Atherton. That’s where all my energy is going right now.”
Her eyes hardened. “What makes you think I want anything more from you than that?”
She reminded him of his ex-wife, sleek and blonde, hungry for possessions and power, bored and on the prowl when she got them. Poor Atherton. He’d probably started out thinking he had a nice, cuddly little kitten to keep him warm through his winter years, and was learning the hard way that he had a tigress by the tail. He looked Sheila straight in the eye and gave her a half smile. Silence said it better than words.
“What an ego you have, Mr. Decker. As if I’d look twice at a blue-collar worker like you!” She marched off to her car.
Relieved she was leaving, Stephen opened the blueprints and started making mental estimates of the time it would take him to add the skylight. For all he knew, she’d be back tomorrow wanting to raise the roof and add dormer windows. She slammed her car door so hard he winced. Backing up, she narrowly missed the driver’s side of his truck. She gave him a venomous look before she hit the gas pedal and sent up a shower of gravel from her spinning back wheels.
“Hey, Boss,” Tree House called from the scaffolding. “What’d’ya say to the lady to get her so ticked off?”
“None of your business!” As the work crew laughed, he turned away and muttered. “And that’s no lady.”
“Señor Decker always has trouble with the ladies,” Hector said from a ladder. “Even Sally at Charlie’s Diner has been asking about you.”
Tree House laughed and lifted a four-by-six into place.
Stephen pointed at his friend. “Keep talking, Hector, and I’ll ship you back to Mexico!”
“Hey, no problem, Decker. I was going back this winter anyway, and I’m taking a big hunk of your money with me!”
Stephen laughed.
Tom Hadley, the inspector, came late and went over the place as though he had a magnifying glass in his hand. Stephen laid out the plans, answered his queries, asked a few of his own, and told a couple of jokes. During his years as an apprentice, Stephen had learned that inspectors could turn a seemingly easy job into a nightmare. It only made sense to see them as men or women with a job to do and a life away from job sites. A strong business was built on the right blend of mutual respect and courtesy. Harboring an adversarial attitude toward inspectors was as constructive as using dynamite to dig a trench.
Hadley was a family man, eager to brag about his son and daughter, who were in college. He was still leaning on the front of his truck and talking when Stephen’s men started heading for their vehicles.
Glancing at his watch, Hadley straightened. “Didn’t realize the time.”
Stephen walked the site one last time. Everything looked good. He never tired of the excitement of designing and building something from the ground up. Still, for all the satisfaction he derived from his work, he couldn’t shake the restlessness that gripped him frequently. He climbed into his truck, slammed the door, and drove down the hill.
He wondered whether he’d be able to talk with his daughter tonight. The past several days, Kathryn had expertly blocked his every attempt. Remembering last night’s conversation set his teeth on edge. “What do you think I want?” he’d asked in response to her less-than-friendly greeting. “I want to talk to my daughter. I’ve been calling every evening, and getting nothing but your answering machine.”
“I’ve been busy.”
“I’m not checking up on you.”
“That’s good because you don’t have the right.”
“Could you get Brittany?”
“She’s in bed.”
“At six? Is she sick?”
“No, she isn’t sick. Not that you’d care if she was.”
“I’m calling, aren’t I? Why is she in bed?”
“She’s being punished. She refused to pick up her toys, and I’m not about to do it for her. She acts just like you sometimes. Stubborn, bull-headed.”
“Let me talk to
Her eyes hardened. “What makes you think I want anything more from you than that?”
She reminded him of his ex-wife, sleek and blonde, hungry for possessions and power, bored and on the prowl when she got them. Poor Atherton. He’d probably started out thinking he had a nice, cuddly little kitten to keep him warm through his winter years, and was learning the hard way that he had a tigress by the tail. He looked Sheila straight in the eye and gave her a half smile. Silence said it better than words.
“What an ego you have, Mr. Decker. As if I’d look twice at a blue-collar worker like you!” She marched off to her car.
Relieved she was leaving, Stephen opened the blueprints and started making mental estimates of the time it would take him to add the skylight. For all he knew, she’d be back tomorrow wanting to raise the roof and add dormer windows. She slammed her car door so hard he winced. Backing up, she narrowly missed the driver’s side of his truck. She gave him a venomous look before she hit the gas pedal and sent up a shower of gravel from her spinning back wheels.
“Hey, Boss,” Tree House called from the scaffolding. “What’d’ya say to the lady to get her so ticked off?”
“None of your business!” As the work crew laughed, he turned away and muttered. “And that’s no lady.”
“Señor Decker always has trouble with the ladies,” Hector said from a ladder. “Even Sally at Charlie’s Diner has been asking about you.”
Tree House laughed and lifted a four-by-six into place.
Stephen pointed at his friend. “Keep talking, Hector, and I’ll ship you back to Mexico!”
“Hey, no problem, Decker. I was going back this winter anyway, and I’m taking a big hunk of your money with me!”
Stephen laughed.
Tom Hadley, the inspector, came late and went over the place as though he had a magnifying glass in his hand. Stephen laid out the plans, answered his queries, asked a few of his own, and told a couple of jokes. During his years as an apprentice, Stephen had learned that inspectors could turn a seemingly easy job into a nightmare. It only made sense to see them as men or women with a job to do and a life away from job sites. A strong business was built on the right blend of mutual respect and courtesy. Harboring an adversarial attitude toward inspectors was as constructive as using dynamite to dig a trench.
Hadley was a family man, eager to brag about his son and daughter, who were in college. He was still leaning on the front of his truck and talking when Stephen’s men started heading for their vehicles.
Glancing at his watch, Hadley straightened. “Didn’t realize the time.”
Stephen walked the site one last time. Everything looked good. He never tired of the excitement of designing and building something from the ground up. Still, for all the satisfaction he derived from his work, he couldn’t shake the restlessness that gripped him frequently. He climbed into his truck, slammed the door, and drove down the hill.
He wondered whether he’d be able to talk with his daughter tonight. The past several days, Kathryn had expertly blocked his every attempt. Remembering last night’s conversation set his teeth on edge. “What do you think I want?” he’d asked in response to her less-than-friendly greeting. “I want to talk to my daughter. I’ve been calling every evening, and getting nothing but your answering machine.”
“I’ve been busy.”
“I’m not checking up on you.”
“That’s good because you don’t have the right.”
“Could you get Brittany?”
“She’s in bed.”
“At six? Is she sick?”
“No, she isn’t sick. Not that you’d care if she was.”
“I’m calling, aren’t I? Why is she in bed?”
“She’s being punished. She refused to pick up her toys, and I’m not about to do it for her. She acts just like you sometimes. Stubborn, bull-headed.”
“Let me talk to
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