She’d swapped out the dilapidated couch and chairs with stylish, comfortable replacements she’d bought at a second-hand store. And, of course, the coffee table and end tables, as well as the kitchen table, she’d designed and built herself. She’d even discovered a forgotten fireplace surround her father had purchased at an auction up in the attic at home. Pictures of family and friends lined the wide mantle framed by its lovely carved oak. Although Kate had always preferred a more contemporary, eclectic style, she couldn’t help thinking that, with its accents of green and rosy-pink, the interior of her cabin now appeared to be rather stylish.
Well – she should really quit procrastinating. She needed to eat before getting back to work. Just as she was about to open the fridge to begin pulling out the makings for a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, she heard the roar of a motor being shifted to idle. Peeking out through the window, she watched as a familiar speedboat eased into the dock.
Making her way through the kitchen door, she rushed outside onto the pier. “Julie! How are you?”
With a huge smile on her face, Julie Thompson jumped up from the boat onto the dock. It was hard to believe that, growing up, Julie, who was three years older than Kate, had actually been her sister’s best friend. Now that Lucy was busy with work and school, as well as a husband and child, Kate and Julie had become incredibly close.
Kate pulled Julie into her arms for a hug. “I didn’t even realize you were home from school, yet.”
“I just got in yesterday. Since Dad was so happy to see me last night, I decided I’d better go out to dinner with him. I know that you’re usually up at the crack of dawn – I didn’t want to wake you up by calling too late. Anyway, I ran into Brian when I was picking up some things I needed from the store this morning. He suggested we drive over and see what you’re up to.”
Kate studied the other occupant of the speedboat uncomfortably. “Hi, Brian.” Apparently, he’d forgotten to mention to Julie the fact that they were no longer a couple.
“Hi, Kate. It’s such a beautiful day today – the lake’s so nice and calm – I thought it’d be fun to go skiing? Maybe we could even go out for something to eat? My treat. You’ve been working a little too hard lately, anyway.”
Julie must’ve finally recognized that something was wrong. Uncomfortably, she shifted her gaze from Kate to Brian.
“I could probably use a break.” Kate hesitated. “But maybe we could just go for a ride around the lake – instead of skiing? Food sounds good, too.” Studying her watch, she turned back to Julie. “Dad put me in charge of the Ivers’ renovation. I promised to have the final numbers ready for him on Monday.”
Julie gaped. “The Ivers’ place?”
“Yeah,” Brian muttered, cutting in. “Jeff Ivers finally decided to renovate. And Daddy gave Katie the job,” he added, caustically.
Kate started. She’d been really disappointed by Brian’s childish reaction at their breakup. Hearing him now, she was even more relieved that she’d broken it off. During the last few weeks, Brian had shown a side of himself that she hadn’t known existed.
She slowly turned to Brian with an icy stare.
“Alright,” he muttered, sheepishly. “I guess you didn’t deserve that.”
“No, she didn’t,” Julie reproached. “Kate’s spent most her life working construction with her dad. To tell you the truth, I’m surprised Mr. Callahan hasn’t put her in charge sooner.”
Taken aback, Kate blinked.
And Julie winked.
“We should probably get going,” Brian mumbled, hanging his head.
“Let me go put on my swimsuit and get my sunglasses,” Kate said. She was already moving down the dock and rushing back into the cabin.
Ten minutes later, with Julie behind the wheel, they were on their way. Kate glanced over at Brian. She should’ve been flattered he wanted more. With dark-blonde hair and silvery-blue eyes, at six-feet tall, Brian was pretty hot. She sighed. Unfortunately, looks weren’t everything.
Suddenly Brian turned, catching her eyes. “I’m sorry for what I said earlier, Kate. It’s just that I’ve got two older brothers – so I never got the chance to be in charge when I worked for my own father. And I guess I’m a little jealous. I was hoping that your dad might consider making me a crew boss sometime soon.”
Similarly to hers, Brian’s family’s fortune had been amassed in the construction business. Although Brian had been working for his family, he’d relocated to Crystal Rock two years before because he’d supposedly wanted a change. His father was a friend of her father’s, and had contacted him about hiring Brian.
“Oh, Brian. I’m really sorry. But you’ve only been working for Dad for a couple of years - you’ll have to be patient. It wouldn’t be fair to promote you when a lot of the other members of his crew have seniority.” She sighed. “Just admit it, Brian - you’re still upset about our breakup, too.”
Julie was obviously sympathetic as she gazed from Kate to Brian.
Moving in closer and wrapping an arm over her shoulders, Brian whispered, “Are you sure, Kate?”
“Yeah.” She nodded. “I’m sorry. It’s not you - I’m just not ready for anything more serious. Plus, I really love my job. You wouldn’t believe how excited I am, Brian - about being promoted to crew boss. I really don’t have time for anything else right now.”
“Well - I’m not giving up yet,” he muttered. “You know that we’re good together.”
She turned to stare accusingly.
Brian added hastily, “But I’m willing to give you your space.”
She nodded. “I’d like to remain friends?”
“That’s all I can ask.”
Although Brian’s eyes remained unreadable, Kate’s mood was lightened considerably. Slipping on her sunglasses, she sighed contentedly, staring out at her surroundings. The air was crisp and invigorating while the sky was a bright azure blue. The sun shone down brightly across the lake, where the water sparkled like faceted crystals. Kate watched, with fascination, as the breeze whipped into the sails of a sunfish, sending the sailboat zipping off through the water.
For the next twenty minutes, they cruised at high speed around the lake. Finally, Julie spoke loudly over the roar of the engine, “Why don’t we swing around by the Riverbend Lodge first, and then we can head out to Dragonfly Pointe and eat?”
Kate nodded agreeably, basking in the sun. Easing back into her seat, she stretched out her legs and laid them over the front seat.
But Brian remained strangely quiet as they sped across the lake.
The Riverbend Lodge boasted some of the most picturesque views in Crystal Rock. Built as a resort for fisherman back in the nineteen-fifties, the lodge had remained in the hands of the Jacobs family. Bordering the junction of the Crystal Rock Lake and the Crystal Rock River, the lodge offered rentals of fishing boats along with canoes and kayaks.
It wasn’t until Julie slowed down, to steer around the traffic near the landing, that Brian spoke again, “I don’t know why the lodge draws in such a big crowd – this place is such a dump.”
Disconcerted, Kate stared at Brian. “What do you mean?” She asked. “The food’s great here.”
Bristling, Julie frowned. “Yeah. Plus, they’ve done a lot of remodeling over the last few years.”
Brian shrugged. “I guess it’s alright if you like hamburgers and fish fries,” he grumbled. “But I prefer the menu at the Dragonfly Pointe Inn.”
Julie snorted. “Well, duh, so do I. But that doesn’t mean I can afford to eat there every day like you do.”
How did Brian keep up with his spending, Kate wondered? Undeniably, he had expensive tastes. Of course, he could probably afford to blow his entire paycheck anyway, since he lived rent free in his family’s vacation home on Stone Lake.
Julie made a motion at the shore. “Look, Kate. It’s your mom and dad.”
Startled, Kate stared up at the crowded deck extending from the lodge. The restaurant seemed to be unusually busy tonight; every
single table on the deck appeared to be occupied. Even the dock was packed full with boats of all shapes and sizes. A bunch of young kids, including her brother and sister, sat along the widened steps leading up from the landing.
“Damn,” Julie swore breathily, gazing up at the deck. “Who’s the hunk with your brother?”
Glancing up at the deck, Brian snorted.
And then Kate saw him, leaning back against the railing. His height and bulk made him stand out noticeably from the rest of the crowd.
But his bulk was definitely pure muscle.
Taking off her sunglasses, she became intent on getting a better look. Slightly disheveled, his hair was ash-brown and hung down nearly to his collar. With his squarely chiseled jaw and clearly masculine features, he wasn’t exactly handsome.
Turning and staring out at their boat, he waved and suddenly smiled.
When his eyes met hers, her stomach abruptly did a somersault.
For a long quiet moment, Kate remained unresponsive with her gaze focused up at the man on the deck.
But, eventually, she noticed that Julie was staring at her curiously. And, hastily, Kate cleared her throat. “Ahh...that must be Michael Murphy.”
“Michael Murphy?” Julie asked.
“Supposedly, my parents are his godparents. He’s from Chicago. He’s getting his degree in architecture - so he needed to do an internship in construction this summer. He’ll be working here, with us, until August. He and Dan have been friends for years – although I’m pretty sure I’ve never met him.”
“Hmm. I think you would’ve definitely remembered him,” Julie said, echoing Kate’s thoughts. “Wanna go have a drink with your family?”
But Brian was obviously unhappy with the direction their discussion was taking. Scowling, he discourteously cut in, “Let’s just get on over to Dragonfly Pointe and eat, Julie. Kate’s in a hurry, remember?”
For someone who wanted to get ahead, Brian seemed strangely reluctant to socialize with her father, Kate had come to realize. And he’d only had dinner with her entire family once - and that was when they’d first begun dating.
Kate hesitated. But then she glanced up at her family and waved. “Yeah, Jules – Brian’s right. If we stop to have a drink, you know that they’ll insist that we stay and eat. Then I’ll be too tired to get anything done tonight. I’ll be happy to introduce you to Michael Murphy sometime.”
Julie waggled her brows. “Promise?”
Kate snorted. “I promise,” she answered, dryly.
Chapter Four
Immediately, he noticed Kate’s approach through the wide open doors of the cabin.
Damn – she was even lovelier close up.
Murphy finally admitted to himself that, subconsciously, he must’ve been watching out for Kate since the first time he’d seen her.
And then he gazed into her eyes. Right now, they were a deep and fiery shade of blue.
Probably because of the anger she was directing toward him, Murphy suddenly realized as he finally, consciously, became aware of his surroundings. He turned, staring hard at the walls he’d just finished painting. He was having a little bit of trouble portraying the incompetent intern.
And Kate seemed to be totally unaware of her father’s plans for subterfuge. She didn’t look happy as she inspected the walls and floors inside the cabin. Luckily, he’d spread out papers over the wooden floor to protect it.
When crew boss, Luke Arnett, stepped inside the cabin, he groaned, covering his face with his hands. “Murphy. I thought you said you knew how to paint?”
Kate’s gaze was curious when she turned to study Murphy.
Murphy cleared his throat. “Ah, well...I’ve painted my parents’ – uh...garage.”
Rolling her eyes, Kate sighed.
Luke shook his head. “I’m not sure what I’m gonna be able to do with this guy, Kate,” he grumbled. “I had him up on the roof – but instead of laying out shingles along the bottom of the roofline like we showed him, he began way up at the peak. It took us a couple of hours to get things straight. Then I moved him inside to do drywall the next day. Brian Lancaster even showed him what he needed to do. There were two panels up by the time I came by to check up on him. But he didn’t even have enough sense to remember to center the edges of the drywall on the two by fours for stability!”
Staring at Murphy, she shook her head in resignation. “Obviously, he has a hard time following instructions,” she observed, dryly. “Maybe he’d better come and work for me at the Ivers’ place for the next couple of weeks, Luke? We’ve got a lot of demolition work to do. He shouldn’t be able to mess that up.”
“I’m not so sure about that,” Luke muttered under his breath.
Kate snorted.
And Murphy grimaced.
“That’d be great, Kate.” Luke sighed resignedly. “Send him back when you’re done. The finish work should be completed in this cabin by then, and we’ll be starting on our own demolition work over in the next two cabins.”
Kate glanced at her watch. “I’d better take a quick look at your inventory, Luke, for Dad. He’s pretty busy with that job at the golf course. Get your list together and I’ll meet you out by the supply tent.”
“Okay, Kate.”
“Murphy – why don’t you meet me at Luke’s trailer in about thirty minutes?”
Murphy nodded.
He let out a deep breath when Kate finally stepped out of the door. He hadn’t even realized he’d been holding it. Distracted, he forgot about the ladder with its bucket of paint hanging from a hook. Twisting around with the paint roller still in his hand, he bumped into the ladder.
And the open bucket of primer tipped over, pouring out over the top of his head.
As the paint drizzled down through Murphy’s hair, and dripped down to cover his face, Luke stared at Murphy in stunned disbelief. “Damn it, Murphy. I don’t think I’ve ever worked with anyone who was as much of a klutz as you are.”
Sheepishly, Murphy grinned, attempting to dig the paint out from his eyes. It’d actually been an accident, knocking over the paint. If Kate Callahan had this much of an effect on him, now, how in the hell was he gonna able to work with her for the next few weeks?
❋
Quickly pulling off his shirt, Murphy had removed as much of the paint from himself as he’d been able to. But Luke Arnett had been more concerned about the floors in the cabin. It’d taken almost thirty minutes for Murphy to clean up his mess with paper towels before mopping over the floor several times. Luckily the plumbing was already hooked up inside the cabin so he’d had water available.
Pulling his shirt back on, Murphy glimpsed Kate near Luke’s trailer, and he began strolling up the path from the beach. He’d managed to rinse most of the paint from the upper half of his body with water from the lake.
Kate appeared to have completed her inventory, and was absorbed in intense conversation with a tall, middle-aged man wearing a pair of overalls.
The man began to snigger when he spotted Murphy.
Turning around, Kate gaped. After a moment of stunned silence, she snorted.
Suddenly, she completely broke down. Attempting to gulp down her laughter, Kate pointed at the edge of his T-shirt. “You missed a spot.”
It appeared to be the only place on his entire body untouched by paint. Murphy was pretty sure that even his underwear had been compromised by the paint soaking through.
“No wonder Luke was even more annoyed – when he finally showed up at the supply tent.”
Murphy grinned, wryly.
And then, Kate began laughing helplessly again.
Kate’s associate was still chuckling as well when he finally stuck out his hand. “Nice to meet you, Murphy. I’m Gus Lemke. I handle all the plumbing for Cal.”
Murphy shook his hand.
With her laughter finally subdued, Kate swiped away the tears from her eyes before slipping her sunglasses back on. “I’ve sure been hearing an awful lot about you over the
last couple of weeks, Murphy.”
Murphy smiled. “All good, I’m sure.”
She smirked. And then she slowly began looking him over. “I suppose Dad didn’t even think about mentioning what kind of work clothes you’d need while you were working here, either?”
Murphy grimaced, staring down at his clothing. “It’s my fault – since I never asked what kind of work I’d actually be doing.” He’d been totally wrong about what the term internship represented to Mike Callahan. Murphy had assumed he’d be working in the office and traveling to the job sites, along with Cal, instead of doing manual labor. Not that he minded the hard work – he actually preferred it. But he’d been stupid not to realize that even the jeans and T-shirts he’d worn today might end up ruined.
“Well. Dad specifically asked me to come check up on you.” Kate shook her head with resignation. “You’d better take off those shoes, and go along with me in my truck. We definitely need to find you some boots.” She studied Murphy’s feet. “What size do you wear?”
“A medium sized twelve?”
“Hmm. That’s the same size as Dad, I think. I’m pretty sure he’s got a few extra pairs of boots in his office closet. Steel toes are a requirement here on site. But they’re expensive – and it’d be stupid for you to buy new, since you’ll only be working with us over the summer.”
“I’m done, here, Kate, if you want to drop me back at the office, too,” Gus said.
“That’d be fine, Gus.”
As Gus led the way up to the parking lot, carrying his toolbox and clipboard, Murphy followed behind Kate, enjoying the view. Tall and lanky, she moved with a refined, casual grace. She could’ve just as easily been strolling along a runway instead of hiking up a mossy trail covered with pine needles and brush. And the cut of those jeans ...well...
When they reached the company truck, Gus began to laugh once again after glancing back at Murphy. “I guess I’d better sit in the back.” Sliding his toolbox onto the back seat, he scrambled into the seat beside it.
Murphy dumped his sneakers into the bed of the pickup. Noticing Kate had laid a tarp over the passenger seat, he hopped into the truck and sat on top.
A Touch of Passion (boxed set romance bundle) Page 38