NaughtyBoys Galley (3 page)

Later, when dinner was served, Luke, Nate, and Jamie ate like they’d not seen food in a week. I made my special buttermilk fried chicken, with cheddar cheese mashed potatoes and buttered greens—with plenty of extra.

For a moment, it felt like old times. The three of them had always been admirers, especially of my cooking, but they were no longer small boys. They’d grown up. The way they looked at me was different. When Jamie helped himself to a third helping of mashed potatoes and winked at me, somehow, I felt new trouble on the horizon.

I studied the food on my plate as my face heated.

I think the Codys were going to be more of a handful than I could handle.

Chapter Two

A week passed, and gradually, I became accustomed to the daily routine at the Cody house. Being a sheriff, Luke maintained irregular hours. He could come home at four in the morning and be called back to work at six. Jamie used to be an interpreter in the Air Force and was stationed in Seoul, Korea for a couple of years. These days, Jamie built houses and did general contractor work. He and his Air Force buddy had their own construction company. From what I heard, Nate had funded the start-up and managed the financial side of things. I think Jamie was doing pretty well.

Bellwood wasn’t like it used to be. Two companies had moved in and commissioned the farmers to grow engineered corn for bio fuel. On top of that, a mega-poultry processing plant was scheduled to open the following year. It would have a tremendous effect on Bellwood’s economy and housing market, as the plant was planned to run twenty-four-seven in three shifts. That was why Jamie’s company had been busy building affordable places for the workers to live. I also heard that Nate had a stake in financing Jamie’s projects. I supposed once the plant was opened, both of them would make a nice profit.

“Do you know the real estate value has gone through the roof in recent years despite the recession?” said Jamie as we drove to his construction site.

Jamie wanted to show me the building he was putting up, and today was the perfect time. I’d finished the laundry and had to go shopping for groceries. Nate was out running errands and nobody was home.

Jamie’s company had purchased three acres of land about a ten-minute drive from the plant. He was building a two-story apartment complex that his company planned to rent to lower-income workers. The project was only sixty percent finished, but the apartments were eighty percent reserved. Most of the units were studio apartments, anticipating that most workers had spending power. If this project was a success, Jamie planned to build a similar project on another chunk of land he’d just secured.

“I can imagine that with all developments I saw. Did you buy the land before the price bubble or after?”

“Luckily before. I thought we wouldn’t be able to secure the loan, but Nate has high-class connections. When the mayor made the announcement about the plant, we’d already closed on the property.”

“That’s very impressive, Jamie.”

“Yeah. Speaking of property value, do you know your old house is worth about three-quarters of a million these days?”

I almost choked on the gum I was chewing.

He glanced at me. “You okay?”

I nodded. I discarded the gum on a Kleenex and pocketed it for later disposal. “That’s a lot of money. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. The front yard alone extends to the main street. Plus it shares a fence with the school.”

“I heard the school offered to buy the old house for expansion. We got more kids coming to Bellwood, and the school wants to build more classrooms and a new gym.”

“Ah. I remember the gym was kind of run down.”

“It
was
rundown. The floor was uneven. The bleachers were a deathtrap. It got worse when I became a senior. One year, the gym floor was flooded, and we couldn’t use the gym for basketball anymore. We had PE on the courtyard after that.”

“Seems like a building hazard to me. They shouldn’t be using the gym at all.”

“My sentiments exactly. I don’t know what they do for gym these days. By the way, rumor has it that your Aunt Rebecca has been offered a cool half mil by school, but she flatly refused it. She asked for more.”

Five hundred thousand dollars for the house where I was born and raised. “I can’t blame her if the home’s value is more than that. Aunt Rebecca has always been a careful spender. I heard she managed mom’s finances after I moved out.”

“Doesn’t it bother you that your aunt’s taking over your parents’ house?”

I sighed. “It wasn’t my house anymore. My mom disowned me when I eloped with Sam. She didn’t even want me at her funeral.”

“But did she specifically cut you out of her will?”

“I assumed she did. Isn’t that what ‘disowned’ means?” I laughed. “Honestly, when I received the news that Mom had passed, I was financially secure, so I wasn’t thinking about that at all. Aunt Rebecca told me it was my mother’s wish that I shouldn’t attend her funeral, so I didn’t. But a week after that, me and Sam went to the cemetery to pay our respects and also visited Dad’s grave.”

Jamie’s forehead creased. “You came here, but you didn’t say hello to us?”

“I was with Sam, and he didn’t seem happy to come here even though his parents also live here. Sam said he was tired of his family bugging him for money. So we made our trip quick, incognito.”

“So much for Mr. Charitable.”

“Sam is quite a philanthropist, except with his relatives.”

“Are you planning on asking your aunt if your mom left you anything in her will?”

“I can’t do that. Aunt Rebecca won’t be happy if I start skulking around asking about the house.”

Jamie’s brows furrowed again. “Who cares about her happiness? If your mom didn’t specifically state that she left everything to your aunt, that house is yours. It might come in handy considering your current situation.”

I thought about it for a minute. That house wasn’t the childhood house I wanted to remember and cherish forever. Ever since Dad passed away, that house had been a prison to me. My mom had unconsciously guarded me like a Rottweiler with a bone, fearing one day I’d leave her too. But she didn’t realize the strength of my rebellious teenage tendencies, and she lost me sooner than she thought.

I couldn’t jump off the wagon and take my dibs on the house. My mother had gone to such lengths to prevent me paying my final respects to her—long before she died—she wouldn’t want me to do something that would make her roll in her grave.

“I don’t want the house,” I said firmly. “I walked away from Sam’s millions, and I’m not going to hassle my aunt now that I’m down on my luck. If push comes to shove and I don’t have anywhere to go, I could always go to a women’s shelter. I volunteered and did charity work for a women’s welfare foundation in New York for years. I’m sure they won’t deny me when I need their help.”

“That’s crazy talk!” Jamie looked scandalized. “I’d never let you out on the street like that. In fact, I’m kind of happy you don’t have anywhere else to go. That way, you’ll never leave us again.”

I frowned. “And you said
my
plan was a crazy talk.”

Jamie grinned.

My heart went pitter-patter. Damn! That boyish, mischievous smile of his. It wasn’t the smile I remember. Since when did he become so hot?

Unexpectedly, Jamie reached across to grab my hand and held it tightly. “I don’t want you to go. Ever. Again.”

The steadfastness in his tone touched me deeply. I’d lived a pretty sheltered life with Sam, and I wasn’t used to people’s kindness. But I was grateful. Lucky even.

“Uhm, I think at some point you have to let me go. Otherwise, how are we going to get out of the car?” I joked, wagging our hands.

Jamie squeezed harder. Another mischievous smile blossomed on the corner of his lips.

I looked away quickly as I felt my cheek heat up.

This was absurd. Why did I find his smile so freaking attractive?

The apartment complex was named
Charlene’s Garden
in honor of the Codys’ mother. The two-story building had a redbrick façade and special red roof tiles. They were designed with a minimalist style in mind but looked pretty classy for the apartment’s price range. I thought to myself that if my housekeeping job didn’t pan out for some reason, I might ask Jamie if I could be put on the tenant list.

We stopped at the onsite office, and he introduced me to his staff, but only one person was in the office.

Jamie put his arm around my shoulders casually. “Hey, Lisa, this is my girl, Simone. Simone, this is the office manager, Lisa. We’ll probably see Greg, he’s my partner, and Carlos, he’s our foreman, out back. We’re working on the drainage pond today with the welder subcontractor.”

I was oblivious to Jamie’s insinuation until I realized that the office manager saw me in a different way. “Oh, I’m the Codys’ new housekeeper. I used to be their babysitter a long time ago.”

Lisa smiled, but it didn’t seem she really believed I was a housekeeper. Perhaps I wasn’t dressed like people in that trade. I caught Lisa secretly scrutinizing the Burberry blouse I wore and the custom-made Saville Row loafers on my feet.

Before I left New York, I sold most of the high-ticketed items in my wardrobe on an online auction site and put the money aside as emergency savings. Selling expensive clothes to buy cheap ones seemed silly to me, so I kept what was left.

“So you’re
that
Simone. I heard a lot about you from Jamie,” said Lisa. “Are you currently living with him?”

I thought I detected an air of jealously from the girl. Lisa was quite an attractive young woman in her mid-twenties. She was a redhead with healthy freckles on her face. She wore minimal makeup and her beauty shone naturally. I liked girls who didn’t paint their faces like a mask. I wondered if she and Jamie had a history.

I smiled graciously. “It’s a live-in position. I have to take care the three of them and keep the house running—just like old times.”

“Ah, that’s nice. I also heard you’re quite a cook.”

“A cook?” Jamie butted in. “Simone is the Julia Child of domestic goddesses. I haven’t had excellent home-cooked meals in a long time. I might have to get a gym membership sometime soon to burn off the calories. Her peach cobbler is to die for.”

“It’s been his favorite dessert since he was little,” I hurriedly added to neutralize Jamie’s gushing compliment. Men could be insensitive at times. There was nothing worse for a woman than being indirectly compared to her rival about her cooking.

Lisa smiled along with us. She couldn’t fool me, though. It was a fake smile, and her eyes told a different story.

That girl didn’t like me one bit.

“Shall we get going then?” I reminded Jamie. I was afraid that a prolonged stay would only make the situation more awkward. “I still have to do the grocery shopping and prepare for dinner.”

“Oh, sorry. I’m just gonna grab my keys.” Jamie went to his desk and rummaged for something in a drawer. “Got ‘em.” He closed it with his knee and jangled the keys. “I’m going to show Simone the finished units. Tell Greg I’m taking the spare keys,” he said to Lisa.

“Sure,” she said.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Lisa,” I said with a hundred-megawatt smile.

“Same here,” Lisa replied with a smile just as fake as mine. “Drop by often. It gets lonely sometimes being the only girl in the office.”

“Of course. Thank you for having me.”

I was curious about Jamie’s relationship with Lisa as we walked onto the model units, but I didn’t ask the question. It wasn’t my business, and I had no right to ask it. Still, the curiosity lingered. Nate had dubbed Jamie the Bellwood heartbreaker. Just how many hearts had Jamie broken?

Jamie chirped happily about his project. I could tell this apartment complex was his baby. He wasn’t just after the profit, he wanted to provide people on low incomes with quality products that lasted. In the age of greed, it was refreshing to see someone who wasn’t corrupted by money. I was proud he’d turned out to be a good man with integrity. To see such a quality in a twenty-seven-year-old man was heartwarming.

He gave me the tour of the site as if I were a prospective buyer. We did a walk through of the finished units and visited the back area where they were going to build a playground for the children in the complex. The foundation had been dug and filled with sand and gravel. Next, they’d bring in swings, sliders, climbers, and even a mini zip-line. I could already imagine the laughter of the children going to brighten up this new community.

Before we wrapped it up, Jamie made a stop at the back where they were digging the drainage pond. Jamie introduced me to his partner and the foreman, and we exchanged pleasantries. While Jamie and his partner discussed something about work, I moseyed around to kill time.

Last night’s rain had hampered progress, and the big excavator had stopped working a while ago. The huge crater was filled with dark water that kept rising. I could see the drainage pipes that came from the direction of the complex, but I didn’t see any water coming from the pipes. My curiosity was piqued. Had the crew accidentally hit a spring-water source? That would be fabulous since spring water beat municipality water any time, right?

I edged closer to take a look, careful of the slippery grass. Movement on the ground caught my eye. From the tall weeds a few feet away, a huge rat darted toward me, running past my feet. I panicked, stomping my loafers, and before I knew it, I slid straight into the water with an epic splash.

Luckily, the drainage pond wasn’t too deep, and it only came up to my hips. But the shock of it made me splutter and cough like crazy.

Oh my God, this is silly. Falling into a ditch at my age? And I’m not even drunk.

A second splash burst out before my eyes.

As I struggled to wipe the water from my face, someone grabbed me.

“Jamie!” I yelped. My maternal instinct kicked in. “My goodness. Why did you jump in like that? Did you hurt yourself? Let me see.”

“Hey, that’s my line.” Jamie glared at me.

“Sorry.”