Page 24 of Leave It to Us
“Uh, good mornin’, ladies.”
Yeah, it was Jeremiah wearing the tie-ups, she realized as her gaze traveled upward and mortification seeped through to her soul, similar to the way the water had soaked through her clothes.
“Oh, mornin’!” Tami yelled as the two of them scrambled to get off the floor.
Yvonne rolled over onto her knees first, swallowing another curse, as that wasn’t the best-feeling option. She swore turning forty last year had opened the door for her body to experience every ache and pain imaginable. With purposefully slow movements, she got herself up to a standing position and immediately reached for the edge of the island to keep herself upright.
“Good ...” Her greeting trailed off as her drenched denim shirt slid from her shoulder when Tami grabbed hold of its hem to help steady herself so she could get up from the floor.
The contractor, who was also wearing a white T-shirt, moved around them in a blur, she guessed—and prayed—to get to the sink and shut off the still-flowing water.
“Here, let me help you,” Jeremiah was saying as he came closer to where Tami—in her cute little sundress that hugged her breasts and skirted midthigh—stood. Of course, the dress was now sticking to her younger sister’s curvy-and-flat-in-all-the-right-places body.
He draped an arm over Tami’s shoulders and walked her around to the other side of the island, which was dry. Yvonne kept her hands on the island and gingerly made her way around to that side too, with Lana right behind her.
“Good morning,” Yvonne finally finished in a huff. “As you can see, we’ve had a little mishap.”
“The handles on this faucet and the one in the guest-bathroom sink down here are stripped. But the burst pipe is the bigger issue. I knew itwas just a matter of time before that happened.” The contractor’s voice was a rich baritone that rumbled and fell around the room like a warm blanket.
So she shivered, because what else was she supposed to do now that she was chilled to the bone in wet clothes? Her gaze was fixed on the contractor. The smooth umber skin that stretched over excellently toned arms and biceps. The black hair cut into a fade, with about an inch of cruddy curls on top. The low-cut beard and dark eyes that almost appeared sleepy but were, at the same time, alert and assessing. She was five feet, four inches tall, and even across the space of maybe fifteen to twenty feet, he looked like he’d easily tower over her. The front of his shirt and pants now matched hers, as he’d battled the water, but he finally stood from beneath the sink, where he’d managed to shut it off.
“It’s just one of the many things we need to go over today,” he said, continuing to talk like he didn’t know that she was momentarily stunned by his appearance.
She shouldn’t have been stunned by his appearance, though. She’d obviously seen men before, and she’d had a few in her lifetime. Gawking at them like some lovestruck groupie—or like Tami—wasn’t normally her thing. Still, her gaze didn’t falter as she asked, “‘Many things’?”
He met her questioning stare with a nod and replied, “Many.”
“That doesn’t sound good,” Tami said.
Lana sighed. “It sounds expensive.”
“Deacon Williams, these are the Butler Sisters—Tami, Yvonne, and Lana,” Jeremiah said, then hurriedly dropped his arm from Tami’s shoulder when Yvonne turned her attention to him.
“Nice to meet you, ladies,” Deacon said, his southern drawl a little heavier than Jeremiah’s. “Ms.Betty spoke highly of each one of you, so I’ve been eager to meet you. Although losing Ms.Betty in order to make this introduction necessary is mighty sad.”
“Yes,” Tami replied. “Grandma Betty’s passing was extremely sad and unexpected. We’re all still processing it.”
That was true, even if they hadn’t formally discussed it. The news of losing their only living grandmother had been shocking, and finding out they’d already missed the opportunity to pay their respects properly had been an even bigger blow. Truth be told, Yvonne’s continued ire over that situation was probably what kept her from really feeling the loss of her grandmother. Although she knew she would’ve opted to respect Grandma Betty’s wishes had she known them ahead of time, she still felt a little sting at the knowledge being withheld from them—and she still didn’t quite understand why. Robyn hadn’t been able to provide an adequate explanation for that, so Yvonne had planned to ask Sallie since she was the one who’d done Grandma Betty’s bidding without picking up a phone to call them.
“I’ve got my tablet with my notes out in the truck,” Deacon said, pulling her from those thoughts. “Figured we’d do a walk-around and I’ll give you all the details.”
“I need to get out of these wet clothes,” Lana said with a frown.
“Me too,” Tami added. “And then I’ve got some thoughts on things to be done around the house too.”
Deacon nodded at Tami. “Good. I’ll just head out to the truck.”
“And I guess I’ll get this kitchen cleaned up,” Yvonne said dryly, since it seemed they were all deciding what to do next.
“I can give you a hand,” Jeremiah offered. He’d started to roll up the sleeves of his button-front shirt when Yvonne spoke again.
“That’s okay. You go on and have a seat in the parlor.” She’d been about to call itthe family roomwhen the memory of how much Grandma Betty loved saying “pahla,” leaving out bothRs in an exaggerated southern drawl, whenever she referenced the room. A spurt of warmth spread through her at the thought, and before she could help it, she smiled. “I’ll go grab some towels and get this cleaned up right quick; then we can get on with the walk-around.”
“You’re not going to change your clothes?” Lana asked.
“Youneedto change your clothes,” Tami added, with a wag of her eyebrows before her gaze fell to Yvonne’s chest.
Yvonne glanced down—as she suspected everybody else in the kitchen was doing at that same moment since Tami wasn’t exactly subtle—and saw that not only was the white tank top she wore stuck to her skin, but that in its wet state, it was also now terribly transparent, allowing her very hard, very dark nipples to show through the fabric and her thin lacy bra.
