Built to Last (10 page)

His chest was tightening by the minute. He had to make things right with her. He knew that she wouldn’t listen about Griffin. To her he was the jealous maniac that had attacked her friend with his fists. Why should she believe otherwise? That was exactly how he was acting.

He pulled up in front of her apartment building and shut off the engine, “I’m sorry Noelle. You have every right to be angry with me.” He said as he walked up to her apartment door. He knocked. “I just felt the need to defend you.”

“I can protect myself Cade. Hang on someone’s at the door.”

“I’m sorry.” He said looking at her hanging up his cell phone. “What can I do to make it up to you?” He stepped inside and closed the door behind him. He leaned over and dropped a kiss on her surprised face.

“I’m angry with you all right.” She said clenching her jaw and crossing her arms across her chest. “I’ve been trying to tell you that I don’t want a relationship right now. Instead of listening to me, you go an act like an overprotective boyfriend. Be my friend, and my lover, and be happy with that or I can’t be either to you.”

Wow, he thought to himself, she really is mad.

“You drive me crazy Noelle. I respect your space, though I know I just showed up here so I’m oh for two tonight but I needed to explain myself in person not over the phone.”

“I drive you crazy?” She frowned at him. “Every time you touch me I lose the ability to think straight. Do you know how frustrating that can be?”

“Yes, I believe I have an inkling of an idea,” he smiled tracing a finger down the side of her face. She closed her eyes against the sensation.

“Cade… stop. I’m supposed to be mad at you,” she said, the fight already going out of her.

“And I’m trying to make it up to you,” he whispered and kissed her lips again. “Is it working?” he asked nipping her earlobe with his teeth. She sucked in her breath and arched toward him.

“Maybe a little,” she replied turning in to him and curling her arms up around his neck.

Cade pulled the length of her against him. “You feel so good. I’m sorry I upset you. I’ll try not to do it again.”

“You better not,” she responded making her voice more forceful even though the threat behind the words was now nonexistent.

“Okay” he acquiesced and took her lips with his own in a heady passion driven kiss.

She moaned in appreciation and leaned into him her tongue twining with his. “How about you take me to bed and show me just how sorry you are Cade?”

“It would be my pleasure.”

***

It was sunny and cold when she pulled into the driveway of the two-story mansion. The place was enormous. No wonder they had hired her for three months, it looked like it would take her a week alone just to look through each of the rooms. An older woman whom identified herself as the Whittaker’s estate manager greeted her at the door.

“Welcome Miss Fuchs. Let me show you around a bit and then we can get down to business. I’ll start with your rooms, where you will be staying while you are working here. The plumbing and electricity has been checked out and cleared earlier this week. There are several fireplaces throughout but you will need to have a service come and clean the chimneys before lighting any fires. The place is centrally heated otherwise. The kitchen is through here.”

The room was enormous. Her entire apartment in the city would fit into this kitchen. The countertops were granite. All the appliances were chrome and seemed to glow dimly in the light of the room.

“Other than keeping up with the grounds, electrical and plumbing, no one has been here for the better part of a decade. The property was recently turned over to a younger member of the Whittaker family and as you can see, you will have your work cut out for you.” She pulled out a bound book and handed it to Noelle. “This is a list of all the approved companies and people you can hire to help with what needs to be done. Mrs. Whittaker will hire the rest of the staff with your recommendations taken into account and sent to work sometime in May. You are expected to report any major issues with the house and property to her immediately. You will be expected to take care of the rest yourself. This,” she said handing Noelle a checkbook, “is to use for the necessities of restoring this house to living conditions. You will be expected to keep concise records of all your expenditures at all times. Do you understand?”

Noelle was feeling more than overwhelmed at this point, but she nodded. The woman continued on their tour. “Here are your rooms.” She opened a door off the hallway behind the kitchen. They stepped inside. There was a sitting room and beyond a bedroom. They both were more the size of rooms she was used to, they were clean, and dust free compared to the rest of the house.

“Just so I know that I understand this correctly. I am to open the house up so that the owners can use it. Everything is to be cleaned and stocked, and I am able to hire people to help me with tasks I can’t do myself unless it requires…” she looked at the total allowance given to any one project listed inside the book. The total was three times over the money that she would make the entire time she was here. “…more money than this. Anything larger requires me to call Mrs. Whittaker and have it approved through her.”

“Precisely. Any other questions?”

“Do I pay myself from this account as well?” It seemed like a fair question.

“All your living expenses while you stay here will come from that account. You will receive your wages separately by check once a month on the fifteenth. Also, this is a list of rules that you are expected to follow while you are living here at Whittaker Hall.”

Noelle looked it over. It wasn’t a long list and a couple of them made her curious but she wasn’t going to find out what would happen if she broke any of them so she would check her curiosity.

The woman led her through the rest of the house giving her a set of keys for the doors as well as the guesthouse and the rest of the outbuildings on one ring and another set of keys for the interior rooms of the house. Then she left. Noelle closed the front door behind her and just stood in the foyer and looked around. She definitely was going to earn every penny of her wages in the next three months. She walked around making herself a quick sketch of the building and marking each room with a memorable landmark so that she would be more familiar with the place. Whittaker Hall was huge. She finished her walk in the kitchen and decided that the first order of business would be to stock groceries for her own needs. Before she could take that trip, she would need to empty her car of all of her belongings. Noelle smiled, feeling a sense of purpose and started making a list.

CHAPTER TEN

Cade ran a hand through his hair with frustration. Cleaning up the vandalism at the work site had set them back even further. His foreman said it looked like some teenagers had jumped the chain link fence around the area but Cade had too much riding on the completion of this hotel to take a chance. He decided to hire a local security firm to have a guard put on site twenty-four hours a day. He’d been nursing a headache for the majorit
y of the day, which didn’t help matters any. Neither did Griffin for that matter. He’d made a point of telling the rest of the crew that he had spent the evening two nights back helping Noelle. Cade didn’t care for the other man’s tone or insinuation that there was more there than what Noelle had said. He knew that part of his anger toward Griffin was due to jealousy. For whatever reason, Noelle had decided that she wasn’t good enough for Cade but apparently, she didn’t feel the same way about Griffin. So while Cade was spending his nights trying not to think about Noelle and ignoring the emptiness of his house, Griffin was welcome company it seemed. It galled him to no end. He decided it was time to convince Noelle that he didn’t need her to be anything more than what she already was. She had said he could call. He looked at his watch, quarter to six, and wondered whether it would be too late to call on her tonight. He climbed in his truck and stuck his cell phone in the dash holder so he could talk hands free. He punched her cell number into the phone and pressed send. His heart picked up pace with each ring. How was it he could be as nervous as a schoolboy, just at the thought of talking to her again?

“Hello?” she answered sounding distracted.

“Hi Noelle, it’s Cade.”

“Oh Cade, hi!” she replied sounding genuinely happy to hear from him. His fears subsided a bit.

“How are you?”

“Good, busy, but good. And you? How is the vandalism clean up going? Is it bad? Griffin said it was inside and out.”

Griffin again. His jealousy clenched in his chest. He swallowed hard trying to ignore it. “It could have been worse. I have to push the men into overtime if I’m to expect to get even close to deadline at this rate and one of my other projects fell through. It’s kind of been a long day. I was wondering if you’d like to have dinner with me.”

There was a pause on her end. “How about I make you dinner?”

“I don’t want to put you out.”

“I wouldn’t have offered if it was any trouble Cade. Besides I’d like to pick your brain a bit.”

“Oh?”

“I’ve got some building issues with some of the outbuildings. This place hasn’t been used in nearly a decade. There’s a roof problem, I think, on one and a couple of things. It’ll be easier to show you than explain,” she stated. “Are you done with work now? I’ll text you the address.”

His phone beeped as he received the text. “Yes, I’m just about to my house. I’ll get cleaned up and head your direction in about a half hour if that works.”

“That’ll be perfect. I’ll see you soon.”

Cade felt giddy. Dinner with Noelle was exactly where he wanted to be. He was curious about what she might need his opinion on, when it sounded like she had straightforward problems, but more than anything, he was excited for the opportunity to see her. He pulled into his driveway and practically bounded into the house to get showered and cleaned up.

***

Noelle had just made it back to Whittaker Hall when she received the call from Cade. She had been busy all day getting the kitchen cleaned up. The cupboards were now partially stocked with canned and dry goods and the refrigerator was full. She had spent more money today than on any other given day in her life. Between cleaning supplies and groceries, her car had been full to overflowing with items. The second trip had been just about buying new bedding and linens for the entire house. Whittaker Hall touted ten bedrooms and the guesthouse had two more. It had more bathrooms than bedrooms as well as a pool that needed towels. She had a list of stores to shop at for such things, and another list for what colors and patterns were acceptable. She could not believe she had paid over a hundred dollars per towel. She balked at paying over ten dollars a towel for herself. Until today, she hadn’t even known such expensive towels existed. The same went for the bedding, who knew that the sheets she’d been sleeping on her whole life could feel like sandpaper next to these high thread count Egyptian cotton Italian made sheets.

She stood in the center of the kitchen at the huge granite topped island rinsing vegetables. She had an apron covering her dress so she wouldn’t get it dirty. She was making shrimp Alfredo with roasted asparagus spears and garlic bread. She had a store bought Tiramisu that she hadn’t been able to pass up for dessert. She also had a small salad planned. There was a formal dining room and a more intimate breakfast room off the kitchen. She hadn’t done more than a little bit of looking around in the formal dining room going through the formal wear in the cabinets and washing them as well as the insides of the cabinets themselves. While everything had been well covered in dust clothes and drapes, years of disuse would take time to bring back to usable standards. She did find some dishes she wasn’t afraid would cost more than she made in a week if she broke them to use for dinner tonight. Better than the everyday stuff, she had been using, but not the top of the line either. She shook out a freshly laundered tablecloth over the table in the breakfast room.

She had taken time to plan everything in detail for the night. She had been thinking about inviting him out even before he called. She had the pool service check out the pool that morning and then they filled it so she could start using it daily. There were several rooms she wanted to show Cade. She had fantasied about getting naked with him in the pool. In fact, there really wasn’t a room in the house that she hadn’t thought about what she and Cade could use it for. Even if she couldn’t admit it to herself yet, she missed his company.

Between stirring dinner, and setting the table, time was burning away. She was too nervous and decided to have a glass of wine before dinner to relax. When the door chime sounded through Whittaker Hall, she jumped having never heard it before. She stripped off her apron and looked over her makeup in a hallway mirror as she made her way to the door. She felt excited and slightly out of breath from the quickness of her step and the distance when she swung open the door.

“Why are you here Griffin?”

“I brought a few more of your things that we forgot to pack in the car.” He responded and nodded his head toward the car.

“You didn’t have to bring them out. I could have come and got them the next time I came in.”

“It was no trouble and I wanted to see this place. Shall I bring them in for you?”

“Okay but you can’t stay. I don’t want to seem rude Griffin but I am really busy at the moment.”

“You look like you are expecting company. I’ll only be a little bit.”

The unease Noelle had felt the other night was back. She didn’t care for his tone either. “I’m serious about you not staying,” she repeated after he had set down the second box and moved toward the parlor.

“Ah, come on, Noelle, show me around. This place is huge. I wonder how much they spent building it.”

Noelle looked at her watch, “Fine but not long Griffin. We can start with the kitchen. I have to check on my dinner.” She walked to the kitchen and transferred the meal to the oven setting it on low to keep everything warm.

“Looks like you went all out,” Griffin commented.

Noelle took a long drink of her wine to hide her irritation at Griffin’s continued interruption. “I found I enjoy cooking when I have this much space. Let’s give you a quick tour so you can be on your way, she said and took off toward the formal dining room and the rooms beyond. Fifteen minutes later, she was showing him to the door and wondering where Cade was. She shut the door behind Griffin and leaned against it. Perhaps it hadn’t been a good idea to lease her apartment to Griffin after all. She stood again and walked back toward the kitchen.

“I must be getting hungry,” she said to herself, putting a hand to her head that had begun to feel strange. It was the same feeling as she had the night of the blizzard. Dizzy like she’d had too much to drink and it hadn’t quite hit her yet. She was sure that it was just lack of eating. She’d been so busy today that she’d skipped lunch and now it was getting on into the late evening and she hadn’t had more than a couple of chucks of carrot from her salad and the wine.

In the kitchen, she stooped to pull the food back out of the oven and when she stood again, she lost her balance and fell against the counter. Her body lay in a crumpled heap on the floor.

***

Cade swore to himself as he tried to make out road names in the dark. He’d missed the turn, he was sure. He pulled over and checked the gps again. He turned the SUV around and headed back the way he came. A couple minutes later his headlights caught the street sign, Whittaker road. He turned onto it glancing at the clock. It had taken him twice as long to as it should have to get here. He hoped Noelle wouldn’t be upset. He had grabbed a bottle of champagne on his way and then had gotten stuck in traffic around an accident. As he pulled up into the long driveway of Whittaker Hall her whistled to himself, impressed with the size of the place. The architect in him appreciated the lines of the building, at least what he could see of it in the darkness.

He got out of the SUV and straightened his shirt. He grabbed the bottle and walked up to the doors. He found the door chime and pressed it firmly. Anticipation of seeing her welled up in his chest. He hadn’t realized just how much he missed her. Several minutes passed and she didn’t answer the door. It was a big place so he gave her a little more time and then rang the chime again. When she didn’t answer the second time, he tried the door finding it open. Maybe she just couldn’t hear the chime. He stepped into the foyer and called out to her. His voice echoed back to him.

He could smell food cooking and let his nose lead the way to the kitchen. He found the oven on warm and food waiting fully prepared for him. The next room had candles lit on the table and they looked like they had been burning for a little while. Cade called out to Noelle again but still received no response. This house was huge she could be anywhere in it, so he pulled out his cell phone and dialed her number. It rang in his ear and then a louder ring sounded from behind him. He followed the sound and found Noelle’s cell phone sitting on the counter. He frowned at it and ended the call. His chest tightened and only the worst thoughts seemed to come to mind, though he tried to push them off with rationalizations like she was just finishing getting dressed or she had gone to the other end of the house for some other reason. So, he sat down at the table she had prepared and waited.