Free Finding Promise (The Promise Series, A Small Town Romance) by Aneesa Price Page B

vision
for the barbeque area in the backyard.
     
    “I agree. It seems a waste of such a lovely space to not cater
for the outdoors. The deck is old but it’s solid, which is nothing that a good
scraping and bit of weather-proof varnish won’t fix. I hope I get invited to
one of those barbeques you’re planning here.” Luke’s teased her.
     
    Unused to the flirtatious behaviour, she could only stammer
an inaudible, “Of course”.
     
    “I can see that you’ve thought about the place a lot over
the last week and can imagine that you’re itching to move in.” At the expected
nod from her, he continued, “I’m busy finishing up a vacation lodge we’ve been
building a bit further outside of town, just after the exit from the highway.
We’ve been at it for a while, so the job is nearly done. If you’d like I could
work out a quote for you and drop it off at the inn in a day or two?”
     
    Eager to get things started, she looked enquiringly at him,
“The deed to the house should be in my hands sometime this week and I’d really
like to get started on fixing the place up. When do you think you could start?
Do you have an idea yet on how long it’ll take?”
     
    Watching her bite her lips, an eager expression on her face,
Luke didn’t want to disappoint her and he wanted her to stay away from that
slime ball, Brady. No doubt, Brady would’ve recommended that she put up a whole
new roof. He could tell that Caroline was a novice at this. That made her ripe
for picking by swindlers like Brady. “I’ll probably be able to start in a
week’s time if I put in some extra hours on the lodge. That means that I can
get to you quicker and that will please owners of the lodge too. Because of the
size of the house, it should take about a month to completely finish it but
you’d probably be able to move in here within a few days, maybe a week. We can
start in the main bedroom, kitchen and get the bath done. Those rooms will just
need a good cleaning and some furniture then and you can move right in. It does
mean that when we’re busy, you’d be inconvenienced. There’ll be dust and dirt
and loads of rowdy men around. Does that work for you?”
     
    “That would be great. Thanks. I appreciate you putting in
the extra time to get to me quicker. Thanks for the prep talk. I appreciate it.
I just want to be here so much that I think that a bit of inconvenience is a
fair trade-off.” Smiling at the progress made, Caroline shook his hand to seal
the deal. There was that buzz again. 
     
    “In the meantime, you could make things go quicker by
picking out the paint. The hardware store in Main Street carries a good
selection of the type of paint you need.” He went on to describe the types of
paint that would work best for each room and different types of varnish and the
effects they had on the final look. Seeing the bewildered expression on her
face, he asked “You have no idea what I’m talking about, do you?” Feeling
protective again, he softened the question with a smile.
     
    Not feeling criticized and warming to that smile, Caroline
acknowledged, “Nope, no idea, I’m afraid”
     
    “That’s okay. I tell you what. I’m going to the hardware
store tomorrow morning anyway after I check out the site and crew at the lodge.
Why don’t I pick you up on my way there? We could look at the paint and varnish
together.” And I could spend some more time with you, he thought, giving
himself a pat on the back at this clever twist of fate.
     
    “That will be great. Thank you.” She looked at him so
appreciatively, Luke felt like a million dollars. For something this small, the
woman positively glowed at him. She obviously wasn’t used to the friendly help
that was always available in a small town like Promise. Luke made a mental note
to look for ways he could help her again, hoping to create a good impression on
her. They agreed that he’d pick her up at the inn at 11am the next morning.
     
    Caroline waved