Page 35 of Shake the Habit

“No, keep singing. I like that better.”

So I did. The trip home went much too quickly.

Chapter 8

My Lord! Were they at it again? I quickly took out my phone and, just like I’d done on my flights to Hawaii, I turned on airplane mode. Sorry, Taygen, I internally apologized. But this would be the third fight this week alone, and I didn’t want to be involved anymore. I was done.

“What do you want from me?” Marc typed. I knew this, because he mouthed the words as his thumb slid around on his phone’s keyboard. “I’m doing the best I can. I’m afraid that if I screw it up, I’ll be done. No one will hire me. I have to make it work because this is our future.”

He stopped squinting at the screen and rubbed his temples. I’d known that he was worried about the barn project, but I didn’t know he felt like this! He sounded almost at wit’s end and totally overwhelmed, which made sense. Prior to taking on the job at Caleb’s, we had handled a one-car garage remodel, a powder room, and part of a kitchen (we’d saved money by avoiding a total gut and the owner had been happy with our thriftiness). Sothe barn, with the multiple stages, multiple subcontractors, and multiple money draws? It was more than we were used to, a lot more. It was understandable that he’d have been stressed and worried but I hadn’t known that it was this bad.

I watched out of the corner of my eye as he shoved the phone into his pocket, and then I nudged Sir. “Go see Marc,” I whispered very quietly and dogs did have that amazing hearing. He padded right over and nudged his dump truck-sized head into my cousin’s lap, and after a moment, Marc looked down and started to scratch his ears.

“You’re a good dog,” he told Sir. We’d done a few of the obedience classes, but that loving instinct was natural because he really was a good dog.

I stood and made a little show of checking my own phone. “Oh, wow! I didn’t realize how late it was getting. No wonder I’m hungry.”

“Huh?” My cousin looked over at me, confused.

“Did you have lunch yet?” I asked. No, he hadn’t, because he’d been out at Caleb’s and then had come tearing back here to have a meeting with the subcontractor who’d messed up so badly before I’d left for Hawaii. They seemed to have worked things out, and they would not be badmouthing each other or working together in the future. At least that problem had been put to rest.

“I guess I missed it. Did you bring anything?” He looked hopefully at our little fridge.

Yes, actually, I had packed a lunch bag for today, a cute one I’d gotten for Christmas. But now I had other plans. “It’s so nice out. Why don’t we take a walk down to the taco truck? We can sit outside at those picnic tables with Sir. My treat, and I know you love their guacamole.”

He did, and I’d seen his face light up when I’d mentioned “taco” too. At least it had made him look less like he wanted to scream and/or cry. “Sure, let’s go,” he agreed.

Sir and I practiced what we’d learned at our training sessions about walking on a leash. He behaved very nicely, not yanking at my arm, but we still had a problem with—

“Holy crap!” Marc grabbed me before the dog pulled me off my feet and flat onto the sidewalk. “No, Sir!”

“Thank you. He saw that squirrel and they’re his downfall,” I explained, righting myself. Sir now sat politely, and looked back at me to ask what my problem was.

“You would have torn up your knees for sure,” my cousin commented, because I was wearing a skirt today. Sir and I had dinner plans, so we had both dressed up. I had foregone my jeans and he had a very masculine bow on his collar which he hadn’t yet noticed so it was intact. “Are you wearing that because you’re going out with Caleb?”

My cousin had never forgotten the party dress I’d put on for our first meeting at the barn, but to his credit, he’d never told anyone in our family about it. “We’re having dinner at his house,” I answered.

“Then you’ll be able to see the lack of progress that went on today.” He sighed deeply.

“You want to tell me about it?”

For the first time in weeks, he did. He described the many problems, most of which I had zero knowledge of and some of which I could have done something to solve. As I listened, I felt so sorry for him. And I also felt mad. Very mad.

“Why in the world didn’t you mention any of this to me?”

“I can handle it,” he muttered.

“Wehandle things, becausewework together. Why did you hire me if you don’t want my help? Or…” My mind went to a word that I didn’t like: pity. “Did you keep everything to yourself because you didn’t trust me?”

“What?” Marc seemed genuinely confused. “No, that’s not why.”

I stopped on the sidewalk and I would have put my hands on my hips, except Sir was pulling me. “Then what is the problem?”

“I’m failing. There. Are you happy that I admitted it?” he asked, his cheeks red with anger. Sir cried and my cousin bent to pet him. “It’s all right. We’re not mad at you.”

“You can do this,” I said, and linked my arm with his. “Wecan. Let me help you, please? And let your dad help too, if you need it. When you played football, you didn’t just go out on the field and expect to know where to run and how to block. It’s the same.”

“I worked for my dad since I was a kid and then I got a degree in construction management. I should already know what I’m doing.”

---