.
It was getting late, and if he wanted to make sure the kids finished their homework, he needed to get home. He flicked off the light and went upstairs to see if Callie had moved everything. The pile was gone, so the room was ready for new drywall. Then he could bring in his taper by the end of the week.
He looked down the dark hall. The door to Lisa’s bedroom remained closed. He knew he had to clean it out, get rid of all her things, but he hadn’t been able to make himself do it. Hannah had asked Diane to leave it, so Lisa’s mother had only taken a few items and left the rest. No one had been in the room since. The kids might want something, and he had no idea what should be saved. They couldn’t leave it as a shrine. Fuck. There was just too much.
He left the house and hit a drive-through on the way to his house. When he walked through the door, the living room was dark and silent. So much like it always was when he came home. But now it was supposed to be different. The kids were here, living with him. Shouldn’t there be some sign of them?
He tossed his keys and food on the table and trudged up the stairs. Both of the kids had their bedroom doors closed. Not much of a family vibe they had going on. He knocked on Hannah’s door and waited for her to acknowledge him. He didn’t want to see anything he shouldn’t.
“What’s up, Dad?”
“You guys eat dinner?”
“Yep. Sloppy joe and fries. There might be some left on the stove. But I’m not sure.”
“That’s okay. I’m good.” He paused, trying to think of what else to say. “How was school?”
“Okay.”
“Homework?”
“Done.”
He looked at her for a minute before realizing he had nothing else. He had no idea how to engage his daughter in conversation. “I was just at the house. I should have the bathrooms up and running by the end of the week. But, uh, we need to sort out your mom’s stuff.”
Hannah’s head snapped up.
“We need to clean out her bedroom. Decide what to keep and what to donate.”
She nodded slowly.
“Do you want to be there? Or should I try to do it before you move back in?”
“I think I want to help.”
“Okay.” He tapped the doorframe. “Don’t stay up too late.”
“I won’t. Thanks, Dad.”
He nodded, but he had no clue what she was thanking him for. He went to Evan’s room, knocked, and swung the door open. “Hey, man, homework finished?”
“Yeah.”
Trevor entered the room and leaned against the desk. “I’ve been thinking about what you said about college.”
Evan looked at him with guarded eyes. “Yeah?”
“What do you think about working with me for the summer?”
“For real?”
“I think having experience of a real job might help you decide if that’s what you want.”
“What about football?”
“What about it?”
“I’ll have camp.”
“We’ll work around it.”
Evan nodded.
“You don’t have to, you know. If you’d prefer to get a job doing something else, that’s fine, too.”
“No. Working with you sounds cool. Remember when we built the deck on the back of the house?”
Trevor smiled. Of course he remembered. Evan had been getting into trouble at school, and Lisa told Trevor to come up with a way to talk to him. They’d talked while putting a deck on the back of his house.
“That was fun,” Evan said.
“You acted like it was torture.”
Evan chuckled. “That’s because I was pissed off. But the actual building? I liked that a lot.”
“Why didn’t you ever tell me? I would’ve let you work with me more.”
Evan shrugged.
Trevor hated that teenage shrug. It said nothing and so much all at the same time. He’d prefer the actual words. Instead of pushing, he said, “We’ll go this weekend and get you some boots and work jeans.”
“Do I get my own tools, too?”
“We’ll get you started. Then see how it goes.”
“Cool.”
“See you in the morning.”
“’Night.”
Trevor pushed back toward his room. Maybe Callie was onto something. He’d been looking for a way to connect with Evan for a long time. It had never occurred to him that his son might like to build as much as he did. As he looked back down the dark hallway, he realized that she’d been right about something else, too. He had been immersing himself in work as a means of avoidance.
It wasn’t that he didn’t want to spend time with the kids. He loved them more than anything. Work was how he’d always taken care of them. He provided financially, and Lisa had done everything else. Yeah, it was unfair and he definitely recognized that now. But there was no turning back.
It was time to rebuild his family in a new way, a way that would work for all of them. As he stripped off h
is dusty, sweaty clothes, he wondered how Callie fit into the dynamics of the new family.
Chapter Five
Callie spent the next few nights crashing Trevor’s work party. She had no idea what she was doing since she’d never worked construction, but deep down, she knew what he was doing wasn’t healthy. She at least had seen the kids stop by and hang out for a while. But their lives shouldn’t consist of passing moments.
How could Trevor not see how important it was to spend time with the kids without it being work? Life was too short.
She texted Hannah and Evan and told them to come to the house tonight because they were going to do something fun. Now she just needed to convince Trevor to join them.
Her greatest fear was that he’d continue to choose work over family time.
She knocked on the back door even though she knew he wouldn’t answer. He just left the door unlocked for her to come in. She entered the kitchen and stopped. She heard none of the usual racket. Trevor’s truck was out front, so he had to be there. “Trevor?”
“Upstairs,” he called.
She climbed the stairs and realized that Lisa’s bedroom door was open. She didn’t think anyone had stepped foot in there since the funeral. Callie eased into the room.
Trevor sat on the corner of the bed flipping through a book. It took a minute for Callie to recognize it was the scrapbook that Lisa kept of Callie’s work. Lisa had been so proud of her.
“Hey,” she said.
Trevor looked up. “You’re really fucking amazing. I had no idea.”
“Thanks.” She glanced around the room. Very little had been moved, but someone had gone through Lisa’s things.
Trevor followed her gaze. “Hannah and Evan took what they wanted. I guess the rest is up to me. I don’t know what to do with it.”
“Would you like me to clear it out?” she offered.
“Damn. I’m sorry. I should’ve asked if you wanted any of her things. I’ve been so busy with trying to fix the bathrooms and keep up with the kids I hadn’t considered. You’re welcome to anything you want, Callie.” He closed the book he held.
Callie nodded, feeling a little overwhelmed by Trevor’s compliment as well as being in her best friend’s space. “I’ll take care of it for you. Do you think her mom might want anything?”
“She took some stuff after the funeral, but I’ll text her and ask.” He stood and tossed the book on the mattress. “Are you sure you’re up for that?”
“Yeah. It needs to be done. Leaving it like this isn’t good for anyone.”
“I know. I’m trying.”
“I know you are. I wasn’t criticizing.” She shook her head. She hadn’t prepared for this. “I came over to tell you to pack up your tools. You’re done for today.”
He cocked an eyebrow.
“The kids are on their way here, and we’re going out.”
He looked down at his dirty work clothes.
“Hannah is bringing you fresh things.”
“There’s no shower. Bathrooms are torn apart.”
“You can use my shower.”
He stared at her.
“They need this, Trevor. Hell, you need this. Take a break. Have fun with us.”
“What kind of fun are you dragging me to?”
“Cosmic bowling.”
“I hate bowling.”
“You don’t hate bowling. You’re just not good at it. It’s one sport where it’s completely acceptable to suck.”
“Sport?”
“I use the term loosely.” She took his hand and felt an odd comfort in the touch. “Come on. How can you refuse crappy pizza and the chance to humiliate me?”
He sighed. “Fine.”
“Yay!” She gave a little jump. She tugged his hand. “Go shower. I’ll bring your clothes as soon as the kids get here.”
She had thought for sure it would be harder to convince him. She’d been ready to pull out every guilt trip she could think of. But he’d relented pretty easily. Now she just had to pray the night would be as much fun as she hoped. “Clean towels are in the cabinet next to the tub,” she called from the top of the stairs.
“Got it,” he answered. Then she heard the back door open.
She turned off the light in Lisa’s room and checked out the bathroom on her way out. The man was a machine. The room was back to looking like an actual room. He had the drywall done and taped. He hadn’t been kidding when he said he wanted the kids to be able to move back soon.
A few minutes later, the front door opened, and Hannah and Evan came in. As soon as she saw them, she was glad that Trevor was pushing so hard to have them back here. She missed them. “Hey, guys. Who’s ready for some fun?”
Evan closed the door. “What are we doing?”
“Ugh. You sound so much like your dad. Trust me.”
“Where is he?” Hannah asked. “I have his clothes.” She lifted a plastic bag.
“He’s showering at my place. I’ll take them over and tell him to hurry.” Callie took the bag.
Evan plopped on the couch and stared at his phone. Hannah went to the bathroom to see the progress. “It’s almost done,” she said.
“Yep. Your dad is fast. I’ll be back in a minute.” She moved through the house and out the back door. In her house, as she neared her bathroom, the water shut off.
Callie froze. She had a sudden image of Trevor buck naked and dripping wet. She shook her head. Her thoughts were so many levels of inappropriate. She needed to get it under control. She tapped on the door.
It swung open, and Trevor stood in front of her with a towel wrapped around his waist.
She smiled. “We need to stop meeting like this.” She thrust the bag at him. “Hurry up. We’re all ready to go.”
“Bossy.”
“You know it.” Then she spun and went back to the kids before her mind had the chance to do any more indecent wandering.
…
Trevor had no idea why he’d let Callie talk him into this. He had a lot of work to do. And a night at a bowling alley where there would surely be a group getting drunk was not how he wanted to spend time.
But there he was, driving all of them to the bowling alley in Evan’s beat-up old car that Trevor had just bought. Although they would all fit in the truck, he had it filled with tools and didn’t want to take it where someone might be tempted to break into it. The directions Callie had given him put them driving a lot farther than necessary. He could’ve found three closer alleys. But she seemed to have her heart set on this one.
Hannah chatted with Callie about her day at school, and Trevor realized he never got that kind of rundown from her. How does she manage to do that?
He parked the car and checked out the parking lot. The building looked newish. Not quite the dive he’d expected. They all stepped from the car, and Callie stopped in front of him and Evan.
Holding out her hand she said, “Phones.”
“Huh?”
“Give me your phones. We’re spending the night together. No phones.”
“You’re not taking Hannah’s phone,” Evan said.
“Because her nose isn’t constantly in it.”
“Here, Callie,” Hannah said with a bright smile and handed over her phone.
“Suck-up.”
Hannah simply stuck her tongue out at her brother.
Evan gave Callie his phone, and she dropped it in her purse. Then she wiggled her fingers at Trevor.
“I’m not a kid.”
“I know that. But the most important people in your life are right here. Who else might call who is more important?”
She had him there. He slapped his phone in her palm. She gave him a huge smile in return. Her grin was bright and shot straight through him, making him feel light.
“Let’s go.” She spun on her heel and put an arm around Hannah. “We should play girls against guys. I think we can kick their butts.”
Trevor’s long stride easily caught up to them. “Care to place a wager
on that?”
Callie shot him a look from the corner of her eye. “Like what?”
“Losers have to cook dinner for a week,” Hannah announced.
“That’s bogus,” Evan said. “That’s not punishment for you. You cook anyway.”
“Fine, if we win, you guys have to cook dinner. What do you want if you win?”
Callie held up a hand. “Hold on. Are you sure it’s not punishment for us to have to eat food they cook?”
Hannah burst out laughing.
Trevor nudged Callie’s shoulder. “Funny. I’m not totally inept in the kitchen.”
Evan reached the door first and held it open for all of them. “Can I make her do my homework if we win?” he asked as Trevor passed.
“Nope. Nice try, though.”
“You’ll have to do our laundry,” Trevor suggested. “For a month.”
Hannah wrinkled her nose. “Your clothes are gross.”
He lifted a shoulder. “Then I guess you better win.”
His daughter gave him a look that was so much like her mother that he almost tripped on his own feet. Her eyes lit with the idea of taking his challenge.
“You’ll be sorry,” she said.
They got shoes and were assigned two lanes. The room was dark, black lights glowing. Many lanes were filled with families, and the crack of bowling balls against pins filled the air, quickly followed by cheering.
Trevor looked around as Callie led them to their lanes, carrying their shoes. He saw a counter for food but didn’t see any pitchers of beer. Although he’d never been a bowler, he’d been bowling enough in his life that he knew it was one of those activities that drew drinkers. Like any other sport.
They sat on plastic chairs and changed their shoes.
“You guys go pick out your balls. I’ll order pizza,” Callie said.
“I’ll get that,” Trevor said, standing awkwardly in the funny-looking shoes.
“I got it. You set up the computer.” She smiled and pointed at the screen.
The kids took off to go find the right size balls. Trevor entered their names in the computer and tried not to be irritated that Callie didn’t trust him to order pizza. What did she think, that he’d sneak in a beer or two while waiting?
When the computer was ready, he grabbed a ball, and the kids returned. Callie sat on a chair next to him while Hannah and Evan took their first turns.
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