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"I really hope you can take the job. Most of the contractors around here are busy for the next few months. They've all been waiting for the snow to clear."
"Joel mentioned that."
"Joel never told me how he knows you. He just said you were a friend from school."
"We met in high school in San Francisco."
She straightened at that piece of information. "San Francisco? I didn't realize Joel had lived in California."
"His father was overseeing a development there, and the family came with him for two years. The family went back to New York after Joel's graduation, and he and I headed off to college together in LA. Since then, we try to get together every couple of years, but it's not as often as we'd like."
"Did you grow up in San Francisco?"
"I grew up all over, but I lived in San Francisco for about four years."
"Why did you grow up all over?"
He shrugged. "My father's job took us around the world. He was a photojournalist and an incredible writer."
"Sounds like an amazing childhood."
"It was an adventure, that's for sure." He paused as the door to the café opened, followed by a familiar voice. He smiled as Joel entered the restaurant, wearing a navy-blue suit with a light-blue tie, which was a typical look for Joel. They both worked in construction, but Joel had always been more comfortable in the office or the job site trailer while Decker had enjoyed getting his hands dirty. But he was surprised that Joel hadn't gone more casual since moving to this small town.
"Decker," Joel said with a cheerful grin. "You made it."
He got to his feet as they exchanged a brief hug. "I'm here."
"It's great to see you." Joel stepped away from him, then walked around the counter and gave Chloe a quick kiss, which seemed to fluster her a little.
"Can I get you a drink or something?" she asked quickly, moving forward so that Joel had to step back around the counter, which seemed to make her more comfortable.
That was a little odd. But he knew little about their relationship. Maybe they were still at an awkward stage. Although, in his experience, awkward stages never really became much of anything else. If it wasn't easy from the beginning, it rarely got that much easier.
"Actually," Joel said. "I wanted to see if Decker wanted to get a drink and some dinner, but it looks like he already ate."
"I can still drink," he told Joel. "And we have a lot to catch up on."
"Hopefully, we'll have lots of time to do that," Joel said. "What did you think of the job Chloe needs done?"
"It would be a challenge, but I'm definitely interested. I need to take a better look tomorrow."
"I'm sure you can help her," Joel said confidently.
"I'm going to try." He got up and pulled out his wallet, but Chloe waved him away.
"I told you, dinner is on the house," she said. "Consider it a welcome to Whisper Lake meal."
"All right. Thank you." He turned to Leo. "See you later, buddy."
"Meow," Leo returned.
He laughed and said, "Meow" back, which made Leo laugh and Chloe smile. Then he turned to Joel, who looked at him in bemusement. He shrugged in response. "Sometimes, you just have to be a cat."
"Sure," Joel said. His gaze moved to Chloe. "I'll call you later."
"Have fun," she replied.
"We will," Joel returned. "Goodbye, Leo."
