Page 31 of Love Under Construction

Chapter 18

Jameson

I’ve busiedmyself with paperwork and catching up on the business side of things for the last two days. Anything to keep my mind off of what’s happening in New York right now, and I’ve done a pretty good job of distracting myself. The Mason Center officially opened yesterday, and I’m waiting for the press release that Leo is supposed to send me.

Of course, it hits my inbox right before I’m about to shut down for the day.

There she is, front and center with a smile on her face.

‘The Mason Center is now open!’The headline shouts.

The ache in my chest intensifies. I should have been there. Iwantedto be there. From the minute I knew The Mason Center was her idea, I longed to bring her dream to life and see her face when she saw the finished project for the first time. Because of Liv, I didn’t even stick around for the final walk through. Knowing I made her feel the way I did, I no longer wanted to be there. I didn’t want to taint the positive with my negative presence.

Oh well, I’m moving on, I remind myself for the millionth time since my flight landed in North Carolina.

With the connections that Leo Eastman has and the attention that my work on The Mason Center has garnered, business is booming. I’ve already started construction on an early learning center in Charlotte, and I’ve got a few residential builds that people want me to work on. I’ll be just fine as long as I can quit looking back.

A light tap on my office door pulls me from my thoughts.

“Hey, Jameson. I’m heading out. Wondered if you might want to grab a bite to eat?” Laney pokes her head in.

The newest addition to the J.L. Pheonix Construction team. I hired her as soon as we got settled here. I needed someone to run the front office and answer phones. She was the perfect fit. She’s also safe; I don’t have to worry about distractions with her. It’s only been three weeks, but Laney is a great fit and a hell of a worker.

“Shannon won’t have my balls if I take you to dinner with she?” I ask, closing my laptop.

Laney lets out a laugh. “It was her idea. She’s got a book club meeting tonight, and this girl’s gotta eat.”

“Then, let’s go eat.”

I grab my keys off my desk and shut off the light behind us.

“Tacos and margaritas?” Laney asks.

“Tacos and beer.”

“For you. I don’t know how you can drink that piss.”

I shrug. “It’s an acquired taste.”

She hops in my truck, and I drive us to the local Mexican restaurant where they’ve got the best tacos in town.

Laney keeps me laughing the whole time we eat. With each drink, she loosens up even more. Telling me all about her little boy that they adopted a few months ago, she doubles over in laughter.

“Shannon’s trying to potty train him, so he’s been letting him run around pantless. Yeah. He peed on her favorite pillow the other day. And when Shannon let Max out to use the bathroom, he ran out in the yard and peed on the tree too.”

I chuckle. “Sounds like it’s going well then.”

“Sure, it’s going great. So great that Shannon wants to adopt another one.”

“You’re serious?”

Laney nods. “Very. She always wanted three, and it doesn’t matter to her how far apart they are in age.”

“And what do you think?” I wonder out loud but think about how many kids I wanted one day and the fact that I have no idea if Liv ever wanted kids.

“The more, the merrier. She’s the one who stays home with them. I get to escape to work every day,” Laney holds up her glass.

“Cheers to that. I can’t imagine staying home with tiny terrors all day.” I tap her glass with my beer bottle.

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