“I can’t remember that far back Billy. You do have a few years on me you know,” Caleb joked.
“Hey. Respect your elders there young man,” Billy warned, laughing. “I hate to leave you with this mess, but I have another customer waiting for me.”
“A break in?” Caleb asked.
“No. Locked their keys in the car…again.”
“Old Mrs. Jones?” he asked.
Billy nodded. “Twice a week like clockwork.
“Why don’t you just remove the auto lock on her car?”
Billy shook her head. “Then she’d have to lock herself out of the house.”
“You mean she does this on purpose?” Caleb asked.
He nodded. “And she always has coffee and some dessert waiting for me too. Guess she’s lonely and wants company.” Billy slapped Caleb on the back and said, “Maybe she can start breaking things and you can go fix them for her.”
“No thank you. I have plenty of real work to keep me busy.”
Just then Monique walked back down the stairs and joined them. “Hi. Do you work for Caleb?”
Billy laughed. “He couldn’t pay me enough.” He extended his hand and said, “I’m Billy, the locksmith. I don’t think we’ve met before.”
“Hi, I’m Monique.”
Billy gave him a wink and said, “You wouldn’t be related to Mrs. Jones, would you?”
Monique shook her head. “No. Not that I am aware of. Why?”
Caleb glared at Billy. Turning his attention to Monique he said, “Don’t mind him.”
“Worried I’m going to steal your girl?” Billy asked.
Caleb snarled. “She’s not my girl. She’s my customer and I’m here fixing up the place. Or will be once you leave.” Yes Billy. That’s a hint to go.
“I can stay if you need a hand.”
“No you can’t. Mrs. Jones is locked out of her car and you can’t keep her waiting,” Caleb reminded him.
Billy sighed. “Ya. I know. It was very nice meeting you Monique. If this guy gives you any trouble at all, you just call me and I’ll set him straight.” He pulled a business card out of his wallet and handed it to Monique. “I know his father really well too, so he better be a perfect gentlemen or”
“Goodbye Billy,” Caleb grumbled.
Monique chuckled as she took the card. “Thank you, but I’m sure I can handle him if he gets out of line.”
Really? Is that a challenge? Because you won’t win. Caleb waited till Billy left the building before saying, “I hope you don’t mind, but I had your locks changed.” He handed her the new set of keys. “And the door closes properly. The only time it should be open, is when you want it that way.”
“Thank you. I guess there is more that needs to be fixed than I had realized.” Monique sighed. “I should apologize. I shouldn’t have snapped at you like I did. I guess I’m…stressed. Being new here, I have mistakenly thought things would be different. I even have clients coming to the island for a retreat. How can they have confidence in me as a publisher, if I can’t even manage to keep my own property safe?”
“When are they supposed to arrive?” he asked.
“Ten days. Wait. It’s only nine now. And nothing has been resolved. Well, except for the fact my door locks.”
“It had to start somewhere. Can you do me a favor?” he asked.
“Please don’t tell me you have a manuscript you want me to read right now. I don’t think I have it in me to focus.”
Caleb laughed. “Don’t worry. I’m no author. The only thing I read is a menu. But I was thinking of something else.”
“What is that?”
“Trust me.”
“With what?”
“You want your authors to trust you to know what you’re doing right.” She nodded. Caleb added, “Then do the same for me. I’ll have this done in time for your writer’s thing. And if I don’t, then…I’ll do it for free.”
“You’re joking, right?”
Even though he should say yes, he wasn’t. “I mean it Monique. Consider this my welcome from the Vineyard that you should’ve received. But if I finish on schedule then”
“I owe you.” Monique crossed her arms and said, “I can’t figure you out. Either you’re a crazy fool, or the best damn contractor the Vineyard has.”
Maybe both. “Guess you’ll find out in eight days. Now if you don’t mind, the clock is ticking and I have some walls to rip down and prep.”
“And I have a book to review. Please let me know if you need anything.”
“I should be all set.” He turned and headed back out to his truck. It was going to be one hell of a long week, but there was no way he was about to eat the labor on this job. It just meant working early and staying late.
That’ll get Billy starting rumors for sure. At least Caleb knew the truth. This was business, nothing more.
3
Monique had put on her earphones and even turned up her music, but nothing was going to drown out the racket Caleb was making downstairs. It was important that she got through this manuscript and sent it back to the author this week. How could she hold the author to a deadline if she wasn’t meeting her own?
The last thing she wanted was to disturb Caleb while he was in the middle of something important, but there was only one way out of her apartment and that was going through her office. Once again, another poor plan as far as design.
Monique had been so excited to find someplace within her budget, that she obviously hadn’t thought things all the way through. If she had run her business like she did her real estate, she’d be in serious trouble. No one needed to know how badly she’d screwed up. No one ever would either if Caleb was as good as he said he was.
When she walked out of her apartment she stopped dead in her tracks. If she thought the place looked bad before, it should be condemned now. Granted, the spray paint on the walls were gone, along with the walls themselves. Monique might not know anything about construction, but this was definitely demolition.
“Hey, watch your step. There are boards with nails sticking up all over the place.”
Really? How can I miss them? I can’t even see the floor.
“This might sound like a dumb question, but how am I supposed to get out of here then?”
“I didn’t know you were leaving,” Caleb stated.
“A girl has to eat you know.” That wasn’t the only thing a girl needed, but she couldn’t afford to distract him with any other of her needs.
Her office might be in shambles, but there was a plus side. Caleb was one sexy contractor. She’d been fighting the urge to sneak a peek of him working all afternoon. Even now Monique found it difficult to concentrate on making her way through all the stuff on the floor. If she got hurt, it was going to be his fault. Caleb’s tool belt hung low on his hips and his t-shirt was pulled snuggly against his muscular chest. He must be warm working so hard without a fan. It might be a good idea if he took it off. Of course, that would only heat her up more than she already was.
“You look like you’re starving,” Caleb replied.
You have no idea. Monique bit the corner of her lip. This was ridiculous. She’d been around a lot of handsome men. Male models were part of the interview process when it came to book covers. So why was she having this intense of a reaction to him? Had it been that long since she’d had sex? Not really. It was less than a year. Just the last guy she dated was…horrible in bed. Monique even tried reading one of the romance books out loud to him, the juicy part, with hopes he’d learn a thing or two. But his idea of wild sex meant repositioning his elbows. There was so much more than missionary. Hell, if done right, it’d be a workout, that you couldn’t get at the gym.
This type of thinking sure as hell wasn’t helping any. She could feel her nipples harden. Thankfully, she’d worn a loose fitting top with ruffles. But she didn’t need to worry if he noticed her breasts, because one slip and she was tumbling down onto the very boards he’d warned her to avoid.
“Got you.”
You sure do. Although she felt secure in his arms, she needed to be put down. “I can manage on my own, thank you.”
“Not from what I saw.” Caleb said as he carried her through the rubble. “Besides, if I let you get hurt, who is going to pay me?” He said as he set her down on an open spot by the door.
That took all the romance out of it. A good reminder as to why he was there. Because I’m paying him. “Then I guess you might not want to make it quite so hazardous for me to walk through next time.”
Even though her tone had been a bit snippy, he didn’t seem bothered. “I’ll have this all cleaned up before you go to bed tonight.”
Monique asked, “Do you have someone here that I don’t see? Because this place…” Is a hot mess. She knew there were things which needed to be done, but Caleb seemed to be making more work for himself than needed.
“Nope, just me. I figured it was best to keep cost down for you after your little…mishap.”
Mishap? She wasn’t sure which one he was talking about. A contractor stealing her blind or someone breaking in and ruining what good there was about this place. Either way, he was correct. Money was getting tight. She had savings she could tap into if things got too bad, but that was a last resort.
“I appreciate that. But wouldn’t it have been easier to fix what was there?”
“I could. But I figured you’d want it done right. If not, you could’ve hired a hack,” Caleb said defensively.
She wouldn’t accept that from herself, so she shouldn’t from anyone else either. “Is there anything I can do to help?”
“Yes. On your way back, how about a large hot black coffee?”
She snickered. “I can manage that. Probably could swing a sandwich too if you’re hungry.”
“If I eat, I’ll slow down. When I’m finished tonight, I’ll grab something on my way home.”
No one home to cook for you? That’s a shame. She couldn’t believe some woman wasn’t at home waiting for him. Then again, he might be married to his work, just like she was. “Okay, one coffee coming up. I shouldn’t be gone that long. You have my number if anything changes.”
“That I do,” he said. Then he turned and started picking up some of the wood.
He so wasn’t into her. Hardly even looked at her. That’s fine. Probably better that way. Caleb was going to get this office complete and she probably wouldn’t see him again. Who was she kidding? This wasn’t a vacation. They both lived on the island. Bumping into people is why you lived here. You wanted to know your neighbors. Before leaving the building she tried one more time. “I’ll be at The Café. It’s the fisherman’s special tonight.”
That got him to turn around. “Are you trying to tempt me to stop working?”
“No. I am offering to wait for you if you’d like to join me. Maybe you could give me the inside scoop on the Vineyard.”
Caleb laughed. “You have Mary-Lou for that. But if you give me an hour, I can have this cleaned up enough for you to be safe to walk in.”
She nodded. “I can wait. Not sure I can make it back to my apartment though.”
Caleb didn’t even give her a chance to decline his offer. He walked over, scooped her up into his arms and carried her over all the splintered wood and nails. When he deposited her at the bottom of the stairs he said, “I better get to it, or it will be a peanut butter sandwich for me.” Monique watched as he began cleaning up the debris. Without turning to her he added, “I don’t need an audience either.”
Monique turned pink and then rushed up the stairs. Goodness, she could stare at him all day. Maybe I should do my work at the café from now on. Even with Mary-Lou’s constant chatter, it wasn’t as distracting as Caleb.
* * *
He had so much work to do at her office, but here he was, having dinner with her. And of all places, The Café. Mary-Lou must have walked over a dozen times to see if they needed anything. Her customer service was great, her pestering, well she excelled at that.
“Really. We don’t need anything else,” Caleb said, holding back his snarl.
“Should I reserve this table for you both tomorrow night?” Mary-Lou asked with a wide grin.
There was no way she didn’t miss the daggers from his eyes. Unfortunately, neither did Monique, because she was the one who replied.
“This is a one-time…meeting.”
Mary-Lou was overly dramatic as she slumped into the vacant chair at their table. “You can’t be serious. You two are enjoying yourselves. Besides, you both come in and eat alone all the time. Why not eat together? Think about my point of view. That is two tables I have to wait on. Two tables I need to clean afterwards. You’d be saving me time and energy if you’d just agree to share a table.”
He saw Monique roll her eyes and turn away biting her lip. If it wasn’t pissing him off so much, he might laugh as well. But Mary-Lou was pushing him past his breaking point. In a gruff tone he said, “Keep it up and you won’t need to worry about waiting on any tables here. Now go.”
Mary-Lou huffed but got up. “Good thing you already got your food Caleb. You know what they say about insulting the waitress.”
“That she might leave you alone?” he half joked. Mary-Lou wasn’t in the mood.
“Monique, if you need anything at all, just give me a shout and I’ll be happy to get it for you.”
“Thank you Mary-Lou, but I think we are all set.”
He was glad Monique wasn’t feeding into Mary-Lou. She didn’t need much encouragement to go overboard.
“Sorry about that. Mary-Lou doesn’t always know when to back off,” Caleb explained.
“I don’t know. I kind of like her.”
Caleb cocked a brow. “I’m afraid to ask why.”
Monique shrugged. “Maybe it’s because she is real. You don’t have to worry where you stand with her. I’ve seen her walk over and pour coffee and not say a word.”
“Guess we’re lucky because she doesn’t shut up.”
Monique chuckled and replied, “I can see how that might be too much after a long day destroying my walls.”
“I’m not destroying. I’m prepping.” Raising her brows as though she wasn’t buying it he added, “There is a difference even if you don’t see it.”
“Did I say anything?” she asked.
“You didn’t need to. Like Mary-Lou, you’re feelings are written all over your face.”
“You just met me yesterday and you think you can read me already?” Monique questioned.
He stared at her for a moment and answered simply, “Yes.”
Monique leaned back in her chair and stated, “Arrogant are we?”
“No. Confident.”
“Then what am I thinking right now?” she asked.
He wasn’t one who played games, but this was more like a challenge. That was something he never walked away from. Looking deep into her green eyes he thought long and hard. “Why I’m here with you.”
“Are you asking me?” Monique asked.
“No. That is what you’re thinking about. You want to know why I’m here with you tonight instead of working or at home.”
“You’re here because I invited you,” Monique stated.
“No. That is what you’re telling yourself so you don’t have to wonder if there is anything more than that,” Caleb replied.
“Okay. Add cocky too.”
“So you don’t want to know?” It was his turn to challenge her. He wasn’t blind. He’d seen her checking him out at her office. Hell, if her eyes had hands she’d have ripped his shirt off. Not that he had an issue with that. But he’d made a deal to have the work complete or it would be free. The last thing he needed was for her to know he found her equal
ly delicious to look at.
Thankfully she replied, “All I want to know is if you believe you’ll still have the work complete by the deadline.”
It was adorable how her cheeks turned a light pink and then several shades darker, even without him having to say word. Was it her own guilty thoughts that were betraying her? Oh he could have so much fun with her. And if I wasn’t her contractor I could. Thanks Mary-Lou. Why couldn’t he have met Monique under different circumstances? Why do I have to be so damn professional?
He knew why. Business always came first. In a firm and serious tone Caleb responded, “I have no doubts on what I’m capable of. And when I’m through, you won’t either.” He got up from the table and threw down enough money to cover both their meals and a hefty tip for Mary-Lou. “Now if you don’t mind, I’m going to head out. I’d like to get an early start tomorrow.”
Since he opted to take a long dinner break with Monique, that meant making up for lost time in the morning.
“How early should I expect you?” Monique asked.
“Six o’clock if that is okay?” He was always up at the crack of dawn. Her eyes widened and he asked, “Too early?”
“No. But I’m still getting used to the time difference. It’s funny how a few hours changes everything.”
“I could tell from your accent that you weren’t from where.”
She shook her head. “Born and raised in Colorado.”
“Island living is definitely a change from that.” Caleb had passed through there several times. He’d travelled the country when he was younger. His goal was to see all fifty states. He’d gotten close, only shy three. With any luck, next year he’d rectify that.
“Nothing wrong with change.”
“No there isn’t. Unless you’re talking about changing the plans you gave me. Then we’d have a problem,” he teased.
“Oh don’t worry. I can be fun and adventurous, but when it comes to my business, I’m tough as nails and don’t change my mind once it’s made up.”
Plug Me In Page 3