“Hey, Charlie, Mr. Cantrell is down here looking for you.” Freddie yelled up to them and Charlie headed down the stairs.
Charlie walked out of the barn and headed toward Tom and Lou who were talking by his pickup truck.
“Morning, Charlie. You guys are doing a great job on the place.”
“Thanks, Tom, how’s everything going?” Charlie asked as Lou excused himself and went back to working on the house.
“Pretty good, listen, about what we talked about yesterday. I ran everything by the wife and she thought it sounded like a great idea. If you were willing to become legal partners with me, invest your money in this land, maybe together we could build that community I was talking about. I’m serious, Charlie, what do you think?”
Charlie wasn’t sure what to do. “I don’t know, Tom, it’s a big responsibility. Dante and Trevor are willing to assist because it’s a lot to handle and I’m not sure. Can you give me a few days?” Charlie asked.
“Sure, son, take your time. I know it’s asking a lot but I think we could do it. Let me know, all right?” Tom said then Lori pulled up in her car.
“How did the date go last night?” Tom whispered to Charlie.
“Good, I think,” Charlie responded, laughing a little at how everyone was acting.
“Hi, Mr. Cantrell, Charlie,” Lori said as she got out of the car. She had her long blonde hair pulled back in a low ponytail, and was wearing a short pumice skirt with a light blue, spaghetti strap top. Charlie thought she looked beautiful as usual. He couldn’t stop thinking about her, nor could Dante and Trevor. Trevor stated this morning over breakfast how he couldn’t wait to wake up with Lori in his arms. That comment got the three of them going onto a major discussion about pushing a little harder for this relationship to move along. Lori seemed resistant. Was there deeper meaning behind it? He wondered, remembering Trevor’s concerns.
“She hasn’t told us anything about her past, just that she worked at a lot of places,” Trevor said.
“She said worse places than Carl’s. I’m personally not liking that,” Dante added.
“She’s shy and more often than not I catch her deep in thought and she looks sad. What could a woman as young and lovely as Lori be sad about?” Charlie told his brothers.
“Her eyes light up when we’re around her. My whole body ignites the moment she comes into view. I can feel it in my heart, and deep in my soul. She’s special and I want her in our bed, and in our home. This isn’t temporary for me,” Trevor added.
“I agree. She belongs to us. We have to be honest and tell her what we want and how much we adore her already,” Trevor said, very seriously.
Charlie had stared at his two brothers, worried that he couldn’t love her the way she needed. What do I know about love, or about providing for a woman as special as Lori?
* * * *
Lori eyed Charlie and her spirits lifted at the sight of him. He looked rugged and macho with his unshaven face, blue T-shirt, and loose-fitting blue jeans even though they were covered with white Sheetrock dust. As if reading her mind, he dusted off his shirt and pants unaware of the smile they both received from Tom Cantrell.
Lori pulled out two large grocery bags along with her purse and Charlie walked over to help her.
“I’ll talk to you soon, Charlie. I have to get going. Good seeing you, Lori.” Tom got back into his truck.
“Let me help you with those.” Charlie took one of the bags from Lori.
“Thank you. You guys are Sheetrocking the bedroom already?” she asked as he followed her to the house porch steps.
“Yeah, it’s pretty dusty up there. What are you up to?” he asked her as he placed the grocery bag down on the porch floor. Diana Shay came to the door to retrieve the bags, saying hello to Charlie then walking back inside.
“I had to go to the store, I saw your brother Andrew in town. He’s a really great guy.”
“He’s married you know?” Charlie said, joking around as he took Lori’s hand.
“I know that, Charlie, I just meant that nice guys run in your family.”
“That’s safe to say.”
“How about Jasper, is your cousin like you and your brothers?”
“Jasper’s a good guy, why do you ask?”
“He’s going on a date with Maggie tonight.”