Restoring His Heart. Lorraine Beatty

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СКАЧАТЬ ground from his broken windshield. A gaping hole in the brick foundation of the gazebo marked the spot where his car had come to rest. He looked upward at the roof which sagged from the loss of several broken support beams. The cupola on top tilted at a precarious angle and the decorative spindles were little more than kindling.

      He glanced over at Laura, stunned to see a deep sadness in her eyes. For a moment he thought she might burst into tears. Did the old gazebo mean that much to her? He didn’t understand. It was just a small building in the center of the town.

      But the sadness in her eyes made him so uncomfortable that he looked away, scanning the area. Surely the workers would show up anytime now. He was anxious to meet the real carpenters. She may own the construction company, but a woman her size couldn’t lift a can of paint by herself, let alone a two-by-four. He could, however, see her as the boss. With her hardline attitude and biting comments, he doubted any man would dare to cross her. “So when do the others arrive?”

      “What others?”

      “The carpenters and guys with the muscle.”

      “Sorry, Holbrook, no others. Just you and me. My guys are all busy on other jobs. I can’t afford to pull them off to do this restoration.”

      Adam frowned. “I wasn’t expecting it would be just the two of us.”

      “I’m sure there’s going to be a lot of things you aren’t expecting.”

      He stared at the small structure, rubbing his jaw. “You sure we can’t use more help?”

      “It’s not that big a deal. We’ll do the woodworking and I’ll sub out the other trades.” He drew his eyebrows together. “I employ four full-time carpenters, one fabricator and a cabinet maker. The rest of the work is hired out to subcontractors. Like the brick work, electrical and drywall and tile. The mill will build the post and spindles. Any other craftsmen I need I’ll hire to do the work.”

      Adam nodded in understanding and followed her to the damaged corner, watching as she stooped down and inspected the gaping hole in the brick foundation. She pulled out one crumbling brick and examined it, a look of disgust on her face. She stood and held up the partially destroyed pale red brick.

      “Do you have any idea how hard it’s going to be to find more of these?”

      He grinned. “Can’t we run over to the local brickyard?”

      She tossed the brick on the ground and glared. “That gazebo is over one hundred and thirty years old. Those bricks are handmade. I can’t walk into a store and buy more like you can replace that little car of yours.”

      “That car was built in the 1960s. It’s worth ten times your little house.”

      “House?” Laura set her jaw, eyes blazing.

      “It’s a gazebo. It’s old. I’ll give you the money to build one twice that size with all the bells and whistles.”

      She crossed her arms over her chest. “First, we don’t want a bigger, better gazebo, we want this one. It’s a historic landmark. Second, I know you have no idea what you’ve done to this town or the history that you’ve destroyed, but believe me, it’s significant. Third, I’m sure paying for everything is your usual method of getting out of trouble. Well, not this time. You’re going to help me rebuild this and I can’t wait to see you sweat and break your back doing it.” She stomped off. Adam watched her go, tempted to walk out of this small insignificant town. Then he remembered the ankle bracelet.

      He wouldn’t get far.

      * * *

      Laura worked off her irritation by pulling out the orange plastic safety fencing and the stakes to anchor it from the truck bed. She had to regain her sense of control or she’d end up with a helper who might go AWOL on her. As much as she hated to face it, she would need his upper-body strength to wield some of the beams and timbers she’d need to rebuild things. She started back toward the gazebo, her heart tightening at the sight of the wounded structure. Adam came toward her, arms extended.

      “I’ll get those.” He took the cumbersome material from her grasp. “Where do you want them?”

      “I want you to set up a perimeter about twelve to sixteen feet from the gazebo to give us room to work and set up the equipment we’ll need. Be sure to leave an opening so we can come and go. You’ll find a special fencepost driver tool in the back of the truck. It’s red and looks like a pipe with handles. Use that to set the posts about eight feet apart.” Adam started to move off, then turned back.

      “You want exact spacing or approximate?”

      “Approximate will do. I just don’t want people getting too close while we work.” Laura stapled the building permit encased in protective plastic to one post, leaving Adam to figure the mechanics of the fencing. Retrieving her electronic tablet from the truck, she started her detailed list of the materials she’d need and the specifications for the gazebo to start tracking down the lumber from the correct era.

      She glanced at Adam smiling as he tugged the flimsy orange fencing between the posts. She let him struggle for a while, intending to give him some pointers, but the next time she looked, he’d gotten the hang of it. He finished his task at the same time she completed her list.

      “How did I do, boss?”

      The grin on his face made his eyes sparkle. “Fine. You’ll have to check it each day. It tends to sag over time.”

      “What’s next? Power tools?”

      “No. We have to stabilize the roof, then take all this damaged section apart.” She picked up a pair of protective goggles. “But first we need to go over a few safety rules. You will wear these when using power tools, and earplugs when running the saw. Use a waist support when we do heavy lifting and never, I repeat, never treat a power tool with anything less than the utmost respect. They aren’t toys.”

      Adam nodded. “I might not understand the tools, but I do know a thing or two about safety and being cautious. I make sure my sports equipment is thoroughly checked out before I use it. I don’t take unnecessary risks.”

      Laura huffed under her breath. “Yet you still risk your life for nothing more than a temporary thrill.” She turned and motioned for him to follow. “We need to support the roof before we do anything else. I’ll get the jack, you bring that four-by-six post over here.”

      Laura positioned the jack in the center of the gazebo and instructed Adam how to position the heavy post to take the weight of the roof. She’d anticipated his resistance today, but so far he’d followed her every command without question. She held the post in place while Adam put his strength behind the jack, pumping the handle. She glanced down at him, surprised to see him watching the upward movement of the beam closely as he worked. She also was suddenly aware of the muscles in his arms and the way the fabric of his shirt strained across his shoulders as he moved.

      “Is that enough?”

      Laura jerked her attention back to the beam. It was touching under the center of the roof but not firmly enough. “Another inch should do it.” Satisfied, she stepped back, watching as Adam rose to his full height and placed his hand on the beam.

      “Will this one piece of wood hold up this whole building?”

      She СКАЧАТЬ