Page 11 of Starfish Cottage
“So, it wouldn’t hurt anything if we took this wall out?” Maddie asked.
“Not a thing.” A smile spread across Dex’s face as he turned to look at her. “You want to knock it down?”
“I was thinking it would be nice to put an island there and have it open. That way you could see out to the ocean from the living room.”
Dex tilted his head and studied the wall. “Yeah, great idea. In fact…”
He walked over to the messy pile of tools in the corner, bent over, and picked up a sledgehammer. He turned it over in his hands. “I have just the tool, and I’m in the mood for some demo.”
Panic bubbled up. “Whoa. I wasn’t expecting to rush into it!”
“Why not? You said you thought about it already.” He walked toward the wall.
“I haven’t thought everything through yet. It needs to be planned and… don’t you need to draw up a blueprint or something?”
Dex laughed. “No. We’re taking it down, not building it. Besides, you already know what it will look like from the picture.”
Maddie glanced toward the picture. He had a point, but she wasn’t used to acting on things so quickly.
“If you’re going to tear this wall down, it’s best to do it first. That way we’ll know what we have to work with, and besides, it’s always good to do the demo work first.” He glanced eagerly from her to the wall.
“I suppose you’re right, but I—”
Smash!
Apparently Dex had only heard the “I suppose you’re right” part of her comment.
Maddie stared at the hole in the wall created by the tool. She turned to Dex, eyes wide. “You smashed a hole in it.”
His smile faltered, concern rippling through his eyes. “I thought you agreed the demolition of the wall should be done first. I mean, you said I was right…”
Maddie took a deep breath, reminding herself that Dex wasn’t exactly the type of person who thought things through. He was spontaneous, and he did have a point about tearing it down first. The demolition of the wall might bring up new ideas for the interior. “Yeah, I guess it should. I was just startled.”
“I know you like to plan things out. We can wait for a little while. I can peel the paper on the walls first, but that’s only going to take a day.”
“No, you’re right. Let’s get it done now. I’m kind of excited to see what it looks like.”
“That’s my girl! It’s going to be a huge improvement.” Dex lifted the sledgehammer up high, his shoulder muscles rippling under his T-shirt as he swung.
Smash!
Another big hole. Old horsehair plaster crumbled onto the floor in a pile, fine dust wafting out in a cloud.
“Maybe we should get a drop cloth,” Maddie said.
“Nah. The floors need to be ripped up and replaced anyway, right?”
“Yeah, I suppose.” She still didn’t want a big mess.
“See? This is going to work out great. And it’s fun.” He grinned at her. “You want to try?”
“Me? I don’t know how to demolish a wall.” Maddie wasn’t good with tools.
“It’s easy. You’ll really feel like you had a part in the renovation.” He shoved the sledgehammer into her hands.
Maddie lifted the tool. It was heavy. If Dex swung tools like this all day, it was no wonder he had such big upper body muscles. Why was she thinking about that? She heaved it up and swung, practically falling over.
Plink.
