Talia is cutting two-by-fours, headphones covering her ears. She doesn’t notice me at first.
“How’s it going?” I call.
She turns, shuts off the saw, and pulls off her ear protection. “Sorry—what?”
“Just checking in. Everything going okay?”
She gives me a thumbs-up, a small but proud smile forming. “Yeah. We’ve got a crew in from the next town over. Framing should be done today, and the Sheetrock crew is coming in tomorrow.”
I blink. “That’s…fast.”
She shrugs. “Turns out people show up when they’re given a real shot.”
Fair point.
“That’s great,” I say. “Anything you need from me?”
She hesitates. “Not right now. We’re in a good place.”
I tip my head toward the finished unit. “What about that apartment?”
“All the Sheetrock is up. Just needs sanding and paint.”
“Who’s handling that?”
She gives me a sheepish look. “I was planning to.”
“You don’t sound confident.”
She sighs. “I’m working on that part. Years of conditioning take a bit longer to unravel.”
I smile. “You’re doing great. This is already moving faster than before.”
Her shoulders straighten, and she gives me a non-scary smile for once. “That’s the goal.”
“I might need a place to stay for a few days,” I say casually. “The bed-and-breakfast had a pipe burst.”
Her eyebrows shoot up. “And you’re thinking of stayinghere?”
“In this unit, maybe. I can move everything out of the way in the mornings.”
She looks me up and down. “Are you sure about that?”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I may not know everything,” she says, “but I know those clothes cost more than I make in a year.”
I laugh. “They’re jeans and a T-shirt.”
“Sure they are.”
“What are you two arguing about?” Avery steps into the space, looking between us.
“Apparently, I’m overdressed,” I say.
Talia snorts. “He wants to stay in here.”
Avery blinks. “You’re going to stayhere? What happened to the bed-and-breakfast?”
