Page 18 of One Touch

That’s right, fucker.

I rubbed my eyes, sighing at myself for engaging in a pissing match with a rooster.

Only in Outtatowner.

I stood like an idiot, watching Tootie fuss with her birds and trying to understand the pull this town was having on me. Not once had I felt the familiar tug toward Chicago and the mounting work I’d left there, and that was a problem.

* * *

“Okay,boss, the living room floors are sealed. Plastic is hung to limit dust, and I taped off the entry so no one accidentally steps in there and fucks it all up.”

I nodded at Bob Klein. He owned a flooring company a few towns over and had several men on the local crew I’d hired. The hardwood floors we’d unearthed from years of being covered by carpet needed a lot of love, and Bob and his men had worked magic to sand, buff, and stain them. I made a note on my clipboard to have Kate mention Bob’s company again when she posted the reveal on her Instagram page.

I turned to him. “And the kitchen?”

He turned toward the cramped space. “That wall is going?” he asked, pointing to a center wall that cut off the kitchen from the main space. It was load bearing, so we’d planned a new support header, and while it was expensive, it would make all the difference in giving Ms. Tootie the kitchen of her dreams.

“Yep. Demo starts as soon as the cabinets get here.”

Bob looked around at the flooring and considered. “Once it’s all out, we’ll cover the existing floors to protect them. Then we will join the original flooring with whatever new pieces we’ll need to lay down. Should be seamless.”

I held out my hand. “That’s what I like to hear. I’ll keep you updated on when it will be ready for you.”

Bob looked into the kitchen area. Boxes of plates and cups were stacked. Hardly any had been marked for donation or trash, and I’d have to find a way to keep the crew from breaking anything that was meant to be kept. It significantly slowed down our progress.

As if Bob could read my mind, he said, “Kind of hard to work efficiently when the homeowner is around.”

I let out a grunt in agreement. “Tell me about it.”

“Hello!” Kate’s singsong greeting floated from the front door to the kitchen, where we were standing.

In the late morning sun, she was radiant. Her brown hair was swept up, leaving the long line of her neck exposed. The late-summer rays were already beating down, so she was in a tight white tank top, but she’d swapped her denim cutoffs for a pair of tight jeans and work boots.

Should have kept my mouth shut.

“Hi!” She beamed at Bob and me. “Whoa, looks like a crime scene in here.”

Bob smiled back. “The plastic will keep dust and debris off your gorgeous new flooring. I want to make sure it’s perfect for you and your aunt.”

I narrowed my eyes at him.

Traitor.

“Well, aren’t you thorough.” Kate batted her lashes.

Bob practically floated out the door when Kate said her goodbyes and gave him the full power of her smile.

“Can you not?”

She blinked at me. “What?”

“Flirt with my guys.”

Kate rolled her mossy-green eyes at me. “I was not flirting. If I was, you’d know it.”

A strange surge of jealousy bubbled in my gut. Bob was easily twenty years her senior, but the idea of Kate flirting with him awakened some feral, Neanderthal part of my brain.

Instead of dealing with it, I decided to push her buttons instead.

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