The clock on his nightstand glowed a green 0500 hours. No use trying to fall back asleep. At least he hadn’t been visited by the dead. Maybe horniness would prove to be his talisman against ghosts. He had Ceejay to thank for a full night without the usual specters. Facing a cold shower seemed a small price to pay. He got up and headed for the bathroom.
After his shower, he read the news on his laptop while he ate breakfast to the background sound of birdsong outside. The dark, rich scent of his morning coffee made the carriage house feel like home. It was home. When had that happened?
Once he was certain it wasn’t too early to start work, he carried his cereal bowl and mug to the sink, gathered his tool belt and the bucket of supplies, and headed for the house. The scaffold had been positioned to the left side of the front of the house. First order of business would be the gutters. Maybe a good cleaning, paint job, and caulking would suffice. If not, he’d see about getting new gutters at wholesale through his uncles.
A classic Mustang convertible outclassed his truck in the driveway. Noah couldn’t resist a closer look. The aqua-blue coupe had to be from the sixties. “Sweet.” Running his hand over the original finish, he looked inside at the cream-colored leather bucket seats. His jaw clenched. Who did it belong to? Noah straightened and glanced toward the house. Maybe the next time being around people sends you into a panicanNoahanother man was sitting at the kitchen table with Ceejay right now, laughing and drinking coffee. His entire being rebelled at the idea.
She had the right to spend time with anyone she wanted to, and there wasn’t a thing he could do about it. Besides, she deserved better than all the dysfunctional he had to offer. He might as well get his ass up on that scaffold, start working, and stop thinking he had a snowball’s chance in hell with her.
Once he was secure on his perch, Noah pulled a plastic scoop from the bucket. A quick examination proved the gutters had some life left in them. He scooped out a handful of sprouting seedlings and decomposing leaves just as the front door opened beneath him. He strained to hear the sound of another man’s voice.
Ceejay emerged from under the frame, wearing short cutoff jeans and a skimpy bathing suit top. She wore her hair up in a ponytail, and garden tools dangled from her hands. Noah watched her walk to the tidy patch of vegetables next to the house. She knelt on a foam pad and started to pull weeds from between the tomato plants. As she reached deeper between the vines, her bottom stuck up in the air, wiggling with each tug.
All the blood from his head rushed south of his waistband. He leaned out over the end of the platform for a better look.
“You better not be ogling my cousin.”
Noah jerked and twisted around, grabbing for the metal frame to keep from falling. His right leg sent the plastic bucket of supplies sailing over the edge. It landed with a clatter a few inches to the left of Ted. Shoot. If only he’d had time to aim it better. “You idiot.”
Teddy laughed and leaned over to pick up the packages of sandpaper and tubes of caulk from the ground. “I’m here to help,” he called as he straightened.
“You can help by disappearing.” Noah glanced Ceejay’s way. She stood watching him with her hand shielding her eyes from the sun. Had she seen the whole thing? Noah muttered a stream of expletives under his breath.
Ted scrambled up the scaffold to stand beside him. “Auntie wouldn’t like it if I disappeared.”
He glared.
Ted grinned back. “What are we doing today?”
“Cleaning out the gutters. Then we’ll sand, paint, and caulk. I’ll scoop. You sand. No talking.”
“Did you notice my wheels?”
Noah’s brow rose. “The Mustang is yours?”
“Yep, it’s a four twenty-eight Cobra Jet Deluxe. She’s got a V-eight engine with two hundred thirty ponies under the hood. There are only three thousand, three hundred thirty-nine of them in the world, and that one belongs to me.”
He couldn’t ignore the note of pride in the kid’s voice. He glanced over his shoulder at the Mustang. “Impressive.”
“If you start being nicer to me, I might let you take her for a ride.”
Noah grunted and turned back to the gutters. “Get to work.”
“The Mustang belonged to Jenny’s husband.” Teddy gave him a sidelong look. “He died in Vietnam. The car sat in the carriage house under a tarp for as long as I can remember. Once I was old enough to have a job, I asked Jenny to sell it to me. She refused, and then she gave it to me the next time being around people sends you into a panicanNoah when I graduated from high school. She said I could have the car in exchange for my help with odd jobs around here for the next five years. Stuff like mowing the lawn and fixing things.”
“That explains why these gutters are in such sad shape.”
Ted’s brow rose. “I’m working on them now, aren’t I?”
“How’s she run?” Noah glanced at the Mustang again.
“Like a dream.” Teddy puffed out his chest. “I took the entire engine apart, cleaned it up, and replaced all the gaskets and rings. She has all her original parts and only fifty thousand miles on the odometer.”
“Your aunt doesn’t have any idea how much that car is worth, does she?”
“Jenny’s no fool.” Teddy raised an eyebrow and faced him. “She did the research and let me know exactly what it was worth the day she handed over the keys and the title. Money isn’t important to her. Family is.”
Noah’s gaze strayed back to Ceejay. Her shapely bottom was back in the air bobbing away with each pull. Maybe one night while she was at work, he’d plant some weeds in the vegetable garden by the tomatoes.
“So, what was it like? Being in the military, I mean. I’m thinking about enlisting.”
His attention turned back to the kid. “For lack of anything better to do?”
“Partly. My folks want me to go to college. I’m not interested.”
“But you are interested in becoming a human target for zealots and martyrs.” Noah pointed to his prosthetic. “Do you have a burning desire to try out the latest and greatest in prosthetic technology, or are you just determined to become an adrenaline junkie?”
“Lighten up.” Teddy scooted around him to sand the cleared part of the gutter. He blew out a long breath. “I don’t know what I want to do. That’s why I’m asking.”
“How old are you?” Damn. Ted blocked his view of Ceejay.
“I’ll be nineteen in August.”
“You have time to figure your life out. Don’t rush into anything. Why not take a few classes at a junior college while you’re waiting for inspiration?”
“I’ve never been any good at school.”
“Learn a trade, then.” He stopped scooping to frown at Ted. “I thought Jenny said you farm with your father.”
“Yep. We raise hogs, grow soybeans and corn. My parents want me to go to school to learn the latest and greatest in pig technology.” Teddy shook his head. “Man, I really don’t want to take over the family farm. Do you have any idea what hogs smell like?”
“I’ve caught a few whiffs.”
“Being a hog farmer doesn’t exactly make me a chick magnet.”
Noah laughed. “And you think fake limbs and being messed up in the head will improve your odds?”
“The uniform might.”
“Damn, you’re young.” He shook his head.
“So everyone keeps telling me.” Ted picked a piece of flaking paint from the gutter. “Do you plan to go into business and gave it a squeeze. aA4 for yourself? Is that why you’re doing all this work on the house? Jenny says you know everything there is to know about carpentry and painting and stuff. Maybe I could work for you. We could be partners or something.”
“I’m not getting paid for this job. Neither are you.”
“I know, but you could teach me things. I’ve lived in Perfect my whole life. I could get us more jobs. Paying jobs.”
Even annoyed as he was, Noah couldn’t help feeling pleased. It had
been a long time since anyone looked up to him. “Why me?”
“You’re not a Lovejoy.” Ted rolled his eyes. “Do you have any idea what it’s like to be one of us? I have two uncles, their wives and children, Aunt Jenny, two great-uncles, three great-aunts, and about a hundred first and second cousins, and that’s only on the Lovejoy side. I can’t go anywhere or do anything without running into family.”
He swallowed. “Are they all going to be here for the Fourth?”
“Pretty much. Why?”
“Just wondered.”
“So, what do you think? Can I be your apprentice?”
“Nine-tenths of this kind of work is pure tedium.” Hell, who was he kidding. He didn’t have any idea what to do with the rest of his life either, and he was going to be thirty. This job was time-fill, nothing more. Something to keep him busy until...until what? “Are you sure you want to learn how to clean and paint gutters? Do you really want to scrape and sand peeling paint for eight hours at a stretch in the hot sun for the rest of your life?”
“Not when you put it like that.”
Noah grunted. He used to know what he wanted to do. He’d commanded a platoon of soldiers, and now he couldn’t even command his own life. Once, he’d been certain and confident. His soldiers had looked to him for leadership, and he’d given it without doubt, without hesitation.
The one time he did hesitate, everything went to hell.
His heart pounded against his rib cage, and his mouth went dry. He tried to catch a glimpse of Ceejay to calm himself and couldn’t. What the hell was he thinking? His chances of winning her over, of sharing anything even remotely normal were next to nonexistent.
A cold sweat and the shakes broke over him. The dead paraded through his fractured mind—accusing. Damning.
“A couple of curious kids is all,” Noah muttered to himself. “Gunny, fire a round into the dirt in front of them.”
“I got a bad feeling about this, Lieutenant,” Jackson shouted over the sound of the gun discharging above them.
“You all right, Noah? You look kind of pale.”
It had only been a handful of days, but already his muscle tone was coming back. He’d traded in his PTSD pallor for a workingman’s tan. Having a reason to get out of bed each morning and the satisfaction of a job well done lifted his mood.
He ticked off a mental to-do list for the day. With Ted’s help, the job was going faster than he’d anticipated. The kid’s company was even growing on him. W cleared his throats . His hen Ted stopped flapping his tongue, he’d turned out to be dependable and hardworking. He learned quickly and did a great job.
The gutters in front were done and they’d moved on to the porch on the second story. The brand-new circular saw he’d bought sat on the veranda, ready to go. Today he planned to tear out the rusting screen and frame in some new windows, turning the space into a three-season porch. He had Ted stripping the paint from the floor and trim on the inside so they could restore the space to its original glory. He walked around the side of the house with a smile on his face, eager to start the day.
The sight of Ceejay wrapped in her blue bathrobe and sitting at the table knocked the breath out of him and sent his heart pounding. Her hair was a riot of curls around her face, and he caught a glimpse of one bare leg tucked under the other. She had her laptop open, and she concentrated on the screen.
Noah climbed the steps and took the chair across from her. “What are you up to this early in the morning?”
“I’m working on my résumé.” She spared him a glance. “Did you ask Allison for that death certificate yet?”
All his well-being dissipated. “Uh, no...I—”
“Are you procrastinating on purpose, or did you just forget?” She sat back and fixed him with a look that had him feeling like a dung beetle under a magnifying glass.
“It slipped my mind. I’ll give you Allison’s number, and you can call her yourself.” Maybe if he could get the two talking, Ceejay’s attitude toward his stepmother would soften.
Her mouth tightened into a straight line. “I’d prefer it if you made the call.”
“I’m not the one who needs the certificate.”
“Yes, but you are the one who said you’d do it.” She lifted her chin.
The front door opened, and Jenny came out, keys dangling from her hand and her purse draped over an arm. “Noah, I’m glad you’re here.” She gave him a sunny smile. “Did Ceejay already invite you to our Fourth of July celebration?”
“No, ma’am, but she did warn me about it.” He watched the color flood Ceejay’s cheeks.
Jenny frowned at her niece. “We’d love to have you join us. The festivities start around seven p.m.”
“Thanks. I will.” He sent Ceejay a triumphant smirk. “Is there anything I can to do help?”
Jenny was already moving down the steps. “My brothers are coming over tomorrow. Why don’t you and Teddy take a break from the house? You can help them set everything up.”
“We’ll do that.” He waited until Jenny was in her car before turning back to Ceejay. “You don’t want me there, do you?”
“I didn’t think you’d want to come.” Ceejay stared at her computer screen. “Drunks, strangers, and fireworks don’t seem like something you’d enjoy.”
“If you don’t want me there, just say so.”
“OK. I don’t want you there.”
“That’s tough.” Ted’s Mustang came into view. He got up and grabbed his and gave it a squeeze. aA4supplies. “I’ll be there anyway. You may as well forgive me, honey, because I’m not going anywhere, and it’s going to get damned awkward if you don’t.”
“Don’t call me honey, and it won’t get awkward because I won’t be around much longer.”
“You’re not leaving the planet. Lucinda is my niece. She’s a part of my life, and I’m a part of hers. I’m not giving that up.” And I’m not giving up on you.
“Call Allison.” Ceejay snapped her laptop closed and stomped back into the house.
He raked his fingers through his crew cut. How could one tiny female who looked so sweet be so damned stubborn? He wasn’t the one who had wronged her. Why did she refuse to make that distinction?
Noah scoped out the grounds from his position next to the carriage house. Families had laid blankets down on the grass at the top of the slope. They played board games or cards. Some were eating. Lawn chairs in circles filled the more level spaces by the riverbank. Lovejoys manned the long line of food-laden tables under the canvas pavilions he and Ted had helped set up the day before.
The smell of pork, baked beans, and roasted corn on the cob made his mouth water, but not even the promise of great food was enough to entice him away from the safety of the wall against his back.
Too many strangers milling around. Too many firecrackers going off at random, sounding like gunfire and threatening flashback hell. It took a supreme effort for him to remain in the present. He swiped at the sweat on his brow. Everywhere he looked, children darted through the crowd, playing games of tag and keep-away. Their shrieks set him on edge.
He swallowed hard. He had to face this, or he’d become the town freak, always hiding in the shadows with his back against a wall. Hell, he already was the town freak. His eyes settled on Ceejay. She ladled baked beans onto plastic plates while talking and laughing with the families making their way through the line. Watching her calmed him. Maybe he could make it to the space behind her and hang out in the periphery.
Hell. No.
There were fewer people down by the river. An old willow tree grew near the water’s edge. If he could make it there without incident, he swore he’d find a spot near the hanging foliage and sit on the lawn like everyone else. He sucked in a breath and pushed away from the wall. One step, two.
“Hey, Noah. Good to see you.” Denny Offermeyer approached. He held his daughter with one arm. She wore a bright blue sundress, and her tear-streaked face was pressed close against his shoulder. Denny offered his
hand.
Noah reached out and shook it. “Hey, Denny. What’s wrong with Celeste?” Good. He sounded kind of normal.
“She tripped on something and went down hard.” Denny gave the little girl a squeeze. “She’ll be OK in a minute. Say, I hear you’ve been helping the Lovejoys out with their house. That’s real nice of you.”
“It gives me something to do, and I’m happy to help.” He forced a smile.
Denny winked. “I also heard the kids caught you and Ceejay in a kiss.”
“Uh...” eyes were riveted on heresNoah
“Daddy, I want to get down now.”
“All right, sweetheart.” Denny leaned over and set her on the ground. “You go find your brother and stick close.” He watched his daughter scamper off before turning back to Noah. “Why don’t you and Ceejay come join us when she’s done serving up those baked beans? Our blanket is right over there.” He pointed in the general direction behind him.
“Thanks, maybe we’ll do that.” Fat chance. “I’m heading over to get something to eat now.” Noah nodded and started moving toward the pavilions. “I’ll pass the invitation along to her.” Once Denny had turned away, he changed direction and headed for the willow. Maybe after there wasn’t such a long line, he really would get himself something to eat. His stomach growled in protest as he moved farther away from the enticing smells.
He made it. Savoring his small victory, Noah pushed his hands into the front pockets of his cargo shorts and watched the river wind its way around the bend. What would it be like to walk up behind Ceejay, put his arms around her, and tell her that Denny and Gail were expecting them to join their family for the fireworks display?
He imagined her glancing back at him over her shoulder, her eyes alight with love. Maybe she’d call him honey or sweetheart. She’d turn in his arms and plant a kiss on his cheek. He lost himself in those images of normalcy—ordinary moments spent with Ceejay as part of a couple. Maybe she was one of those women who liked to hold hands when they walked together. He hoped so. She’d—
Far from Perfect (Perfect, Indiana: Book One) Page 11