Page 14 of Solid Foundation
“Sounds good.”
When Sterling had headed off in another direction, I headed to the trailer, where I suspected I’d find Jake, putting out one metaphorical fire or another. I knocked lightly on the door once I’d approached.
“Come in,” Jake’s gruff voice called.
I pushed open the door to find him hunched over some paperwork at his desk. “Hey there.”
His normally sour face lightened with a tiny smile when he saw me and he stood up behind his desk. It wasn’t much, but I’d take it. I approached him and he straightened, his tongue darting out to wet his lips, and he shifted a little like he was trying to get comfortable. “Max.”
“I had a quick question…” I started, trailing off as my mind tried hard to focus on somethingotherthan his tongue and lips. I wanted nothing more than to reach out and touch him, to lean over and kiss him, to see if he wanted me the way I wanted him.
“Yeah?”
I blinked a few times, returning my mind back to the moment. “Is the electrician digging tomorrow?”
He nodded. “He’ll be marking his lines tonight after everyone else leaves.” I watched as his gaze dropped to my mouth.
I pinned my bottom lip between my teeth as I processed everything. It wasn’t that his words were so complicated. It was more that his words and his actions were so different that Ididn’t know which to prioritize. My heart raced and I leaned closer. Heat simmered between us, a magnetic pull to reach across the desk tugging at me. I nearly did, too. We stood there, staring at one another, only his desk between us, silent.
A knock at the door startled both of us into action.
“Thanks,” I said. “I appreciate you letting me know.”
At the same time, Jake exhaled sharply. “Let me know if you need anything else.”
I stepped away and the spell was broken. As I left the trailer, another construction worker came in to talk to Jake. I left, my heart pounding in my chest and my fingers aching with longing.
I decided on Saturday when I woke up and the sun was shining that I’d been in Port Grandlin for far too long without exploring the town, so explore the town was exactly what I did. I headed to the historic downtown area, my mind working overtime, thinking about which buildings would be good contenders if the show got renewed. Town Hall looked like a solid choice. There was an ancient general store that also looked like an option, and a little old library. I turned the corner and made my way off of the main strip, walking a few blocks to where I’d seen a brewery on the map. It didn’t take long to find—there was a whole neighborhood of breweries, at least a half dozen taking up several blocks. I decided to go into the first one I came to and save the others for another day.
I made my way into the building, swinging open the glass door and stepping into the cool air-conditioned space. The room was vast, with high ceilings and glossy, sealed concrete floors, and the scent of hops and wheat drifted pleasantly around as I took a step up to the long bar.
The bartender, a guy covered in tattoos with a short blond ponytail held high on the back of his head, immediately sidestepped from where he’d been chatting with another employee to stand in front of me. “Hey, what can I get you?”
I hummed indecisively. “I don’t know. What do you recommend?”
The patron standing next to me leaned over to offer his opinion, and when I glanced over, I was startled to see it was Jake. “Try the blueberry sour.”
I wasn’t sure he recognized me at first, but when he finally glanced my way, he did a double take before his cheeks turned slightly pink and his gaze darted around the room. “What are you doing here?” His tone was gruff, as usual.
I shrugged and offered him a smile, hoping to wear down his usual grumpiness. “Just exploring the town.”
He let out a sound that was part grunt. “Can’t get a moment’s peace around here.”
“You want to join me for a drink? We can talk business, if you want. Or not. Either way.”
He frowned for a second before sighing. “Alright. Why not?”
I nodded to the bartender. “I’ll have that blueberry thing he recommended.” A minute later, cold beer in hand, I was taking a seat at a table across from Jake. In an open cabinet next to the table was a handful of board games and decks of cards. I gestured to the cabinet. “You want to play something?”
Jake raised one eyebrow. “Do I look like the kind of guy who wants to play Candyland at a brewery?”
I laughed and grinned. “Guess not.” Leaving my beer on the table for a moment, I rummaged through the cabinet until I found a deck of cards that read Would You Rather in big letters on the backs. “How about this?”
Jake hummed and sipped his beer. “Sure.”
“Awesome.” I drew the first card. “Would you rather have telekinesis or telepathy?”
“That’s easy. Telekinesis.”
