would be back around 6:00 p.m.
Logan planned on being showered and irresistible by then. He'd greet her with a smile and insist on taking her out to dinner. They had important matters to discuss.
The latest whine of blade cutting oak was just diminishing when he heard a knock on the front door. He'd left it propped open to diss^)ate some of the fumes from the paint-stripper he'd been using, so he just yelled, **Come in," and then headed in the direction of the foyer.
Jonathon Chase stepped over the threshold, looking as freshly pressed and as tightly necktied as...as Logan had looked for too many years. Conscious of the coating of sawdust on his forearms and hands, he grinned to himself as he reached for his father's outstretched palm and shook it.
Handshake over, Jonathon looked down at his gritty fing^x, perplexed.
'*Sorry, Dad." Logan bit back another smile and reached for his handkerchief. It came out of the back pocket of his jeans in a flurry of more sawdust '*Oops."
*'Never mind." His father had already found his own and was wiping his hand clean. "How are you, son?"
'*Busy." Avoiding looking at the sheaf of papers under his father's arm—^Jonathon was continually trying to draw him back into the family business with new proposals or projections—^Logan shoved his handkerchief away. "Would you like to see my progress?"
The question seemed to throw the older man off his stride. "Well, uh, sure."
Logan took him on a brief tour of the downstairs rooms. "I'm hopscotching around, trying to determine exactly what needs to be done and how long it will take to do it."
"It looks like a hell of a mess to me," his father said, staring at the half-peeled wallpaper in the parlor.
Logan shrugged. "Yeah. More mess to come if I'm going to turn this floor and the third into more apartments. But now I'm thinking of scrapping that idea."
Jonathon pressed his lips together and nodded with satisfaction. "You want your desk back at Chase Electronics."
Logan half-smiled. "No, Dad. I'm thinking of turning this house into my company headquarters. Business offices on the first floor, living quarters on the second and third stories."
"You need business space?"
Logan nodded, holding on to his pleasant expression. "I've got an architect coming on board with me in three months as well as a couple of subcontractors who are interested in full-time employment instead of scrambling for job after job."
**Someone has to find the work," his father pointed out.
'*That will be me." Logan waited for Jonathon to launch some doubts on that score, promising himself he wouldn't bother to tell his father he already had two large renovations Uned up and the verbal promise of a third. He wouldn't bother telling the old man that he still planned on doing a lot of the work himself, too.
Instead, his father surprised the hell out of him by merely nodding. He looked away, then back at Logan. *'Have you spoken with your mother lately?" he asked abruptly.
Logan bUnked. **Not since we all had dinner together the other night."
Jonathon nodded again but then let silence fall.
Puzzled, Logan cleared his throat. *'Uh, Dad. Did you drop by for some reason? I notice you have papers with you." It's not as if he'd avoid whatever his father's purpose was anyway.
Jonathon bUnked, seeming to awaken. Then he looked down as if noticing the papers for the first time. *'I don't know why I brought these in with me," he said slowly. *'I was on my way to drop them... somewhere."
It sounded as if Logan's mind-like-a-shark father couldn't remember where that *'somewhere" was. Alarms pinged. **Are you feeling okay, Dad?"
His father shook his head, as if clearing it. *'0f course. I'm okay. Everything's okay. Everything wiD
be perfectly okay as soon as you give up this foolish notion and come back into the fold."
Over his dead body, Logan thought, but he smiled pleasantly yet again. '*No, Dad. Fm going to hold on to this foolish notion, but thanks for your good
Logan planned on being showered and irresistible by then. He'd greet her with a smile and insist on taking her out to dinner. They had important matters to discuss.
The latest whine of blade cutting oak was just diminishing when he heard a knock on the front door. He'd left it propped open to diss^)ate some of the fumes from the paint-stripper he'd been using, so he just yelled, **Come in," and then headed in the direction of the foyer.
Jonathon Chase stepped over the threshold, looking as freshly pressed and as tightly necktied as...as Logan had looked for too many years. Conscious of the coating of sawdust on his forearms and hands, he grinned to himself as he reached for his father's outstretched palm and shook it.
Handshake over, Jonathon looked down at his gritty fing^x, perplexed.
'*Sorry, Dad." Logan bit back another smile and reached for his handkerchief. It came out of the back pocket of his jeans in a flurry of more sawdust '*Oops."
*'Never mind." His father had already found his own and was wiping his hand clean. "How are you, son?"
'*Busy." Avoiding looking at the sheaf of papers under his father's arm—^Jonathon was continually trying to draw him back into the family business with new proposals or projections—^Logan shoved his handkerchief away. "Would you like to see my progress?"
The question seemed to throw the older man off his stride. "Well, uh, sure."
Logan took him on a brief tour of the downstairs rooms. "I'm hopscotching around, trying to determine exactly what needs to be done and how long it will take to do it."
"It looks like a hell of a mess to me," his father said, staring at the half-peeled wallpaper in the parlor.
Logan shrugged. "Yeah. More mess to come if I'm going to turn this floor and the third into more apartments. But now I'm thinking of scrapping that idea."
Jonathon pressed his lips together and nodded with satisfaction. "You want your desk back at Chase Electronics."
Logan half-smiled. "No, Dad. I'm thinking of turning this house into my company headquarters. Business offices on the first floor, living quarters on the second and third stories."
"You need business space?"
Logan nodded, holding on to his pleasant expression. "I've got an architect coming on board with me in three months as well as a couple of subcontractors who are interested in full-time employment instead of scrambling for job after job."
**Someone has to find the work," his father pointed out.
'*That will be me." Logan waited for Jonathon to launch some doubts on that score, promising himself he wouldn't bother to tell his father he already had two large renovations Uned up and the verbal promise of a third. He wouldn't bother telling the old man that he still planned on doing a lot of the work himself, too.
Instead, his father surprised the hell out of him by merely nodding. He looked away, then back at Logan. *'Have you spoken with your mother lately?" he asked abruptly.
Logan bUnked. **Not since we all had dinner together the other night."
Jonathon nodded again but then let silence fall.
Puzzled, Logan cleared his throat. *'Uh, Dad. Did you drop by for some reason? I notice you have papers with you." It's not as if he'd avoid whatever his father's purpose was anyway.
Jonathon bUnked, seeming to awaken. Then he looked down as if noticing the papers for the first time. *'I don't know why I brought these in with me," he said slowly. *'I was on my way to drop them... somewhere."
It sounded as if Logan's mind-like-a-shark father couldn't remember where that *'somewhere" was. Alarms pinged. **Are you feeling okay, Dad?"
His father shook his head, as if clearing it. *'0f course. I'm okay. Everything's okay. Everything wiD
be perfectly okay as soon as you give up this foolish notion and come back into the fold."
Over his dead body, Logan thought, but he smiled pleasantly yet again. '*No, Dad. Fm going to hold on to this foolish notion, but thanks for your good
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