Over You Page 5

  He turned his back to her and she wondered who he was talking to. Then he turned around and reached to the ground, and Jessica saw that he was petting Hudson. She wondered what he would think if he knew it was her cat he was petting. He stood, and Jessica could see a wide smile on his face, then he laughed at something the caller said.

  A thought suddenly occurred to her and she let the curtain fall back into place. What if he has a girlfriend? She didn’t know why she had assumed anything otherwise; it had been five long years since he’d abandoned her. Why wouldn’t he have a girlfriend? She didn’t want to think about why the idea bothered her so much. After all, she’d had several boyfriends in the last five years. And she wasn’t the one who had ended the engagement. He had. He certainly hadn’t been lying around pining for her. It had been his decision to end things, not hers. The idea that he had been dating and having a good time with other women while she had been trying to recover from her crushed heart made her furious.

  Angry now, Jessica decided it was time to wrap things up and get him out of her life once and for all. Stepping onto the wide front porch, she saw that Kyle was still on his phone and his back was to her. The sound of him laughing grated on her nerves and she felt her anger escalating. Closing the front door a little harder than normal, Jessica hoped it was loud enough to get his attention, but not so loud that it would sound like she was slamming it.

  Kyle spun around at the sound, and Jessica stared at him, obviously waiting for him to finish his call.

  “I’ll call you later,” he said to the mysterious person on the other end. “Bye.” He slid the phone into his pocket, then walked toward her.

  Glad that the only emotion she felt just then was anger, Jessica didn’t smile. “It looks like the power is back on.”

  Kyle stood at the bottom of the porch steps. “Yeah, I’m finished.”

  “That’s great.” She allowed a small smile to briefly appear on her face. “Do I need to pay you directly or do I pay Ben?”

  “Don’t worry about it.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “There’s no charge.”

  Jessica didn’t want him to do her any favors. “You spent half the day here.”

  “Consider it a gift.”

  She didn’t want any gifts from the man who had broken her heart. “I would prefer to pay you for the work you did. I’m sure Ellen would feel the same.”

  “I’m not going to take your money, Jess.”

  The way he said her name pierced her angry facade ever so slightly. But when she pictured him with another woman, laughing and flirting, jealousy filled the fracture like plaster on a cracked wall. “I’m not having this conversation with you. Just send me the bill, okay?” Before he had a chance to respond, Jessica spun on her heel and hurried back into the house.

  Afraid he would follow her inside, she turned the deadbolt, then went to the window and peered out. He was standing where she’d left him, like he expected her to come back out and apologize. Fat chance, she thought.

  After another moment he turned and walked to his truck. Jessica watched as he climbed in and drove away. A mixture of relief and regret washed over her as he drove out of sight.

  Chapter Eight

  Once Jessica was certain Kyle was truly gone, she walked into the sunroom to check on Ellen. Apparently she had slept through the entire drama. Sinking into the empty chair next to her aunt, Jessica replayed the conversation she’d just had with Kyle.

  Does he think he can buy me off by not charging me for the work he did? Does it assuage his guilt for the way he treated me? The way he left me? Shaking her head, Jessica felt her anger growing. I’ll be glad to have Ben back to finish the job.

  Though the power had been restored, and over her aunt’s objections, that night Jessica slept on the couch near her aunt to make sure Ellen’s needs were taken care of. They both woke early and once they had finished breakfast, Jessica got Ellen comfortable in the sunroom.

  More lucid than the day before, Ellen commented on how quickly the electrical situation had been resolved. “I suppose Ben is good at what he does,” she said

  Jessica didn’t want to talk about Kyle so she nodded and didn’t comment.

  Since Ellen felt better, she suggested they play some games. Jessica got out a few of her aunt’s favorites and set up a table so that Ellen could keep her foot elevated, but still play. They played several rounds of Rummikub.

  “I’m surprised Ben isn’t here yet,” Ellen said.

  Jessica had been thinking the same thing. “Perhaps I should give him a call.”

  “His cell number’s on the notepad near the phone,” Ellen said.

  Jessica dialed his number, but it went to voice mail. She left a message asking him to call, then asked her aunt if she had any other numbers for him.

  “I think his home number’s in the phone book.”

  Jessica found it without difficulty and called his house. A young boy answered the phone. “Is Ben there?” she asked.

  “My grandpa is at the hospital.”

  “Is there a grown-up there that I can talk to?”

  “You can talk to my mommy.”

  As Jessica opened her mouth to speak, she heard the child calling for his mother. A moment later a woman came on the line. Jessica explained that Ben was working on her aunt’s house and that she had been expecting him to come that morning and work.

  “This is Ben’s daughter-in-law,” the woman began. “He had a heart attack yesterday afternoon and now he’s in the hospital.”

  “Oh, no. I’m so sorry to hear that. How’s he doing?”

  “The doctor says he’ll recover, but he’s going to be out of commission for a while. It was a pretty serious heart attack. I’m afraid he’s not going to be able to work on your house any time soon.”

  Jessica pictured the master bathroom, completely torn apart, and frowned. “Well, I’m glad he’s going to be okay. That’s the most important thing.”

  “Thank you.”

  After Jessica hung up, she went back to the sunroom to talk to her aunt.

  “I heard what you were saying,” Ellen began. “What’s happened to Ben?”

  “He had a heart attack and now he’s in the hospital.”

  “Oh my. That poor man.”

  “I spoke to his daughter-in-law and she said he’s going to be okay, but he’s not going to be able to work.”

  “Well, I’m certainly glad that he’s going to recover. What do you think we should do about the remodeling though? The bathroom’s already been taken apart. We can’t stop now.”

  “I know.”

  “Jessica, I know you’re not going to like this, but I think we should call Kyle.”

  The thought caused all manner of anxiety to well up within her, especially after the events of the previous day. “You should probably know that it was actually Kyle who was here yesterday fixing the electrical,” Jessica confessed.

  “Really? I thought Ben did it.”

  “No. He wanted to hire someone who had more experience working with older houses. He didn’t tell me who he had hired though, so I was a bit surprised to discover that Kyle was here.”

  Ellen laughed. “I’ll bet you were.”

  “I was also surprised when Ben wasn’t here too. Now I know why. But Kyle didn’t say anything to me about Ben having a heart attack.”

  “Maybe he didn’t know.”

  “Or maybe he didn’t want to talk to me.”

  “Now, Jessica. You shouldn’t make assumptions.”

  “Let’s be honest. When Kyle doesn’t want to face me to tell me something, he doesn’t.”

  “It sounds like you’re holding a grudge against your former fiancé.”

  Jessica pictured his handsome face from the day before and the smile he had worn as he had spoken to someone on his cell phone, and felt like Kyle was taking one of his screwdrivers and thrusting it into her heart. She hated how fresh her broken heart had been feeling the last couple of da
ys. It was if he had dumped her the previous week instead of five years before. “Maybe I am, but whenever I think about the way he treated me, and the pain I went through, it makes me mad.”

  “I think you need to forgive him and move on with your life.”

  Jessica knew her aunt was right, but she didn’t feel ready to let go of her anger.

  “I’ve waited a long time to do this remodeling,” Ellen went on. “And I’m not about to live with no master bathroom.”

  “So what do you want to do?”

  “I want you to call Kyle and ask him if he’s available to finish the job.”

  Jessica was about to ask Why me? But she didn’t want to sound like a whiny teenager, especially when her aunt was recovering from ankle surgery and hadn’t been feeling her best before that. Instead, Jessica stared at her hands, which were knotted in her lap.

  “I know it will be difficult,” Ellen said. “But I think it will help you move forward.”

  “What if I can find another qualified contractor to do the work?”

  Ellen smiled. “You can try, but I spent some time researching that and there weren’t very many contractors in our area who were available and that I felt comfortable with.” She paused. “But you can give it a try. Just promise me that if you’re unsuccessful, that you’ll call Kyle.”

  “Okay.”

  “I don’t want this project to languish, Jessica. I want a contractor working on this within a week.”

  From the time she’d spent with her aunt growing up, Jessica knew her aunt could be demanding, but she had never felt the pressure like she did now. As soon as she could, she excused herself and went into the library, sat at the antique desk, and booted up her laptop. She was online in no time and immediately set to work looking for contractors in her area. She found several and called each one, but all of them were scheduled for at least a month.

  Sighing, Jessica rested her head in her hands, resisting the idea of calling Kyle.

  What if I call and he’s busy too? Jessica thought. I’ll feel like an idiot for even asking. Then it occurred to her that it would be a good thing if he was as busy as the other contractors. If he was, she would have an excuse to hire one of the other men she’d contacted and wouldn’t have to hire Kyle at all.

  Confident now that he wouldn’t be available, Jessica looked at the notepad where her aunt had written his number and pressed the digits on her cell phone. Her finger reached for the Call button but she found herself pressing Cancel instead.

  Picturing him on the phone the day before, apparently talking to some woman he seemed to like, Jessica found she couldn’t do it. Not yet, at least. She checked on her aunt, who was reading a book, drank some water, checked her work email, then stared at the phone number on the notepad.

  I can do this, she thought. I just need to keep it on a professional level.

  Breathing deeply for a moment, she punched in his number again, this time pressing the Call button. Her heart pounded as the phone rang and she hoped she would get his voice mail.

  “Judd Construction.”

  The familiar sound of his voice rang in her ears and for a moment she couldn’t think of anything to say.

  “Hello?” he asked.

  “Kyle?” She didn’t know why she asked, since she had not doubt it was him.

  “Yeah.”

  Gathering her courage, she asked, “I was wondering if you were available for a remodeling project.”

  “Yes, I am. What’s your name?”

  It had never occurred to her that he wouldn’t recognize her voice. The notion that she was so far from his thoughts when she had been so worried about calling him made her feel stupid, which made her angry. “The job is at Ellen Parson’s house.”

  Kyle was silent and Jessica would have thought their connection had been lost except she could hear background noise.

  “Jess?” he finally asked.

  Hearing him use her nickname so familiarly made it more personal and she had to swallow past a sudden knot in her throat. “Yes, it is.”

  “I’m sorry. I’m just surprised to hear from you.”

  Ignoring his comment, and forcing herself to put the conversation on a professional level, she said, “When would you be able to start?”

  “I thought Ben was doing the job.”

  “Unfortunately, he had a heart attack and won’t be able to finish.”

  “A heart attack? Is he okay?”

  “Yes, I’m told he’ll be fine. He just has to take it easy for a while but my aunt doesn’t want to live with a torn up bathroom.”

  “I’ll need to come over and talk to her about exactly what she wants.”

  Jessica realized this was the longest conversations she’d had with him since the day before he had left her. The realization brought the sting of loss back to her and she suddenly needed to get off the phone. “Sure, come over anytime. She’ll be here.”

  “Okay. I’ll be over in a little while.”

  “Thanks.” Jessica hung up without waiting for his reply and wrapped her arms around her stomach, trying to get a grip on her emotions. Though proud she’d been able to have a relatively long conversation with him without falling apart, the after affect was that she felt a bit shaken.

  “Jessica?” her aunt called out.

  Forcing herself to control her emotions, she walked to the sunroom. “What can I get you, Ellen?”

  “What have you found out?”

  Jessica smiled despite herself and sat next to her aunt. “You were right, of course. No one was available for weeks.”

  “And you called Kyle?”

  “Yes.”

  Ellen reached over and patted Jessica’s hand. “Good for you.” She watched Jessica for a moment. “And how did it go?”

  “Fine, I guess. He’s going to come over and talk to you about what you want.”

  Ellen nodded, looking pleased with herself.

  “I wonder why he’s available when no one else is,” Jessica mused. “Is he even any good?”

  “I’ve talked to other people who have hired him and they’ve been happy with his work. He’s just starting out in this area, so I think he just hasn’t developed a lot of business yet.”

  “Well, I hope you don’t expect me to sit with the two of you when he comes over.”

  “I suppose if you’ve taken all you can in regards to Kyle Judd for one day, then you may be excused from further torture.”

  Jessica laughed. “I need to get some work done, so I really don’t have time.”

  “I see,” Ellen said, obviously not buying her excuse.

  An hour later, as Jessica sat in front of her laptop in the library working on her programming project, she heard a vehicle pull up to the house. Her heart began to pound as the stress of seeing Kyle face to face filled her mind. She pushed back her chair and walked over to the window.

  Kyle was still in his truck, getting something from the passenger seat. Then he opened his door and stepped out. Jessica, hidden behind the curtains, watched as he confidently strode toward the house, up the stairs onto the porch, and to the front door. She noticed that he’d kept himself in remarkably good shape. Unbidden, the memory of his strong arms around her flashed in her mind.

  The doorbell rang and she pushed away the remembered feeling as she walked to the door. Hesitating for only a moment, she turned the knob and pulled open the door. Kyle didn’t say anything, but instead just gazed into Jessica’s eyes.

  Refusing to be drawn in, Jessica glanced away first. “Thanks for coming so fast.” She looked over her shoulder. “Ellen’s in the sunroom.” Opening the door wider, Jessica motioned toward the back of the house. “I believe you know the way.”

  “It’s good to see you again,” Kyle said.

  Surprised by his comment, Jessica turned to face him. “I have to get back to work.” Then she left him standing in the entry, and walked into the library. Ignoring him, she heard him walking through the living room and toward her aunt.

>   Sighing with relief that that was over with, she sat at the desk and tried to work, but her mind kept wandering as she heard his voice so close by. Finally, the voices in the sunroom ceased and she heard him walking toward the front door. If she looked up, she would be able to see him as he approached the front door, but she kept her focus on her laptop, studiously ignoring the sound of his footsteps as they got closer to the entry.

  She could tell he had stopped in the entry, and could feel his eyes on her.

  “I’ll be back first thing in the morning.”

  She barely lifted her gaze from her computer screen. “’Kay.” Then she stared at her screen once again.

  He stood where he was for another moment, then opened the door and let himself out. Jessica raised her head and stared at the spot where Kyle had been standing seconds before.

  Why is his presence making me so crazy? I thought I’d put him in my past. She shook her head and frowned, angry with herself for allowing him to have any affect on her. And dreading his arrival the next morning.

  Chapter Nine

  That night, though Jessica slept in her bed at the insistence of her aunt, she hardly slept at all. Combined with the worry of her aunt needing her during the night, she kept replaying scenes from the past. Scenes where she and Kyle had spent hours together, having a fantastic time—playing board games, going out to dinner, going bowling, and just sitting together quietly talking about their future.

  The memories of them talking about their future hurt the most. They’d had so many plans. After their wedding they were going to travel. They’d spent hours imagining the places they’d visit and the things they would do on those trips. But all that had been destroyed in a moment when Kyle had unceremoniously dumped her.

  Jessica realized her pillow was wet with her tears. What he had done still hurt deeply, she admitted to herself. She hadn’t gotten over it at all.

  “Jessica?” her aunt called out.

  Glancing at the clock, she saw it was nearly time to get up. She hurried down the stairs and to her aunt’s side. “What is it? What can I get you?”