Page 11 of Second Chances
Chapter 6
Josh walked away fromthe towering modern mountain home. He had been working in Chance Rapids for ten years but had never met the owner of the house on Sugar Peaks Way. She was a bit of an enigma in the town, rarely visiting, and never traveling into town. He was surprised at how approachable she had been, and if he was being honest, pretty.
It didn't surprise him that she didn't know where any of the cleaning supplies were in the house, after all, it was rumored that she had cleaning staff come in at least once a week even when the home sat vacantly.
The residents on the ski hillside of the bridge rarely interacted with the townspeople, unless of course, they were hiring them to work on their homes. Josh had worked on several different construction sites and had taken part in building most of the homes in the Sugar Peaks subdivision.
He started his pickup truck and rubbed his hands together, the November rain had given way to snow and he flicked on the windshield wipers to clear off the slushy stuff that had accumulated while he was inside. Timber sat up tall and proper in the passenger seat.
"Well, she can't be all that bad if she likes you." He reached over and rubbed Timber's neck. "No more running away, you rascal."
He put the truck into gear and wound his way out of the posh neighborhood and back across the bridge into town. He dropped Timber off at his house, ensuring that the back door was locked. Timber had figured out how to bump the door so hard the latch would give, and pop open enough for him to insert his nose and nudge it open, then he'd be gone on one of his adventures. Josh felt guilty leaving Timber at home while he was working, but the job site was a dangerous place for the dog, and if he left him tied up in the backyard, he would just bark and whine like he was being tortured.
Back at the job site, he pulled on his hard hat and harness, they were wrapping up the exterior of the project and he was helping install the last of the metal roofing.
"Where did that mutt of yours get to this time?" his buddy, Mark shouted when the compressor shut off.
"He was up on Sugar Peaks Way. Made himself comfortable right on that lady's couch."
"That big modern house?"
"Yeah," Josh said, strapping on his tool belt.
"You got to meet her? What was she like?"
Josh grabbed a box of screws and emptied them into his pouch. "Not what I expected."
Josh didn't really like to participate in the small-town gossip and heard his fair share about everyone, not just the rich residents. There had been plenty of gossip spread about him over the years, and he saw first hand, just how damaging the small-town rumor mill could be.
"Hot?" Mark wasn't letting it go. "I've heard that she's smoking hot."
"She's pretty," Josh said, remembering how her green eyes sparkled when she smiled at him, and how she didn't look like the rich bitch that everyone had talked about over the years.
"Oh," Mark seemed disappointed. "Like, would you bang her?"
Talk like this wasn't unheard of on the job site, and along with gossip, Josh usually avoided it. After meeting Megan today, speaking about her in such a way just seemed crass and uncalled for.
"Grow up." Josh swung onto the ladder and made his way onto the roof, Mark followed. "Hey, I'm almost thirty, you old bastard."
Josh felt older than his thirty-four years. Two broken legs and a perennially separated shoulder from dirt biking had slowed him down considerably over the years. "Maybe it's time to learn a little respect," he growled as he reached the top of the ladder and turned to help his friend mount the plywood clad roof.
Mark looked at Josh and smiled. "Wow, Josh. She certainly got to you."
"Hey Mark," Josh passed him a piece of metal and glanced at the setting sun. "Get to work."
The two of them worked together in the light of their headlamps, the steam from their breath swirling in the LED light until the last piece of steel was installed.
Back down on the ground, Josh rubbed his hands together. "I can't wait until we can start working inside this place."
"Me too, we got it sealed up just in time." Mark blew on his hands and pulled a beer out of the back of his truck "Keeps the beer the perfect temperature though," he laughed and handed one to Josh.
Josh took a swig and then felt the buzz from his cell phone in his shirt pocket. He pulled it out and saw that it was the same number that had called him earlier, it was her. It was Megan.
