From the Top by Roxanne Smith

Author:Roxanne Smith
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Kensington
Published: 2017-06-05T11:50:23+00:00

Chapter 11

Marc Curry didn’t seem all that surprised when Seraphina let herself into the chain link enclosure that surrounded Tanbee House. He strode toward her in long, purposeful strides with an easy smile on his face and a yellow tool belt swinging in time with his hips. She swallowed. Some men wore their sexuality like an accessory, and some, like Marc, managed to do it and remain completely unaware of the fact.

He grinned good-naturedly, briefly nodding an affirmative to some question posed to him by a passing fellow workman, and waved, “Didn’t expect to see you again so soon. We just started busting up the place this morning. Not to toot my own horn or anything, but you might be surprised at how much we’ve accomplished in a handful of hours.”

She peered at the old house, then pulled a yellow notepad from her satchel. “I want to take notes, see for myself what’s been claimed reusable or a complete loss.”

Marc’s face grew serious as he turned his attention the house. “To be honest, I’m in favor of gutting every inch of the place. We’re finding decent bones. Structure just needs to be brought up to code and reinforced where it’s load-bearing. But walls, flooring, even the ceilings”—his voice ended on a disparaging note—“pretty much anything you’d have to look at every day, I’d toss.”

She nodded when he turned to meet her gaze again. “I’ll likely agree with you.” She’d only seen the place in pitch darkness, but she’d gotten a pretty good feel for the degree of dilapidation they were dealing with.

Another crew member, laboring over a sawhorse in thick coveralls and a thin red plaid shirt, hollered for Marc.

“I don’t need an escort,” she assured him. “You can get back to your guys. I’ve got on close-toed shoes, and I’ll grab a hard hat before I go in.”

He grinned swiftly, taking her measure so quickly she hardly noticed the sweep of his eyes, down and back up. The appreciation in the curve of his mouth was less subtle, but she could tell it was respect for her sensibility, not for how well she stacked up in her neat office clothes. “I guess I’ll leave you to it, then. Should be a stack of hats near the door. Watch your footing, especially in the south wing. It’s cordoned off, but no one will stop you if you want to look around. Just be careful. The floor was so bad, we tore it up first thing and made walkways from planks set across foundation beams.”

The south wing; these rooms were the old kitchens, where they’d ordered plumbing installed during the seventies. Here, she hoped to create two large restrooms, to serve both the staff and the public, since the plumbing was already there. It would only need to be updated. “Thanks. I’ll be most diligent.” She rolled her eyes at herself as she walked away. Sometimes, things inside her head didn’t sound stupid until they passed her teeth.

She snatched up a hardhat and plopped it on her head before ducking inside.

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