A Fresh Start (10 page)

He didn’t know what it was, but she smelled like she’d just came out from a spa.

He shook his head and followed Paige.

He shouldn’t be thinking about how warm she was or how nice she smelled. He shouldn’t be thinking about spending more time with her.

He was only there to help with the house until Travis was ready to return to work.
 

Then he would leave Pine.

There was no reason for him to remain here.

“Sure, that sounds like a good reason to celebrate,” Mr. Seymour said.

“You can pick the place.” Paige looked over her shoulder at him. “I haven’t had anything to eat in town.”

“There’s a pizza place.”

“Okay,” she chirped.

“Oh, why don’t you and Justin go ahead? We’re too old for a late night out,” Mrs. Seymour stated.

“It won’t be late. We’ll just have dinner at the pizza place in town.”

“But—”

“Please,” she begged. “You took me in and has been feeding me since I’ve been here. It’s the least I can do. It won’t run late, I promise.”

Mrs. Seymour shot a glance over at Justin, and he realized she was trying to get his support. He rolled his eyes and said, “Come along.”

“Oh, all right.”

“Great.” Paige grinned. “I need to call my brother. You guys go ahead, don’t wait for me.”

Justin watched as she went out the door, the brilliant smile still on her face.

“So, Travis still busy accompanying Amy? Surely he can get back to work already.”

“Have you seen Amy? She might go into labor anytime.”

When Travis had told him that he was ready to get back to work, Justin brushed it off and told him to accompany Amy with the same reason he’d given Mrs. Seymour.

Travis didn’t want to trouble him, but one false labor sent Travis into a fluster and he forgot all about Paige’s house.

“That doesn’t mean Travis has to be by her side every minute and second of the day,” Mrs. Seymour pressed on.

He grabbed the pot of coffee and poured some into his cup, then into Paige’s cup.

“And I thought someone was in a hurry to leave town. Said you’ll only be here for a day or two,” Mrs. Seymour added.

“You want me to leave Pine while Paige’s house is still in a mess?” he said, pouring some milk into Paige’s coffee.

“So you’re going to leave once Travis take over?”

“Are you sick of seeing me?” Justin retorted. “All these years, you keep bugging me to come home. Now that I’m back, you can’t wait for me to leave.”

“I didn’t say I want you to leave. I’m simply asking if you’re leaving.”

“You’re leaving?” Paige asked, closing the door behind her.

“No. Not when your house isn’t done,” Justin assured.

“Oh.” She picked up her cup of coffee and took a sip. “So you’ll leave once the house is done?”

“No,” he blurted.
Damn.
What was he thinking? Of course he was leaving, that was his plan all along.

The smile returned to her face, and she nodded.
 

“Really?” Mrs. Seymour asked with an arched brow. “That’s a surprise.”

Justin shot her a glare.

“But you’re supposed to work on some of the houses over at Cheyenne, right?” Paige asked.

“If I stay there, I’ll have to pay for the hotel. Might as well stay at my own house.” He stared at Mrs. Seymour, expecting her to add another scathing remark.

“That sounds absolutely logical,” Mrs. Seymour said and smiled at him.

After breakfast, they went back to Paige’s house. He began to lay the hardwood floor boards while she sat cross-legged on a step of the stairs with her laptop and an IKEA catalogue.

He glanced over occasionally. Each time, he would find her eyes glued to the screen. Her level of focus was exceptional. She didn’t fidget about or go into a daydream.
 

She sat there, her eyes on the screen, the whole time he was working on the floor.
 

When he was done, he walked over and found her clicking away on her phone. He sat beside her while she continued churning out numbers on it.

“What are you calculating?” he asked and peered over at her laptop. He knew she was buying IKEA furniture online; wouldn’t the shopping cart do all the calculations for her?

“The installation fees.”

“For what?”

“For everything. I don’t even have a hammer or a screwdriver.”

“I have all of that.”

“Even if you lend me all the tools, I doubt I can fix up the cabinets and all. I don’t want things falling down on me. It’s better to let them do it.”

Justin sighed and pulled the phone from her hands. “I’ll do it.” He looked at the screen and continued. “For a much cheaper price than this.”

“Are you sure?”

“It’ll still cost you.”

She broke into a grin. “And how much will it cost me?”

“Dinner.”

“I’m already treating you dinner tonight.”

“Not tonight, of course. Another dinner.”

She licked her lower lips and placed the catalogue down beside her. With a flick of her fingers, a spreadsheet with a list of furniture along with their prices appeared.

“I’m ordering the kitchen cabinets, my wardrobe, cabinets for the bathroom, furniture for my bedroom and study, and stuff for the living room.” She turned her laptop screen toward him. “You’re going to fix all this up for one dinner?”

“Hmm,” he narrowed his eyes, “then how many dinners do you suggest?”

She chuckled softly. “Justin, it’s a lot of work.”

“Five dinners, then.”

“No, I’m paying you. I insist.”

“I thought you have a budget.”

Paige rolled her eyes. “I’m trying to be prudent, but I’m not absolutely broke. I’d two very well-paying jobs, I do all right.”

Two jobs?
Most people only had to do that when they’re getting minimum-wage. He stared at her, studying her expression. Again, he was all curious about the past she had left behind, but he had promised he’d stop prying into her past.
 

“Travis got me here to fix up your house; he’s getting paid for that. This,” he said, pointing to the laptop, “this is me volunteering my service. I have plenty of money, I don’t need more of that from you.”

“And with all that money you can’t buy your own dinner?”

“Five dinners. And those junk in your fridge doesn’t count.”

“They’re not junk. They’re tasty. You said you like the four cheese pizza.”

“I said it tastes good. I didn’t say I like it.”

“So you don’t like things that taste good?”

He reached over and took the catalogue she’d set on the floor. “Show me what you’re getting.”

She leaned over and searched for the pages she had folded down, pointing out the ones she was intending to get. Again, her spa-like scent floated toward him as he breathed in.

His arm twitched and he tightened the grip on the catalogue. Instinctively, he wanted to put his arm over her shoulder and pull her closer.

Pushing her hair behind her ear, she said, “I’m thinking of getting them in all the same color, easier to match them that way.”

He took in another deep breath.

“What do you think?” She turned to him and waited for his reply.

He blinked, snapping out from his trance. “Yeah.” He nodded, not really knowing what he’d answered.

She nodded, then flipped on toward the back of the catalogue. “Here’s my real problem. I don’t really know what I’m looking for.”

He looked down at the book that had been turned to the kitchen section.

“Should I get the hydraulics for the drawers and all? And there are
so
many types of handles.”

Justin grinned. He enjoyed being the one she looked to for help.

He couldn’t quite understand why, but it made him feel good.
 

He explained to her all the pros and cons of the small components and helped her with the online planning of the kitchen.

Only after everything was settled, did she stretch and sigh softly.
 

He stood from the steps and pulled her to her feet. “I’ll head home for a shower, see you in a while.” He almost leaned over and kissed her, but caught himself before he did anything crazy.

“Okay.” She opened the door for him. “See you later.”

A gust of wind rushed in through the door, causing her hair to wrap around her neck. He reached over and pushed her hair over her shoulders before he knew what he was doing.

Paige’s eyes widened for a moment, her lips parting.

He dropped his hand and said, “I’ll see you later.”

“Yeah.”

They turned from each other; he headed over to his car while she closed the door behind him. He went home and took a shower, refusing to think about what was wrong with him.

When he got back to the Seymours, Paige was already inside. She stood in a black sleeveless top and jeans, holding a gray cardigan in one hand and a small black clutch in the other. “And this?” she asked Mr. Seymour as she picked up a photo frame. “This looks recent.”

“Oh, this was when we went on the cruise last year.”

She bit down on her lips as a giggle escaped. “I didn’t think you’d own such a shirt.”

Justin grinned and strode up behind Paige. He remembered that shirt. Mrs. Seymour thought it was necessary for Mr. Seymour to own a Hawaiian shirt since they were on a Hawaii cruise. “It wasn’t his choice.”

Paige turned to him. “You’re here.”

That was when he realized she didn’t jump at his voice, at the closeness of his sudden presence. She hadn’t done so for a while now.

Since working together on the house, she seemed to have gotten used to him being around. She laughed again as she set the photo down.

“I should hide the photo somewhere else.”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to laugh. It’s just you look so different.”

“I think, it’s a very nice picture,” Mrs. Seymour stated as she came down the stairs, wearing one of her Sundays ensemble.

“It is. And it belongs right here.” Paige laughed again, softly, as she turned back to him. “Why weren’t you wearing one of those shirts?”

“Because I’d rather jump overboard than get caught in a picture with that shirt.”

“Aah…”

He grinned, glad that he hadn’t made things between them uncomfortable.
 

“Shall we?” Mrs. Seymour asked. “Victor will drive.”

“I drove here; I can drive us there.”

“No, no. Victor will drive.”

Justin shrugged and trotted out behind Paige. When they got to the car, he stepped forward and opened the door for her, then got in after her. Paige shifted into the car and moved to the other side while he stayed on his, leaving some space between them.

Throughout the drive, Paige kept her eyes on the streets.

“What are you looking at?”

She broke into a smile and glanced over her shoulder. “Nothing.” Prying her eyes from the window, she angled her torso toward him. “Just a habit.”

“Habit?”

“Yeah, my dad used to play this memory game with Andrew and me. He’d test us on the roads and landmarks that we passed by on a trip somewhere. Andrew and I were really into it. It sort of became a habit, I guess.”

“Then why do you need a GPS in your car?” Mr. Seymour asked.

She grimaced. “I usually remember the route once I’ve driven there, but I can’t read the map for the initial directions.”

“You don’t know how to read a map?” Justin asked.

“I do. It just takes some time. I don’t know how people figure out where they’re supposed to go while having to drive and watch out for the traffic at the same time.”

They all laughed. Justin leaned over to Paige unconsciously. Again, thoughts of pulling her into his arms and kissing her dominated his mind.

He closed his eyes and pulled himself back, shifting to stick his back against the door. He wanted to leave as much space between them as he could.

But when they got to the restaurant, the Seymours got into one side of the booth, leaving the other side to Paige and him.

He stepped aside and allowed Paige to slip in before sitting beside her.

After placing their orders, she rubbed her hand against her arm and looked around her.

“Where’s your cardigan?” he asked.

“In the car I think. I had it with me when I got into the car, right?”

“I think so. I’ll check it for you,” Justin said, already stepping out from the booth.

Paige slid across and grabbed his arm. “It’s okay, I’ll get it.” She stood and asked, “Mr. Seymour, can I have the keys?”

“It isn’t locked.”

Justin tried to hide his grin, angling his face away from Paige.

That habit reinforced his belief that she was from New York. Not only did she lock her car each time she stepped in and out of it, she always locked her house’s door whenever she went over to have breakfast or dinner over at the Seymours.

She would still lock the door even when he was there with her in the house.

She frowned when she saw his smile but didn’t question him. “I’ll be right back.”

He had barely gotten back into his seat when he heard a series of click-clops getting louder.

“Hi, Justin. The new girl finally let you out from the house?”

Justin’s nose twitched at the overpowering sweetness of Gloria’s perfume. His hand curled into a fist and he moved it under his nose, hoping to filter out some of the stench.

He peered out from the booth and toward the door, not bothering to reply Gloria.

“She’s trying very hard to snatch you up, isn’t she? She pretended to be all protective over you when we were talking to her the other time.”

“You mean when you were gossiping about Justin,” Mrs. Seymour corrected.

He turned to Mrs. Seymour. Since Paige always went to church with Mrs. Seymour, how did the Bradleys and their allies manage to sink their claws into her? “What happened?”

“We were merely asking about you when she behaved as if you were her property.” Gloria moved to sit beside him.

He remained seated where he was, refusing to move in to make space for her.

Unable to balance from the lack of space, she stood and adjusted her tight dress. “I’ll leave you all to your dinner, then,” she said curtly.