fresh flooring or with brand new furniture in the room.
She swallowed back her doubts and annoyances and pushed open the
heavy steel door that led to the back. The first thing she noted was the rolls
of chain link fencing lying on the ground. Her eyes tracked from the neat
rolls over to the woman at the far end of the lot.
Taylor.
Her hair was up in a messy bun, as per usual.
She was wearing a
different plaid shirt, red and black this time, faded jeans, and the same
brown boots. Christina watched with gathering awe as Taylor planted some
kind of huge tool into the ground. She put all her might into it, then set the
tool aside, walked over, and grabbed a thick metal post. She stuck it in the
hole, stepped back, brushed at her glistening forehead with the back of her
arm, and smiled.
Christina was absolutely absorbed in the sight. Taylor wasn’t just
beautiful. She could work. Hard. She could handle tools and make a fence.
And god, she looked incredibly good doing it.
Annoyed at doing exactly what she promised herself she wouldn’t do—
staring— Christina ripped her eyes away and walked over. Taylor heard her
coming and turned sharply. Her smile faded and her face grew instantly
guarded. Her eyes snapped with awareness, but they didn’t roam over
Christina’s clothes or body. They stayed glued to her face.
“Nice hat.” Taylor grinned, but it wasn’t a grin for Christina. She was
clearly amused at the incongruences between professional attire and a
grimy hard hat.
“The guy at the front gave it to me. I’m surprised he didn’t force me to
wear a pair of boots. He did mention them.”
“Yeah?”
Christina nodded. “I can see everything’s coming along inside. But
don’t— uh— isn’t everything usually done in stages? Like, the framing,