Flirting with Disaster (4 page)

“Sweetheart, there are always going to be people who find fault with everything. Are their opinions more important than your kids?”

“Of course not,” she said.

“Well, then?”

“I can't stop thinking about the fallout for Caleb. He's been such a good friend. I don't want to repay him by causing him trouble.”

“He strikes me as a man who stands on his principles. He wants to do this for you and your family. I think you should respect his wishes.”

She sat silently, her expression thoughtful. Josh waited, knowing that he'd pushed as hard as he dared. The decision was hers to make. He suspected when it came right down to it, she would make the only choice a good and decent mother could make.

Finally she met his gaze. “Are you married, Josh?”

He shook his head. “No.”

“You should be.”

He shuddered at the certainty in her voice. “I don't think so.” Curiosity got the better of him, so he asked, “Why would you say that?”

“Because it's a shame to let all that compassion and sensitivity go to waste,” she said.

She grinned and Josh saw a glimpse of the beautiful woman she must have been before tragedy had weighed her down.

She studied him thoughtfully. “I think I'd better let you build this house for us.”

He regarded her with suspicion, not feeling nearly as triumphant as he might have before she'd made that comment about him needing to be married. “Oh?”

“It'll give me more time to find just the right woman for you.” She winked at him, then added, “I'll go tell Caleb and the kids what I've decided.”

Josh sat there feeling doomed. He'd seen firsthand just how stubborn and determined and principled Amanda O'Leary could be. Fortunately he'd had quite a few years to perfect his own stubbornness and determination. Amanda O'Leary wouldn't get to first base with her matchmaking scheme.

Besides, from what he could see in a glance around the parish hall, the few females there were already paired off and unavailable. He didn't have a reason in the world to worry.

So why the hell were his palms sweating as if he'd just made a pact with the devil?

 

Maggie slipped into a seat beside Dinah an hour after the organizational meeting had begun. “What did I miss?” she asked.

“The nail-biting when Amanda announced she didn't want the house, after all,” Dinah said.

Maggie was shocked. “Why? What's wrong with her?”

“Don't blame her. She was trying to protect Caleb.”

“And Caleb is?”

“The minister.”

Maggie was confused. “Was he in some sort of danger?”

“A few people think he ought to be fired over this project. It's a long story. Bottom line, the deal is back on.”

“And I thought this was going to be boring,” Maggie said to herself, settling back in her chair as Cord began to speak. Of course, Dinah didn't hear her wry comment. All of Dinah's attention was focused on her husband. It was disgusting, actually. All that rapt attention from a woman who'd once been in the thick of some of the world's most important—and dangerous—stories. Now the most important thing in her life was a man. Of course, Dinah was barely back from her honeymoon, so Maggie supposed she ought to cut her some slack.

Cord didn't waste time getting to the point, which seemed to be introducing the man who would be in charge of building the house. “As long as you follow his directions, he's going to make you all look like master carpenters,” Cord promised. “Josh Parker.”

The man who walked to the podium looked embarrassed by the introduction. It must have been the combination of that hint of humility with the most gorgeous biceps and chest Maggie had ever seen that made her snap to attention. This was a man made for blue jeans and tight T-shirts.

“My, my,” she whispered to Dinah. “Where has Cord been hiding
him?
”

Dinah chuckled. “In Atlanta mostly. I met him when I went looking for Bobby when you and Cord refused to tell me where he was.”

“Ah, yes, your failed quest for your backup guy. Yet even after seeing Josh you still came back here and married Cord,” Maggie said with exaggerated amazement.

“Fortunately for you I was interested in more than a great body. I love Cord for his mind,” Dinah said piously.

“Yeah, right,” Maggie retorted. “As I recall, Bobby Beaufort had a great mind. It wasn't enough.”

“If you're interested in Josh, I could introduce you.” Dinah offered, her tone casual.

“I'm a big girl. I can introduce myself,” Maggie said. “If I decide I want to.”

“If? You're practically salivating now,” Dinah said.

“All the more reason to wait,” Maggie said. “I don't want to appear too anxious. Besides, I've sworn off men, remember?”

“Maybe so, but can I assume that in the last five minutes you've experienced a miraculous recovery from your heartbreak over Warren?” Dinah inquired wryly. “It would be fitting if it took place here in a church.”

Maggie frowned at her. “Warren didn't break my heart. He just put a dent in my ego and threw a monkey wrench into my self-confidence. None of that means I can't appreciate a fine male specimen when I see one.”

“So you're simply admiring the view?”

“Exactly.”

And to prove her point, Maggie waited to be the very last person in line to get her assignment for the start of construction next weekend. After all, nobody on earth recognized trouble as readily as she did. Why would she rush right into it?

And if waiting in line gave her a few more minutes to study Josh's fine body, so much the better.

 

Josh had done his share of hiring and firing on the various jobs he'd held through the years. He'd been on the receiving end of more interview questions than most people here today combined. He approached the task of assembling this roomful of volunteers into a construction crew with guarded optimism.

So far he had twenty-seven people who'd never done a home repair more taxing that plunging a stopped-up drain, five who'd painted the interior of their homes, three who owned decent tools and one who'd actually worked construction—thirty years ago as a summer job. It was discouraging.

“Next,” he called out, already sliding a form across the table.

The well-manicured hand that reached for it immediately caught his attention. Long, slender fingers, silky-looking skin and nails painted fire-engine red. He sighed at the sight and snatched the form back almost before she'd put her fancy Mont Blanc pen to paper.

“You don't need to fill this out,” he said, his dismay complete when he realized the owner of those hands was his last chance to complete a decent crew.

Dark eyes clashed with his. “Oh? And why is that?”

“Because…” He glanced at the form she'd begun to fill in. “Ms. Forsythe, I'm assigning you to the lunch team.”

“Excuse me?” Her voice shook with indignation. “Did I hear you correctly? You want me to fix lunches?”

“And coffee,” he said, meeting her gaze for the first time. The fire in those eyes could have seared the paint off old lumber. It certainly sent a jolt through his system.

“What sort of macho head trip are you on?” she demanded. “I'm female, therefore I cook?”

“Works for me,” he said, gathering up the forms that had been filled out and trying not to meet that disconcerting gaze.

“Well, it doesn't work for me, Mr. Parker. Dinah and Cord talked me into volunteering because they thought I could make a real contribution on this project, and I intend to do just that. I'll be here on Saturday with my tools. I plan to use them.”

“You want to hammer a few nails after lunch, we'll talk about it,” he countered. “Make sure there are plenty of sandwiches. Construction is hard work.”

Ms. Maggie Forsythe whirled around and stalked away. Josh had a hunch it was the last he'd see of her. That suited him just fine. The woman spelled trouble. The last thing he needed on this job was some hoity-toity society woman going crazy because she'd broken a fingernail.

Then, again, if she ever wanted to rake those nails down his back, something told him he wouldn't say no.

 

“Do you realize that not one single person in that room has ever built anything bigger than a birdhouse?” Josh grumbled when he, Cord and Caleb went out for a beer after the meeting at the church. “How am I supposed to get this house built? I'll be spending all my time fixing what they screw up.”

“Think of this as your chance to teach others the skills that have made you a great carpenter,” Cord said. “You'll be sharing your knowledge. It's a noble endeavor.”

Josh lifted his beer in a mocking toast. “Nice spin. You should go into PR.”

“Thanks, but I'll stick to working with my hands,” Cord responded. “My brother's the spin master.”

“All in all, I think it went really well,” Caleb said, appearing more relaxed now that the organizational session was over. “I think it will be exciting to build something substantial and enduring. In the end, despite whatever Winslow has up his sleeve, I think this project will be a unifying thing for the church. How long do you think the house will take to build?”

“With any luck, good weather and at least a few people on-site who are quick learners, Amanda and her kids should be in there by Thanksgiving,” Josh said. “The plans aren't that elaborate or complicated.”

Cord chuckled.

Josh regarded him with a narrowed gaze. “Okay, what was that for?”

“You're assuming that everything's going to go according to the blueprints.”

“Of course I am,” Josh said. “That's why we have them. What's your point?”

“Let me ask you this. Did you meet Maggie Forsythe?”

Josh didn't have to give the question that much thought. “Yeah, we met.”

“I don't suppose you noticed that she's…opinionated,” Cord said.

It had been a brief but definitely memorable encounter. “I noticed.”

“She's bossy,” Cord added meaningfully.

“Doesn't surprise me a bit,” Josh replied.

“She thinks it's her duty to turn this from a bare-bones house into a home,” Cord concluded.

Josh ground his teeth. “If it's not on the blueprint, it's not happening.”

Cord and Caleb exchanged a look, then burst out laughing.

“Good luck with that,” Caleb said. “I don't know her but I do know her reputation for getting her way.”

Josh didn't like the implication that he didn't stand a chance against Maggie Forsythe and her whims.

“You hired me to get this house built, right?” he said, his gaze locked with Cord's.

“Absolutely.”

“And I'm the expert.”

“No question about it,” Cord said.

“I'm in charge,” Josh added for good measure.

“Certainly,” Cord said cheerfully.

“Then my decisions are the ones that count,” Josh said with finality.

“It ought to work that way,” Cord agreed, his smirk still in place.

“That's the way it
will
work,” Josh said.

“Unless Maggie has other ideas,” Cord said mildly.

Josh was more relieved than ever that he'd assigned her to the lunch detail. Maybe that would keep her out of his path, maybe even off the site entirely if she considered the insult grave enough.

“I don't think it's going to be an issue. I assigned her to make lunch,” he informed Cord.

Cord's mouth gaped, as Caleb murmured, “Oh, brother!”

“How did she take that?” Cord asked.

“Not well, if you must know, but I didn't back down.”

“Really?” Cord said, his amusement growing. “And you think you won?”

“I know I won. She'll be fixing sandwiches, period.”

“Let me give you a friendly little warning, Josh. I've known the woman most of my life,” Cord said. “Trust me, her powers of persuasion were honed from birth. If Maggie wants things her way, you don't stand a chance. If she went along with this assignment you gave her, it's because she's lulling you into a false sense of complacency. You'll pay eventually.”

Suddenly Josh recalled the first discussion with Cord and Dinah about this house-building thing. He realized now that he'd asked all the right questions that morning in his motel room, but they'd been about the wrong woman. It had never been about him and Amanda O'Leary. It had always been about him and this Maggie person.

“She's the reason you were so hell-bent on getting me to agree to build this house, isn't she?” he demanded, glaring at Cord. “You and Dinah figured you'd toss us together and watch the sparks fly, am I right?”

Cord looked only moderately guilty. “You'd have to ask Dinah about her motivation,” he insisted. “Me, I just wanted to get the right man in charge of the job. I won't even be around to watch the fireworks, assuming there are any.”

“There won't be,” Josh said grimly. “I quit.”

“You can't quit,” Caleb protested, looking horrified.

“I just did.”

“You'd run this whole project off into a ditch just because you're scared of a woman you've barely even met?” Cord asked.

“No, I'm walking off the job because you and Dinah lied to me. You told me it wasn't about hooking me up with some woman.”

“It's not,” Cord protested. “It's about getting a house built. Besides, you're a grown man. You don't have to hook up with any woman you're not interested in.”

Josh regarded him with suspicion. “Then you and Dinah aren't going to be standing around cheering from the sidelines, matchmaking every chance you get?”

“Of course not.”

“You swear it?”

“Cross my heart,” Cord said, sketching a very large X across his chest.