Restorations (Book One Oregon In Love) (11 page)

“Hi,” she said quietly.

“Hi.”

Sara gazed off toward the sunset while
trying to hold back the hair blowing in her face. She turned back.
“I came to ask if you would consider giving me an estimate for
fixing up the house.”

Brian didn’t know what he expected, but it
certainly wasn’t this. “Were you able to get in touch with the two
other guys I told you about?”

Sara stared down at the ground. “I would
like you to give me a bid,” she said in a low voice.

Brian’s injured pride fled at her soft
request. “Of course. Just tell me when you’d like to meet to go
over what you want done.”

“Are you busy with any other jobs right now?
I don’t want to take you away from another project.”

He smiled down at her. As far as he was
concerned, she could take him anywhere she liked. “I just finished
up a job before I got sick, so this is actually a good time.”

“Well then, would Wednesday be okay? Say
nine a.m.?”

“Perfect.”

She glanced around, appearing ill at
ease.

“Did Hattie put you up to this?” he asked,
suddenly suspicious.

“No. It was my decision.”

“Well, be sure to get those other bids in
addition to mine. It keeps my price competitive.”

Sara gave a hesitant smile. “See you
Wednesday.”

“Until then. Goodnight, Sara.”

He stood in the driveway, watching as she
climbed in the truck and drove away—and breathed a prayer of
thanks.

***

Sara arrived a few minutes early at the
farmhouse Wednesday morning. She went in the front door and walked
through the now mostly empty rooms. Her furniture, stacked in the
living room, waited to be dispersed throughout the house.

Her empty footsteps echoed
on the wood floor of the dining room. Sara tried to see it as Brian
might. She didn’t have a clue what it would take to bring the house
to top condition, much less the cost. Eli left some money along
with the house, which seemed like a lot to a working girl, but
would probably go pretty quick on a renovation. The phrase
money pit
came to
mind.

Over the last few days, Sara had prayed
earnestly about this undertaking. If it wasn’t God’s will, she
wanted no part of it. But based on circumstances and a peace in her
heart, she now felt sure the Lord wanted her here in Buell Creek
and the farmhouse somehow fit into the plan. Brian remained the
only wild card. Why must he be part of the picture? Why would God
allow her to work on a project with someone from such an
embarrassing time in her past? It made no sense.

Sara never called those other builders, nor
would she. Hattie was right. She was churlish to consider anyone
else. Brian would get the job, and they’d work on the same project
for weeks, maybe months.

The thought filled her with
both anticipation and dread. Past experience proved she became
unpredictable and muddled when with him. What would her condition
be after so much time spent together?
Certifiable
.

A knock on the back door intruded in on her
reverie. She went through the kitchen and let Brian in. He wore a
sage green polo style shirt and black slacks. Her pulse leapt
suddenly. Sara pasted a smile on her face. “Shall we get
started?”

Brian walked with Sara through each room and
talked about ideas and estimates with half his brain. The other
half was intensely aware of the less cerebral side of Sara. She
wore blue jeans and flat leather boots again, but with a
ridiculously feminine blouse which had a loosely ruffled collar and
cuffs. Her dark hair was twisted up into some kind of knot and
loose tendrils framed her face. It was as if she felt torn between
two different centuries, and not precisely comfortable in either
one. How in the world would he work side by side with her and not
touch her? The thought proved almost more than he could bear.

“Are you listening?”

“What’s that?” Brian asked with a sheepish
grin.

Sara looked at him sharply. “I wanted to
know what you thought about putting a bay window in here.”

They stood in the dining room and she
motioned to the far wall. “It would open up a lovely view of the
Cascade Mountains in the distance.”

Brian looked down at her. “Yes. A lovely
view.”

“And I thought that since this would be a
hotel of sorts,” she went on, obviously unaware of his gaze, “that
the one upstairs bathroom could be turned into a master bath with a
Jaccuzi tub as a special feature.”

Brian saw Sara beginning to have enthusiasm
for the renovation, and he determined to have the winning bid. He’d
make sure no other man would get to spend one-on-one time with her
except himself. As she looked up at him trustingly with her new
ideas, Brian suspected if he had to do the job for free, he
would.

Chapter Ten

Sara spent the next few days dispersing the
furniture and converting Eli’s bedroom into her own space. She
found it difficult knowing how to arrange things when much of the
house would soon be under construction. Of the few things she kept,
one was his roll top desk, which remained in the bedroom.

Sara wanted Eli’s bedroom to be like a
sanctuary amidst the coming renovation, but it soon became a
project in itself. She scrubbed the wood floors and threw out the
old rag rugs, planning to replace them with area rugs from her
apartment.

The walls were off-white, but dingy in
color, and she spent a considerable amount of time prepping them
for a new paint job. After pulling all the nails and filling the
holes, Sara used tri-sodium phosphate, or TSP as Brian called it,
to wash the walls. From there, she laid floor tarps borrowed from
Brian, to protect the floor during the painting. Next, she masked
off the windows and woodwork.

Sara grabbed a burger at the town’s only
drive-thru before making a trip to the hardware store to buy the
paint, rollers, and brushes. When she hauled her purchases into the
house an hour later, she stifled a yawn. A glance at her watch
showed it was after eight in the evening. Bone tired, Sara decided
to commence painting the following morning.

***

“Brian!” Sara stood just inside the bedroom
door at the farmhouse the next day. She snapped her gaping mouth
shut and waited for him. He left the kitchen where he was measuring
for cabinets and approached her, his expression unreadable.

“What’s this all about?” Sara motioned
toward the walls newly painted in the soft gray-green color she
chose the day before. An earlier inspection revealed the adjoining
bathroom had been freshly painted as well.

Brian put his hands in his back pockets. “I
don’t know what you mean. It looks pretty good to me.”

“It looks wonderful! When did you have time
to do this and…why?” Sara watched with interest as his face
darkened under his tan.

“I did it after you left, and it was easy
since you did all the hard prep work. Besides, you already had all
the paint here.”

She eyed him. “Well, thank you, but you
still haven’t said why you did it.”

“Just trying to curry favor with the
homeowner and edge out the competition. And I have an unfair
advantage because I have a house key.” He pulled the key out of his
pocket. “I’ve been meaning to give this to you.” He held it out to
her.

Sara looked down at the key, experiencing a
strange exhilaration. Brian would have full access to the house—and
her life.

“I have the one Hattie had. Maybe you should
hold onto that one so you can get in during the project when I’m
not around.”

Brian smiled and pocketed the key. “I’d like
to schedule a time with you so we can go over the specs of the job.
From then I should be able to have a bid for you within a
week.”

“Anytime is okay with me.”

He glanced at his watch. “What about
tomorrow, here at the house? The dining room table is big enough
and we can spread everything out on it.”

“I’m going to church in the morning. How
about in the afternoon at two?”

“Sounds good. Bring all your magazines and
ideas with you.”

“Okay.” Sara watched him exit the room and
sighed when alone. She looked around the now lovely room and
breathed in the smell of fresh paint. What a sweet thing for Brian
to do!

Before her thoughts could take a more
sentimental turn, Sara bustled back to work.

At the end of the day,
Brian helped her move her double-sized brass bed into the room
along with the rest of her furniture. The new paint color
complemented the white and rose print of her bedding and drapes.
Sara arranged her ferns and other plants around the room, and hung
up framed watercolor botanicals on the walls. When she put up lace
sheers, she noticed again one of the larger windows looked out
directly towards the cottage.
Okay,
then
.

Once the bedroom move-in was completed, her
thoughts returned to the enormity of this new undertaking. And she
didn’t mean the actual construction. Sara remained amazed she
agreed to it in the first place. But she couldn’t deny the peace in
her heart over the decision. Hopefully, peace regarding Brian was
on its way as well.

***

Sunday morning dawned bright and clear as it
often did east of the Cascades. Sara fought down butterflies in the
pit of her stomach. Due to her illness and the move, she hadn’t
been able to attend church with her aunt, and looked forward to
getting back into regular fellowship. She also admitted excitement
at the thought of seeing Brian following the service.

Sara donned a pewter silk blouse and narrow
black skirt. Twisting her cuff into place, she wondered at her
feeling of anticipation. Was it because it was a business
arrangement? Maybe a professional relationship was the perfect
solution to her dilemma regarding Brian Farris. That way there
would be little risk of exposing herself to...unplanned
intimacy.

She swallowed hard.
It has to be enough
.

Sara glanced in the mirror, gave her skirt a
tweak, and joined Hattie out at the car.

Buell Creek Community Church, originally
built in eighteen ninety-nine, had a spot on the National Register
for Historic Places. It boasted clapboard siding outside and
hand-carved oak pews inside, well worn from generations of
parishioners and their wiggling children. The simple stained glass
windows and rather stark interior appealed to Sara’s sense of
aesthetics.

They sang several hymns to the accompaniment
of an upright piano in the corner, then the deacons passed the
offering plate. The pastor, a man in his forties, announced a
special presentation in lieu of a sermon that morning. The youth
group would perform a skit for the congregation based on the
Biblical story of Esther.

Sara heard scuffling in the back of the
church as the teens made ready for an entrance, and everyone turned
around to watch. When she turn to look, she saw Brian sitting a few
rows behind her.

Sara let out a squeak of alarm, which caused
a few heads to turn in her direction. Apparently Brian didn’t
notice, as his attention remained on the costumed teens.

She leaned close to her aunt. “What’s Brian
doing here?” she hissed.

Hattie gave her a quizzical look. “He’s been
coming here for several months now. This is where he goes to
church.”

“But why would he come to church?”

“Because he’s a Christian, of course. What a
silly question. Now hush, the presentation is about to begin.”

Sara sat stunned. Brian said he’d changed.
Was this what he meant? Her heart fluttered at the notion. She
chanced a peek over her shoulder and caught him looking at her. He
smiled and assumed a comically pious expression. She jerked her
head back around, feeling heat steal into her face.

Sara gripped her hands
together in her lap and blinked several times, trying to make sense
of her incoherent thoughts.
Because he’s a
Christian, of course
. Hattie’s words went
around in her brain like a litany.

In the past, Brian had occasionally
accompanied her to church, but she came to assume he did it only to
placate her. That probably wasn’t the case now. Maybe he was
involved in some kind of spiritual search. Or maybe Hattie spoke
the truth.

She next wondered if this was all part of an
act—like when they dated. Sara grimaced at the direction of her
thoughts. Enough was enough. For once, she decided to give Brian
the benefit of the doubt. After all, she'd prayed for him to find
faith while they dated and even for a time after that. And why pray
if she didn’t believe it had an effect? As this new reality settled
into her mind, she felt a rush of thanksgiving fill her heart.
Closing her eyes, she lifted her soul to the Lord in praise.

The sound of closing Bibles and shuffling
feet on the old wooden floor made her realize she missed the entire
teen presentation. Hattie nudged her and together they gathered
their Bibles and purses and waited to exit the pew.

Tapping her foot impatiently while the
congregation filed from the church, Sara jumped into the first gap
that presented itself. She caught up to Brian just as he stepped
outside and put a tentative hand on his arm as Hattie headed to the
car.

“Brian, why didn’t you tell me?”

Drawing her to one side to allow others to
pass, he looked down at her with a hooded expression. She noticed a
dull flush darken his face. After a moment, he shrugged. “I guess I
wanted to live it before I said anything. I thought it would be
awkward to just blurt it out.”

Sara regarded him intently. “When did this
happen?”