Building Home

by Dee Ernst

  “Was she pretty?” Terri asked.

  “Amy McCann? Oh yeah. Stunning. With a body that didn’t quit.” Unlike mine, with those little saggy spots, and the soft little pooch around the belly, not to mention short legs and hair with a mind of its own.

  “How old, do you think?”

  “Late thirties.”

  “And she’s supposed to be quite the sharp mind.”

  “So I hear.”

  She leaned her head against mine again. “But she’s no Chris Polittano.”

  I smiled. “No. She certainly is not.”

  Chapter Eight

  I walked to the house the next morning and found Judd sitting on the porch steps. He waved as I came up the sidewalk.

  “I just had a marvelous conversation with your neighbor, Miss Ava. She’s kind of a celebrity around here, did you know?”

  I shook my head. “No, I didn’t know.”

  “She’s actually Dr. Wilson, and she’s a very well-known and well-respected conservationist. She’s still an advisor to the State Wildlife Division, and she’s testified in front of Congress.”

  I grinned in surprise. “And here I thought she was just a good gardener.”

  He grinned. “She’s that too. Her roses are just beautiful.”

  “Yes. I’m thinking of asking her for advice if I ever decide to do something with this front yard besides grass and one azalea.”

  He waved a hand. “You’ve got plenty of time. You’ve made lots of progress inside,” he said. “I’d like another series of pictures. Things are really looking up!”

  The crew was there, of course, including Steve, and a dour-looking man with an iPad.

  “Inspections,” Steve explained briefly. “We should get electrical cleared, and HVAC.”

  “Does that mean I can turn on the air-conditioning?” I asked.

  Steve flashed killer grin. “Not yet. You really should wait for the final inspection.”

  “Can Judd take pictures?”

  Steve nodded. “Snap away.” He and the inspector walked around to the back of the house, and Judd and I went through the front door.

  Judd took lots of pictures, admired my purchases, and even took a few shots of my armoire.

  “This is very nice,” Judd said. “Where is it going?”

  I explained, and even showed him the newly reframed opening in the hall where it would soon be going.

  He frowned. “So, it’s sliding in here?”

  I nodded.

  “So, basically, except for the door and drawers, the rest of this will be, well, hidden?”

  I looked. I had spent a great deal of time and energy on…the outside of the armoire. The part that would be behind framing and drywall. The part that no one would see. I sighed. “Well, I guess it was good practice for my great idea.”

  He laughed. “It’s going to look very cool, Chris. I promise. In fact, I’ll make sure to give you a shout-out. ‘The homeowner repurposed an old kitchen cabinet into functional storage.’”

  “It’s an armoire,” I corrected. I heard voices, and Steve and the inspector, as well as Alan, came in through the side door. Judd and I slipped out the front, settled ourselves on the porch, and alternately watched what was going on across the street and tried to hear what was going on inside my house.

  “There are a lot more workers over there,” Judd observed.

  “Yes. But it is two stories and four units long. Daniel has a much larger budget.” Mike popped his head out of an upstairs window, waved, then appeared a few minutes later, darted across the street, and bounded up the steps, Joe at his heels.

  “Inspection day, right?”

  I nodded. He sat right next to me on the step, and my body temperature shot up by at least five degrees. He leaned toward me, and our shoulders touched. “Not to worry. It’s all good,” he whispered.

  He smelled of sawdust and sweat, and something else, faint and musky. I wanted to stick my face into his chest and just breathe in.

  “How are the pictures coming?” he asked Judd.

  Judd kept his face neutral. “Getting lots of good ones.” He lifted his camera and snapped at Mike and I, sitting close, my face probably the same shade as a red maple leaf, Mike grinning.

  “Save that one,” Mike said. “It’ll be worth money some day. Right Chris?”

  “Right,” I croaked. Mike’s forearms were resting on his knees, his strong hands clasped together, and I could see the muscles move beneath his skin, and saw where a vein was throbbing…

  I stood up. “Gotta stretch,” I mumbled, and hopped down a few steps.

  Joe suddenly took off and bounded into the empty lot next door and reared up against one of the trees.

  “Looks like he found something interesting,” Judd said.

  Mike made a face. “Probably another damn squirrel. He never catches them, but he keeps trying.” He whistled sharply between his teeth, and Joe abandoned his effort and returned to the porch.

  “Daniel went over to see Celeste,” Mike said. “Left a few minutes ago. I suggested he take her out to lunch.”

  “Good plan,” I said. I turned and balanced on my toes, then dropped down. Up on toes, and…down.

  “Don’t be nervous,” Mike said. “I told you, it’s all good.”

  I caught Judd’s eye and saw him choke back a laugh. He knew that whatever was making me nervous had nothing at all to do with the inspection going on inside the house, but rather what was going on right there on the front porch.

  “This is the first I’ve seen Joe for a while,” I said, desperate for any normal conversation.

  Mike sat back, resting his elbows on the step behind and stretching his legs out in front of him. “Joe doesn’t like the noise,” he said. “It’s too loud for him across the street.”

  “He could hang with me,” I offered. “Maybe take another crack at the super-squirrel?”

  Mike grinned. “The what?”

  I nodded in the direction of the vacant lot. “My neighbor tells me I’ve got a rare and talented squirrel living somewhere over there. I saw her once, and she’s twice the size of your average squirrel, so Joe better watch out. She might fight back. Name’s Bella. She’s a Delmarva fox squirrel, and she’s endangered. If Joe does catch her, he could do hard time.”

  Mike made a face. “I used to shoot them out of trees for fun when I was kid. Course, I got my butt whipped for it, and when I finally grew a brain I realized how awful it was. Poor things, just trying to gather a few nuts.” His cotton button-down shirt was stretched across his chest and I could see his shoulders straining against the fabric. “But Joe would probably like spending the day with you,” Mike said. His eyes met mine, twinkling. “You wouldn’t mind me running over here just to check up on him, would you?”

  I shook my head. Up on my toes, down. Up, down. “Nope. Not at all.”

  Steve called Mike’s name, and Mike got up and went through the front door. Joe got up and went back to the vacant lot and sat under the same tree, looking up hopefully.

  Judd shook his head at me, his eyes brimming with laughter. “You lied to me girlfriend. You told me you weren’t interested in the McCann brothers.”

  “And I’m not. Interested in the brothers, I mean. Just one brother.”

  “Have you got it bad or what?” he said

  “Quiet,” I hissed. “And no I don’t. I mean, yes. Very bad.”

  “You turned six different shades of red when he sat down. Is the man blind?”

  I sat back down. “No. He just has very good reason to think I have no interest in him at all. And until I gather up enough nerve to break the news to him, he will continue to think that way.”

  Mike, Steve and Alan all came out on the porch, followed by the inspector, who nodded to us all and went past and down the sidewalk.

  “Well?” I asked.

  Alan shook his head. “Oh ye of little faith.”

  Mike reached out and squeezed my shoulder. “Everything went fine. All gold stars
. I told you we had this.”

  Our eyes met and his hand on my shoulder felt like lead. No, not lead. It was a magnet, drawing me in, bringing me closer and I swear I could see his mouth starting to form a smile, and his expression softened just a bit and I was almost ready to stand back up on my toes so I could better reach those lips…

  Steve clapped his hands together. “Maybe we should celebrate? Lunch down at Sam’s on Main?”

  Mike’s hand slipped off my shoulder and I dropped my eyes. Did I really almost kiss him in front of Steve and Alan and God and everybody?

  “Thanks bro,” Mike said. “But one of us has a job site to manage. But enjoy yourselves.” He glanced at me again, and I smiled brightly.

  “How about it, Chris?” Steve asked easily.

  Damn. “Ah, Sorry. Can’t,” I said. “Judd and I just made a date. Curtains. I need to buy, ah, curtains…”

  “And I told her I’d drive her across the Bay Bridge,” Judd said smoothly. “A lot more choices across the bay.”

  “Yes, that there are,” Mike agreed, quite heartily. “Happy shopping.”

  “Thanks. Yes, I love shopping.”

  Steve shrugged. “Alan, how about you and me, then?”

  Alan had been watching Mike and I, and he shook his head, as though to chase off a gnat. “Yeah, sure. Why not?”

  I stood and watched as Mike whistled for Joe, and the three men walked off.

  Judd exploded in a choked laugh. “Even Alan saw it. What is wrong with those two brothers anyway?”

  I sighed. “I have no idea, but they’re both driving me crazy.”

  “Are we really buying curtains?”

  “I need to. Would you mind? I’ll go by myself, but…”

  He waved a hand. “No worries. I’ll even drive. Now?”

  I shook my head. “Not quite. I have to go in the house and measure every damn window, and I don’t have a tape measure, which means I have to ask Tyler, and he’s going make a big production out of it…maybe I can just staple some sheets over my windows and call it a day?”

  He shuddered. “Don’t you dare. Come on, let’s measure.”

  I looked at him. “You’re a good friend. Thank you.”

  He laughed. “Thanks. It’s easy. You’re just so entertaining.”

  So we went shopping.

  Judd drove north after crossing the bridge. “There are a dozen malls and shopping centers up this way,” he told me. “Are we going Luxe or budget?”

  “Budget. I still don’t have a job.”

  We managed to find curtains, drapes, sheers, valances, curtain rods, those fancy things at the ends of the curtain rods…

  “I had no idea this was going to be so complicated,” I muttered when we finally sat down at a small restaurant for very late lunch. “This owning a house thing is pretty involved. And this was just about curtains.”

  “You sound like this is your first house,” he said.

  “It is. I mean, it’s the first house that’s just mine. Not my parents’ or my husband’s or my boyfriend’s. This is mine, and I feel like I’m finally all grown up.” I shook my head. “I’ve been telling clients all through the years about the joy of owning their own home, about how much fun it would be, and how rewarding…I feel like I owe them all an apology. This is so much friggin’ work.”

  He sat back, looking relaxed and dapper. “At least you’ll know that pretty much your entire home will be brand new, so you won’t have leaking roof issues or crumbling foundation problems or electrical problems, plumbing problems—”

  I held up a hand. “Please, Stop. I can’t even think about dealing with any of that. How do people do it? Building a house? It’s torture!”

  He smiled. “Don’t think of it as building a house. Think of it as building…home. Then you’ll look at things differently.”

  I stared at the menu. “You’re right. Building home. I do like that better. And that’s what I’m doing. It’s part of a whole new life, one where it’s just about me. This is the first time in my life I’ll be living somewhere without having to think about some other person being there too. I can do what I want, when I want, and never have to ask or explain to anyone. It feels amazing.”

  “And where does Mike McCann fit into all this?”

  I sighed. I put down the menu. “I’m not sure. I did not move to Cape Edwards to find a new man, although Terri did dangle that in front of me as part of the bait to get me down here in the first place. Mike is…something very new for me. He’s a very interesting combination of things. He left high finance for construction, and he not only made a success in a tough field, he seems to love it. He’s got this good-ole-boy persona, but he’s really sharp. And he’s a desirable bachelor in a community of single women who would gobble him right up, but he’s managed to stay detached.”

  “Until now?” Judd asked. The waitress took our orders and I looked out the window, watching the passersby.

  “Maybe.” I looked at him. “I don’t think it’s just me. I think he’s got a few…feelings, but he’s not acting on them because Steve asked me out first.”

  “Oh. Yeah, that could be a problem.”

  “And when I turned Steve down, I told him that I just didn’t want any kind of relationship right now. And then, I had to tell the same thing to Mike, and now…”

  He whistled between his teeth. “You have totally screwed yourself over, haven’t you?”

  I sighed. “Yes. I don’t know what’s more exhausting, the house or figuring out what to do with Mike and Steve.” I looked at him. “What about you? How’s your love life?”

  He smiled crookedly. “I’m a gay man in a small southern town. Folks don’t mind my being gay, understand, because I look just like any average bald guy.”

  “Actually, Judd, you’re much more attractive than the average bald guy.”

  He flashed a smile. “Well thank you, I think so too.”

  “But?”

  “But nothing. I had a very serious relationship that ended about two years ago. I’m not interested in casual sex. I also believe that there’s a plan for my life, and if I’m meant to be with someone, it will happen. In the meantime, I’m not going to cruise gay bars. So I take pictures, enjoy my friends, and live vicariously through the complicated love lives of the fair citizens of Cape Edwards. And believe me, that’s exciting enough.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Well, at least I’m keeping you entertained.”

  We ate for a while in companionable silence.

  “So what are you doing about a job?” he asked.

  I sighed and sipped my seltzer. “It’s not an immediate concern, but I can’t spend all my time sitting on my porch watching tourists on Main Street.”

  “True. Especially since they’ll be all gone by September, and then you’ll be really bored. Try the MedCenter.”

  “I don’t know anything about medical billing or insurance.”

  He shook his head. “It’s not that kind of a job. I think they’re looking for an office manager.”

  “I could do that. Wow. My own house, and a job…just like a real grown-up.”

  He grinned and reached over to clink his glass against mine. “Happy adulthood.”

  “Amen to that, my friend.”

  On the way home I got a text from Marie, suggesting I meet her for Buck A Beer night at DeeDee and Jacks. I texted back a quick yes.

  “Wanna come with?” I asked Judd as we turned north off the Bay Bridge.

  He shook his head. “No, thanks. But I’ll drop you. I’m sure you can get a ride back.”

  A second text pinged a few minutes later, this time from Daniel.

  Just escaped Celeste God help me I need a drink where is the nearest bar????

  Where ru?

  RT31 heading south

  Stop just before the Methodist church and go into the building on left that looks condemned with all the cars out front. Meet u there in ten

  I grinned. “Daniel just now left Celeste. I’m directing h
im to DeeDee and Jacks.”

  Judd laughed. “Didn’t Mike say he went over there this morning?”

  “Yep. Poor Daniel. I bet she fed him.”

  He dropped me in front of DeeDee and Jacks. It was the kind of place the tourists drove past because they couldn’t imagine why anyone would voluntarily go in. The outside looked like a deserted airplane hangar. The inside wasn’t too many steps up from that, but the crowd was friendly and the food delicious.

  Tuesday drew a big crowd, but when I walked in I saw that Marie had snagged a corner booth and was sitting across from Karen and Stella. I went over and slid in.

  “Daniel is meeting me. He is in need of a drink.”

  “I’ve been filling the ladies on the situation,” Marie said. “He texted me all day, a barrage of legal questions about zoning and variances and designated green space. Celeste must have given him quite a tour.”

  “What a coincidence, his being just across the street like that,” Stella said, eyebrows raised.

  “And working so closely with Mike,” Karen added, throwing me a grin.

  I shook my head. “Ladies, you can dream all you want, but there’s no drama here. Daniel is a charming and lovely man. He is also something of a pompous ass. But above all, he is someone I am over. There’s no secret longing left, no gee, I wish moments.” I slapped my palms down on the tabletop. “I am done.”

  I looked up as the door slammed open, and Daniel stood, looking completely haggard and slightly wild-eyed. He saw me and closed his eyes, put his hands together in silent prayer, and came over.

  Stella scooched in to give him more room on her side of the booth. He sat gratefully and put his head down on the tabletop.

  I nudged him under the table with my foot. “Manners, Daniel. This Karen Helfman and Stella Blount, and you’ve kind of already met Marie here.”

  He lifted his head and nodded. “It’s a pleasure. Sincerely. Especially after…” He lowered his voice. “That woman.”

  DeeDee hurried over. Daniel followed my advice and did not wear a suit, but in his expensive jeans, hand-tailored shirt and Italian shoes, he did not look like a regular.

  “Welcome,” she said brightly. “What can I get you?”