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Before he could come up with an answer, she continued. “We can discuss what might work well when we get further into this. As soon as I finish with measurements and a few more pictures, I’ll start working on some ideas.”
He hadn’t expected it to be so easy. Maybe that meant it would be over quickly. “Okay. Sure.”
She gathered her papers together and hooked her big bag over her shoulder. “I’ve always loved this house.”
Having no memory of her coming to the Walker ranch, he looked at her to see if she was joking. She wasn’t. “I guess I don’t remember.”
“It was a long time ago, but I’ve been here.” She looked out the window where a row of trees lined the lane and continued on to the outbuildings. “When we were in eighth grade, both classes came out here for a hayride.” She turned to look at him. “Don’t you remember?”
He couldn’t even drag up a foggy memory of it. That didn’t surprise him. He’d blocked so many things from his childhood, after the accident. “Sorry, no, I don’t.”
“Oh.”
“There’s a lot I don’t remember. After—” He shook his head, unable to continue.
“Now I’m the one who’s sorry.”
“No reason you should be.” They stood in an uncomfortable silence, until he finally broke it. “When do you think you’ll be finished?”
“With the job?” she asked. “That depends on how much you want done.”
It didn’t matter to him, as long as it satisfied his sister and he was left alone. “Whatever you and Erin talked about.”
“A couple of months. Maybe more.”
He didn’t like the sound of it. “That long?”
She looked around, as if trying to get her bearings. “I could hire some extra help.”
“That’s okay. Whatever it takes.” She didn’t seem to understand that it wasn’t him she had to please but his sister. Even if he was the one who was paying for it.
Her head bobbed in a nod. “I’ll just get those measurements....”
When she’d gathered her things and walked into the dining room, he blew out a long breath. He only hoped he wouldn’t be running into her every time he turned around. The sooner she could get the job done, the better. And then his life would get back to normal. Quiet, uninterrupted and without Glory Andrews in it.
Chapter Two
Even before the sun had slipped into the sky the next morning, Glory was out of bed and eager to start work. Anticipation rippled through her as she drove out of town, headed for the Walker ranch and her first job. She was finally coming into her own, ready to prove her worth, not only in the decorating world, but in life. It was past time, and she was excited.
She was less than two miles from the ranch when doubts started tiptoeing into her thoughts. When he stopped in the shop the day before, Dylan hadn’t been any more eager than when she’d first told him his sister had hired her. Having no idea what he did or didn’t like could be disastrous, and guessing wasn’t necessarily a good thing. She didn’t know his tastes in types of furniture or even his favorite color. If she knew him better... But she didn’t, and she hadn’t gotten the impression that he was going to be forthcoming with any information.
Glancing next to her at the stack of binders and the large portfolio containing photos and sketches that would provide the inspiration needed, she took a deep breath.
“I can do this,” she announced in the silence of the car. It helped a little and as she slowed to turn into the long lane that led to the Walker house, she felt a familiar confidence wash over her. Yes, she could do this.
After climbing out of the car, Glory looked around and spied what she guessed was Dylan’s truck near the big barn in the distance. Although she felt fairly certain he wouldn’t be any more pleasant than he had been the day before, she walked in that direction so she could let him know she’d arrived.
Determined to remain positive and friendly, she stepped out of the sunshine and through the large open doors at one end of the barn. Once inside, she waited until her eyes adjusted to the dim interior of the cavernous building.
“Oh, there you are,” she said when she spotted him. “You know, this barn looks even bigger from the inside. Was it built about the same time as the house?”
He didn’t bother to do more than glance at her. “Yeah, it’s one of the oldest barns in the area that’s still standing.”
“Things were built well back then. Not so much now,” she said, sighing. “We’ve made everything disposable. I’ll take the old over the new.” She felt him watching her, but he said nothing. Somehow she needed to discover what he might like her to do with his house. After all, that was why she was there—not to make conversation.
“I was thinking I wouldn’t do as much work upstairs,” she continued. “Maybe just freshen the paint and some other basic things.” When he didn’t comment, she hurried on to add, “But if you’d like more done—”
“None of those rooms have been used since Luke built the new house for Kendra.”
Having learned from her grandmother that his brother’s marriage had ended abruptly, two years earlier, leaving Luke with a baby son to raise, she understood the hint of animosity in Dylan’s voice. She also knew Luke and his new fiancée were in the wedding-planning stage, but Dylan didn’t seem willing to say more.
Ignoring the awkward moment, she took a step back, ready to get to work. “I’ll go on up to the house, then.”
“It’s unlocked.”
Smiling, she nodded. “Yes, I don’t doubt it. Only here in the rural areas do people leave their houses unlocked. In the city, that’s an open invitation to thieves.”
When he didn’t respond, she gave a small wave and turned to leave. Once she was outside, she breathed a sigh of relief and hurried to her car, where she unloaded the things she’d need for the day.
She chose to work in the dining room, hoping that doing so would keep her out of Dylan’s way. Unpacking, she sorted and stacked her material on the long dining table. Then she opened the door into an enclosed stairwell and climbed the stairs to the second floor. Her notes from the day before were hastily scribbled, and she double-checked the measurements of the upstairs rooms.
When she returned to the dining room, she found Dylan standing near the table, her drawings from the folders in his hands.
He looked up as she came farther into the room. “Is this what you’re going to do?”
She wasn’t sure if he’d understand that they were simple sketches. “Yes and no,” she said, watching his face as he studied the pictures.
“You could do this?” He pointed to a photo of a kitchen she’d found.
Still unsure, she gave a small nod. “Something similar, yes. Do you like it?”
He shrugged and replaced the papers and pictures on the table. “It’s okay.”
“Those are just ideas,” she hurried to say. “I hadn’t really decided on anything, so if you don’t like—”
“Never said I didn’t.”
The deep timbre of his voice took her breath away, and she ignored it. At least she now had an idea of what he might like to see in the way of changes. Unable to stop her smile, she let her enthusiasm carry her away. “I have more pictures and ideas for the other rooms. Do you want to see them? We can go over them, and you can choose the ones you like.”
He shook his head and shoved away from the wall. “No reason to do that.”
Her smile died along with her excitement, while a sinking feeling replaced her enthusiasm. Gathering some papers in the hopes of appearing more professional than she felt at that moment, she searched for something to say, with no luck.
“Look,” he said, “I wouldn’t be doing this if—” He lowered his head, shaking it.
Glory thought of what Erin had told her about Dylan still having a hard time with the memory of losing their mom and dad. She couldn’t blame him. She could still remember when it happened, a few weeks before graduation. Dylan had looked so sad and lost as he’d walked across the stage of the high school to accept his diploma. Like many others, she’d had tears in her eyes and reminded herself that, no matter how hard things sometimes were for her at home, it was nothing like what he was going through.
“Yes, okay,” she said. “I’ll do my best.”
“So you think you can do it? In two months?”
Her spirits lifted. “I’m sure I can. You won’t even recognize the place when I’m done.” Her mind raced with ideas. “I’ll work on a few more sketches and make a list of supplies I’ll need to have delivered. There will be a lot of changes, and they won’t be quick. New cabinets and counters in the kitchen—”
“Whatever works.”
Her heart sank again, and she tried to gather her wits. He didn’t care or at least he pretended not to, and she needed to accept that. This wasn’t the way she had imagined her first decorating job would be, but she’d find a way to do it, whether he was involved or not. She needed to be a success, and this was her chance.
“Just how much am I paying you for this?” he asked, breaking into her thoughts. When she named a figure she’d roughed out, his dark, heavy eyebrows drew together over his green eyes. “That much?”
Panic hit, but she squared her shoulders. His sister had assured her that she’d be well paid, no matter what he said or did. Lifting her chin with all the pride and determination she could gather, she said, “If you think it’s too much, maybe we should—”
“Is it?”
For a moment, she was totally taken aback. “No,” she said. “No, it isn’t. Certainly not in today’s market.”
“Will you be here tomorrow?”
“First thing in the morning,” she said. “If that’s all right.”
He looked away. “Whatever works for you. I don’t care.”
When he didn’t say more, she took a step back. “I don’t know exactly what time I’ll be here.”
“It’s always unlocked.” Without saying anything else, he disappeared into the kitchen.
She heard the sound of his boots on the floor and the screen door closing. Although she was a little shaken, she decided she’d handled their little encounter fairly well. She would have to get used to the fact that he obviously didn’t have much to say, unless he thought it was important. That was all right with her. She didn’t need the distraction. Getting involved with someone again was the last thing on her mind, no matter how green his eyes were.
Later, when she’d finished looking over each of the rooms again and making copious notes she probably wouldn’t use, she climbed into her car and drove away. When she pulled out onto the paved road, headed for town, she took her cell phone from her purse and hit an autodial button. “Erin?” she said when a young woman answered. “I wanted to let you know that I’ve begun work on the house.”
“Wonderful!” Dylan’s sister replied. “I know you’ll do a terrific job and I can’t wait to visit the first chance I get. Is he cooperating?”
Glory wasn’t quite sure how to answer. “Well, he didn’t throw me out.”
Erin laughed, and they talked for a few more minutes about what Glory planned to do. When the call was over, she hoped Dylan would be happy with the changes, too. But it was hard to tell much of anything about him.
* * *
“WHO’S THAT?” LUKE ASKED.
Standing in the opening of the big barn, Dylan looked out to see Glory’s car coming up the lane. Before he could answer, a pickup with Mercer’s Hardware painted on the door turned into the lane behind it.
Luke took a step outside. “So you’re really going to do some work on the house?”
Turning to his brother, Dylan shrugged. “I told you that Erin said I needed to do something. Renovate, fix it up, whatever.”
“Well, yeah, but I didn’t know that meant you were going to go through with it.” Luke was silent for a moment as they both watched the vehicles come to a stop near the screened-in porch. “Wait a second,” he said when Glory climbed out of her car and walked over to the pickup. “She doesn’t work at Mercer’s.”
“No, she—”
“Hey, that’s Glory Caldwell.”
“Andrews.”
Luke turned to him. “What?”
“Used to be Caldwell. She married Kyle Andrews.”
“Oh, yeah,” Luke said, turning back to watch what was going on. “So they’re back in town?”
“I guess.” But Dylan didn’t know for sure. She still hadn’t mentioned anything about her husband. Not that there was any reason to.
“You’d think we would have heard they were back. From what I remember of Kyle, he wasn’t shy about tooting his own horn.”
“Yeah, that was Kyle.” But Dylan hadn’t been surprised when Glory married the guy. After all, she was the Prom Queen and Kyle had been the King. Everybody said they belonged together. Dylan hadn’t questioned that. He’d just watched her from afar, like all the other guys had. Watching was all he’d done. There’d been no foolish ideas about asking her out. He’d known better, even then.
“Why is she here?”
Dylan wasn’t real happy about having to answer the question, but he couldn’t ignore it, so he hedged. “She has a decorating business.”
Luke looked at him. “Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
“In Desperation?”
Dylan was getting tired of answering questions. “Yeah, in that building her grandmother still owns. The one with her grandfather’s workshop in the back.”
“And she’s doing the decorating stuff here, at your house?”
Not that he wanted to, but Dylan nodded.
Glory had walked around to the back of the pickup with the driver, who was unloading several gallons of paint, along with some boxes. While the driver took the buckets toward the house, she walked in the opposite direction, stopped and lifted her hand to her eyes. She was looking for him.
Dylan had planned to be absent when she arrived. In fact, he’d decided it might be best to stay clear of her as much as possible, considering that he never felt quite like himself when she was around. But when he saw her wave, there wasn’t a whole lot he could do.
“Go on,” Luke said. “I’ll meet you at the house in a minute. I need to fill my water jug.”
“Why should I?”
On his way to grab his jug from the back of his pickup, Luke stopped and looked back. “Because she probably needs to talk to you.”
“No, she doesn’t.”
Luke didn’t move. “It’s your house.”
“Right.”
“You make the decisions about what happens with it.”
