Page 19 of The Talk Around Town

Gabe grumbled, “Thought that would be obvious.”

“Now, Gabe. Behave yourself. I talked to Hank earlier. He mentioned you’d ordered this from Forster’s, so we thought we’d go get it. We had some spare time today. Thought it was a perfect opportunity to install it for you. Can’t have you without a bathroom wall, now can we?” Ed’s voice echoed off her hallway walls.

“But …”

The men set the heavy plasterboard down, leaning it up against the wall outside the bathroom. Ed turned to face her.

“But?” Gabe asked.

Emma fought to find the right words, coming up blank. She shrugged and lifted her hands. “Why?”

Ed let out a laugh and unhooked a tape measure from his belt and handed it to Gabe, who disappeared into her bathroom. “Because you’re family now, darlin’, and we look after family.”

Emma was so confused. “What are you talking about?”

Ed turned to her and placed his hands on her shoulders. “Darby has claimed you as her friend. That on its own is enough for me to claim you as a daughter. Then there’s Mary, she thinks you’re lovely. And Gabe?” He jerked a thumb over his shoulder. “Even my boy don’t mind your company, so you’re family now.”

Gabe returned and hunkered down in front of the sheet of plasterboard, stretching the tape measure across it and marking with a pencil. Worn and faded denim jeans stretched tight across his firm thighs and butt. Emma jerked her eyes off the mouth-watering display to focus on his shoulders. That wasn’t much better.

Shoulders like his should be outlawed.

Gabe eyed her. His slight frown caught her off guard. “I should’ve warned you last week. If you take on one of us, you get the lot.”

Feeling slowly returned to Emma’s body, and her brain began to function. She bit hard on her lip to hold back the rising surge of happiness, guilt and pleasure that they felt this way. This small-town thing was so far out of her experience she didn’t know how to react.

“I don’t know what to say. I thought I’d have to find a carpenter or something to get this wall up.”

Gabe finished his measurements and turned to look at her. “Mum said we’d help.”

Emma nodded. “Yes, she did. But I thought she was just being kind.”

Ed straightened up from watching Gabe. “In other words, you didn’t believe her? Now that’s just going to break her heart, that is.”

“No! I-I—”

“Dad!” Gabe shook his head and shrugged. “I’m sorry, Emma. He’s just messing with your head. One thing you’re going to learn real fast is that Dad here has a terrible sense of humour. He’s going to enjoy having someone new to mess with.”

Emma let out her held breath. “So I see. What can I do to help?”

Ed threw an arm around her shoulders. “I thought you’d never ask.”

*

Gabe glanced upat the woman who had invaded his dreams since the first night he’d seen her. She’d been a real trooper the whole time he and his father had been working, fetching all the necessary tools and buckets of plaster and glue they’d needed from the back of his truck. She’d even ignored his bad mood and less-than-enthusiastic conversation.

He grimaced at his own surliness. It wasn’t her fault the others were trying to set them up.

Gabe ran a hand over the newly installed wall. The plasterboard was up and glued and screwed in place, all the edges plastered and sanded. In another couple of hours, you would never know there had been a gaping hole there.

A smear of plaster dust had mingled with sweat and trailed down Emma’s temple to her jaw. The sight of it had his stomach twisting and his thoughts turning to things best left alone.

How could he have such a reaction to her, after one simple little kiss? It didn’t make sense. It wasn’t like they’d spent the night together. His body tightened with anticipation at the thought.

Whoa! Back down there, boy.

That was a place he didn’t want to go, not even in his thoughts. The only problem was his brain wasn’t following orders. Her presence invaded his dreams every single night, taunting him and teasing himwith the taste of her kiss, the feel of her mouth on his.

How was he supposed to sleep, with her running around his head every night?

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