“What about you?” I ask. “What got you into contracting?”

“It’s a family business,” he says. “My grandfather started this company about fifty years ago. My father worked here, all my brothers worked here. It was just kind of inevitable, I guess.”

“How many brothers?” I ask.

“Four,” he says.

I can’t help but cringe. “I’m sorry,” I tell him.

“Yeah,” he laughs, “me too. Hey, I didn’t think of this, but does this Carver’s place have a dress code? I don’t think what I’m wearing really qualifies as formalwear.”

“No, it’s just a bistro,” I tell him. “I’ve seen people show up looking almost as grungy as you, so I think it’ll be fine.”

“Gee, thanks,” he says. “Like I was telling you,” he goes on, “I really do apologize for the way I’ve been acting. I let my personal life bleed into my work, and I want you to know that’s not how I usually do business, and I just wanted to let you know that I’m glad to be working with you, and I think we’re going to end up with something really great.”

“About that,” I start, and I can already see his muscles tensing. I know that means resistance is probably on its way, but it’s not a bad perk.

“Yeah?”

“I was wondering if there was any way we could extend the window a little bit farther than we talked. I know you guys have already cut out the frame for what we’d already discussed, but as I was walking in today, it really struck me that people coming from that direction on the sidewalk could see what we have so much easier if the window went just a little bit farther.”

“How much farther are you thinking?” he asks.

“Only like three, four feet or so,” I answer.

He takes a deep breath to calm himself.

“If it’s going to be a problem—”

“It shouldn’t be a problem,” he says. “It’s just that we’ve already got everything set up for what we had initially talked about, you know, what we decided on after what we decided on during the initial discussion.”

He’s a bit curt, but it’s dialed way back from what it has been, so I let it slide.

“I know,” I tell him, “but I really think it would add something unique to our store and could really help bring in the foot traffic.”

“You’re the boss,” he says. “That’s going to push our timetable back a little bit, though. We’ll have to cut out more of that wall and make sure everything’s reinforced, after that, we have to do the moldings and—”

“I’m sorry. Could you excuse me for a minute?” I ask and pull the vibrating phone out of my pocket. “Hello?”

“Jessica, it’s Mom. How are you doing?”

“I’m doing great, Mom,” I answer with my usual false cheer. “How are you?”

“Listen, are you busy right now? There’s something that I need to talk to you about.”

“What’s that?” I ask.

“This isn’t really something I want to tell you on the phone,” she says. “Is there any way you could come see me after you’re off work today?”

“I’m pretty busy with everything. What’s going on?” I ask.

“I really think it would be best if we talked in person, dear,” she says and I’m starting to get a little nervous.

“Is it Dad?” I ask. “I’ve been telling him that he needs to listen to the doctor and start exercising more, but he won’t listen to me about it.”

“It’s not your father, sweetheart,” she says and now I’m really worried. Mom only drops the word “sweetheart” when something really bad has happened.

“What’s going on?” I ask again.

“Why don’t you come up here for dinner?” she asks. “I’d say we’d come see you, but your sister’s got the car right now, and I don’t think she’ll be back with it until later tonight.”

“Mom, she has her own car,” I tell her. “She just wants to use yours because she knows you’ll fill the tank.”

“Dear, it’s really important.”

“Just tell me what’s going on,” I start. “I have a lot going on right now, and I don’t know if I can conceivably—”

“I just got back from the doctor, sweetheart,” she says. “I have chondrosarcoma.”

“I don’t know what the first part means, but sarcoma is a kind of—”

“Cancer,” she says. “Yes, dear.”

I stop walking. I’m shaking and I can’t breathe.

“What did the doctor say?” I ask. “Is it treatable?”

“It’s a treatable cancer,” she says, “but I’ve had it for a while. About eighty-percent of patients live five years or longer with it, but they’ve got to do some more tests to see exactly how advanced it is and how far it’s spread.”

“I’m on my way,” I tell her and hang up the phone. “Eric, I’m sorry, but—”

“Whatever it is,” he says, “it sounds like you need to go. Just go. We can do this another time.”

“Thank you,” I tell him and I start running.

Chapter Four

Blowing off Steam

Eric

“I hope she’s going to be okay,” Linda, the cashier from Lady Bits, says. “Did she tell you what was going on?”

“No,” I tell her. “Whatever it was, though, it sounded pretty bad.”

“I bet it’s something to do with her father,” Linda says. “He had a heart attack a couple of years ago, and from what Jessica says, he hasn’t really been taking care of himself.”

“I don’t think it was him,” I answer. “She asked about that, but it didn’t seem like that’s what was going on.”

“What do you think we should do?” she asks.

“I don’t know,” I tell her. “Me and the guys can keep working whether she’s in the store or not, but I don’t know how her absence affects the rest of you.”

“I think we should close up,” Linda says. “Nobody’s coming in anyway, and I don’t think I can really focus on what I’m doing right now.”

“Who runs the shop when she’s not here?” I ask.

“That’s a really good question,” Linda says. “The only time she ever leaves during business hours are for the occasional lunch, and then it’s only for like fifteen minutes and while she’s gone, we all just kind of take care of our own stuff.”

“Maybe you should stay open until you hear from her,” I say. “I wouldn’t want you and your coworkers to get in any trouble.”

Linda’s been giving me the juicy eye since I came in to place a bid and, from the way she’s looking at me now and the way her fingers are running through the ends of her dark hair, I’d say she has something specific planned for her prospective early day.

Still, I’m not so sure I want to rock the boat when Jessica and I are just barely trying to make some inroads.

“You know,” Linda says, leaning forward over the counter, her elbows in just the right position to press her breasts together as the front of her shirt falls open a little, “I don’t think I can be alone right now.”

Really, I’m not sure that Jessica and I are ever really going to see eye to eye. Maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad idea to cut out a little early. Still, the rational part of my mind is just edging out a small lead.

“I don’t know,” I tell her. “If it’s something serious and she comes back to find everyone’s abandoned the store, she’s probably not going to be too happy about it.”

“I’ll tell you what,” Linda says. “Let me give her a call and see what she thinks we should do. That way, everyone’s covered.”

That’s perfectly reasonable.

“Even if it does mean I have to stand over here all by myself, trying to occupy myself with whatever comes to mind, being completely unable to do anything about it.”

My rational mind takes a body blow, but it’s still technically in control.

“Let’s just see what she says,” I tell her, and I go back to work.

“Everything cool, boss?” Ian asks.

“I have no idea,” I tell them. “Oh, and it looks like we’re going to have another change to our plans.”

José’s the only one that doesn’t groan. Even the new guy, Derek or Dylan or whatever his name is, rolls his eyes.

“We’re never going to get this thing done if she keeps changing everything on us,” Alec says. “Maybe you should have a talk to her about it.”