A Reunion and a Ring. GINA WILKINS

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СКАЧАТЬ heard from him again. She had thrown herself into her studies, shedding her tears in private and burying the pain as deeply as possible, rarely to be acknowledged since.

      Maybe Gavin’s thoughts, too, had drifted back to their painful breakup, because before she could reply, he shoved his chair back abruptly from the table. “I’m going to start on that tree. Thanks for the breakfast.”

      “You should take care with that shoulder.”

      He merely gave her a look and walked out, leaving her shaking her head in exasperation. While Gavin had changed in many noticeable ways since she’d last seen him, it was obvious that he was still as stubborn as ever.

      * * *

      The rain had dwindled to little more than a cool mist while he’d been inside. Gavin tossed damp hair out of his face and lifted the chain saw from the back of his truck with his good arm. Pulling the starter was going to be a challenge, but he’d manage. The sooner he cleared that tree out of the way, the sooner he or Jenny or both of them could get away from here. And the sooner there would be an end to those uncomfortable catch-up conversations.

      Why the hell had he felt the need to tell her he’d gotten his degree? He’d heard himself blurting it out almost before he’d realized it. That damned degree didn’t make him any more worthy, as far as he was concerned. Jenny could have a dozen advanced degrees and own a Fortune 500 company, and he would still take pride in the uniform he donned every working day.

      He remembered vividly the way Jenny’s grandmother’s lip had curled when he’d mentioned his intention to enter the police academy after finishing college. Lena Patterson had made it quite clear that she had higher aspirations for her granddaughter than to align herself with a “low-level civil servant.” Having known by then that Jenny’s father’s death had left them grief-stricken and financially burdened, Gavin had decided that Lena Patterson was a pompous, bitter woman. She had channeled her personal disappointments into her bright, beautiful and motivated granddaughter, pushing Jenny toward higher education and a socially and economically advantageous marriage.

      The old woman had done a damned good job of programming her granddaughter from a very early age. He’d seen the way Jenny lit up in response to Lena’s sparsely doled praise. That had been hard for him to compete with at twenty-one. He doubted he could do so even now, if he were inclined to try.

      He set the chain saw beside the other tools he’d already gathered around the fallen tree and stepped back to analyze the project. The oak was big. The uptilted root ball came almost to his shoulder. A tangle of leafy branches covered the driveway in a dense barrier. Even with two good arms, this tree would require hours to remove.

      His phone buzzed in his pocket and he removed one bulky work glove to draw it out, sighing when he saw his mother’s number.

      “I’m fine, Mom,” he said without giving her a chance to say anything.

      She laughed softly, unperturbed by his sardonic tone. “I’m glad to hear it. It sounds as if your area got hit hard by last night’s storms.”

      “Lost a couple of trees, a bunch of limbs. Couple leaks in the back bedroom I’m going to have to patch. Other than that, no real damage done.”

      “I heard there was flooding up that way.”

      “There’s flooding down the road, but just a few wet patches up here on the hill.” His dad had always said that the river would have to be at hundred-year flood stages to creep up to the cabin.

      “Can you get out?”

      “Not yet, but the water should go down fairly quickly once the rain finally stops.” He hoped the road would be dry enough for safe travel by the end of the day, though the heavy cloud cover did not look promising. He wouldn’t be surprised to be drenched again at any minute.

      “How’s your shoulder? Is the infection better?”

      “Better. No fever today.”

      “I’m glad to hear it. Now, please use common sense and try not to overdo it with the storm cleanup. I know better than to try to make you promise not to tackle any of it today.”

      “I won’t overdo it.”

      “I worry about you being up there all alone when you haven’t been out of the hospital for a whole week yet. I know you don’t like being hovered over, but I wish you’d stayed a bit closer to home for at least a few more days.”

      “Gavin, do you have an extra pair of work gloves I can use?” Jenny called from behind him before he could reassure his mom again. “I’d be glad to help you clear this... Oh. I’m sorry.” Spotting the phone in his hand, she grimaced in apology.

      He should have known his too-perceptive mother wouldn’t miss a beat. “Gavin? Someone is there with you? Is it anyone I know?”

      There was no way he was telling her at the moment about his ex-girlfriend’s presence. His mom had liked Jenny back in the day, even though she’d reacted in true overprotective mama-bear mode when Jenny broke up with him. She’d insisted that Jenny had broken her son’s heart. Gavin wouldn’t have phrased it quite that way. Then again, he couldn’t really argue it, either.

      “I have to take care of some things around here before the rain starts again,” he said into the phone, ignoring her questions. “I’ll call you later, okay?”

      He heard her sigh, but his mother surrendered to the inevitable. No doubt she’d grill him good later, face-to-face. “Fine. Just...take care of yourself, will you?”

      “Bye, Mom.”

      He disconnected the call and shoved the phone back into his pocket before turning to Jenny, studying her through the clear plastic protective glasses. She’d changed into a T-shirt and jeans. She’d pulled her hair into a loose ponytail. Beads of fine mist already glittered within the dark strands. Trendy, neon-green running shoes not at all suited to muddy manual labor encased her feet.

      She held up her perfectly manicured hands. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize you were on the phone. I’m looking for an extra pair of work gloves so I can help you.”

      “I can handle this.”

      “It will go faster if I pitch in.”

      He wasn’t so sure about that. She could prove to be more of a distraction than a help. But he could think of no way to decline the offer without coming across as a jerk. If he tried too obviously to avoid her, she might even think he’d never quite gotten over her.

      He cocked his chin toward the back of the house. “Extra work gloves and safety glasses are behind the seat in my truck. It isn’t locked.”

      He figured she’d tire out quickly and head back inside. Until then, he would keep her too busy to reminisce.

      He had the chain saw running by the time she returned wearing the too-large, leather-and-canvas gloves and an oversize pair of plastic safety goggles. He’d deliberately waited until she was out of sight to fire up the saw so she wouldn’t see him wince and curse when he pulled the starter cord. He had no intention of showing her how much discomfort he was in—not actual pain, but that would probably set in before the day ended. Didn’t matter. He wanted this road cleared as quickly as possible.

      Because СКАЧАТЬ