Page 28 of No Going Back
TEN
GRIFFIN
GRIFFIN RUBBED HIS forehead against the sleeve of his T-shirt, swiping at the drip of sweat trying to work its way into his eyes as he held a flame against the copper pipe that would soon feed the sink in the master bathroom.
He’d been hard at work on the house since taking possession. The first order of business was hiring a lead paint remediation company to assist in the process of pulling out destroyed lathe and plaster walls and removing all the peeling paint. It had taken almost three weeks to get any potential issues cleared away, packed up, and sent off to their appropriate disposal sites, but he was finally at a point where he could start actually accomplishing things.
And getting running water was at the top of that list.
The entire house had to be re-plumbed because the majority of the drains were corroded and clogged from years of use. Luckily, Brooks Pace shared the name of a plumber he knew who was skilled at renovating older homes, and he’d been able to pay the guy to come over and help him come up with a game plan. The contractor even stayed on to help with removing the old pipes and running the new ones, which was a nightmare of a job.
But it was done now and he was close to having a working sink he could use to brush his teeth and wash his face. It wasn’t much, but after nearly a month without running water in the house, it felt like one hell of a luxury. He’d been using the only source of water, the backyard hose the contractor suggested they leave available when adding in a new shutoff valve, for everything from showering to washing dishes. And the weather was going to cool off soon, making those late-night cold showers a little more painful than they already were.
Living here during the renovation might not have been his brightest idea, but it was the only option he had. Troy and Amelie’s feelings would’ve been hurt if he’d rented a hotel, and driving back and forth from Cross Creek every day would have eaten up too much time and dragged this project out longer than it already had.
Plus, the last thing his son and daughter-in-law needed was him crowding what little time they had left before Amelie had her baby.
His grandson.
The thought of it was still surreal. Less than a year ago he didn’t even know he was a father, and now here he was planning to be a papa.
The trickle of sweat started up again, sliding down his forehead as it headed straight for his eye. Griffin squinted as he worked the last of the solder into the seam, keeping the joint hot enough to pull it into the gap and create a water-tight seal. This house had seen enough water damage. It definitely didn’t need to suffer more. And the last thing he wanted was for all his hard work to go to waste because he rushed a fitting.
When he was satisfied with the joint, Griffin shut off the flame and set the tank onto the floor before shimmying his way out of the custom cabinet he’d been working inside.
He stood, grabbing the hem of his dirty T-shirt and dragging it across his face, wiping away the sweaty grime clinging to his skin. Even with the windows open the house was hot, making him wish the cooler weather would hurry up. He’d brave a few cold showers if it meant he didn’t have to spend each day sweating his balls off.
After giving his work a final look over, he glanced at the pile of boxed fixtures stacked in the corner, thinking maybe he would get started on the faucet. Knock another thing off his endless list. But before he could even snap the plastic bands securing the package, a jaw-cracking yawn snuck free. Suddenly he was fucking exhausted. There was no more ignoring the burning in his eyes and his body was starting to drag.
Griffin pulled out his cell and checked the time, feeling relieved that it was after midnight.
He’d been doing his best to avoid running into Dianna, and so far had been successful. She kept a pretty strict schedule, which made it easy to time his own.
With the exception of Sundays.
So he’d taken to driving out to spend the entire day with Troy and Amelie, helping out around the ranch and with the addition they were putting on the house.
But today was a weekday. Dianna would have gotten home just before eleven, and would now be in bed, just like the rest of his neighbors.
After collecting his tools, Griffin flipped off the portable work-light he’d been dragging from room to room. He made his way down the back stairs, managing it mostly by feel since the state of the electric was similar to the state of the plumbing, and only worked in a select area.
The cooler downstairs air was a welcome change and he peeled off his shirt as he made his way through the kitchen, happy to get the sticky fabric away from his sweaty skin. He grabbed the shower caddy he kept beside the back door and carried it out onto the cracked patio, setting it on the rusting table Nate’s family left behind as he dropped down into the matching chair to work off his boots. Once they were off, he stood to chuck his filthy jeans, letting them drop to the cement before glancing around to make sure no one was looking.
Then he snapped down his last remaining article of clothing and stepped into the rigged up outdoor shower he’d crafted out of PVC pipe and an old shower curtain. It wasn’t a perfect system, but it was functional, and right now all he needed was functional.
He made sure the fabric curtain was in place before gritting his teeth and turning on the faucet. It took a second for the water to hit, and when it did he nearly yelped as the freezing spray hit his heated skin, sending goosebumps racing over his arms and legs.
Every night he thought he was prepared for the shock that came out of the hose, and every night he was wrong.
Griffin reached out of the curtain, fumbling around the caddy for the gel style soap he preferred over a bar. It was better at breaking down the oil and grease he used to get all over him while working at the shops, but it was also turning out to do a heck of a job on the filth that came from remodeling a house.
He readjusted the curtain then squeezed a healthy dose into his hand and went to work scrubbing away the grime. Once his skin was clean he moved onto his hair, sucking in a deep breath before stepping fully into the frigid stream. He rushed through the process of rinsing the soap free, working fast to get all the residue out so he could warm back up. The second it was gone he shut off the water and stepped back.
Right onto the hem of the curtain providing him some semblance of privacy.
The structure of the makeshift shower wasn’t the sturdiest since it was comprised entirely of plastic, so he jumped off the curtain before it applied too much pressure to the elbow joints keeping his dick from being publicly displayed. But in his haste to get one foot off the curtain, he managed to get another one onto it, and this time the placement was a little bit more problematic. Maybe it was the rocking of the entire contraption from one side to the other as he bounced around. Maybe it was simply flawed design. Whatever it was, the entire thing collapsed, dropping down to his ankles as the support bars fell out to the sides.
Someone gasped.
