you going to tell him?”
“I have my son to think of.”
“He doesn’t know who his father is?”
She shook her head.
“They both need to know.”
Amy pressed her lips together. “You’re right, but I need time. This isn’t going to be easy for anyone.”
“Where is the boy now?”
“Tony is in military boarding school this quarter.”
Marcus smiled. “Kendall will be happy about that.”
Not when he found out why, she mused. “Marcus, I appreciate your discretion, but I need to handle this situation the way I see fit.”
He nodded. “I agree that you should be the one to tell Kendall. But know that if you don’t tell him, I will.”
The door banged shut and Amy turned to see Kendall standing there, his cheeks pink from the cold. “Tell me what?”
Amy’s heart stood still.
“Uh, we were just talking about the project,” Marcus said, obviously trying to buy time.
“So what don’t you want to tell me?” Kendall asked, shrugging out of his coat.
Marcus looked at her expectantly.
Her mind spun. “I didn’t want to tell you that…that I have the blueprints for the original covered bridge.”
To his credit, Marcus didn’t bat an eye.
Kendall smiled. “You do? But that’s great! Why didn’t you want to tell me?”
A hot flush climbed her neck. “Because I stole them.”
He looked confused. “Stole them? From where?”
“From the courthouse, long ago.” With her heart clicking, she reached for the portfolio leaning against the desk, then carried it to a table and unzipped it. Kendall and Marcus both crowded around, but Kendall moved more slowly. She was keenly aware of Kendall’s hip in proximity to hers. As relieved as she was to have narrowly diverted the conversation, she was still nervous over the close call.
Inside the portfolio were the sheets of yellowed, brittle blueprint paper with the official stamp, dated 1920.
“How did you manage to steal these?” Kendall asked with a frown.
“I smuggled them out one page at a time in a sketch pad,” she said in a small voice, feeling dirty. It had taken her months to avoid raising flags with the hawk-eyed archivist who’d maintained the town’s historical documents.
The blueprints showed front and side elevations of Evermore Bridge, along with many dissection diagrams, with each piece of wood numbered.
“I guess now we can reuse the timbers we found,” Kendall said, but his tone was dry…and critical.
Amy looked up to find censure in his expression. He didn’t realize that she’d taken the blueprints so she would always have a piece of their bridge with her. Good. Let him think that she’d stolen them for the thrill of it.
“Kendall, this is good news,” Marcus said.
Kendall lifted his hands. “I guess so. How lucky for us that Amy stole these historical documents from a federal building.”
Hurt barbed through her chest. He still thinks I’m trash.
“Yes,” Marcus said pointedly. “How lucky for us, how lucky for this town.”
But the damage was done. Amy tingled with shame. “Of course the town can have the originals back. I’ll work from a copy I made.” She closed the portfolio, zipped it and handed it to Kendall. It was hard to make eye contact, and she wished she hadn’t. He looked at her with such distrust, as if he were asking, “What else don’t I know about you?”
A lot, she conceded silently.
Marcus cleared his throat. “I suggest we get our notes together for the conference call.”
Amy was happy for the diversion. She booted up her laptop and retrieved project notes she’d already made and questions she had for the Preservation Society representative. As they compared notes among themselves, Kendall was perfunctory, and she remained aloof, as well. They both addressed Marcus more than each other, except when they disagreed.
“I think you should invest in a two-lane construction bridge here,” Amy said, pointing to a narrow portion of Timber Creek south of the covered bridge
“I have my son to think of.”
“He doesn’t know who his father is?”
She shook her head.
“They both need to know.”
Amy pressed her lips together. “You’re right, but I need time. This isn’t going to be easy for anyone.”
“Where is the boy now?”
“Tony is in military boarding school this quarter.”
Marcus smiled. “Kendall will be happy about that.”
Not when he found out why, she mused. “Marcus, I appreciate your discretion, but I need to handle this situation the way I see fit.”
He nodded. “I agree that you should be the one to tell Kendall. But know that if you don’t tell him, I will.”
The door banged shut and Amy turned to see Kendall standing there, his cheeks pink from the cold. “Tell me what?”
Amy’s heart stood still.
“Uh, we were just talking about the project,” Marcus said, obviously trying to buy time.
“So what don’t you want to tell me?” Kendall asked, shrugging out of his coat.
Marcus looked at her expectantly.
Her mind spun. “I didn’t want to tell you that…that I have the blueprints for the original covered bridge.”
To his credit, Marcus didn’t bat an eye.
Kendall smiled. “You do? But that’s great! Why didn’t you want to tell me?”
A hot flush climbed her neck. “Because I stole them.”
He looked confused. “Stole them? From where?”
“From the courthouse, long ago.” With her heart clicking, she reached for the portfolio leaning against the desk, then carried it to a table and unzipped it. Kendall and Marcus both crowded around, but Kendall moved more slowly. She was keenly aware of Kendall’s hip in proximity to hers. As relieved as she was to have narrowly diverted the conversation, she was still nervous over the close call.
Inside the portfolio were the sheets of yellowed, brittle blueprint paper with the official stamp, dated 1920.
“How did you manage to steal these?” Kendall asked with a frown.
“I smuggled them out one page at a time in a sketch pad,” she said in a small voice, feeling dirty. It had taken her months to avoid raising flags with the hawk-eyed archivist who’d maintained the town’s historical documents.
The blueprints showed front and side elevations of Evermore Bridge, along with many dissection diagrams, with each piece of wood numbered.
“I guess now we can reuse the timbers we found,” Kendall said, but his tone was dry…and critical.
Amy looked up to find censure in his expression. He didn’t realize that she’d taken the blueprints so she would always have a piece of their bridge with her. Good. Let him think that she’d stolen them for the thrill of it.
“Kendall, this is good news,” Marcus said.
Kendall lifted his hands. “I guess so. How lucky for us that Amy stole these historical documents from a federal building.”
Hurt barbed through her chest. He still thinks I’m trash.
“Yes,” Marcus said pointedly. “How lucky for us, how lucky for this town.”
But the damage was done. Amy tingled with shame. “Of course the town can have the originals back. I’ll work from a copy I made.” She closed the portfolio, zipped it and handed it to Kendall. It was hard to make eye contact, and she wished she hadn’t. He looked at her with such distrust, as if he were asking, “What else don’t I know about you?”
A lot, she conceded silently.
Marcus cleared his throat. “I suggest we get our notes together for the conference call.”
Amy was happy for the diversion. She booted up her laptop and retrieved project notes she’d already made and questions she had for the Preservation Society representative. As they compared notes among themselves, Kendall was perfunctory, and she remained aloof, as well. They both addressed Marcus more than each other, except when they disagreed.
“I think you should invest in a two-lane construction bridge here,” Amy said, pointing to a narrow portion of Timber Creek south of the covered bridge
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