Page 10 of Keeping My Wife
“The fact that you are worried someone will overhear us shows exactly how bad of an idea this is.” Angus pushed the board into my belly. “Maxie?”
I sighed. “Yes, Maxie. It’s a really good opportunity for us. Renovating that house will give us a lot of street cred around town.”
“We don’t need any more marketing bumps. I can’t even believe I’m saying that, but we’re barely hanging on as it is.”
I stumbled back as Gus steered us toward the truck at a fast clip. “You trying to kill me, man?”
“Sorry. You know what? No, I’m not sorry. Marrying for a business arrangement is stupid to begin with, but Maxie? Dude, you’ve had the hots for her since you were fifteen.”
“I have not.”
It was fourteen, but he didn’t need to know that. “She’s been gone for years, Gus. Just because I had a few heart eyes for her when I was a teenager isn’t a big deal.”
“It wasn’t your heart that was the issue.”
“Exactly. It’s no big deal. She needs my help.”
“So you can be her hero?”
“You know what? I’m sorry I told you.” I grunted as my finger got pinched under the edge of the board.
“Don’t get pissed at me because you’re an idiot. Does El know?”
Gus got out of the way, and I slid the board into the flatbed of the truck. I already had some pieces from my workshop wrapped for delivery.
“How am I supposed to know? I’d hope your girlfriend would say something to you.”
“I’ve barely seen her.” Gus leaned on the back panel and crossed his arms. “She’s been at Maxie’s every night this week helping her with the house for the estate sale. Maxie hired cleaners to do a once over, but they had to catalog everything.”
“Any idea why she’s selling everything off.”
“You should know, lover boy.”
“It’s not like that, man.” Even if part of me wished it was. I hadn’t expected the zing between us. When she’d shoved me in the pantry I definitely hadn’t been thinking about a clandestine meeting. The warm vanilla scent of her still lingered in my brain. And the urge to find out if her skin was as soft as it looked had left me gripping the counter instead of crowding her to find out.
“Marriage though? Mom and Dad will shit a kitten.”
“I’m not sure they really need to know.”
Gus’s eyebrows shot up. “Good luck keeping that a secret.”
“It’s a business arrangement. It’s just going to be a contract thing for a year. It’s just a legal loophole for the will.”
“Who are you trying to convince?”
“Shut up. It’s just bus?—”
“Right, business I got it.”
I opened the passenger door on the truck, ignoring him. Why the hell had I mentioned it at all? We’d probably just go to town hall and do a civil ceremony.
My brother and I didn’t talk on the ride out to the Nelson house. I had some last-minute additions to the built-in library I’d done for Mrs. Nelson. Libraries were becoming a specialty of mine lately. Lots of empty nesters were renovating bedrooms into personal spaces. Since reading was on the rise—especially since special edition books were making a comeback—that many men and women wanted libraries that suited their taste.
Mrs. Nelson had an affinity for romance books. She asked for a whimsical bookshelf to be added just for her fantasy books. It gave me the opportunity to do more carving than I usually afforded time to do.
As we were about to unload, Gus grabbed my arm. “Just talk to Mom and Dad first. They’ll be pissed if their first married kid is at the town hall, and they didn’t know about it.”
“Sully and Nora are getting married at Christmas.”
