“Yeah, digging a drainage ditch.”

  His eyes widened, and then he winced. “Oh, lovely.”

  “Nope. Not. I don’t think that vocabulary works when it comes to that.”

  “And why you?”

  “Why not me?” she asked, with a note of humor. “I can’t lift as much as the guys do, that’s for sure, but I’m always there, doing my part. Besides, we were short-handed today, and it’s not as if that’s the only thing we had to do today.”

  “Of course not.” He smiled at her. “Maybe you can just relax now.”

  “That’s the hope.”

  “I didn’t realize that you stayed here.”

  “Yeah, I was an early adopter, so, when an opportunity came, I moved in one of the on-site apartments. Nobody had to tell me twice. Fresh grub, and grub to be crazy about,” she noted, “and access to all the grounds and not having to commute?” She just waved a hand. “I don’t understand the people who have to consider whether it’ll work for them or not. For me it was a done deal immediately.”

  He nodded. “It’s one of the nicest places I’ve seen. Dennis told me about all the work you do. So has Shane, for that matter.”

  She smiled. “Both those guys have been here as long I have, even longer,” she said. “And you’d think that we would have more time to spend and visit, but, no, we’re always so darn busy.”

  “Shane did mention something along that effect, how he barely had a chance to sit and have coffee with you over the years.”

  “And he’s right. Sometimes our schedule is off, or somebody’s heading to town, or we’ve got other work to do, other people to look after.” She smiled. “It’s part and parcel of being here, and that’s good too. You don’t want to be so close that you see everybody all the time, and you don’t want to be so far away and out of the loop that you don’t know who all’s here. Of course I never can keep up with all the patients who come and go,” she noted. “However, I do try to keep up with the staff who come and go.”

  “And do many come and go?” he asked curiously.

  “There’s always a few. Some go and come back. Some go and realize they should never have left and then try to come back, but their positions are already filled,” she noted, with a smile. “I’ve seen it all since I’ve been here. Been friends with a lot of them, and that’s always been nice too. Some really good people are here.”

  He smiled. “And, of course, you’re a cheerleader for the place.”

  “If I’m not, I should be,” she declared. “Seriously, what’s not to like?” She groaned, as she settled deeper into the water. “Especially on days like today. I don’t have to maintain the hot tub. I don’t have to pay for the expense of the hot tub. I don’t have to do upkeep on the pool. All I have to worry about is getting my butt up the stairs for dinner.” She grinned, her smile both elfin and brilliant at the same time. “How much of that sounds like a big chore to you?”

  “Oh, it depends,” he noted. “On the day that you saw me last, that was a bit more than I could manage.”

  “Did you stay in your room that night?” she asked curiously.

  “No, Shane came just moments after you left and dragged me to the hot tub. By the time I’d baked in here for a while, I went into the pool to chill out and did a bit of swimming. All under Shane’s watchful eyes. Then I headed up and grabbed food. I didn’t stay long, and I can’t say that I was social,” he admitted. “However, I was proud of myself on having made it.”

  “Oh my, you deserve a reward for that.”

  He chuckled. “Hey, I was just happy I made it there and back, without falling unconscious to the floor, and that I could get up the next morning.”

  “And it’s all about the fight the next day that we have to watch out for. The reason I came to the hot tub tonight was I knew that, if I didn’t do something to ease up my shoulders, tomorrow I would be suffering for it. Then I can’t get the rest of my work done.” She gave him a smile. “And so here I am. Taking care of business tonight, so that I can take care of business tomorrow.”

  Spencer had to admit he hadn’t expected to see Bella, but was delighted he had. She fascinated him. And made him realize what he’d lost. She was fit and in a physical job, loving her outdoor work, being close to nature. It made him want to get back to his peak form even more. He completely agreed with everything that came out of her mouth. Particularly when it came to taking care of business the next day. He could have told Shane no, but Spencer also knew that he was better off coming to the hot tub, and he was.

  Last night, when he had finished soaking in the hot tub, he’d gone into the pool, and that had been a refreshing shift yet again. He’d managed a few laps just to loosen up some muscles. Today? Well, the pain was almost as bad, but he was coping, and he thought that anybody who coped deserved an award.

  Things were hard enough sometimes, and, if this was all that you could do, then that’s all you could do. Nobody should knock it, and certainly nobody should make you feel bad about it. Yet he’d seen it all. He’d been trying to explain what was so different about the place to Timothy. And his buddy would be here eventually but not for another couple weeks yet, and Spencer couldn’t wait.

  He turned to Bella. “I’m looking forward to having a friend of mine come to rehab here as well,” he shared. “He applied around the same time I did.” Then he laughed and said, “I beat him to it.” And he explained what had happened.

  She chuckled. “You’re just lucky you got in.”

  “And maybe because I had recommendations too.” He wondered about that.

  “I’m a big fan of When it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be. Don’t knock it, don’t ask questions, just accept it, and move on.”

  He burst out laughing. “A little bit simplistic, but I like it.”

  “Simplistic works,” she declared. “You can rack yourself over until you’re blue in the face sometimes, looking for a why. Often, there just isn’t any why to be found,” she stated. “And sometimes you’re just better off to accept that.”

  He had to agree because, when it came to his accident, he’d tortured himself with the whys for a long time and then finally just gave it up, realizing that he would never find an answer. It had happened, and he needed to pack up and move on. And, if he couldn’t do that, then there would be problems, bigger ones than he’d thought about so far.

  “When Timothy gets here,” Spencer added, “the two of you will get along fine. He’s very much like me.”

  “Sounds good. People here need to mingle more. Everybody has something to offer, and we do tend to get locked into our crazy worlds and think that it’s only us and only our world that’s got anything happening. However, that’s not true. Just so much is happening sometimes.” She yawned. “And I know for a fact that they do all kinds of evening stuff here too, if you ever have the energy to get social.”

  “That hasn’t happened yet,” he admitted, with an eye roll. “Maybe one day.”

  She smiled and nodded. “And that day will happen sooner than you think,” she stated, with a bright smile.

  “We’ll see.” He laughed.

  “Are you staying for dinner?” she asked him.

  “I am, but it’s always awkward. Do I go up there soaking wet versus going back to my room, getting changed, and then coming back again?” He shook his head. “Honestly, that whole process is exhausting.”

  She frowned. “I hadn’t considered that. Yeah, I’d probably blow it off too.”

  “But then”—he held up a finger—“then there’s Dennis’s food.”

  “Ooh, you’re so right. Dennis’s food is worth getting out of bed for.”

  “Not only that, but, if I don’t eat, what will tomorrow be like?”

  “Yeah, do you wake up hangry too?”

  “Yeah. And it’s not, … not a great feeling.”

  “No, it’s not.” She sat up. “I’ll dash into the pool for a little bit. You okay here?”

  “I’m perfectly fine,” he replied. “Shane checks up on me every fifteen minutes or so or sends down an orderly.” She nodded, as he watched her small muscled body rise from the hot tub. She had on a bright red bikini, covering just enough and yet left enough to the imagination to make his blood boil. When she dove into the pool with a clean dive, he smiled.

  “My kinda woman,” he murmured to himself. He continued to watch her and then relaxed back into the heat, wondering how to make dinner happen and how to see if she was willing to go with him. But then, how was he supposed to get changed and get there at a decent time? When she suddenly appeared beside him, brushing the water from her eyes and dipping back into the heat, he asked, “Done already?”

  “Don’t want to overdo it. Just tired enough that I have to preserve my energy for tomorrow.” She looked at him and said, “Tell you what. If you’re happy here, why don’t I grab food for both of us?”

  He looked at her in surprise and then replied with real pleasure, “I’d like that, if we’re allowed to.”

  “Not sure if we’re allowed to or not,” she noted cheerfully. “Still, as long as we don’t go dunking our doughnuts in the hot water, I think we’re probably fine.”

  He laughed, then sobered. “But then you can’t carry it all.”

  “Either I’ll shanghai somebody to give me a hand or I’ll make two trips.” She shrugged. “Either way, it’s not an issue for me. We gotta eat.” As she stood up, she asked, “What about any allergies though or preferred food choices for you? I don’t know what’s on the menu.”

  “Neither do I,” he replied, “but I eat everything.”

  “Meat eater or veggie eater or starch eater?”

  “Meat and veggies and a little bit of starch.”

  “Done. Back in a bit.” And, with that, she was gone.

  He’d been looking forward to dinner too. He wasn’t sure what was on the menu, and now he realized it wouldn’t matter one bit. It would taste divine, and no way he would make her feel bad by wishing she had gotten something different for him. He’d left it up to her, and he would eat whatever she brought.

  When she returned a little later, carrying a large tray, Dennis was behind her, carrying another tray. Spencer laughed out loud. “When she told me that she would shanghai somebody into helping, I didn’t realize she meant you,” Spencer admitted. “Don’t you have enough to do than catering to the rest of us?”

  Dennis frowned at him. “Absolutely not, I don’t.”

  And such seriousness filled his tone that Spencer didn’t know what else to say.

  But, for Bella, she burst out in peals of laughter. “You see? That’s how it’s supposed to be around this place,” she declared, with a smile. “And Dennis figured that he might know a little bit about what you wanted to eat, so I left the food selections up to him.”

  Spencer sat up in the hot tub, pulled himself up so he sat on the ledge now, and a little table was brought over, and the trays were put down.

  He looked at it and smiled. “Steak. Steak, baked potato, and Caesar salad. Man, was there anything more classic than that?” He looked over at Dennis. “Thank you so much.”

  Dennis grinned. “When you’re ready for coffee, send her back up. Together we got this.” And he was gone.

  Spencer looked over at her. “Seriously, he doesn’t mind?”

  “Seriously, he doesn’t mind,” she stated. “And I knew, if I went up there and told him that you were down here, he’d be here in a heartbeat. But that’s Dennis for you. His heart’s as big as he is.”

  “And that’s a lot of heart,” he noted, “because, man, that’s a big guy.”

  Chapter 7

  For the next several days that dinner remained in her memories, and Bella thought of it with joy. It’s one thing to have a date, which that wasn’t obviously, but it was another thing to come upon somebody in a natural environment and click as they had. And have everything work out. She was more impressed with Spencer than ever, and that was probably a problem because she shouldn’t be even pretending to date somebody, especially not a rehab patient when they were at their most vulnerable.

  She knew that there were certain rules about it in Hathaway House, but a lot of the rules had been relaxed over time, and she wasn’t sure where any of that stood right now. She just knew that she really appreciated Spencer for who he was and for the trouble he was going through. And for the grace with which he was growing through it.

  She never really thought about men and grace before, but it seemed to suit in this instance. And that in itself was odd. She’d had lots of healthy relationships over time, but nothing that ever stood the test of time. But she’d certainly seen the beginnings and endings of some patients’ rehab efforts here, and she knew a lot of things could be said about somebody who faced trials, such as this.

  She had come very close to getting married, only her partner at the time had walked a week before the wedding day. She’d been devastated. Her parents had not been impressed either, as they’d been stuck with some extra bills to pay, and he’d bailed because he’d felt he wasn’t ready. Wasn’t ready was the same thing as cold feet and didn’t have any place in a wedding.

  He needed to be well past that point before he ever reached one week before the ceremony. But he apparently hadn’t been quite so interested in learning about who he was. When it came to his cold feet, it had hit Bella hard, and he’d booked it. She hadn’t seen him since that fateful time. Not too long ago, she’d looked him up on social media and had been surprised to find that he was married with two kids. It blew her away because he had walked out on her only four years ago. So he’d obviously jumped into marriage very quickly with somebody else. Of course, then worry and fear had stepped in that maybe he’d been jumping before he split with her. She didn’t want to take the time to go deeper into that and find out more.

  No good would come of it, and it would just lead to more heartache and pain—something she wasn’t willing to sign up for. It had taken her a while to even be friendly again with anybody else after that scenario, and her mom had urged her to get back out there and to find somebody new.

  But Mom didn’t seem to understand that finding somebody new wasn’t the same thing anymore for Bella. She’d been totally in love with her fiancé. And it had been a shock to find out that he hadn’t been anywhere near as engaged emotionally in their relationship as she was. She’d also been in love with the whole fairy-tale idea of the wedding, and, when that all blew up in her face, she hadn’t had any fun taking things back and canceling everything.

  She’d wondered at the time if maybe part of the grieving process should have gone toward the actual ceremony. And that revelation made her feel very shallow, until a girlfriend of hers told her about how the wedding day was one of those special once-in-a-lifetime events that women really looked forward to. Bella had felt better after hearing that because it gave validation to how she’d been feeling and the depression she’d felt afterward.

  And mostly because of his behavior then and immediately afterward, she couldn’t even begin to think about trusting somebody else. She had finally gotten back out there but had never met anybody else who affected her the same way. And, of course, it was way too early to even contemplate that with Spencer. Yet, at the same time, she recognized his uniqueness, originality, and genuineness. And that meant a lot to her.

  She kept working through the next day and the one after that. And when Friday came, she gave a whoop. The guys looked at her. She smiled. “I just realized it’s Friday. And I’m off tomorrow.” At that, they all started grinning at her.

  “Right. It’s been a long week.”

  “It has, indeed,” she agreed. By the time they were done, and the tools were put away, she had to run into town to get more supplies, and she was already late for lunch when she returned. She raced up to the dining room to search for Dennis.

  He took one look at her and pulled a plate out from behind the counter. “I was hoping you would make it back in time. I was going to give you another fifteen minutes.”

  “Hey, I appreciate it,” she said, with a sigh. “Had to run into town to get supplies and, of course, had to deal with the traffic.” She groaned, with an eye roll. “I just don’t see it ever getting any better. It seems to get way worse every time I leave this place.”

  He nodded. “I haven’t been in town for a couple weeks now,” he noted, “and same thing. Every time I go in, I keep swearing I’m never coming back to town again.” He had to laugh.

  “And yet we do—for movies, clothes shopping, and-and-and.”

  “I know. It’s one of those necessities that we hate, but, at the same time, when you’re there, it’s not so bad. Yet, by the time you’re ready to leave for the day, you realize just how bad it’s been because you’re exhausted.”

  “And how can it be so exhausting?” she asked. “I mean, I spend at least all morning here, doing hard physical labor. However, when I go into town, in just a few hours, my soul’s crushed.”

  He chuckled. “I’m sure that’s an exaggeration.”

  She smiled. “Maybe a teeny-weeny one.” She chuckled. “At the same time, it takes a special person to live in town, and I’m not that special person.”

  “And you’ve also made a niche for yourself here,” he reminded her, “and so this is home.”

  “You’re not kidding,” she confirmed, with feeling. “The sooner I’m out of town, the better too. I just don’t necessarily want to go the next time.”

  “Can’t you send some of the staff?”

  “Not this time,” she explained. “I have to set up new accounts, and that always takes a little bit longer, and they don’t have that clearance. And because most of them aren’t long-term workers, I won’t give that company information away. If we had accounts at some of the vendor companies, it wouldn’t be bad,” she noted. “But then I still have to give them a job which is one I could just do myself. So I left a little early, but then leaving a little early didn’t quite do it as we were so busy in town anyway.”

  “Did you not eat at all?”