Page 20 of The Darkest Knight

CHAPTER FIVE

Seth had his head stuck under the hood of the 1970 Mustang Mach 1 in the garage. He was contemplating the car’s engine and his visitor, both as hot as the afternoon desert. He enjoyed getting out to work on the classic, a splurge he’d gifted himself when he came back home. The restoration was a ‘nut & bolt’ refurbishment…stripping it down to bare metal and starting over, including the body that looked like it had been through a war. Up until recently, he’d planned to work nonstop on the beauty, but that was looking bleaker by the minute.

Reese had been at Landing Knight for nearly four days now, but they hadn’t sat down for a meal, or conversation, since he’d agreed to the project. He wondered if she was keeping her distance, but at the same time so was he.

He’d gone to town yesterday and came back with a truckload of materials and groceries including several bags for Reese and dog food for Abby. Instead of knocking on her door, he’d left the bags on the step along with an envelope containing the contract his attorney had drawn up. He expected her to read through it carefully before she signed it.

“She coming along, buddy?”

Seth looked up and spotted his friend, Gage Howard, admiring the Mustang. “Not as far as I’d hoped.” Seth ducked out from the hood and wiped his dirty hands on a rag.

“Imagine what this thing will be worth once you’re done.” Gage whistled between his teeth.

“If she ever gets done.” Tossing the rag onto the workbench, Seth reached into the mini fridge and grabbed himself a water.

“Hell, if anyone can do it, you can. I’ve never known you not to finish something once you get started.” Gage came around the car and leaned against the workbench. Recently he and his two older brothers had opened the doors to a home builders company, Howard and Brothers Builders, and business had been slow, but Seth tried to send as much business their way as possible. They would be perfect for the project here at Landing Knight.

Seth dropped back into a shabby, overstuffed chair and sent several receipts flying from the workbench that landed on the concrete floor. One receipt was longer than his arm. Those were the supplies he’d bought to start on the cabins. His plan was to begin painting the only two cabins that didn’t need remodeling to be livable. For the others, that’s where Gage came into play. They’d have the renovations done in no time as long as they didn’t have too much on their plate. “You and your brothers have some time for a job?”

Gage removed his cap, scratched his head full of blonde curls, and replaced the hat, smashing it low. “I wish I could say no. You need something?”

“I need to get these cabins up to code. Think it can happen?”

One brow lifted. “You going to finally do something with this place?” He seemed shocked.

Seth shrugged. “Something like that. I’m going to turn this place into a retreat for veterans, help them get set up for the things they need.”

“Now that sounds like a plan.”

“That’s not the only part. A resort for veterans with seizures caused by head trauma. We’re going to train service dogs right here.” He gave his friend the details.

“Wow, this wasn’t what I expected when I got your call. How many cabins you have out here?” Gage pointed to the open door.

“Twelve. Two are livable. I made a quick inspection yesterday and I think there are only five that’ll need a strip down. The others need only minor renovations with a good coat of paint. You’ll want to take a look and tell me what you think.”

“When do you want us to start?”

“As soon as possible.”

“I’ll get with the boys and we’ll get out here tomorrow. You still living out here all alone, bro?”

Why was everyone so suddenly worried about his living situation? “I have a visitor in the guest cabin. She’ll be heading up this project with me. In fact, it was her idea.” He automatically turned his attention to the open garage door. From where he sat, he couldn’t see the cabin, but he’d caught a sneak peek of her that morning while she was running with Abby. He’d waved and she’d greeted him with the same, but he made sure he’d continued at a fast pace toward the garage. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to talk to her, it was that he did, and that was the problem. He wanted to more than he needed to.

“Did you say ‘she’ is partnering with you?” There was new curiosity in his buddy’s face.

“Yeah. And?” He really didn’t need to hear the other man’s words to know what he was referring to, but Seth sure as hell wasn’t going to head down that road.

“Is she a looker?”

“Would it matter one way or another? She’s a business partner. Point blank.” He scratched his chin.

Amusement sparkled in Gage’s eyes. “Just what I thought. There had to be a woman involved to get you to move on this property.”

Seth snorted. “Eventually I would have done something around here, but I’ve been busy.”

“Look, buddy, you need to be working under the hood of something other than this heap of metal.” He slung a thumb toward the Mustang. “I mean, I’m not saying that I wouldn’t like to get under there and work the pipes and belts, but she ain’t soft and warm. Shit, even a man as hillbilly and raw as I am can fill his tank on occasion. But you, well, you scrub that hair with some shampoo and smile and you could have any woman you want.”

“That’s if I wanted a woman. I don’t.”

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