Read Online Gathering Water by Regan Claire - Free Book Online Page A

ahead and forgave him, making sure he knew not to do something like that again.
    “He gave me a list of things you need to look into. He said you need to get an electrician and a plumber out here. Since the power and water aren’t on he couldn’t really test it, though he mentioned a few spots that need some definite updating.”
    I looked at the list of things that needed attending to, and knew without a doubt that I was in over my head. “Oh no! How much is all of this going to cost? How am I supposed to take care of all of this?” I had a fair amount more money than I had anticipated, but I really didn’t want to use it all up just repairing the place, and with the number of things on that list I was really concerned that I’d run out of cash before I ran out of projects.
    “ Oh, it’s really not as bad as it looks. Most of these are just suggestions, and a lot of it you can do yourself. You already knew that the stairs need tending to, and the windows. There’s only one spot on the floor that needs replacing. Of course, depending on what the electrician and plumber say, that could add quite a few more dollars. And you’ll probably need a new HVAC unit—this one is at least 20 years old,” he said, as if that were good news.
    “You aren’t making me feel better.”
    “Oh, you’ll be fine. Good thing about a town like this, I know people who can help out, let you do some of the labor to offset the price. That’s what usually ends up costing so much, labor. I can order most of the supplies through my shop, so don’t you worry about that-“
    “You’ve already done entirely too much for me, I can’t let you give me stuff from your store.”
    “You really need to learn not to interrupt. I was going to tell you that I could order everything for you at the shop for a pretty good discount, if you wanted to work a few afternoons to pay off the difference. It’s tourist season and we get pretty busy over the weekends, and since I haven’t had the chance to hire anyone yet this summer you’d be doing me a favor.”
    His offer wasn’t som ething I could easily say no to. It sounded like the perfect solution. Luke was being so helpful, too helpful. My instincts told me to trust him, but they also told me he was hiding something. I decided to take him up on his offer, but remain wary until I found out what his secret agenda was.
    Luke had to go back to work and open the shop, but before he left he handed me the cleaning things he’d promised.
    I, however, did not spend my day cleaning. What was the point when some of the floor would need to be replaced? Instead I decided to do what any eighteen-year-old would do: go to the beach. Washing up the best I could with a washrag and bottled water, I pulled on a pair of cut-off shorts and a blue tank top, shoved my flip-flops into my back pack that I used as a purse, and headed out the door hoping to get to the other side of the island and see the ocean.
    You’d think that walking across an island would take a while, but only about 15 minutes later I could hear the waves. I remembered then that Luke had said the island was less than a mile wide. I would have known that if I had checked out a map before moving, but I somehow never got lost so I wasn’t worried about it. Either way, I was pleasantly surprised to make it there so fast.
    Before taking a full look at the ocean, I stopped into a surf shop and grabbed a bathing suit, something I’d not had since I was a kid. They were more expensive than I expected so I just grabbed the cheapest one I could find, changing into it in the restroom before heading across the street and getting my first good view of the Atlantic.
    Thank goodness for my flip-flops , because the sand was really friggin’ hot and even my toughened feet couldn’t handle the heat. When I reached the surf I immediately took them off, mesmerized by the beautiful sight ahead of me. I just stood there with my toes sinking into the coarse,