Seaglass (4 page)

No, there was definitely no time for women. He had too much to worry about just making it through each day. No, definitely no women. Or woman. Especially not a woman with legs that went on for miles and eyes like blue seaglass.

xXx

As luck, or fate, would have it, Jerry needed his help. Jerry Oppenheimer, an old friend of his father’s had let Knox be his apprentice when he was just a teenager. Jerry had taught him well and then he’d surpassed his old teacher.

Of course Jerry knew about his eyes, but unlike most everyone else in town, he took it in stride. Maybe that had something to do with his brothers. The three Oppenheimer boys had gone off to fight in Vietnam. One came home in a body bag, one came home in a wheelchair and one came home healthy. Jerry had felt guilt for being the healthy one ever since. When his brother Jeff committed suicide ten years after the war ended, his guilt doubled.

Now, he let Knox into the condo and together, they began the process of reframing the archway.

“Can’t say I see the fuss with this thing.” Jerry commented as they scribed the template onto the boards that were to be the new arch.

“It’s modern, old man.” Knox laughed.

“I guess.” He muttered as he tapped the forms into place. “Too much math for me. I like things simple. “She’s particular. But she knows her mind. I’ll give her that. No wishy-washy, mind-changing on that girl.”

“Madeline?”

“Yeah, Madeline.”

“Where is the mistress of the castle, anyway?”

Jerry let out a long laugh. “Gone to pick up some kind of fancy heated towel rack.”

“Oh.”

Jerry stopped what he was doing and looked over at the man that had once followed him around like a lost puppy. “She’s single, you know.”

“Subtle, Jerry.”

“What’s so difficult? She’s single. You’re single. She’s attractive. You’re not as good lookin’ as me, but you’ll do.”

Now Knox laughed. “Nobody slays the ladies like you.”

Jerry smiled and got back to work. “I’m just sayin’, she’s got something.”

Knox didn’t respond, but he agreed with Jerry. As much as he tried to not think about Madeline, his mind continued to wander back. He wondered about the long-legged ‘odd bird’, as his sister had dubbed her.

Another hour later, the drywall was up and the edges were being trimmed as Madeline came bursting through the door.

“Oh wow.” She stopped and dumped her packages. “It’s absolutely perfect.”

Knox felt ridiculously happy to hear the pleasure in her voice.

“Not bad if I say so myself.” Jerry answered, proudly snapping his suspender straps. “It’s very modern.”

Knox rolled his eyes. “Yeah. Jerry’s got a real eye for the modern details.” He mumbled under his breath and received a good-natured slap to the back of the head.

Madeline watched the two men interact with interest. Knox had mentioned that he’d worked with Jerry before, and clearly there was respect and camaraderie between the two men.

“Can I offer anyone a drink? I have water, or soda?”

“I’d love water and the boy here is addicted to soda. You don’t happen to have Dr. Pepper?”

Madeline laughed as she made her way to the fridge. “No Dr. Pepper, but I have Cherry Coke. Will that work?” She called out.

“Yeah. Perfect.” Knox laughed.

She came back in and handed Knox his drink. She watched as his large hands with their slender fingers easily popped the top. She turned to hand Jerry his water.

“Wow. What happened?” Jerry blurted as his eyes landed on her scar.

Madeline immediately felt the urge to put her arm behind her back. “Oh, it was an accident a few years ago.” She mumbled.

“I’m sorry—that was impolite. I didn’t mean—“Jerry stuttered.

“It’s fine. Really.” Madeline answered shyly. She knew she should have a better answer ready, but she didn’t want to lie either. She cast her eyes downward, unwilling to look up and see revulsion in Knox’s face.

After an awkward moment of silence, Knox finally broke the tension. “We’re mudding next and then it’ll be ready for sanding and paint in twenty-four hours.”

“Great. I can handle the paint, myself.”

“I figured you’d say that.” Jerry laughed. “I never met a gal like you before. No offense.” He quickly added. “She can wire a house like a pro.” Jerry told Knox.

“Is that so?” He asked as he drank deeply.

“I’m no pro, but I can handle the basics.”

“She did all the plumbing too.”

Madeline didn’t know why Jerry was suddenly her personal resume supplier, but she was getting embarrassed.

“You’ve got a background in home repair?”

“A little.” She moved away from the men and back toward the packages she’d dumped by the door. “I’ve got a bunch of odds and ends for the bathrooms, so I’d better get everything prepped. Kayla will be by with the photographer on Friday and I want to be ready.”

“Okay, then. I’ll let myself out when I’m done mudding. I’ll be over to sand tomorrow morning.” Jerry said.

“Great. Oh, and Knox? Can you send me a bill for your work today?”

“No charge.”

“But—“

“Really. It’s just a friend helping out.”

Madeline nodded and moved quickly up the stairs. She could feel the moisture gathering and the absolute last thing she wanted was to start crying in front of the two men. She didn’t know why her emotions seemed so close to the surface lately, but she needed to lock them down. After her self-imposed “year of solitude”, she thought she’d be ready to move on with life. It seemed the exact opposite was happening. Every new connection seemed to conjure up sad memories.

Downstairs, Knox and Jerry finished up the taping and began mudding the seams of the newly installed arch.

“I feel terrible I blurted that out. I didn’t mean to—“

Knox grunted his reply as he reloaded his trowel.

“I think she got a little emotional. I hope I didn’t cause it.”

“Maybe it was the new towel bars.” Knox deadpanned.

Jerry laughed a little. “You could be a comedian. You know that?”

“Well, I sure as hell can’t be a contractor.”

Now it was Jerry’s turn to be silent. Only the sound of their trowels scraping along the sheetrock interrupted the silence. Finally, Jerry couldn’t take it anymore.

“Don’t talk like that, Knox. You hear me? You don’t let this get you down.”

Knox swallowed hard and remembered the pain and loss his mentor and friend had suffered. It was a full minute before he could trust himself to speak. “I’m okay, Jer.”

“Well, you’re not okay yet. But you will be.”

xXx

Madeline did a little spin around the living room. Today, she didn’t look like a construction worker. Today she wore her best summer outfit. It wasn’t a flowing summer dress like Kayla, but still, it was pretty girly for her. A short floral skirt in blue and white and a white tank top with a thin white cardigan sweater over it. Her long hair was tucked up into a ponytail that she’d straightened with a flat iron.

Now, it was show time. Or, as Kayla put it, “time to get the hell out of here and let me do my job.”

Now that it was almost time, she didn’t know why she’d gotten so dressed up. Well, she’d assumed she’d be needed to help Kaya run the open house, but apparently a homeowner on the premises was a big no-no.

She grabbed her keys and walked back into the kitchen in time to see Kayla setting up an artfully decorated bowl of granny smith apples.

“It accents the tiles of the backsplash.” She said without looking up.

“Oh. If you say so.”

“Maddie, you’ve handled just about every detail. Let me take it from here.”

Madeline smiled at the casual use of her nickname. For whatever arbitrary reason, her father had been insistent that no one ever shorten her name. Whenever someone had called her ‘Maddie’, she’d have to correct them. Now, she decided she liked it and she especially liked hearing it come from Kayla. Maybe she’d use Kayla’s services again on her next flip after all.

Currently, the tiny blonde dynamo had now moved onto to setting out placemats and dishes on the breakfast bar. She did something amazingly complicated with the cloth napkins that had them standing up straight.

“Okay. I’m leaving.”

“Wow. You look great.”

Madeline stopped and turned to see that Kayla was staring at her. “Oh. Thanks.”

“I mean, you always look great, but it’s nice to see you dressed up.” Kayla added as she went back to designing the table setting.

Madeline didn’t know what to say. Was Kayla being serious? “Um, I guess I’d better go.”

Kayla laughed. “Yep. Time to scoot. Hopefully I’ll have good news for you afterwards.”

Madeline smiled and let herself out of the condo. She had her keys in her hand, but decided to walk instead. Maybe she’d stroll through the town and stop in the little café for a bite to eat. She’d spent most of her time in Touchstone holed up in her little project house, and that had been just fine with her. Now, though, the longing for more human interaction was stirring. She’d met Kayla and the woman had burst into her life like a comet. And there was Knox too. She couldn’t lie to herself. She’d let her mind wander back and revisit that lanky frame and sharp jawline. It didn’t matter, really. It was just nice to think about.

Madeline checked her watch. It was after 1:00 pm now so the Open House was well underway. The butterflies in her stomach beat wildly. Would she actually sell this condo for enough profit to be able to afford to buy a bigger and better flip? She was putting a lot at risk. If the condo didn’t sell, the carrying costs would eat away at her profit margin. She had just about every cent invested and the thought of failing made her palms sweaty. Suddenly the idea of spending ten dollars for lunch at the café didn’t seem like the best idea. She could hold out until 4:00 pm when the Open House ended and then go home and eat.

For the time being, the library seemed like a good place to spend a few hours, but Madeline was dismayed to see that it was closed on Sundays. She trotted down the brick steps of the old stately building with absolutely no idea where to go or what to do. She checked her watch again. 1:30. Well, there was always the old movie theater on Broad Street. They showed classic black and white movies in the afternoon for $2.00. Madeline laughed at herself and decided that she could handle the two dollar price tag and might even spring for some popcorn.

Sinking into the slightly tattered red velvet seat, she felt herself relax. The opening notes of music began to soar from the crackling speakers as she settled in for a showing of It Happened One Night, starring Clark Gable. She’d seen the movie before, but today the irony seemed fitting. Ellie, played by the alluring Claudette Colbert, was a spoiled heiress running away from her family.

Madeline thought about the similarities in her own life. Was she running away? It didn’t feel like running, but starting over. She wasn’t an heiress by any stretch of the imagination, but she’d left a powerful and successful family. While she’d agreed to live by their rules, she’d had material things. A nice home, a nice car, money in her bank account. And of course she’d had the strings that were attached to everything.

Now, in the darkened theater, she finally let the tears come. She’d learned that her subservience was required in order to keep her lifestyle and that realization had shocked her like cold water to the face. She wasn’t for sale. She didn’t need things to be happy. She’d had things, and she definitely hadn’t been happy.

Gambling almost all the money she had to her name was terrifying, but, she reminded herself, if she failed, she was still employable. Granted, she still didn’t have a college education, but she could get by. Now wasn’t the time to think about that, though. Her neglected, sad condo was now modern and bright. She’d done her very best and she needed to be positive in her beliefs that Kayla could sell it.

Madeline walked out of the darkened movie theater into the bright sunlight feeling more optimistic. After all, if Ellie could make a new life for herself, then she certainly could too. Of course it would be helpful if Clark Gable fell into her lap, but that was fantasy. This was reality. She looked down to fish her cell phone out of her purse and almost plowed directly into Knox Barrows.

“Oh. I’m sorry! I wasn’t looking.”

He put out his hands and held her by the shoulders. For a moment, she wished she’d ditched the thin cardigan so that she could feel the texture of his hands against her skin. Once she’d steadied herself, he released her immediately.

She squinted against the bright sunlight into his tanned face. She saw him pull his mouth into a sort of grimace. “I’m sorry.” She mumbled again, feeling the heat rise to her cheeks.

“No problem.”

“Um, I’d better…” she trailed off and pointed in the direction she was heading.

“I think Kayla’s looking for you, you know.”

“What?”

“I stopped by the Open House. I couldn’t resist checking out the finished arch.” He ducked his head shyly and she felt her heart speed up.

“Anyway, Kayla said something about you not answering your cell. Now, I know why.” He gestured to the movie marquee.

“Is everything okay?” Madeline asked.

“Knox laughed. “Yeah, I think so. Kay was practically jumping out of her skin with excitement, so I assume it’s good news.”

“Oh.” Madeline answered, flustered. “I’d better go.”

Knox looked up and down the street behind her. “Where’s your truck?”

“I walked.”

“It’s a long walk back.”

She laughed. “I know. I was just wandering around trying to kill time. I ended up here.”

Now he smiled. “I’ve done that a time or two, myself.”

“Really?”

“Sure. They don’t make movies like this anymore.” He pointed to the black and white movie poster hanging in front of the theater.