Chapter Eleven
Pete had to admire the way Jo stood up to her sisters, all but daring them to make a comment when they came in from the truck with him wearing his undershirt and jacket and Jo still in his flannel shirt. She stared them down when all three women gave him smiles that made his blood run cold. The tactic was only partially successful. They pretty much ignored her and kept their focus on him.
“Hello, Pete,” Ashley said, her voice frosty.
“Hey, Ashley. Good to see you.”
“Do you know Maggie and Melanie?”
He nodded at them, feigning total composure. “Nice to meet you,” he said, even as he thought that only an idiot wouldn’t recognize this polite charade for what it was—the prelude to an inquisition.
“We’ve heard a lot about you,” Melanie said, barely containing a grin.
“But apparently not nearly as much as we should have,” Ashley said, casting a pointed look in Jo’s direction.
There went the gloves, Pete thought, and waited to see how Jo reacted. Adding to his deep respect for her, Jo beamed at Ashley.
“I thought you knew all you needed to,” she informed her older sister. “You’re the one who hired Pete, right? And he had worked for you before. I figured you’d checked him out six ways from Sunday before you called him the first time.”
Ashley frowned at the retort. “Actually, Josh was the one who found him to do the work for us. I trusted my husband’s judgment.”
“Well, there you go,” Jo said triumphantly. “And Pete must have done good work, or you’d never have called him to do another job for you, correct?”
“I called him to fix the porch,” Ashley said impatiently. “Not to sleep with you. You have to admit the qualifications are somewhat different.”
“Then I guess it’s just a lucky bonus for me that’s he more than qualified to do both,” Jo said gaily, while Pete choked back a laugh. “Now if you all don’t mind, Pete and I have things to do this afternoon.”
Ashley looked absolutely stunned. “You’re kicking us out?”
“Pretty much,” Jo said without hesitation.
Pete regarded her with admiration. He gave her a thumbs-up signal that put a smile back on her lips.
“Next time you might want to call first,” she told her sisters. “Make sure I’m not going to be busy before you drop in. Perhaps we’ll be able to avoid another of these awkward situations.”
“You’ve changed,” Ashley told her. “I’m not sure I like it.” She frowned at Pete. “Is this your doing?”
“You mean Jo standing up for herself?”
“Is that what you call it?” Ashley asked.
“Sounds that way to me. And no, it’s not my doing. I think she’s always had it in her.”
Ashley’s gaze instantly narrowed, and Pete realized he’d gone too far.
“Now how would you know that?” Ashley asked him.
Pete read the panic in Jo’s eyes and knew he had to extricate himself from the inadvertent slip. “Don’t you think most people are born with a certain amount of strength? They just have to learn how to tap into it.”
Relief shone in Jo’s eyes.
Ashley still looked skeptical, but she didn’t force his hand. Instead, she turned to her sisters. “Are you guys ready to go? We’re obviously in the way here.”
“Personally I think it’s a lot more fascinating here,” Maggie said, but she got to her feet. Melanie followed.
After a flurry of goodbyes, they were gone. Jo sagged onto the chair next to Pete.
“Oh, my God,” she murmured.
“You were great!”
She whirled on him. “Great? Are you crazy? Thanks to that expression of insolence and ingratitude, I have just launched a full-scale investigation into our private lives that won’t end till we’ve walked down the aisle of some church. They left quietly enough, but only so they can go someplace and plan some scheme that will hit us when we least expect it. Just wait till they get their husbands in on it. Our lives won’t be worth living. We’ll never have another second’s peace.”
“But we’re on to them,” Pete reminded her, unfazed by her panic. “They won’t catch us off guard. Besides, what can they do, really?”
“Make our lives a living hell?” she suggested, her tone deadly serious.
“Come on. It won’t be that bad.”
“Ha!”
“Want to go back upstairs so I can show you why it’s all going to be worthwhile?”
She shot him a withering look. “That’s what got us into this mess.”
He shook his head. “No, what got us into this was the fact that we couldn’t keep our hands to ourselves. We never could. Personally, I think that speaks volumes.”
“No, that should have been a lesson to us seven years ago,” she retorted. “You’d think we’d be smarter now.”
“We are,” he insisted. “We’re smart enough to go after what we want and fight for it. I want you. What do you want?”
“The truth?”
“Of course.”
“The only thing I know with absolute certainty that I want is that house.”
Pete’s heart sank. He knew this afternoon hadn’t been about the house, but he never in his life would have guessed he could be jealous of a pile of shingles and some hardwood floors.
He forced himself to respond with a careless shrug. “Maybe one of these days you’ll decide to take the package deal.”
In fact, he was counting on it.
Jo’s thoughts were such a jumble, she didn’t know which problem to grapple with first. She was going to have to deal with her sisters sooner or later. She wasn’t naive enough to believe that kicking them out of Rose Cottage had been anything more than a temporary reprieve. She was going to have to figure out what to do about her feelings for Pete, which were getting more powerful and more complicated by the day. And she was going to have to spend time with his son without letting her heart get broken.
So many problems and not a solution in sight, she thought wearily.
Fortunately, for one day at least, she could simply avoid the whole lot of them. She was up and out of the house before daybreak on Friday. She merely got in her car and set out on an aimless drive. At least that was how it started.
She realized once she’d stopped for breakfast and caffeine that what she was really on was a research mission. She wanted to study the landscaping around the region, see what plants were thriving, which ones didn’t seem to do well, and which created the old-fashioned country cottage or beach house ambience she wanted at both of Pete’s houses. It would be better to do this sort of tour in spring or summer, but midwinter was the only time she had to do it. She’d just have to use her expertise and imagination to fill in the gaping blanks.
Since she’d been in the habit of doing this sort of thing whenever she went for a drive back in Boston, she had a pad and pencil handy in the car so she could jot down notes every time she stopped by the side of the road. By the time she got back to Rose Cottage at dusk, the pad was filled with scribbled notes and sketches. At least one thing in her life was under control, she thought happily right before she spotted Ashley’s car in the driveway. If only the rest were, she added with a sigh.
She emerged from her own car reluctantly and went inside. She found her sister sitting in the kitchen with a cup of tea and a troubled expression.
“Where have you been?” Ashley asked. “With Pete, I assume, since he’s nowhere to be found, either.”
“Actually I’ve been working,” Jo said, tossing the pad of paper on the table. “Doing some research. And I was alone, not that it’s any of your business.”
The sketches and notes distracted Ashley for a time. She turned the pages slowly, grinning from time to time.
“These are good. Really good,” she told Jo.
“Thanks, but I’m sure you didn’t come by to tell me I’m good at my job.”
“No, To be honest, I came by to tell you to watch yourself with Pete.”
“You’re the one who sent him over here,” Jo reminded her again. “If you meant him to be nothing more than eye candy, you should have said as much at the beginning. Maybe plastered a look-but-don’t-touch sign on his very attractive behind.”
Ashley didn’t seem to appreciate the humor. “I know. I did think he’d provide a good distraction, get your mind off the broken engagement.” She regarded Jo worriedly. “I might have made a mistake.”
“Hold the presses!” Jo exclaimed. “You’re admitting to a mistake?”
“It’s not a joke,” Ashley said. “I’m trying to tell you something here. Pete’s life is a mess. I didn’t realize that. He has an ex-wife and a son.”
“I know.”
Ashley looked surprised. “He told you, then? That’s something, I suppose.”
“Did you really think he’d try to hide it? It’s a small town. I was bound to find out.” She wasn’t about to admit that she’d known about the marriage and the son for years.
“I wasn’t sure. I don’t know him that well. I gather the divorce wasn’t pretty. There’s probably a lot of baggage there. You’ve already been through a lot, Jo. Why go looking for more trouble?”
“I appreciate your concern. I really do. But you don’t need to worry. I’m on full alert where Pete’s concerned.” If only Ashley knew just how alert, she might take some comfort in it. Then, again, it might only make her worry more.
Ashley studied her somberly, then finally gave her a satisfied nod. “Okay, then. I’ll butt out.”
Jo grinned. “As if you could.”
“I’ll try to butt out,” Ashley amended.
Jo crossed the room and hugged her fiercely. “Thanks. Now go home to your husband.”
“What are you going to do tonight? Want to come to dinner?”
“No, I think I’ll stay here. I have a lot going on right now.”
“Pete coming by?” Ashley inquired with feigned nonchalance.
“Less than a minute and she’s butting back in again,” Jo teased. “No, Pete is not coming by. He’s in Richmond picking up his son. Davey’s coming for the weekend.”
“Oh, I see.” Ashley studied her intently. “How do you feel about that?”
“Ask me after tomorrow.”
“Why then?”
“I’m going to spend the day with them. I’ll be able to give you a better answer.”
Ashley gave her shoulder a squeeze. “I almost wish you hadn’t told me that. Now I’ll be worried sick all day. Do you think it’s a good idea for you to spend time with his son? Not just for your sake, but for the boy’s?”
“See what happens when you go poking around for information?” Jo teased. “Sometimes you find out things you’d rather not know. And believe me, Pete and I have discussed all the pitfalls. We’re going to make sure it doesn’t turn into a big deal.”
Once more, her sister frowned at her joking. “Promise me one thing.”
“Anything.”
“Don’t get your heart broken.”
Jo nodded. “That one’s easy. I’m certainly going to try like hell not to.”
She was just terrified it might be easier said than done.
Pete was jostled awake at dawn on Saturday when Davey started bouncing on his bed, his face alight with excitement.
“Guess what, Dad?” He nudged Pete. “Are you awake?”
“How could I not be awake? Somebody’s using my bed for a trampoline,” Pete mumbled sleepily. “What’s up, buddy? Couldn’t you sleep?”
Davey gave him a disgusted look. “I slept, but then morning came, and I got up,” he explained with exaggerated patience. “Come on, Dad. You still haven’t guessed.”
Pete was pretty sure he knew based on the way his son’s eyes were shining, but he pretended to give the question serious thought. “I know,” he said at last. “The tooth fairy came and left a million dollars under your pillow.”
Davey giggled. “No.” He opened his mouth wide. “See. All my teeth are still there.” He wiggled one in front. “This one’s getting ready to go, though. Will I get a million dollars?”
“Not likely, kid. So, if it’s not that, what could it be?”
“It snowed!” Davey said, obviously thrilled. “And not just a little bit, either. Lots and lots! Can we go outside?”
Pete glanced at the clock. It was barely 6:30. “How about breakfast first? Maybe by the time we’re done, it will at least be daylight.”
“But I want to build a snow fort.”
“And you don’t think you’ll have time to do that if we start at, say, seven-thirty?”
“But that’s a whole hour from now,” Davey protested.
“Trust me, the time will fly by. It takes a long time to make pancakes and eat them.”
The mention of pancakes immediately wiped the beginnings of a pout off of his son’s face. “Big ones or little ones?”
“Does it matter?”
“I like the little ones,” Davey announced.
“Any particular reason?”
“Sure. ’Cause then I can eat about a hundred of them.”
Pete rolled his eyes. “In that case, you’d better go in the kitchen and check to see if we’ve got enough pancake mix. You can get it out of the cabinet and find a big bowl, but do not, I repeat, do not, get started till I get in there.”
“But I can pour the flour into the bowl,” Davey said.
And onto the table and the floor, Pete imagined. “Wait for me,” he repeated firmly. “Ten minutes, okay?”
“Okay,” Davey agreed and ran out of the room at full throttle.
Pete grinned. Oh, to have that much energy again. He rolled over, picked up the phone and called Jo. She answered groggily.
“Did you know it snowed last night?” he asked.
“Is this one of those nuisance calls?” she grumbled. “I’m hanging up.”
“You’ll be sorry,” he said. “And no, it’s not a nuisance call. It’s a news alert. Snow means the plans have changed.”
“Changed how?”
“We need to get started a whole lot earlier, because little boys can hardly wait to get outside.”
She laughed. “How about big boys?”
“Personally, I could have used another hour of sleep, but I’m not the one who counts over here. Get moving, darlin’. We’ll meet you at your favorite house at eight-thirty, unless you want to switch gears and come over here for pancakes.”
She was silent so long, Pete knew she was wrestling with the choice, but eventually she sighed.
“Let’s stick to the plan,” she said with an unmistakable hint of regret in her voice. “I’ll see you at eight-thirty. Are we building a snowman or sledding?”
“We’re building a snow fort. And just so you know, forts take time when they’re crafted by Catlett Construction. Wear something warm.”
“You’re talking to a woman from Boston. We know how to dress for snow. See you soon.”
Pete was smiling as he hung up, but a glance at the clock showed him he needed to hurry. Davey wouldn’t wait forever for those pancakes. He’d either turn the kitchen into a disaster area trying to fix them himself or he’d slip outside to play in the snow until Pete finally ventured into the kitchen to make them for him. The kid was good and usually listened to a direct order, unless it happened to bump up against his own exuberance.
Sure enough, when Pete got to the kitchen, Davey was on a chair, the box of mix upside down over a bowl. He’d poured in enough to feed an army battalion.
“Whoa, kid! Let’s not get carried away,” Pete said, extracting the box from his hands and putting it back in the cabinet. “How about setting the table? You remember how to do it?”
“Yeah, but how come it has to be all fancy when it’s just us?”
“It’s not fancy to put silverware and a napkin where they belong. Knowing where things like that go will impress a girl someday.”
Davey stared at him blankly. “How come?”
&nbs
p; “It’s just one of those rules of life, pal. Girls like things done a certain way. When guys understand that, life goes a whole lot more smoothly.”
Davey shook his head, his expression still perplexed. “Dad, you’re weird.”
“Maybe, but you love me, right?” Pete asked, scooping him up and holding him upside down till he squealed.
“I love you. I love you,” Davey said, squirming till Pete set him back on his feet.
“Then set the table.”
Davey did as he was told, but even after Pete put the first batch of pancakes in front of him, he was bouncing in his chair, clearly eager to be finished and outside.
“How deep do you think it is?” he asked Pete.
“Maybe if it were light enough to see outside, I could tell you.”
“It’s almost light,” Davey argued.
“How can you tell?”
“Way over there, where you told me to look, you can see a tiny little bit of light right at the bottom. And pretty soon, it will turn all red and streaky and stuff and then, bam, the sun will come up.”
Pete grinned at him. “I guess you’ve got this sunrise stuff nailed, after all.”
“That’s ’cause you taught me.” Davey’s expression suddenly turned solemn. “You always teach me really cool stuff. Mom teaches me spelling and words and things, but the things you tell me about are way better.”
Pete knew it was Davey’s way of broaching a subject that had come up in the past. He wanted to spend more time with Pete and didn’t get why he couldn’t. Pete refused to get drawn into a debate of the merits of Kelsey’s lessons versus his own. Nor did he want to explain yet again that their time together had been spelled out by the court.
Instead, he met his son’s gaze. “Spelling and words are important, pal. Don’t ever forget that.”
“So is how to hammer a nail and where the sun comes up,” Davey retorted.
“And how to set a table,” Pete added. “Let’s not forget that.”
Davey rolled his eyes and climbed out of his chair. “Can we go outside yet?”
“I’ve barely taken the first bite of my pancakes, much less had my first cup of coffee,” Pete protested, then relented. “Bundle up and go on out, but stay right by the house. I’ll be out in a little while and we can go build that fort.”
For the Love of Pete Page 14