Page 20 of Call it Reckless

We went through the door that led to the salon. I might not be the girliest of girls, but this was a place where I’d want to hang out.

Paige’s mouth dropped as she took in her new work environment. “Yeah, this’ll do just fine,” she murmured.

The walls were painted the same dark gray, but pops of pink broke it up and made it look feminine and classy. A massive wall art of light pink and cream-colored flowers—peonies, Cam told us—cascaded from above the door that led to the bathrooms. Mauve suede chairs were centered around a glass table on a white rug at the front to create a cozy sitting area. A circular bookshelf with a pink ombre background would be perfect for holding products for sale. The floors were black and white tile design, and arched mirrors in silver metal frames hung on the walls, two on each side of the room, where the hair stations would be located.

It was the perfect blend of feminine and industrial that I never imagined coexisted.

“Cam,” I breathed. “I think you’ve outdone yourself. This could be in a magazine spread.”

“For sure.” Paige still whispered as she almost reverently brushed her hand across the backs of the styling chairs. She turned to Cam, who was beaming with the praise. “I mean, I knew it would be great, but I had no idea it would bethisphenomenal. Girl, you’ve got an eye for design. You could easily have your own show on one of those home networks.” She winked at my sister. “I know some people in the industry if you’re interested. Just say the word.”

Cam’s gaze grew thoughtful, but then she shook her head. “Nah. I got enough to deal with running the business. But you’ll be the first I tell if I change my mind.”

“Oh!” Cam clapped her hands. “Wait ‘til you see what I have out in the truck.”

We followed her to the back of a huge pickup truck. It was hard to imagine my sister, currently wearing a silky blouse with dress pants and heels, driving such a masculine truck. But I guessed when you inherited a construction company, you learned to combine your old interests with your new ones.

She dropped open the back gate and whipped a canvas cover off a large object. “Ta-dah!”

My eyes practically popped out of my head. Somewhere, she’d found a wooden bench with the back and sides made from the tailgate and brake panels from an old truck, the same brand and color we’d seen in old pictures of our grandfather’s.

“Where did you find it?” I asked, climbing onto the truck bed to look closer.

Her grin was sheepish. “I actually didn’t. Mac made it. Guess he’s good for something other than giving me a hard time.”

I’d heard a lot about this “Mac” guy, usually in the form of complaints. I’d never met him, but I usually sympathized with her and figured he was an ass who didn’t like working for a woman, a characteristic I was very familiar with. But for this brief moment, I thought he was awesome.

“It’s amazing. It’ll look perfect out front, next to the door.” I glanced at her outfit. While I didn’t mind getting mine dirty, she and Paige were dressed much nicer. “I guess we’ll have to wait for some help to get it down.”

She raised a perfectly plucked eyebrow at me. “Are you kidding? We got this. Hang on.”

I couldn’t hold back the chuckle as she emerged a minute later wearing a petite pair of construction boots in place of her heels and a huge plaid button-down flannel shirt she’d found in the truck that she’d pulled on over her dressy clothes. Five minutes later, we had the bench right where I wanted it.

“Just like I pictured,” Cam said.

We were headed back to her truck when another smaller truck with the same company logo flew into the still-graveled parking lot, spraying up gray dust and a few pebbles.

A giant lumberjack of a man got out. “What the hell, Cameron? You took my truck.”

Uh-oh. That must be Mac. His size alone, much less the glower set on his handsome features, would intimidate most people. Not my sister.

She crossed her arms and glared at him. “Last I checked,Iown the business. Therefore,Iown the truck.”

“Damn it, Cameron. Youknowthat’s the truck I use. I barely fit in that other one.”

She shrugged and held her defiant stance, a satisfied gleam in her eye. “Looks like you managed just fine. And I wanted to bring Bristol’s bench to her. If you didn’t want me to take that truck, you should have put it in the smaller one.”

He threw his hands in the air and grumbled something under his breath, but I thought I heard the words “trying” and “nice” and “welcome.” I put it together and figured he had been hoping to bring out the bench as a welcome gift, an action my sister had denied him.

I looked closer at Cam. I knew that look. She’d done it on purpose. Her eyes were snapping with irritation, but she was also biting back a smile. I didn’t know what was going on between those two, but my best guess was it more than just workplace quarreling.

I stepped up to Mac. “Cam told me you made the bench. It’s absolutely perfect. Thank you so much.”

His glare morphed into a warm smile as he shifted his attention from my sister to me. “You’re welcome.” He held his hand out. “Welcome back to Sterling Mill. I think this shop is going to be an amazing place. Popular with everyone. And to be honest, we need another good mechanic.”

As his hand engulfed mine, it struck me just how huge he was. I wasn’t short, but he dwarfed me by at least eight inches. He must be almost a foot taller than Cameron unless she was wearing her heels, which she usually was, so maybe it wasn’t as big a deal.

And he seemed to have muscles on top of his muscles. Obviously, he wasn’t someone who just oversaw his workers but got in there, working hard, as well.

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