Page 76 of Show Me

Stillness settles across the room. Chair legs scrape as Mr. Cole stands. Slow. Deliberate. He steps in beside the desk, not touching, just there, solid enough to shift the space. There’s a clipboard in his hand.

“Estimates are scheduled through me.” His voice matches his stance. Controlled and absolute.

Brent’s smile falters. “I was talking to Ruby.”

“And I’m talking to you.”

Silence. Weight shifts. Brent clears his throat. “It’s an insurance job. Had a little damage from the last storm.”

“Then it can wait for an opening.”

Brent glances back at me, irritation flickering through the mask he usually wears.

A clipboard slides across the counter. “Fill it out. We’ll call you.”

The pen presses hard against the paper. Lines etched deep enough to leave marks beneath the page.

“I’ll be waiting.” Brent’s attention is glued to me as he hands the clipboard back to Mr. Cole.

The door closes behind him, and the air moves again.

My hands are unsteady as I shift the papers on the desk. I answer the next call when the phone rings, and Mr. Cole returns to his desk.

When I hang up, Mr. Cole points at the form. “We’re booked through next month. I’ll let him know he should look somewhere else.”

Relief causes my shoulders to sag as the tension eases. “Thank you.”

He grunts in response. “No one bothers my staff.”

Staff. Not the girl behind the desk. Not temporary. I belong here. I don’t remember ever feeling that way at a job, or rarely anywhere else except with my dad and my friends.

The phone rings again. “Cole Construction.”

Across the room, movement draws my attention. Xavier stands near the filing cabinet, having stepped out of the tool room without me noticing. Watching. Listening to the conversation between his father and me.

A flush climbs up my neck. This is a temporary job. Remember your place. You’re doing this until something else comes along. You must, because staying here and mooning over Xavier is not the answer.

Chapter Thirty-Six

Xavier

When the door shut behind Brent, the phone rang before I could ask her what he wanted. Anger pulsed under my skin. What in the hell was he doing here? He has no business following her from job to job.

Dad sits at his desk, watching the door like he expects it to open again. Then he turns back to the ledger and flips a page, as if this is just another interruption in the day. It’s not.

The second the phone drops from her hand, Dad says he’s going to tell Brent to look elsewhere for construction, and he won’t let anyone bother his staff. I couldn’t agree more. Especially Ruby. The rest of the guys can handle their own issues.

She smiles, then freezes when she sees me watching her. The smile falters. “He claimed he wanted someone to work on roof damage, but I can’t help feeling like he came here to see me.”

“If he did, it’s the last time.” I rotate my shoulders. “If he’s the guy who was in your house yesterday, I’ll break my foot off in his ass if he comes here again.”

“Son….” Dad looks up from his paperwork. “If Jake knew it was him, he’d be behind bars.”

“I know.” The tension in my shoulders doesn’t ease as my hands ball into fists at my sides.

Ruby slides her chair back and stands. “Don’t do anything rash. We don’t know who it is.”

The phone rings again. Ruby’s gaze stays stuck to mine like she’s waiting for me to agree. I don’t.