I shot her an exasperated look and said, “Stop. Just… stop.”
“Sorry. This makes me feel old.” She waved a hand at the cabins around us. “I remember when these were brand-new and beautiful. The years haven’t been kind—”
“To the cabins,” I stressed. “They’ve been plenty kind to you.”
Trip nodded agreement.
“Besides,” I added, “you’ve taken better care of yourself than the camp.”
“I should’ve done both.”
“You didn’t know,” Trip said. “Neither did we. Hell, I should’ve spotted some of these things a mile away. But I was too busy with my own… uh… life.”
“We all were,” I said. “Come on, let’s take a look at the clubhouse before it gets dark. I wanna get some measurements and start thinking about the new design.”
“And there’s a hot tub with my name on it,” Susan added. “I don’t know about you two, but I’m dusty and sore.”
“And ready for a beer,” Trip said.
“At the very least,” Susan agreed.
* * *
We finished about an hour later and walked down to Susan’s house. Trip and I took turns in the guest bathroom, although the water for my shower never made it past lukewarm.
“Maybe you should think about renovating this house,” I said to Susan when I joined her in the kitchen.
She had showered as well. And instead of jeans and a flannel shirt, she wore a short terrycloth robe that clung to her curves. She normally didn’t wear anything around the house, but the temperature was cool after the heat of the day.
“You mind if I turn up the heat?” I asked. I only had a towel around my waist, and my skin already prickled with goosebumps.
“Oh, sorry,” Susan said. “I forgot. I turned it down when I left this morning.”
“Why?”
“To save money. The house never gets direct sun, and it costs a fortune to heat.”
I chuckled in amusement and disbelief. She was worth millions but scrimped on her electric bill.
“Besides,” she added defensively, “it was warm today.”
“It isn’t now. It’s bordering on chilly.”
“So? Turn the heat up.”
“That isn’t the point. It shouldn’t cost that much to heat this place,” I said. “It’s built well, no obvious leaks. When’s the last time you upgraded the system?”
“I don’t know. I can look in my files, but…” She thought back and winced. “It’s been a while.”
“Mmm hmm. A modern heat pump would cut your bill in half. While we’re at it, we could install a new water heater.”
“Why?” she protested. “The one I have works fine.”
“Maybe for one person. Or two. But my shower was… a little colder than I’m used to.”
“You never complained about cold showers before.”
I laughed when I realized she’d changed the subject. She was talking about our first time together. We’d had sex in the patio shower, which didn’t have hot water at all.
“True, but I had someone to keep me warm. Well, certain parts of me. Hold that thought,” I said before she could reply. “I’m gonna turn up the heat. Be right back.”
I jogged to the back hallway and rotated the thermostat. The heat kicked on with a satisfying click as Trip emerged from Doug’s old bedroom. He took one look at me and stopped.
“What’s the matter?” I asked.
“I wasn’t sure…,” he began. He was wearing jeans and a sweatshirt. He gestured at my bare torso. “Isn’t it a little chilly?”
“She had the thermostat turned down,” I explained.
“Okay. But I still wasn’t sure if I should wear clothes or not.”
“I’m not,” I said. “Duh. And Susan’s only wearing a robe. You won’t be out of place or anything, but if we’re going in the hot tub later…”
“Yeah, you’re right. Towels in the hall closet?”
“Yep. See you in a few.” I returned to the kitchen, where I surprised Susan as she bent in front of the oven. She was nude underneath her robe, of course.
She straightened and set a bubbling casserole on top of the stove. Then she rolled her eyes when she realized I’d been maneuvering for a better view.
“Hey, can you blame me?”
She smiled and started to say something, but then Trip joined us, wearing only a smile and a towel around his neck.
“Oh, my,” she laughed. “You sure know how to make an entrance.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Ma’am? Since when am I a ma’am?”
“Since you’re our new boss,” he said. “Well, if we get the job.”
“You have excellent references. And your equipment comes highly recommended,” she joked.
Trip shot me a grin.
“We’ll have to discuss the work schedule,” Susan added. “I know you have regular commitments, but I like to, ahem, stay on top of things.”
“Of course,” Trip agreed. “We’ll give you frequent… um… ‘reports.’ And whatever else you want.”
“Including personal service?”
“Very personal. It’s our specialty.”
“Close your mouth, dear,” she said to me. “You’ll catch flies.”
I closed my mouth and felt like I’d swallowed a fly instead. Trip wasn’t normally so brazen, and I had a sneaking suspicion that he knew something I didn’t. Then I realized what Christy had meant by “do whatever it takes to get the job.” She hadn’t been talking about my skills as an architect.
The little head was all for it, of course. He was eager to prove his qualifications in the personal service department. The big head wasn’t so sure. Were we being offered the job because we were young and horny? Did Susan expect us to service her as part of the agreement?
“Don’t overthink it,” she said. She switched gears almost immediately and said to Trip, “Will you grab some beers from the fridge? And fetch the salad while you’re in there.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
She grinned. “I could get used to this.” She turned businesslike and used oven mitts to move the casserole dish to a trivet on the table. “I hope you don’t mind Chicken à la King. I was feeling nostalgic. And I hope you’re okay with biscuits from a can.”
“Of course.” “No problem.”
“Every respectable southern woman should know how to make them from scratch,” she added, “but I don’t pretend to be respectable. Besides, I never mastered the art.”
“You mastered other things,” I said.
“Exactly,” Trip agreed. “But who cares? I’m starving. I could eat a horse.”
“Anything else you’d like to eat?” Susan teased.
“Yes, ma’am!”
“Oh, boy,” I sighed, “it’s getting thick in here.”
She blinked coquettishly and asked, “Is anything else getting thick?”
“I thought your ‘special friend’ was taking care of you,” I said.
“Oh, he does. But I have my eye on someone else tonight.” She glanced at Trip. “Maybe two someones…?”
“Do you mind if we eat first?” He spread his towel on a chair and slid into it without waiting for an answer.
“Of course. You’ll need your strength. Both of you.” She gestured at my chair and pulled out her own.
“Step into my parlor,” I said under my breath, “said the spider to the fly.”
“It isn’t all that bad,” she laughed. She spooned casserole onto my plate. “Besides, you don’t have to if you don’t want to.”
“Oh, I want to. As a matter of fact, I sort of have orders.”
“Orders?” She glanced at Trip as she filled his plate. “From you?”
“Uh-uh. Probably Christy.” He grinned. “She rules the roost these days.”
“And Wren doesn’t rule your roost?” I shot back.
“Never said she didn’t. I wouldn’t be here otherwise.”
“And what about you?” Susan asked me. “Does Christy approve?”
“You know she does. That’s why you talked to her, isn’t it?”
“I hope you don’t mind,” she said. “I wanted to clear it before I… um… ‘suggested’ anything.”