Page 1 of Renovating with the Mountain Man
CHAPTER ONE
Lyric
“How’dthe meeting go with the new client this morning?” Thane asked me as he walked into the office space he recently purchased for his Stanton Construction crew. We needed a home base, somewhere to hold meetings, certification classes, and other general business. Plus, it was nice to have somewhere to go in between jobs or when business was slow.
Before, we’d met up at job sites, paperwork sometimes blowing in the wind, annoyance levels through the roof.
I finished stirring my coffee and took a sip.Perfect.“It went well. The couple wants their sunroom completely gutted and redone, from the ceilings to the floor. They also want an indoor Zen Garden for the room. That’s where I get lost.”
Thane laughed and clapped me on the back. “Sometimes we need to bring in people who specialize in other areas. Head over to my wife’s flower shop. I’ll let her know what you’re looking for.”
“Thanks, boss.” I said. “I’ll finish my sketch and go.” A half an hour later, with my sketchbook tucked under my arm andanother cup of coffee, I climbed into my truck and headed over to the flower shop.
Before Thane started his construction business, we’d do odd jobs together here and there, and I knew how much time and effort he put into building the flower shop for Amara, something I admired him for. When he asked me to work with him, I couldn’t say no. Besides, the steady work would be a lot better than looking for small jobs constantly. To say it excited me was an understatement. My close friend, Steeler, joined too, leaving his underpaying job in the dust.
Gran seemed more excited than me when I broke the news to her and we celebrated with a good bottle of red wine and her amazing lasagna. She was a whiz in the kitchen, especially with Italian cuisine, her heritage showing through with everything she made. She raised me since I was only seven years old and I loved her as if she were my mom, because to me, she was.
Several minutes later, I pulled into the parking lot of the flower shop and parked. When I grabbed my sketchbook, I looked at my messy drawing once more and chuckled to myself. “My drawing skills suck. Let’s hope I can explain myself better.” I muttered before locking up my truck and heading inside.
My knowledge about plants and gardening was a bigI don’t know a damn thing about them. Maybe what I had in mind wouldn’t work, but hopefully one of these ladies would help a guy in need.
When I stepped inside,the cool air-conditioned air washed over, relieving some of the intense heat outside. It had been a warmer than usual summer and I couldn’t wait for cooler temps to arrive.
The air smelled sweet, fresh, and floral, the way one would expect a flower shop to smell. Amara spotted me as soon as I stepped inside, the bell on the door alerting her to someone’s presence. “Lyric, hi! Thane said you were on your way over.” She waved as she walked towards me. Thane was a lucky man to have such a gorgeous wife.
“Great. Did he tell you what I’m looking for?”
Amara nodded. “I think our lovely new hire, Phoenix, would be perfect to help you with the indoor garden. She specializes in creating gardens for customers.” Amara explained to me. “Let me go get her. She’s a bit shy but talk about plants and she opens right up like a blossoming flower.” Amara laughed at her joke. “Sorry, there I go again with the corny flower jokes. It would mortify Thane to hear me right now, so please don’t snitch.” She grinned at me before she disappeared into the back room. I chuckled to myself. I wouldn’t snitch to my boss. Honestly, I found the jokes endearing, but maybe I’m just a cornball like that.
“Phoenix, this is Lyric. He’s looking for some help on a job, and I thought you would be a perfect fit.” Amara said as she walked out from the back to the woman walking beside her. She smiled at me. “Lyric, this is Phoenix.”
The woman came into full view as they moved closer and suddenly, my mouth went dry, as if I shoved a handful of sand into it. My chin dropped slightly, and I quickly scratched at my beard to disguise my obvious reaction to this woman.
She had curves for days, curves I could literallysinkmy teeth into, and her shorts and tank top hugged them perfectly. She knew exactly how to dress while accentuating her best features, obvious in her outfit choice. Dirty blonde hair sat on top of her head in a messy bun and large cat eye tortoise-shell glasses adorned her face.
She was the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen. Plenty of beautiful women lived in this small town, but none of them were her.
None of them elicited the feelings she did.
For the first time in my life, a woman left me speechless.
Both women stared at me. Phoenix tilted her head to the side and bit her bottom lip as she studied me. Was there a hint of a smile on her lips? Was she feeling what I was? Did she find my sudden loss of words amusing because she lost her own?
“Lyric, are you okay? Do you need some water?” Amara asked, concern etched across her soft features.
I cleared my throat. “No, I’m okay, thanks. Just have a lot on my mind with this new reno project. Nice to meet you, Phoenix.” I opened my sketchbook and flipped it around for both of them to see. “This is the general idea I’ve come up with for an indoor Zen Garden. But I have no idea which plants are best, what needs sun or shade, you get the idea.”
Amara nodded at both of us. “I trust Phoenix will come up with something good. I need to get back to filling orders, but feel free to chat or whatever.” She disappeared into the back, leaving only Phoenix and me.
The air crackled between us.
Does she feel it, too?
There’s no way she doesn’t.
I leaned on the counter and stared into her light brown eyes. “So, any ideas?”
Phoenix nodded and pulled the sketch paper towards her. She grabbed a pencil from the cup next to the register. “Do you mind if I make some edits?”
