Page 143 of The Fixer

Charlie’s brows tightened in question, but he motioned them in. “Watch your step.” He led them back into the bedroom, where his cot still occupied a space under the window. He leaned against the window frame and crossed his arms. “What can I do for you?”

Luanne released her grip on the boy. “Tell Mr. Charlie what you told me.”

Cade’s eyes darted nervously around the room, and he scuffed the floor with the toe of his sneaker. When he spoke, it was in a subdued voice. “I know where your stuff went.”

Chapter 40

Coming Home

Joy smiled at thewoman as she accepted the key fob. When she located the vehicle in its stall, she stood back and surveyed it, repressing a shudder. It wasn’t so bad, was it? She needed something to get her from point A to point B, and this would get the job done.

She stowed her bags, settled behind the wheel, and got acquainted with the controls. AC was critical, as was the sound system. Thoughts bombarded her brain like the fireballs raining down from the Leonids meteor shower, and she visualized stuffing them into a sturdy, compact suitcase and zipping it shut—a little trick her therapist had taught her.

Connecting her phone via Bluetooth, she cued up the audiobook she’d picked for the long drive ahead. She guided the vehicle out of the slot, seated her sunglasses on the bridge of her nose, and wiggled her butt until she sank as comfortably as possible into the seat. Then she sat back and tried to lose herself in the story. Maybe, just maybe, she could forget the last conversation she’d had with Sterling.

When Charlie parked onthe empty lot behind Crystal Harmony Haven, his truck was one of five, even though it was early, only 6:00 a.m. The sun was already lighting the mountains that surrounded the bowl that held Fall River, setting it afire. He loved these late-summer mornings, when the crisp mountain air carried the tang of the approaching fall. Soon the leaves would turn, elk would bugle, and snow would clog mountain chutes and roads.

He clambered out of his truck, and Sunny and Luna sprang from the back seat and trotted beside him like little ladies … until they spied their new favorite human and tore across the yard toward him.

“Hey, hey!” Cade laughed as the dogs barreled into his spindly legs. It was a miracle the kid stayed upright, but he was stronger than he looked. Sinewy and tall, he’d be a force when he eventually filled out. In the meantime, he could get a workout here and with the club hockey team that would start up again in a few short months. Between Charlie and his teammates, they’d teach Cade to ice skate and puck-handle. He was already working on his strides with shiny new rollerblades he’d bought with his first Past Perfect paycheck.

Charlie joined him and the dogs and handed him a bag of day-old pastries he’d bought at Mountain Coffee the day before. “You’re here early.”

Cade ruffled the dogs’ necks. “Yeah, well, I’ve gotta help my mom paint the exterior of our house before the weather turns, and I wanted to be sure I had things ready for you.”

“Thanks. I appreciate that.” Cade hadn’t even worked for Charlie a week, but he already loved the kid’s attitude. He wanted to learneverything, and he reminded Charlie a little of himself at that age, when he’d tagged along with his grandpa and soaked up the old man’s knowledge like a sponge.

If Charlie had listened to Noah, he might have hired Cade sooner and avoided some of the BS that had gone down. Then again, if Cadehadcome to work for him earlier, Charlie might never have found out about the plan to put him out of business.

“Who all’s here?”

Cade jabbed a thumb over his shoulder just as Angus, Charlie’s new lead carpenter, strolled out the back door and swiped the bag from him. “Hey! Those are mine!” Cade’s voice cracked with his protest.

“You’ll hafta fight me for ’em, young buck,” Angus teased in a fake brogue.

Charlie hadn’t realized at the time he offered to take Cade on that the kid came with a mess of dudes who knew construction. Some were musicians in a band called the Celtic Knots—Cade’s mom, Luanne, happened to be carrying on with their leader—while others were related to those musicians. Cade had mentioned Charlie was looking for help, and presto! Instant work crew. While they didn’t live in Fall River, they were only about thirty minutes away, which was a short commute in the mountains. Charlie had yet to figure out the family tree and who was a brother, a cousin, an uncle, but that would come in time. Bonus: he might get to jam with them when they needed someone to fill in.

Luna’s sharp bark brought Charlie back to the present and the knuckleheads wrestling over Cade’s breakfast.

“Angus, let him have the damn bag so he can finish up and get home to his mom—unlessyouwant to show up in his place and explain to his mother why you’re helping her paint the house.”

Angus relinquished the bag in a heartbeat.

Inside, Charlie took pictures of the mantel they were going to remove. He would take it home and work on it there, and he couldn’t wait. Now that he had more guys working for him, he might carve out time to work on his carpentry.

A week ago, life had been in the toilet, but now? It was close to perfect with one huge exception: he still hadn’t connected with Joy, who was off gallivanting someplace mysterious and unreachable. Maybe she was avoiding him, and it really was over.

God, the thought sat in his stomach like a chunk of concrete. He shook it off. “I’m heading to the other job site, then I have a meeting with a possible new client who wants to renovate the old emporium.”

“Nice!” Angus enthused. “What are they looking to turn it into?”

“A shop for pets.”

Angus’s big brows pulled together in one solid ridge across his forehead. “They’re going tosellpets? Thought you couldn’t do that anymore.”

“Only dogs. But it’s irrelevant because they’re selling stuffforpets. Treats, toys, beds. Outfits.”

“You’re shitting me! Who the hell dresses their pets in outfits?”

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