Life Reconstructed: Chapter Thirty-Three (THE END)

Cat blinked at the words. What? Wait, what? “Excuse me?” Cat muttered, cocking her head a little to one side, biding a little time as she processed those unexpected words.

Matt smiled, but Cat was glad to see one hand inch up to the side of his neck, the fingers worrying the skin there a bit sheepishly. “I was wondering if I could have it back.”

“Back? That implies you had it once.” At the words, Cat felt her stomach tighten. It was a mean thing to say, yet she didn’t regret saying it. Still, she was being a bit unreasonable. Unkind. This was what she’d wanted all along. Matt was here. Here! He’d come to her, sought her out—and God, her eyes skipped over his features, she wanted to reach out and touch him. She wanted to be closer to him.

The smell of lingering woodchips and cedar filled the small office. Her nose twitched delightfully.

Then again, she wasn’t interested in being baited. She hadn’t realized how easily he could hurt her, how much his absence could affect her. Which meant, his presence was dangerous. Something to be careful around.

Though if Cat had expected a strong reaction to her biting response, she was disappointed. Matt smiled in acknowledgment. “Fair enough” Holding it up, he raised one eyebrow. “What do you say—can I take belated ownership?”

Cat licked her lips. “What do you want with it?”

There was a beat of silence as Matt considered her words. Bending his head forward, the shadow of his hat covered more of his face, making it even less readable. Then he exhaled. “You know, it’s kind of hard to answer.”

Cat waited. It was a maneuver she’d learned from him.

“I’d rather show you if you don’t mind.”

Cat’s stomach pitched. Dangerous. “I’m working.”

Matt glanced up at the wall clock. It was five minutes after five. “The credit union is closed.”

Feeling the nails of her fingers biting into her flesh, Cat loosened her hold. She wasn’t sure why she was fighting this, but…maybe because it all seemed too easy for him. He wasn’t looking at her as though he was dying to contain his feelings, he wasn’t humiliated or nervous, or any of the emotions that she’d been racked with pretty much since she’d met him. It was all too easy. Maybe because it didn’t mean quite as much. She sighed. “Fine. But I’ll need a few minutes first,” she said with a pointed look at her computer. “It may be past working hours, but I do have some stuff to finish up here.” That was more or less a lie, but it didn’t matter. It was the only power move she had left.

Gaining his feet, Matt nodded. “Yeah, sure. Meet you at my shop in twenty minutes then?”

“’Kay.”

“The back of the shop,” he specified.

Cat eye’s cut to his. “Fine.”

Holding the binder in his hands, he tested its weight, before looking back at her. “What, ah, if you don’t mind my asking, why did you keep this?”

Cat didn’t take her eyes off the computer screen, but that didn’t mean she was reading any of the words glaring fuzzily back at her. “Because, as it, uh, happens, you were also a little right.”

“Come again?” There was no attempt to hide the amusement in those loaded words.

With an exaggerated move, Cat lifted her eyes. “I was focusing on you because something was missing in my life. But you were wrong about why. It wasn’t because I was running away from something, rather I was running to it.” She pulled her shoulders back defensively. “I just didn’t know it then.”

Matt nodded slowly. “Okay.”

Cat shrugged. “Though, I was perhaps a bit premature in showing that,” she waved toward the black binder. Her eyes lowered demurely. “And I truly am sorry about that.”

She heard his heavy sigh. “I know, Cat. I know.”

“But, well, what I did—the researching and the forms and applications, and all of the background work…I liked doing it.” One finger played absently with the mouse beside her desktop computer.

“I really liked doing it. Working on website designs and trademark logo ideas, and marketing plans,” she lifted her hands. “And it’s good. The work in there, I did good work.”

“I’m sure you did.”

“Helping you, it was really like helping me. I—you know, I like what I do here at the credit union,” she said, her words coming out quickly. “But it’s not my passion. And I guess, harping at you about that very subject made me realize…”

“So you decided to start your own business?”

“In a manner of speaking. I’m in the process…”

She still hadn’t managed to chance a look at his face, but she could hear the smile in his voice when he spoke next. “Doing what?”

Cat looked down at her desk. Her fingers were chipping at the edge. “Business consulting.”

“Ah.”

“Don’t laugh,” Cat muttered darkly. She could feel the stiffness of her features, the uncomfortable weight of vulnerability as it cloaked her person.

“I wouldn’t dare.”

“I mean, I’m not looking to up and quit my job here or anything,” Cat continued, “at least, not yet. I, uh, you know, I’m starting small and, and, I’m just going to see how things go.”

“I believe in you.”

At the words, Cat’s eyes couldn’t help but travel up to his face. A small, helpless smile crawled across her lips. “Generous of you, considering that you all but threw that binder back in my face a week ago.”

“I’m not a quick study,” Matt admitted. He held up the book. “But I’m here now. I hope that counts for something.”

 

 

 

Fifteen minutes later, pulling into the back of the hardware store, Cat took a deep breath. And then another. Alighting from her vehicle, she shut the door on a forceful of determination. Not to get her hopes up. Not to expect too much.

So he took back the binder.

So what?

On the words, Cat felt her feet traverse over the long, rutted driveway leading to the loading docks.

Only, don’t be too cold.

Or rude.

What if he wants—

And on and on, and back and forth her thoughts flurried—had, in fact, flurried thusly since he’d first stepped foot inside her office. She’d gathered her pride around her when the only thing she’d wanted to do was find her way back into his arms.

It was a tough balancing act. She only prayed she was walking the line straight.

Coming up to the side door, she gave it a perfunctory knock before stepping inside. “Matt?” She called.

“Over here.”

Following the sound of his voice, Cat took herself toward his makeshift workstation—the dim lighting didn’t slow her pace. She knew the building well, by now. Only, halfway there, she stopped, her feet stumbling as her eyes took in the sight waiting for her. Matt was leaning up against the table saw, his eyes searching on her face as she paused.

“Wait? What is all this?” she asked, her voice little more than a whisper as she took in the unpolished, untreated rocking chair sitting just a little off to his right, and then the narrow cupboard with four intricately carved doors and little white-and-black glass knobs, to the narrow bookcase with the curlicue top. Her eyes flickered, shifting. Hesitating, she stepped forward, her hand reaching out to touch the raw wood on display. Cradled on top of it was a collection of picture frames and a large mirror in a rough-hewn frame. Just behind this, Cat could see piles of construction tools scatted around piles of neatly stacked new lumber, waiting…

Lifting her eyes, Cat stared at Matt questioningly.

“It’s a start.”

“A start.”

In answer, Matt reached for the binder sitting beside the saw. “If you’ll take me on, I’d like to be your first client.”

“My what?”

Smiling, Matt moved around the table saw, his feet guiding him meticulously closer. Reaching forward, he grabbed her hands in both of his. “Client. To a small, very small, side business.”

“You mean—”

“Wait,” Matt said, shaking his head. “Let me finish. I’m not closing down the hardware store.”

Cat nodded.

“Despite what you and my grandmother think,” he said pointedly, “because I know she had a part to play in all of this, I love this store. Yeah, my grandfather built it, but I love it, too.”

Smiling falteringly, unbelievably, Cat blinked back sudden tears. “Okay.”

“But you were right—I was hiding this away because I wasn’t sure I could juggle both of them because I wasn’t sure I had the talent to actually make something of it.”

“You do.”

“Thank you,” Matt replied, his eyes drifting momentarily to the collection stacked beside them. “So I figured I’d start small—build a couple of pieces and set them out in the store for sale and see how they do.”

“And custom work?”

“If and when I get requests, I’ll schedule them as my calendar allows.”

“Okay.”

Matt’s hands tightened on hers. “Is that all you’re going to say?”

Cat sucked her lips inside her mouth. “I mean, I’m so surprised.” Tugging her hands out of his, she gestured. “When did you have time to do this?”

“Last week.”

“After I stormed out?”

He half-shrugged. “Some of it.”

Cat’s eyes narrowed. “Some of it?”

“Yeah, well, if you’d let me get a word in edgewise I was going to tell you that last Friday when you came barreling about Amelia’s wardrobe.”

“I see.”

“I was ready to get it a try. Until I’d met you, I’d almost allowed myself to forget how much I love working with my hands.”

Smiling slyly, Cat nodded.

“And you said something—about how I could sell pieces in my shop, and I thought, well, what’s the worst that could happen? I don’t sell a few items? My ego is bruised?”

“So why, why’d you wait to tell me?” Anger bit briefly against her consciousness. She’d spent a miserable week without him.

“Because this is the way I always wanted to do it—to show you my idea. To see your reaction.” Matt shrugged. “Plus, you were pretty irritated when you left that day. And I guess, I got a little irritated myself. So I thought I’d give you some time, which you kind of demanded anyway.”

Cat laughed. “Like that would have ever stopped you.”

“I can be stubborn sometimes.”

“Sometimes?”

“And you,” Matt continued, “You can be a bit…dramatic at times.”

Cat scoffed.

“But at least you try. You’re always trying.”

Cat felt her mouth pulling upward. It was hard to deny the pleasure in that compliment. “Sometimes to no avail,” she said graciously.

Matt grinned. “Sometimes. But at least you do something. You get an answer.”

“You may be giving me far too much credit,” Cat said. “Before I met you I was entirely bored with my life.”

“Did you know that? That you were bored?”

“Yes.” Her lips twisted. “Well, not at first.”

“And what did you do when you figured that out?”

Cat smiled slowly. “I broke my kitchen door.”

“Yeah, that’s about what I figured.” Letting his gaze settle over her features, Matt shrugged. “So, how ‘bout it? Will you take me on as your first client?”

Cat chewed on her lip. “Actually, I’m not sure that’s such a good idea.”

Matt’s eyes cloudy over at the words. He still held a smile, but some of the energy melted off his lips at the words. “Oh. Uh, okay.”

“I have a code of professional ethics,” Cat hurried to say, her voice dropping to a huskier tone. Taking a step toward him, she wiggled her eyebrows for effect.

“Ah, I see.”

“It’s very explicit about romantic relationships with clients,” she warned him, coming to stand toe-to-toe with him then.

“Yeah,” Matt muttered, his hands coming down to cradle her hips. “I could see that that might be a problem.”

Feeling him pulling her in closer to his body, Cat pursed her lips as she raised herself up on her tiptoes. Her arms brushed up his shoulders. “But—I suppose if it were pro bono…?”

“Yeah?” Matt’s lips were pulling at hers, his teeth just barely biting down against her bottom one.

“I think we might be able to work something out,” she whispered just as his mouth took full possession of hers.

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