Starting Over On Blackberry Lane. Sheila Roberts

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СКАЧАТЬ from leak to ‘get the ark.’ I have a major flood happening at my place.”

      Dan shook his head. “I warned you that roof was starting to look grim. Up here in the mountains you really need a metal roof.”

      “I think my place was built before there was such a thing,” she said. “Anyway, I’d have to sell a kid to be able to afford a metal roof.” Even with Mason pitching in his share for the kids’ college, she still had a lot of money going out.

      “Well, no worries. We’re supposed to have sun tomorrow. I can come over and patch the leak and fix your ceiling.”

      Thank God.

      “Meanwhile, put out a bucket.”

      “Or a horse trough. I really appreciate it, Dan. I owe you gingerbread boys for life.”

      “You already give him plenty of gingerbread cookies,” Charley said.

      “Hey, don’t discourage the woman,” Dan told her. Then to Cass, “Patching the roof is only a temporary fix. You’re bound to have more problems in the future, so you’d better start looking for a roofer.”

      “And a pot of gold,” Cass said. The restaurant window framed a gray, rainy sky. “Where’s the darned rainbow when you need it, anyway?”

      * * *

      Stefanie Stahl came home with her son late Saturday afternoon from a visit with her sister in Seattle to find that her husband had been busy in her absence. She was greeted by the whine of a table saw, and where there’d once been a wall between her living and dining rooms, now there were only studs covered with an opaque plastic sheet. A fine film of dust had crept out and was covering the hardwood floor in the living room as well as her furniture. She could see a pile of Sheetrock behind the plastic curtain, and beyond that hung one of those lamps carpenters often used when working at night. In its murky shadow stood a man happily creating chaos.

      The day before the bridal shower she was throwing for her best friend.

      That did it. She was going to hit Brad over the head with his hammer and bury him in the backyard under the pile of scrounged lumber that had been there since last August.

      “Daddy!” their six-year-old son, Petey, called and began pawing at the heavy plastic in an effort to get where the action was.

      “You stay right here,” Stef commanded. “It’s dangerous in there.” And it was going to be really dangerous for a certain husband when she got to him.

      The plastic had been taped in place, but she made her way through and marched over to where Brad stood, happily whipping up sawdust, and tapped him on the shoulder. He just about jumped out of his skin.

      “Hey, don’t sneak up on a guy like that!” he said. “I could’ve sawed my hand off.”

      “You’re lucky I don’t saw your head off. What are you doing?”

      He flipped up his safety goggles. “What do you mean, what am I doing? You said you wanted an open-concept floor plan and an eating bar off the kitchen. That’s what I’m doing.”

      “I said that months ago.” And she certainly hadn’t meant for him to do it.

      “So you should be glad I’ve finally got the time. I’m all caught up at the office and decided I’d start on it. This, by the way, is your eating bar,” he informed her, pointing to a pile of boards.

      Brad had taken over a lucrative branch of a national insurance company, which was what had brought them to Icicle Falls. He was still a one-man operation with no office help other than the occasional assistance Stef gave him. Surely he had something more to do at work, someone who needed life insurance. Right now he needed plenty of it. She knew she should’ve left Petey at home with him. Then he would’ve been too busy with their son to trash the house.

      She threw up her hands in disgust. “Now? You had to start on it now?”

      “Sure. Why not?” Down went the safety goggles and he reached over to turn on the saw again.

      She grabbed his hand to stop him. “Because Griffin’s bridal shower is tomorrow. That’s why not. How am I supposed to have a bridal shower here with this mess?”

      Brad seemed shocked by that. Which showed how much he listened. “Aw, shit. That’s tomorrow?”

      “I told you that!” Did he have sawdust in his ears? “And now my guests get to look at this...disaster.”

      She was about to march off when he took her arm. “Sweet Stuff, I’m sorry. I just wanted to surprise you.”

      “You surprised me, all right,” she said with a scowl.

      Meanwhile, Petey was bouncing up and down on the other side of the curtain, shouting, “Daddy, Daddy!”

      “Just a minute, big guy.” He pushed the goggles back up on his head and gave her a pleading smile. “Come on, Stef—don’t be mad. I only wanted to make you happy.”

      Yes, he’d had the best of intentions. He always had the best of intentions. Sadly, he was better at good intentions than he was at finishing projects, as the half-done patio with its pile of paving stones out back could attest. Not to mention the master bathroom with the missing tub. That had been last month’s project. When it came to home improvement projects, the man was totally ADD.

      “You haven’t even finished the bathroom,” she reminded him.

      “I was going to, but then I remembered you wanted that wall knocked out and I thought you’d like it done for your party. Which I forgot was tomorrow,” he hastily added. “I thought I had time.”

      He always thought he had time. Bradley Stahl operated on his own unique timetable.

      If he operated at all. When they’d first bought the house, they’d talked about ways they could improve it. But they hadn’t shared the same vision. Stef had assumed they’d go at it methodically, one project at a time, hiring competent contractors. Brad had envisioned himself as perfectly competent, insisting on doing the work and saving them money. So far this was not working out.

      “Da-ad!”

      “Coming, big guy,” Brad called and beat a hasty retreat before she could say anything more.

      With a growl Stef kicked the pile of sawdust. She wished it was Brad’s behind. What was she going to do now? She had a dozen women coming the next afternoon. Even if Brad skipped church, he couldn’t get rid of this mess before the bridal shower.

      Maybe she could get someone else to host, like Cass. Cass Wilkes had taken her and Griffin under her wing when they’d arrived in Icicle Falls a year ago, both new to town, both wondering how to go about fitting in. Cass had connected Griffin with a book club, and when she found out that Stef was a movie buff, she’d included Stef in her weekly chick-flick-night gatherings with her friends. Not only had Cass become a good friend and neighbor, she also was single. No husband underfoot messing things up. She probably wouldn’t mind if they switched the party to her house. Stef could bring the eats, and Cass could provide the sawdust-free environment. She put in an SOS call.

      “Oh, Stef, I’d СКАЧАТЬ