Page 17 of Pick Yourself Up (Heroes to the Core #3)

A Bang Up Job

A mber was pulling weeds with Gray in the garden when two unknown vehicles pulled into the driveway. Her heart galloped and panic gripped her.

Boomer barked sharply and loped to her side from where he’d been exploring the bushes. Gray dropped his shovel and moved to stand with her, angling himself between her and the cars. Had the Lauzon family found them? Would they shoot them in broad daylight with other people on the farm?

The window on the first vehicle buzzed down, and Amber whimpered. She grabbed Gray, tried to pull him down. If they shot at them, being on the ground was the smartest move. He didn’t budge. Boomer leaned into her side, but he’d stopped barking.

“Hey, Claus. I brought the gang to set up your security.”

Gray’s body relaxed as the man spoke. “Thanks, Epic. Go ahead and park down there with the other cars.”

Epic? Their friend from the army?

Gray turned and wrapped his arms around her. His voice whispered in her ears. “Friends. They’re friends, Amber. Boomer. Friends.”

She shuddered and tried to put the fear where it belonged. Far away in the back corner of her mind. Friends, not the Lauzons.

“Breathe with me, sweetheart. Breathe.”

It took three rounds through the breathing routine, but it worked. Boomer leaned into her side, nuzzling her hand, trying to ground her. Gray’s arms around her kept her steady while she shoved the panic away.

Finally, she took a normal breath and nodded. “I’m okay. Sorry about that.”

He kissed her lightly and chuckled. “Nothing to be sorry about. I was ready to pull my weapon.”

But he hadn’t fallen apart.

“Hey.” He caressed her jaw.

She swallowed and looked at him. Concern filled his eyes. “I’m okay.”

His lips twitched. “You’re more than okay, Amber. Are you ready to meet everyone? I can tell them all to take off.”

Now that her panic receded, she could hear voices closing in. Friendly chatter. “Don’t be silly. I’m ready. Boomer. Friends. They’re all friends.”

Her hand still shook when Gray took it in his, but she hoped no one else would notice her fear. If they were as observant as Gray and her brothers, she doubted it. Maybe they’d be polite enough to ignore it.

Four men and two women approached, so Amber slipped on her inn keeper persona. Six wasn’t a lot of check-ins, but it was a lot of strangers with her heart rate bouncing.

Gray squeezed her hand. “We’ve got this. The guys are all friends and I’m betting the women they’re with are great.”

They probably were, but that didn’t make the initial meet easy when panic continued to rumble through her bloodstream. She managed a smile as the men moved in to hug Gray and slap his back in the way men did. She couldn’t imagine greeting her sister with a slug to the shoulders.

Boomer stood alert at her side, eyes and ears trained on the newcomers while she kept her hand in his fur.

“Thanks for helping, everyone. Let me introduce you all to Amber Malssum. She’s sister to Jolie, Annie, Bobby, and Boss Man.”

The tall blond man laughed. “A much prettier version of the men. I’m Troy Phail and this is my wife, Piper.”

Piper reached forward to shake Amber’s hand.

“It’s great to meet you. We’re so excited about what your family is doing with the farm.

And building a place for visitors to stay?

You’re making me giddy. Sorry for invading like this, but I was too excited to stay behind when Troy said he was bringing out security stuff.

I’m sorry. I promised myself I wouldn’t gush. ”

Troy hugged his wife and kissed her hair. “Piper worked as an urban planner before taking over the job of making Phail the best it can be. She gets very excited about new tourism opportunities.”

Everyone chuckled, and some of Amber’s nerves faded away.

A man held out his hand. “I’m Graham, an electrician, and this is my wife, Aisling. She restores old buildings, so she wasn’t letting the opportunity to see your farmhouse pass her by.”

Aisling laughed. “Damn straight. I love this old house. I hear you want to do most of the renovations yourself, but whenever you’d like to have an extra set of hands or opinions, I’m your girl.”

Another man laughed. “And I’m your guy. I’m Sean Falcone and I own Falcon Construction back in Phail. I’d be happy to help with anything you need. If Ford doesn’t have the connections to source locally, I do.”

The final man grinned. “And I’m Sam. It’s great to meet you both. My wife Tansy and I live at Midnight Lake, between here and Phail. We’ve got great connections for security systems.” Amber knew from past conversations that Sam, Graham, and a few others ran Midnight Lake Security.

As part of her job, Amber had learned to keep names and faces straight, even with a dozen at once, so six was no problem. “It’s nice to meet you all. This is my friend Boomer.”

Sam held out his hand. “You’re a beautiful dog, Boomer. I bet you’d like to meet Jetson. He’s our German Shepherd, but he’s not as big as you.”

Boomer sniffed his hand and checked with Amber. When she nodded, he stepped into Sam’s space and let him rub him down.

Gray leaned down to whisper. “Okay? I didn’t expect them to show up today. And I didn’t expect so many.”

She smiled. “It’s okay. I’m over the panic, now.”

He raised an eyebrow, and she wondered if he could see the difference between her regular self and her manager’s persona. Other than her family, no one else could, but it warmed her heart that he knew her so well in such a short time.

Piper moved closer. “Tell me if I’m being a pain, but I’m dying to know what you envision here.”

Amber smiled. “I haven’t been here in Vermont very long, and I’ve only just committed to turning this into a B&B or an inn.”

Piper laughed. “You’re at the idea stage? That’s my favorite. The possibilities are endless and you haven’t hit any of the roadblocks that make you change direction. We’re all good at brainstorming. Tansy’s a master at thinking outside the box and reducing our human footprint on the earth.”

Piper’s enthusiasm had Amber smiling. “I have ideas and the beginning of a vision, but nothing’s finalized in my mind yet.”

Aisling grinned. “The building looks strong and secure. Has Ford gone through it yet?”

Gray held up his phone. “He did, and he’s on his way up. He said no one gets to make suggestions until he’s here. I think the whole gang is coming.”

Crowds were easier to deal with than small groups. Fading into the background in a crowd was easy. Except, this time, the crowd was here to see her project. To add ideas and input. All good. It was going to be all good, especially with Gray and her family at her side.

Boomer nuzzled her hand, and she squatted down to hug him. “It’s okay, Boomer. They’re friends and I’m going to have fun.”

She’d never tried manifesting, but maybe she could make it work.

G ray wished he’d relayed to Troy or Sam how much Amber hated being the center of attention, and that crowds were difficult for her. He hadn’t expected the group to show up when Knox had texted the men about needing a security evaluation for the farmhouse.

But Troy was an expert at taking care of people. He and Sam grabbed all the stock they had, told their buddies what was up, and here they all were.

Amber had put away her fear once they’d realized friends were approaching, not the Lauzon family.

He wondered if Troy had picked up on their tension when he’d driven in.

That’s probably why he’d lowered the window to reveal himself.

They’d also spent a few minutes longer than necessary gathering the equipment from the cars, giving him and Amber time to settle.

If spending a few tours overseas in the army taught a person anything, it was to read a situation and body language in moments. Evaluating people became second nature. Fear and anger were probably the easiest to recognize.

As Ford toured Sean and Aisling around the exterior, Gray kept Amber’s hand in his. She wasn’t shaking and her voice had lost most of the tightness he’d heard earlier, but she wasn’t her usual self, either.

Sam drew them into a conversation about the gardens, and Amber relaxed further with the attention off her.

It didn’t take long for the conversation to turn to where to best place security cameras. Amber looked over the farmhouse. “At my last job, we had discreet cameras in the lobby and the hallways. I don’t feel the need for that here. Maybe on the exterior entries, though.”

Gray nodded. “I don’t think we’d go wrong with wiring up the first-floor windows. What do you think?”

Amber shrugged. “Maybe. It’s a good long-term plan, but I won’t be having guests in the building for a very long time.”

Sam nodded. “Your call. We’ve got lots of options and can do whatever it takes to make you and your future guests safe here.

It might be easier to wire things in while you’re doing the renovations.

Tansy’s always working to improve the tech, so she can probably offer some fun options.

But we’re here to help you, not to force you into something you don’t want. It’s always your choice.”

Amber nodded, but didn’t say much more. Aisling and the others returned from the tour with wide smiles.

“This is a great building. The foundation is solid and I don’t see any signs of rot or insect issues.

You won’t have any major expenses in those areas.

Any chance I can talk you into letting me see a bit of the inside? ”

Amber smiled and led the way into the lobby. The group spread out and searched the floor, but no one asked to go further.

Gray led Amber to a quiet corner. “Better?”

She nodded. “They’re good people who want to help.”

He chuckled as he pulled her into a hug. “But they’re still a lot.”

She hugged him back with a nod. “I’m okay.”

He kissed her forehead and released her. “I know. What are you thinking for the cameras and alarms?”

Another shrug. “I don’t want to invest much until I’m sure this is all going to work. I think alarms on the first-floor doors and windows should do it. As Sam said, it makes sense to do it now before we drywall.”

That was a good compromise. He didn’t plan on being farther away than his gardens if she was working inside the inn, so the alarms should be enough for now.

In the end, Sam had enough equipment for the request and they spent the rest of the afternoon running wires.

He was relieved when Amber seemed to hit it off with everyone, especially Piper, who was so enthusiastic about the project.

Troy and Sam helped Gray work on the front door, where they could keep an eye on everyone.

Troy kept his voice low. “Sorry about not warning you we were coming. It should have crossed my mind, but it didn’t.

Hell, you were asking for security systems, so I should have clued in not to drop in without letting you know. ”

Sam nodded. “Is there an active threat?”

Gray shrugged. “Potentially. An incident happened a few months ago in Chicago. We don’t have any intel that anyone’s looking for her.”

His friends exchanged glances. Sam spoke. “Or you? Were you involved back then?”

Gray wasn’t sure what had given it away, but he nodded. “We met when someone came after a guy I was guarding at The Sidderlight back in Chicago. Amber stopped them from getting past the lobby. The details are hers to share, but if we find out it’s not over, I’ll loop you in with more information.”

Troy nodded. “Good. If you need us for anything, we’re here for you both.”

By late afternoon, they’d finished up the security system. He was surprised when Amber asked the group to stay for a meal, but he shouldn’t have been. She was generous, and she’d spent years in hospitality.

He and Sean, another Italian boy, mixed some pizza dough and cooked up enough for the entire group while Amber chopped up vegetables and fruit. Because it wasn’t raining, they spread out on the back porch of the farmhouse.

When they waved everyone off, the light was dim, and the air was crisp. It had been a good day.

He tugged Amber’s hand, and they walked into the orchard. She was probably full of people, but he couldn’t let her go just yet.

Or ever.

Amber squeezed his hand. “Your friends are nice.”

He grinned. “Pretty sure they’re your friends now, too.”

Her eyebrows shot up as she looked at him. “Maybe. That would be nice. They’re good people.”

He wondered how difficult it had been for her to find friends while working at the hotels.

She probably wasn’t the type who frequented bars or talked to random people in coffee shops.

From the way she’d spoken about her staff, she got on well with them and she continued to text with a few of them, so she hadn’t been alone.

But outside of work and her family, had she found solid friendships? He hoped she’d have that here. “We should go to the Saloon one night.”

She grinned. “We don’t have to do that.”

“We do. I haven’t taken you on a date yet. It’ll be our first official date, one day when we’ve got some time.”

Her smile widened. “With our never-ending lists of things to be done, we don’t have a lot of that.”

“True, but we’re our own bosses. And a date with you sounds even more fun than pulling weeds.”

As he’d hoped, she laughed. “You’re right. A date night sounds perfect.”

And he’d make sure it was.