In the distance, she heard a truck, knowing Jimmy had made it back. They never came to the house—it was off limits. It was her space and hers alone. The property was only five acres, but it was five acres of prime real estate now. The city had sprawled, growing around her, but she didn't care. The land was her grandfather's and she'd promised him in the beginning she wouldn't sell and let it become gobbled up by some developer who wanted to put up condos or something equally as obnoxious.
She took a clean towel from the cabinet, drying herself, listening as she heard Jimmy's car start and pull away. She was alone again. She sighed. But not for long. She'd agreed to a dinner date. A friend of a friend of a friend. It had sounded like a good idea last week. But today... not so much. She was tired. It had been a long, hot day. Then she smiled, remembering the cute blond who'd rammed her truck. Jay.
"God, those eyes."
CHAPTER THREE
"No, it didn't damage her truck." Jay rolled her eyes. "And no, she's not going to sue me."
"You never know about people, Jay. They're money-hungry."
Jay walked into the kitchen, eyeing the bottle of wine on the counter. She tucked the phone against her shoulder as she fished for the corkscrew. "I really don't think it's going to be an issue, Katherine. Like I said, it was just a little ding."
"I've seen whiplash proved with less."
Jay poured the wine, watching the burgundy liquid fill the glass. "She wasn't in the truck at the time."
"Well, that's a plus. Look, I'm just swamped, Jay. I'm going to let you handle this. You've got the number to our insurance. If there's even a hint of a problem, let me know."
"Of course." Jay paused. "I... well, I also got a ticket."
"For what? I thought you didn't even call the police."
Jay chewed her lower lip. "Apparently I was too close to a fire hydrant or something." She rolled her eyes again as she sipped the wine.
"Great," Katherine said dryly. "What's that going to cost you?"
"It wasn't that much," she lied. "I was just concerned about that affecting your insurance as well. Maybe I should just get my own policy."
"It's much cheaper to go through mine. We've been over this before, Jay. Besides they're probably going to total your car. Perhaps you should just use your van for the time being. As old as it is, the insurance is minimal." She sighed. "Now I've really got to run."
"When will you be home?"
"Oh, Jay, I can't even begin to say. What time is it, anyway?"
Jay looked at the clock on the wall. "Nearly nine."
"Already? Well, I've got at least a couple more hours. Did you get dinner?"
Jay nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. It's just... well, I feel like I haven't seen you in a week."
"I know. Please be patient, Jay. I promise, I'll try to make it a short day tomorrow."
Jay nodded again. It was a statement she'd heard daily for months now. So she gave her standard answer, the same one she'd been using for the past three months.
"That'd be nice, Katherine. Maybe we could have dinner together."
"Sure, Jay. Let's plan on it. I'll try not to wake you when I get home."
Jay closed her phone and slid it along the counter, picking up her wine instead. She smiled humorlessly. "Sure, I'll plan on it, Kath. Just like always."
And just like always, she took the bottle of wine with her as she went into her office, closing the door behind her. She always felt better in here. It was her space and it reflected her personality. The house—totally Katherine's. But this room, this space, was hers.
Here was where she kept little trinkets and mementoes she'd collected over the years. Here was where she kept her only family picture—that of her grandmother—neatly framed and displayed on the bookshelf. In here was her CD collection, the handful of DVDs she liked to watch over and over, the trashy romance books that Katherine thought she was childish to hang on to, and her most prized possession: a mini Cowboys football helmet autographed by Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith and Michael Irvin.
She looked affectionately at it, silently counting how many months until football season, her lone sports passion. There was a time, at the beginning, when Katherine would surprise her with tickets to at least one game each season. But the last couple of years, she'd been too busy to even remember Jay's birthday, much less football season.
"Wedded bliss," she murmured, then laughed at her attempt at being sarcastic. It no longer worked.
Jiggling the wireless mouse, she watched the screen saver disappear, replaced with the spreadsheet she'd been working on. She only had two projects going right now, both of which were nearly finished. The spreadsheet was her listing of builders and the contacts she'd made in the last six months or so. The only contractor she had a working relationship with was McGuire and Sons, but they specialized in remodeling, not new homes. He'd pushed some business her way, but she'd found most people—by the time they hired someone to remodel—already had a new design and color scheme in mind. They weren't really interested in her ideas at that stage,
At the bottom of page was the new name she'd added. Drew Montgomery Landscaping. The woman she'd run into yesterday. The woman with the incredible eyes. The woman who said she'd be happy to recommend Jay to some of her builder friends.
Refilling her wineglass, Jay glanced at the business card placed prominently on her desk, a reminder to call after she talked to the insurance company. Of course, a little ding, it might be better to just pay for out of pocket rather than file an insurance claim. Katherine would most likely prefer that, but of course it was her own checkbook that would suffer. A checkbook that could stand to have a few more clients.
She glanced at the clock on her computer, now after nine.
Was it too late?
"Wonder if she lives alone?"
She picked up her phone, flipping it over and over in her hand. Probably lived alone, seeing as she'd asked Jay out. She smiled, pausing to sip from her wine. When was the last time she'd been hit on? Well, it happened occasionally at Rhonda's. But never by someone who looked like Drew Montgomery.
"Oh, hell," she said as she flipped open her phone. She should call her. At least let her know she hadn't forgotten about her truck. After she dialed, she casually tossed the business card back on her desk, leaning back in her chair as she waited. On the fourth ring, just as she expected voice mail to pick up, she heard her voice.
"Drew here."
Jay cleared her throat. "Hi. It's Jay... Jessica Burns. The one who hit your truck." She smiled when she heard the quiet laugh on the other end.
"Did you think I would forget you, Jessica Burns? Never."
Jay laughed. "I'm sure there's a dent to remind you. And please call me Jay."
"Okay. And I'm really glad you called. I talked to a builder today. Gave him your card. Seems he's pissed off at Wilkes and Bonner."
Jay sat up straight. "Pissed off? You gave him my card?"
"I don't know all the details, but they outsourced some of their work, but still charged him as if they did it all. Something like that."
"They used to do that all the time," she said.
"Well, it's R and K Builders. I talked to Randy Kline. He's a good guy." She laughed. "I told him you did killer stuff. I'm assuming your portfolio will back me up?"
"Yes, of course. I really appreciate that, Drew. Especially since you've never seen any of my work."
"No problem. I hate to see the little guy get squeezed. I know how it feels."
"You still consider yourself a little guy?"
"Well, we've grown. Certainly nothing like Apollo Lawns with their fifty or sixty crews. But we're the largest organic landscaping company in the area."