Robyn Carr - A New Hope

“I got that,” Matt said with a laugh.

When he got inside, Troy was apparently supervising while a big guy in a blue T-shirt was on a ladder installing track lighting. He was introduced to Al, whose name he’d heard in conjunction with Ray Anne. The great room was cluttered with furniture covered in plastic, several boxes and picture crates. And a lot of women with rags, mops, brooms and shelf paper were opening boxes, looking things over, organizing.

“Matt!” Troy said in surprise.

“Matt?” a tall curly-haired woman he couldn’t remember asked.

“Iris, this is Matt Lacoumette, Peyton’s brother,” Ray Anne Dysart said. “I can’t believe you’re here.”

“Last minute, I know, but I thought since I had a day, maybe I could help.”

They all eagerly accepted the offer. Ginger, a kerchief tying back her strawberry-blond hair, flushing slightly under her freckles, just smiled at him. He smiled right back at her.

“We’re down to finishing touches,” Grace said. “ Lots of finishing touches. Furniture was just delivered, my mother’s assistant shipped some personal and household items that have to be put away after the cupboards and closets are cleaned, the basement and garage are getting painted today, light fixtures and bathroom fixtures have to be installed as well as washer and dryer hookup. And obviously serious cleanup. What’s your pleasure?”

“I can clean like I was trained by Corinne Lacoumette and I’m pretty fast with a screwdriver.”

“Great. You’ve got bathroom fixtures. Four bathrooms, the fixtures all in boxes in the bathrooms. One loft bathroom, master and main floor bathrooms, one bathroom downstairs.”

“I’ll go get my toolbox,” he said, leaving them. As he was walking out to his truck, he heard the unmistakable sound of women giggling and whispering. And it made him smile. He remembered something Paco had told him long ago: try fooling women all you want, you’ll never get away with anything . How true. He wanted to stay away from Ginger; he wanted to be with her if he could.

Everyone worked ferociously and work crews came and went. Cooper went home to take care of his little daughter and tend his bar while his helper, an old guy named Rawley, replaced him. Al left to go to work, Devon left to go home and Spencer replaced her—someone had to watch the kids and this “work in progress” was no place for little ones. Peyton showed up and apparently got the word Matt was on the premises right away because she found him in the downstairs bathroom, head in the cabinet under the sink with a wrench, fixing a leaky pipe.

“I suppose you think you’re fooling someone,” she said.

He sat up abruptly and hit his head. He scooted out cautiously. Women, it seemed, were a serious threat to his cranium. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Why are you here?” she said.

“Ginger told me about this project, about the urgency because Grace’s mother is not well, and I am a very neighborly guy.”

She completely ignored his virtues. “You’re pursuing Ginger and I told you not to. It makes no sense. It’s not like you two got off to a good start.”

“Peyton,” he said very patiently. “Boxers are sometimes friendly outside the ring. On weekends defense attorneys play golf with prosecutors. But you’re wrong, I’m not pursuing her. We’ve talked a couple of times and neither of us is interested in a new relationship. For obvious reasons. We’ve sworn off, all right? But we’re friends now.”

“This is a bad idea.”

“Bugger off,” he said. “And don’t piss me off.”

“Or what? Huh?”

“I will do something terrible to you, without causing you any distress to your pregnancy. But you’ll never forget it, it will be so bad and dangerous.”

“How can you talk like that to your pregnant sister?”

“Gee, I don’t know,” he said. “Didn’t you threaten to castrate me? Now, leave me alone. I can pick my own friends. And for your information, Ginger is very nice.”

“I know !”

“And she likes me!” Matt said, standing up and facing her. “Why is it you’re so upset at the idea of me being friends with her? I admit, I made an awful mistake at your wedding, but she’s accepted my apology and I’ve been perfectly perfect.”

“That’s now,” she said. “You’ve been... Well, Matt, you have a reputation. A love-’em-and-leave-’em reputation. That’s the last thing a nice girl like Ginger needs right now.”

He got it. Everyone thought he left Natalie because of a lot of annoying arguing. Because no one knew the whole story. And no one could know. “Okay, okay. I give you my word, we’re friends and I will not do anything to hurt Ginger. I like her. She’s a good person. I’m here today because she told me how everyone is helping Grace and Troy so they can get their families together and get married and I thought it was sweet and kind. She told me you and Scott were helping, even though you have little kids and a clinic to run. She told me she was going to be here all day working, even though she worked all week at the flower shop. I came to help. That’s why I came.”

“You swear?” she asked.

“I swear. Now, can I get back to my plumbing?”

She gave him one last withering glare, then left him. She was no longer his favorite sister. He rubbed his head. He bet no one ever accused Peyton of being a kind girl. No one who was related to her and really knew her at any rate.

After the plumbing fixtures, he helped finish installing a couple of light fixtures, something Troy seemed to find a challenge. Cooper’s wife, Sarah, brought over a huge tray of sandwiches from Cooper’s bar. Right behind her was Cooper with a cooler full of cold drinks for everyone. The work party moved out to the deck to picnic in the warm afternoon sun, and Matt had to focus his attention on the men because his nosy sister wouldn’t leave.

After lunch, they were down to cleaning so that the area rugs could be rolled out, furniture uncovered and placed, kitchenware and linens put into drawers, closets and cupboards, beds made up. The cleaning went from top to bottom, cupboards, countertops first, floors last. He bravely took his life in his hands and joined Ginger in the kitchen.

“I was so surprised to see you,” she said. “What a good guy you must be, driving all the way down here to help out.”

“Tell my sister, will you? That I’m a good guy.”

“I have two brothers,” she said, laughing. “I know about that brother-sister thing. Not easy. You’ll just have to be satisfied that I think you’re good.”

“Thank you. I have to drive back tonight. We start early on Monday mornings. But I brought a change of clothes. I could clean up at Peyton’s house and we could go out for something to eat. Something casual. Mexican? You like Mexican?”

“I love Mexican!”

“That’ll save us a phone call.”

“You know a place around here? Because I’m new in town,” she reminded him.

“I’ll find one. Someone around here will know a good place.”

“I don’t want you to stay too late and drive home tired...”

“But I’m here, Ginger. Let’s do something. Fun. Let’s have some fun.”

“Aren’t you having fun?” she asked him with a wicked grin.

He leaned toward her. “I’m glad to help, but I came for you. Just, don’t tell my sister.”

“Why not?”

“Because Peyton thinks I’m a bad bet. And I’m getting real sick of hearing about it.”

* * *

Peyton watched Matt and Ginger from the deck as she swept up crumbs and collected empty cans and plastic bottles from lunch. Scott and Spencer carried a large potted plant through the house and out to the deck, placing it where they’d been told to. Then Scott was by Peyton’s side.