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He wiped the sweat from his forehead and looked around. “Yeah, we’ve pretty much gutted everything except Jayma’s bedroom.” He pointed toward a closed door sealed off with a large sheet of plastic. She’d be very happy the construction dust was being kept out of the one good room in the house.
“So,” I said, “another family dinner tonight? Is something up? Do you know?”
He shrugged. “No idea. I got Jayma’s text and said I’d be there. You’re coming, right?”
“Oh yeah, for sure. I’m just going to grab a run and shower in time for dinner.”
“All right, man. I’ll see ya later. Hey, when can I put your lame ass to work?” he asked with a laugh.
“Ha, funny guy. I’ll be getting down to work here on the weekend. And I’ll try not to show you up. No promises, though.” I gave him the finger as I left.
How was it I was already so comfortable with someone I’d only just met? It was the strangest thing when I thought about it, but he was such a cool guy, it was easy to like him. Actually, they were all good guys. We all liked the same woman, and there were no jealousy issues. I guess we all wanted what was best for Jayma and weren’t going to let our own insecurities get in the way.
When I got back from my run, I heard someone banging around in the kitchen. Sure enough, there was my Jayma, cooking up a storm like she had a few nights before. I sneaked up behind her, grabbing her around the waist, and planting a kiss on her cheek.
“Ack, you scared me, silly boy,” she
said, turning in my arms to plant a big one on my lips.
I took a step back to admire her. “Hey, you ran out of work early. Everything okay?”
She nodded. “Um, yeah. Everything’s good. I just needed a little time to myself. Thank you for chasing Bob off.”
“That guy is such a dick. I don’t know why Renner keeps him around.”
“Well, I don’t think he means any harm. He’s trying to get his shit done like everyone else. He just doesn’t know how to ask in a way that makes anyone want to help him out.”
“So what’s the family meeting about? Something up?” I asked.
Jayma turned back to stirring something on the stove. “No. Not really. Just wanted to talk with everyone.”
Something was definitely up. But if she wasn’t ready to talk, I was good with that.
“Okay, baby. I’m running upstairs for my shower.”
“Dinner’s in one hour. Be on time,” she said with a smile.
“Yes, ma’am. I’d never be late for one of your dinners.”
Not forty-five minutes later, Carter, Wyatt, and I were sitting in the living room, all showered and shaved, downing some beers, and waiting on Dig.
“One of the coolest things about reno’ing a house is getting to see how they did construction back in the day,” Carter said. “All that lath and plaster they used to build walls. Incredible. It took so much work. Unlike the drywall we slap up today.”
“How’d the house end up in such bad condition, anyway?” I asked.
“Not sure. I guess Wagner, the guy who lived there before Jayma bought it, had just gotten old and eccentric. Plaster falling off the ceiling must not have bothered him,” Carter said, shaking his head.
“Well, you’ve done an incredible job with this place, Carter,” Wyatt said, looking around. “I can only imagine how Jayma’s house will be when you’re done with it.”
“Ha. What do you mean when I’m done with it? You’ll both be busting your asses on the place soon. I’m not gonna do it all on my own.”
“Now that you’ve got the walls down, I’ll dive into the plumbing tomorrow,” Wyatt said.
Dig came flying in the house. “Guys. Am I late?” he asked breathlessly.
“No man. Go get a beer.”
“So Carter, how long you letting us all live at your house?” I asked.
