When he returned it, Robert put it back in his wallet, got into his car and drove away, leaving Luke with the frustrated, empty feeling he almost always experienced when dealing with his dad. It never got better and he didn’t think it would ever change.
He bought the shelving unit, had Jay help him load it into his truck, then returned to his job of supervising Dustin, who, temporarily at least, had found his niche.
* * *
CARLY FLIPPED THE empty pizza box into the trash. Even after snacking all day, the crew had been hungry. They had pulled up her assortment of chairs to the barn-wood table and devoured the pizza she’d ordered. Trent and Tom would be along to pick up the table soon, but the crew was in no hurry to clear up the last of the mess and get the store ready for tomorrow.
“Looks like you’re off and running,” Luke said. He held up his can of soda. “To Carly and to Upcycle.”
Everyone else joined in and she smiled as she toasted them back. “And to all of my wonderful friends. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.”
Gemma’s phone pinged and she glanced at the display, then looked up, green eyes shining. “Karina Parks is in labor. I’ve got to go.”
Nathan stood with her. “I’ll come, too.”
Gemma gave him a smile. There had been a time only a few months ago when he would have insisted on accompanying her because he thought midwives were incompetent. However, he had learned to trust her and they had worked through tough issues to reach the mutual confidence and love they now enjoyed.
Carly was happy for them but also a little jealous. They worked together, had each other’s backs, believed in and depended on each other. It was a pleasure to be near them.
Gemma and Nathan quickly gathered their things and left. No matter how long this night was, how difficult the birth, they would be together at every step.
Her employees finished the last chores and headed home, leaving only her, Dustin, Luke and Lisa, who was in the back room, washing up the last of the nondisposable dishes they’d used.
Dustin spied a vintage checkers set and began putting out the pieces.
Carly picked up a large binder and began jotting down some notes.
Luke walked up behind her and looked over her shoulder. “What’s this?”
She opened the book wider so he could see. “It’s how I keep inventory.”
“Before-and-after pictures of the pieces in the shop?”
“Yes. When I sell a piece, I add a note about the buyer if I know their name. Then, if I get something similar that they might like, I can call them. Or, since I now have a website, I can contact them that way.”
“Will my name be in there for buying the shelving unit?”
He was much too close. She could feel his warmth against her shoulder, the slight puff of his breath against her hair. For some ridiculous reason, she felt heat rush into her face as she turned to meet his gaze. Those caramel-brown eyes warmed with his smile as she said, “Of course.”
It would be so easy to lean forward just a bit and place her lips on his. He wasn’t that much taller than her. It wouldn’t take much effort at all. She hadn’t kissed him in many, many years, and it was such a sweet memory. Her heart did a slow, soft roll in her chest as she drank in the warmth and humor in his eyes. She leaned in the tiniest bit.
“Oh, Carly, inventory tonight? Aren’t you exhausted?” Lisa walked up with her purse on her shoulder and an empty, clean dish in her hand. She was still examining it for any offending spots.
Carly and Luke sprang apart and she tried to focus on what her friend had asked.
“Um, well, yeah, I’m tired, but I’ve got to see what I need to bring in to fill in my stock. Since Tom and Trent picked up the dining set, I’ve got room for more. Fall brush and bulky pick up begins next week and—”
“Oh, no,” Lisa groaned.
“Brush and bulky?” Luke asked. “What is that?”
Lisa smiled fondly at her friend. “That’s one of the two times a year the good people of Reston County can put out items they need to discard like yard clippings and tree branches that they can’t burn. Also, items that are too big to fit in their bins. The highways and byways are littered with cast-off furniture, appliances, chairs, tables, you name it. Brush and bulky pickup is also known as Carly Visits Heaven Week. She’s in her element, spends the whole time out, digging through other people’s junk. She’s like a windup toy that never winds down.”
Carly, who had continued with her inventory while Lisa talked, looked back and said, “And that’s where I get the stock for this shop you insisted I open.”
“I know. I already admitted that I’ve helped create a monster.”
“It’s an exaggeration to say I collect everything. I draw the line at upholstered furniture found on the side of the road.”
“Too dirty?” Luke asked.
“Too many places for critters to hide, including snakes.”
Luke raised an eyebrow. “I’d think you’d have dealt with lots of snakes in your gardens.”
“I have. That’s why I don’t want to find them in furniture.”
From across the room, Dustin asked, “Luke, do you know how to play checkers?”
“Oh,” Carly said. “I’m sorry, Dustin, I’d forgotten you’re still here. You need to get home and to bed. Your first day of school is tomorrow.” She put down her clipboard. “Which means inventory can wait.”
“Aw, Carly,” he said. “Just one game.”
She shook her head. “No game. At least, not tonight. We can take the set home, though, and you and Luke can have a game another time.”
Luke gave her a surprised look as she turned away to gather her things and lock up the shop.
“Sure, Dustin, I can do that,” he said. “How about tomorrow after school?”
Dustin shrugged. “Okay.”
They all trooped outside and she locked up.
Luke waited to leave until she and Dustin were in her truck and headed home.
* * *
LUKE STARTED HIS truck and drove toward Frances and Tom’s house.
Every word he’d said to his dad was true. He was lucky that Carly had let him back into her life if only in a small way—even if she couldn’t trust his plans for the extraction operation, and even if he still felt guilty about what had happened between them.
When he stopped at a traffic sign, he rubbed his chin thoughtfully. He understood Carly’s reluctance to trust him, and her wariness around his father, but there had been something in her attitude toward Robert, and in Robert’s attitude toward her, that he couldn’t quite decipher, as if their mutual dislike also included...guilt.
Nah. He’d misread it because he’d had guilt and forgiveness on his mind so much lately.
His thoughts returned to Carly. He was proud of the person she’d become, of what she’d accomplished. He tried to think back to when they’d met, when they’d married in a rush. He’d been proud of her looks, her wit, her sunny nature, but had he ever showed pride in what she’d done? In the 3.75 grade point average she’d achieved at university? He couldn’t recall, which meant he hadn’t.
Since the day she’d left him, she had worked hard to succeed on her own. She’d created an entire life without him, one that included community, family and friends. Lisa and Gemma had each given him the I’m-watching-you gesture at least twice today. He knew other people were watching him, as well, including his own aunt and uncle. They wanted to be sure history didn’t repeat itself.
Luke had created a new life for himself, as well, but it had included a lengthy avoidance of his father while he’d worked on construction projects and oil fields in South America. When he’d returned to Dallas to be near Omi, he’d created another life, but it didn’t have the richness of Carly’s—the life she was temporarily sharin
g with Dustin.
Luke was a small part of it because they were working together to help Dustin. If and when Dustin went back to his grandmother, the only things between them would be the past and the oil extraction process. In other words, unhappy memories and the possibility of harming her land, her livelihood, her. Again.
CHAPTER TWELVE
“IF YOU GET lost or confused, just ask someone for help,” Carly advised.
Dustin glanced at her with an overdone eye roll. He had refused to let Carly walk him to his first class. The school wasn’t all that big. It was attached to the high school, which wasn’t very big, either. He could find his own way, and he’d had enough of foster moms taking him to class and warning the teacher that he was a troublemaker. One of them had gone so far as to turn to the class and advise them to tell on him if he caused any trouble. He’d been in four fights that day, which meant he’d been suspended and the foster mom had had to keep him home. He’d only been at that place for three more days. Couldn’t even remember those people’s names.
He didn’t think Carly would do anything to humiliate him, but still, here he was again starting at his eleventh school. Mostly, she was cool and living with her kept him close to his grandma, the one person in the world who was glad he was alive. And Carly paid him for his work. He really liked having his own money. Too bad she was also going to make him put it in the bank. She did let him keep a little of it, though.
Dustin looked down at his new shoes, new jeans, new shirt, new hoodie, then at the new backpack in his hand. This stuff screamed, “Bully me.” He liked the new stuff, but he hated being the new kid.
He also hated that he couldn’t do anything about it. The law said he had to go to school and now that his grandma felt better she was determined to follow the law. He wasn’t sure what had changed, but she didn’t seem worried about Texas Rangers showing up to clap him in handcuffs and take him back to Waco. Was that what Texas Rangers did? Either way, they were tough and only the toughest could take him in.
“Don’t worry, Dustin,” she said. “You’ll be fine.”
“Like you’d know,” he muttered.
“What?” she asked, putting her hand on his shoulder and bending close, like he was a kindergartener.
“Nothing. Look, I’d better go.” He shook her off and headed for the front door. He’d figure this out. He always did. For some baby reason, he looked back at Carly. She was cool, even if she was only letting him live with her because she was friends with Grandma. And Luke was cool. Only Jay was a jerk.
Surreptitiously he looked down at the paper in his hand to double-check the room number. The secretary in the office had showed him and Carly where to go, and he’d met the teacher, Mrs. Dobbins, earlier. Now he had to walk into a roomful of staring faces.
He hesitated with his hand on the knob, then twisted it and walked in. Sure enough, every face turned to him, including the one belonging to a big kid with mean, piggy eyes that lit up when he saw Dustin.
Oh, yeah. There was always one of those.
* * *
WITH SHELBY’S HELP, Luke moved the shelving unit into her workspace, then had to wave away her thanks and admit it had been his dad’s idea. She began happily storing her supplies and he took himself off to finish the fence he and Carly had started days ago.
As he pulled on his gloves, strung and stapled the barbed wire, he thought about everything that had happened since he’d pulled into Carly’s driveway on Memorial Day to deliver his grandmother’s trunk. He hadn’t expected to see her again, except possibly from a distance. Yet here he was, seeing her almost every day, helping her ride herd on the imaginative and irrepressible Dustin. Repairing her fence.
He’d been thinking about this constantly since last night.
He frowned. The fence that separated their properties was nothing compared to the chasm between them. When he’d thought he’d never see her again, it hadn’t bothered him so much. He’d buried it. Now, though, seeing her all the time, having his father suspicious that he was going to get back together with her, made him think about what had happened between them and how it had all gone so wrong.
When they’d first met, they hadn’t been able to keep their hands off each other. He and Carly had burned white-hot and then flamed out. He knew all the facts of how and why it had happened, and he’d certainly understood his own heartbreak. He’d seen hers, but he’d never been able to relieve it, to help her. What he’d told his dad was true. Carly may have forgiven him, but she would never forget what they’d been through.
He was getting maudlin. Shaking it off, he finished his job, put away his tools and decided to go tell Carly the job was done.
He drove the long way around to her place, where he saw that her pickup was gone. He was heading back to his own truck when she pulled in and drove straight up to the shed.
“Hi, Luke,” she called out as she jumped out of the truck. He was happy to see she hadn’t greeted him with her frequent hesitation, but he realized it was because she wasn’t focused on him. She hurried to the truck bed and began untying the cords holding down a tarped load.
Still, it was the friendliest greeting he’d received from her so he strolled over to see what she had. He let his appreciative gaze take in the way she looked in her usual jeans, this time paired with a sleeveless blue tank top she wore in spite of the cool temperature. Funny, he’d never realized how much he liked muscles on a woman, even though he’d been trained by his mother and grandmother to respect strength and stamina.
When she joyfully pulled back the cover, he said, “For some reason, I thought this would be a load of plants or gardening equipment, but I’m guessing it’s—”
“Brush and bulky,” she finished for him, her eyes shining. “Or at least bulky. You want to help me?”
In one easy move, she jumped into the back and began handing down a piano bench with a loose leg, followed by two badly worn and scratched chairs. Excitedly, she said, “Those chairs are mahogany. I can fix them up better than ever. And look at this table. It’s maple and it’s from the 1950s. It only needs to be cleaned and polished. I’m going to see if Becky Hall wants it. She’s been pretty happy with the dinette set she bought from me. And these lamps,” she declared, holding up two ugly wrought-iron specimens. “They just need to be rewired, but don’t they just scream 1970s?”
“I think they scream ‘torture chamber,’” he said, taking them and setting them on the ground.
“And there’s a matching candelabra.” She turned it so he could see the curlicued monstrosity. “It only needs cleaning.”
“Or melting down into fishing weights.”
She gave him an exasperated look. “I don’t think you appreciate vintage furniture, or accessories.”
“So it seems.”
“A lot of people don’t. Every time the county has pickup and I go out looking for items to up-cycle, I’m amazed by the things people no longer value, ones they paid good money for at some time in the past.” She pointed to the assortment of treasures she’d found. “Those mahogany chairs, for example. Their craftsmanship is excellent. Just look at the carving on the back. Nobody does that kind of work anymore, except a few artisans. Stripping and refinishing them is going to take some time, but they’ll be worth the effort. And, like I said, it’s the same every time.”
Luke watched her face, the happiness in her eyes and the way her cheeks turned pink with effort and excitement. He couldn’t resist teasing her a little. “Have you considered just going door-to-door and asking for junk?”
She shrugged. “What would be the fun in that? Well, you don’t have to appreciate it to help me move it. Come on.”
When he saw that she was going to hop down, he held out his hand. She paused for a second before taking it, as if she didn’t know exactly what to do. Finally she grasped it and jumped.
&
nbsp; When her feet hit the ground, a tremor shook them. She stumbled and grabbed for the side of the truck while Luke tried to steady her. The tremor faded in a couple of seconds.
“Another earthquake,” she said, pushing away from the truck. “You know this will never stop as long as the disposal of fracking wastewater continues, not just here, but all over the state.”
“I know, Carly.”
“Is this what we have to look forward to forever?” She pointed to the rise where the drilling rig was almost completed, looming over her land.
“I wish I had an answer.”
She wasn’t satisfied with that, if her tight-lipped expression was any indication. He wasn’t, either. After a moment he said, “Let’s get this finished.” She nodded.
Together, they carried her finds into the shed, where she carefully arranged them on the long tables built into one wall. Her tools and supplies for refurbishing were neatly organized, ready for use.
“How long will it take you to get this lot ready for sale?”
She frowned as she glanced up and down the tables. “Probably a month. I’ve always worked on this kind of thing in the evenings, but now that I’ve got Dustin, and he’s in school, I’m not sure what kind of time I’ll have.”
The words fell out of his mouth before he even knew they were coming. “I can come over in the evenings, play checkers with him, maybe teach him chess, help him with his homework. He’ll probably have a lot to catch up on.”
Her eyes widened. “I...I don’t know, Luke. That would take up a lot of your time.”
He shrugged. “I did say I’d help.”
Carly made a scoffing noise. “Let’s face it, neither of us knows anything about raising a kid like Dustin.”
“No, and I think that was pretty obvious on Saturday. Still can’t believe how he changed those signs,” Luke agreed.
“I’m glad you stopped Jay from throttling him. I made Dustin burn those signs and make new, G-rated ones.”
Luke chuckled. “I guess it’s easier, especially with a kid like Dustin, if you start out with them as a baby so you don’t have to play catch-up on their behaviors.”
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