uniforms.
"Cass?" Evan's voice summoned her from the nightmare.
"Oh, I'm sorry. What did you say?"
"I asked what color you'd like me to paint the bridge."
She fluttered her lips with a loud breath. "Color? I don't have a clue. I'm not a paint connoisseur, why don't you decide? Whatever you pick is fine with me."
"Good. I was thinking the same color as the house siding would be nice."
"Um huh." Cassie crammed her mouth full of lettuce.
Evan scraped his plate, moving the last bit of spaghetti into a pile, then like a true Italian, twirled the strands around his fork. He washed the food down with the remaining wine in his glass, and then patted his stomach. "That was delicious. Thank you."
He shared the chore of cleaning up, him clearing the table while she loaded the dishwasher. With the last dirty utensil inside, Cassie spun the knob and started the machine. "That didn't take long. I'm going to take a shower. Would you like to join me?"
"You go ahead. I have a few phone calls to make."
Her mouth gaped, but she reminded herself he was excited at being at the helm of a brand new business. Unfamiliar with him rejecting her, she nursed her wounded ego and started upstairs. "Don't stay up too late," she called over her shoulder. Showering alone wasn't part of her plan.
Evan's muffled conversation carried to the top of the landing. What phone call was so important he'd choose talking over sex? Although the urge to listen in on the upstairs extension gripped her, Cassie went into the bathroom and turned on the shower. The warm water did little to suppress her curiosity.
Chapter Fourteen
Another stack littered the kitchen counter. Cassie scooped up the mail and carried it to her desk. She'd just left work and the last thing she wanted to do was plant herself back in an office chair, but if she didn't tend to the postal avalanche, she was bound to be swallowed by it.
Outside, the hired men were busy, but Evan wasn't around. She figured he was probably picking up supplies and incurring more charges. Her shoulders tensed. No one put a gun to her head when he'd mentioned a mutual business.
She grabbed the first envelope, then gripping a letter opener, she braved the contents. When she unfolded the extracted sheet, her eyes widened at the bill for two thousand dollars. Itemization showed the charges for rock, sand and equipment rental. Funny, when she considered being part of Evan's venture, she hadn't given thought to the expense.
After the whole pile had shifted to the other side of her desk, Cassie lowered her head into her hands, moaning at the amount of debt. Everything purchased tied into the backyard project, and she'd given Evan the 'go ahead.' Sort of.
Hearing the back door close, she turned toward the kitchen. "Evan, is that you?"
"Yep, just gettin' something to drink."
"Can you come here, please?"
He appeared in the doorway, overwhelming her with his masculine and rugged look in faded blue jeans, denim shirt unbuttoned to the waist, and his baseball cap expertly arced to shade those dazzling blue eyes. She forgot what she planned to say.
"Well?" He leaned against the jamb.
Money became the last thing on her mind. "Oh…I just finished going through the mail and noticed the backyard improvements are getting a little costly."
He removed his cap and splayed his fingers through his flattened hair. "Don't you fret about the money. I've been out drumming up some business." He produced a paper from his back pocket, held it out, and smiled. "Our very first contract."
Cassie took the sheet and read it. He'd sold a large landscaping job, complete with brick barbeque, sod, and some additional cement work. Speechless for a moment and her mouth gaping, she glanced up. "Wow, you can do all this?"
"Of course, I can do anything. Well, almost. What I can't, we'll sub-contract."
She couldn't grasp the concept. "I have no idea how things are going to work. I'm smart, but I've never run a
"Cass?" Evan's voice summoned her from the nightmare.
"Oh, I'm sorry. What did you say?"
"I asked what color you'd like me to paint the bridge."
She fluttered her lips with a loud breath. "Color? I don't have a clue. I'm not a paint connoisseur, why don't you decide? Whatever you pick is fine with me."
"Good. I was thinking the same color as the house siding would be nice."
"Um huh." Cassie crammed her mouth full of lettuce.
Evan scraped his plate, moving the last bit of spaghetti into a pile, then like a true Italian, twirled the strands around his fork. He washed the food down with the remaining wine in his glass, and then patted his stomach. "That was delicious. Thank you."
He shared the chore of cleaning up, him clearing the table while she loaded the dishwasher. With the last dirty utensil inside, Cassie spun the knob and started the machine. "That didn't take long. I'm going to take a shower. Would you like to join me?"
"You go ahead. I have a few phone calls to make."
Her mouth gaped, but she reminded herself he was excited at being at the helm of a brand new business. Unfamiliar with him rejecting her, she nursed her wounded ego and started upstairs. "Don't stay up too late," she called over her shoulder. Showering alone wasn't part of her plan.
Evan's muffled conversation carried to the top of the landing. What phone call was so important he'd choose talking over sex? Although the urge to listen in on the upstairs extension gripped her, Cassie went into the bathroom and turned on the shower. The warm water did little to suppress her curiosity.
Chapter Fourteen
Another stack littered the kitchen counter. Cassie scooped up the mail and carried it to her desk. She'd just left work and the last thing she wanted to do was plant herself back in an office chair, but if she didn't tend to the postal avalanche, she was bound to be swallowed by it.
Outside, the hired men were busy, but Evan wasn't around. She figured he was probably picking up supplies and incurring more charges. Her shoulders tensed. No one put a gun to her head when he'd mentioned a mutual business.
She grabbed the first envelope, then gripping a letter opener, she braved the contents. When she unfolded the extracted sheet, her eyes widened at the bill for two thousand dollars. Itemization showed the charges for rock, sand and equipment rental. Funny, when she considered being part of Evan's venture, she hadn't given thought to the expense.
After the whole pile had shifted to the other side of her desk, Cassie lowered her head into her hands, moaning at the amount of debt. Everything purchased tied into the backyard project, and she'd given Evan the 'go ahead.' Sort of.
Hearing the back door close, she turned toward the kitchen. "Evan, is that you?"
"Yep, just gettin' something to drink."
"Can you come here, please?"
He appeared in the doorway, overwhelming her with his masculine and rugged look in faded blue jeans, denim shirt unbuttoned to the waist, and his baseball cap expertly arced to shade those dazzling blue eyes. She forgot what she planned to say.
"Well?" He leaned against the jamb.
Money became the last thing on her mind. "Oh…I just finished going through the mail and noticed the backyard improvements are getting a little costly."
He removed his cap and splayed his fingers through his flattened hair. "Don't you fret about the money. I've been out drumming up some business." He produced a paper from his back pocket, held it out, and smiled. "Our very first contract."
Cassie took the sheet and read it. He'd sold a large landscaping job, complete with brick barbeque, sod, and some additional cement work. Speechless for a moment and her mouth gaping, she glanced up. "Wow, you can do all this?"
"Of course, I can do anything. Well, almost. What I can't, we'll sub-contract."
She couldn't grasp the concept. "I have no idea how things are going to work. I'm smart, but I've never run a
Similar Books
