Page 8 of Tell Me Again
CHAPTER THREE
“I appreciate you taking over the project.” Trevor shielded his eyes from the bright Colorado sun as he watched his framing crew secure the beams around the perimeter of the structure. It was a clear morning, most of the snow from last week’s spring storm having melted off after a weekend of unseasonably warm temperatures. The catchphrase he’d heard when they moved to Colorado a year ago, “If you don’t like the weather in Colorado, wait five minutes,” continued to hold true. “I’ll still be available and checking in a couple of times a week but...”
Dale Rogers, the foreman at Kincaid Homes, nodded. Dale had been his first hire when Trevor moved to the area over a year ago. Using his reputation in sustainable homebuilding and most of his savings, Trevor had started his own company to leverage the exploding Colorado housing market. “The house over at Eagle Tree is in the final stages. It’s not a problem for me to transfer most of the day-to-day supervision to Brad so I can focus here.” He shifted, scuffed his work boot against the dirt of the construction site. “Mind if I ask if everything’s ok with you?”
How did Trevor explain the last two days of his life? How everything he’d worked for during the past thirteen years was turning on its head to smack him upside his? After another stilted phone conversation, he and Sam had agreed to a tentative schedule for Grace spending time with her. For his own sanity, he should keep his distance, and she’d made it clear she didn’t want his help with her summer camp.
But it was just as obvious she needed it, and working at Bryce Hollow was the best way he could surreptitiously keep tabs on his daughter and the woman she was so determined to know. He had a feeling trying to force Sam to accept his help was going to send him into an early grave. He ran a hand over his jaw, the stubble making him realize he hadn’t shaved this morning. Christ, he was in bad shape.
“It’s fine,” he lied. “A friend I grew up with has a property near here and needs some help with damage from last week’s storm. I’m not sure how much time I’ll need to repair and rebuild, so it’s better if I’m not managing this site.”
“Are you taking a crew with you?” Dale asked. “Is it residential or commercial?”
Trevor shrugged. “It’s personal, so I’m going to handle it myself.”
Dale nodded. “Ok, then.”
“I’d appreciate if you didn’t mention this to the other guys. It’s close enough that I can get back and forth if needed. I don’t want a lot of questions because...”
“Because it’s personal,” Dale supplied then laughed.
“What’s so funny?”
“Sorry,” Dale said with a shake of his head. “But it’s strange to hear you play the ‘personal’ card. I didn’t think you had a personal life outside of Grace. When was the last time you looked at a woman?”
Trevor had done a lot of looking Saturday night. Given that Sam Carlton had been as famous for being a model as for her extracurricular activities, Trevor thought he’d done a pretty good job of ignoring her existence for the past decade. He’d gotten good at avoiding the magazine racks in the grocery checkout line and, other than ESPN, watched very little television.
He’d assumed she was still traveling the world or living in New York City, which was where she’d been based when Bryce had died. Of course he hadn’t forgotten her beauty, but even the times he’d caught a glimpse of her in an advertisement or on the cover of a tabloid, it had seemed different. She’d looked glamorous, made up, and so wholly unlike the girl he’d once loved that it had been easy to forget the effect she had on him. But up close in the intimacy of her cozy house, all those memories came flooding back.
Everything in his life had gone to hell after Sam left, and he wanted to blame her for all of it. But he could no longer ignore the fact that it wasn’t the whole truth. Yes, she’d hurt him. But her twin sister had been the one to truly change the course of his life. Even so, it made his whole body twitchy thinking that Sam would once again be a part of his world.
“I’ve been on dates,” he said, pulling out his phone and checking his messages.
“Name one woman.”
He opened his mouth then snapped it shut again. “What makes you think this is about a woman anyway? I’m running a business and raising a teenage girl,” he said, knowing he sounded pissier than he had a right to. “I’ll get to the other stuff when there’s time...”
“You ignore any woman who shows interest in you, and plenty of them have. I’ve seen it.” Dale barked out another laugh. “You’d better make time or your junk is going to shrivel up and fall off.”
“You don’t need to worry about my junk,” Trevor ground out. “I’d think you have enough to keep you busy since you and Beth are determined to breed your own football squad. How’s she doing?”
“Hanging in there,” Dale said with a nod. “The boys are making her crazy, but she’s so damn happy about having a girl that nothing can ruin her good mood.”
“I hope you drown in a river of pink ruffles.” Trevor smiled for the first time in days. Dale’s wife, Beth, was six months pregnant with their fourth child, the first girl after three boys born within five years.
“Whatever it takes,” Dale agreed.
That was a good mantra for Trevor right now. He was going to do whatever it took to keep his daughter both happy and safe. There was no chance he was losing her or allowing Sam to be more a part of her life than he had to. He still wasn’t convinced that him working at Sam’s summer camp was the smartest move, but at least it would keep him close.
Just not too close that he’d forget she wasn’t for him. His mind might be certain of that, but his body had other ideas.
He left Dale at the job site and headed toward Bryce Hollow Camp, which was only about twenty minutes from where he and Grace lived. Colorado spanned over a hundred thousand square miles and somehow he’d ended up practically neighbors with the one woman he never expected to see again.
He drove down the winding dirt driveway to where a row of cabins sat nestled within a copse of Douglas firs. There was something vaguely familiar about the setting, even beyond the view of the rocky peak towering behind the crystal-clear alpine lake. The constant presence of the massive Rocky Mountains was one of the things he loved most about Colorado.
A black Land Rover was parked near the largest cabin. Trevor pulled in next to it and walked slowly up the gravel path. The front door was open, so he let himself in, only to be greeted by a loud bark and the pounding of canine feet on the hardwood floor.
This time Trevor was ready for Frank’s greeting and shifted so that the dog ran into his thigh instead of any other body parts. Immediately, the big animal sank to the ground and exposed his belly for rubbing.
