Chapter Fifteen
Work progressed nicely on both the McLaughlin house and on her own. She fell into a wonderful rhythm of rising earlier with the sun, dressing for work, and taking Tootsie, who was getting bigger and more obedient every day, for a morning run before work and for another after work. Then Tootsie would settle in near wherever Ashley was working around her house and keep her company as she worked.
“You know, girl, without you Momma would be talking to herself right about now,” Ashley said one night as she was tearing up the flooring in the bathroom Travis had used. Tootsie was just outside in the hallway.
But she wasn’t entirely alone in Nashua. On Saturdays, she and her mom spent time together. If it was an outdoor activity, they took Tootsie with them. If shopping or going to a movie, Tootsie spent time in the backyard of one of their homes. Often Barbara and Jordan would invite her for dinner or a barbeque, and, although there was still so much she could be doing at her house, she forced herself to attend because she loved her nieces and nephews and Tootsie loved them.
It was male companionship that Ashley longed for. She enjoyed the male reaction to the news, sports, and current events and the different perspective that sometimes brought her. She appreciated their humor. She relished the smell and taste of a man and the feel of his strength that no matter how hard she worked and how strong she was compared to some women, men seemed tougher, stronger, hardier. Yes, Ashley lusted after the sensual satisfaction a man could offer her. Should I take Travis up on his offer to make something more serious happen between us? she wondered.
But then she’d see him at work and think how very awkward that would be if they were a couple and had to spend every day working side by side with her being his boss and still go home together. It wouldn’t work; she was sure of it. Although once in a while when she was busy working right along with the crew, she’d get an odd feeling she was being watched. She’d turn, and Travis was staring at her. He, it seemed, was smitten.
One particularly warm night when Ashley had been thinking about the lack of sexual contact in her life and had drowned her loneliness with several glasses of wine, she drifted off to sleep in a bit of an alcoholic haze. She dreamed she was met by a handsome man who approached her quietly, put his fingers to his lips to silence her, and said, “I’m here for you and always will be. I know what you need. You need me. I need you. Don’t be afraid. I’ll always protect you.”
Rather than a nightmare feeling, she felt a sense of calm come over her that she hadn’t felt since before she learned of Brody’s infidelity. Then his hands roamed her body and set her juices flowing. She moaned in her sleep, and Tootsie growled a long, low growl that matched the rhythm of the bed as it moved with Ashley’s body as she slid slowly back and forth on the sheet then faster and faster until she woke to her own screams and the loud yelps of Tootsie, who was confused by the strange movements in their bed.
“Wow, girl, it’s okay. It wasn’t a nightmare. There’s no one here. Momma was just having a sweet dream,” she told Tootsie as she stroked the dog’s head as though returning the favor the mysterious man in her dream had just done for her. “In fact, I could use more dreams like that.”
She and Tootsie drifted off shortly after into a dreamless sleep and when the sun came up, they were eager for their morning run. When she looked in the mirror her face was flushed as it hadn’t been for long time. “I’ve got the afterglow of a newlywed,” she said to Tootsie. Tootsie barked as though she knew what Ashley was talking about.
On her way into work, she stopped and bought two-dozen mixed donuts and a box of coffee at Dunkin’s for the crew. She sang along to Brad Paisley’s “You Are the World.” What a beautiful day, she thought.
That night it happened again. And for a full week, she was visited in her dreams by the same handsome man with the gentle touch, who whispered to her and talked to her about how much he loved her and wanted to care for her forever. Each time, she woke she was covered in sweat as though she’d run for miles and was breathless with the sensations he left her with. Were these dreams or premonitions of things to come? Would she meet this stranger someday? Would he make her feel as she did in her dreams? she wondered. The dreams came so regularly that she left Tootsie in her crate at night because it upset her too much to be in the bed with Ashley when the dream sex played out. Neither of them liked that much, but Ashley felt it was best for both of them. She loved her Tootsie, but wanted her to get her rest and didn’t want to freak her out if the dreams continued, which she hoped they either would or somehow she’d meet this mystery man and have him in her life for real.
That week Rex and most of his crew came from Vermont to help her finish the McLaughlin project because they were between projects in Vermont. In one day they got it wrapped up and after the others drove back, Rex stayed behind to celebrate the completion of the first G & J New Hampshire project. They had another lined up for a week from that day. Both could tell the move into New Hampshire was going to be lucrative for the company, but they did miss the day to day contact with each other.
They caught up on family news and Rex gave Tootsie plenty of loving as the two of them ate Chinese takeout and bent over a computer looking at plans and pictures of the next New Hampshire project. Rex liked the crew she had assembled. But he encouraged her to get a few more members since it seemed they’d be able to afford them and could move along more quickly.
“I won’t always be able to bring my crew up to help you out last minute on every project,” he warned her.
“I know. I just wanted to start small, so I didn’t break the bank. I’ll ask the people I have for recommendations. They’ll know best what I’m looking for.”
“Good. Let’s get at least two more in here as fast as you can. By the way, I think New Hampshire is agreeing with you. You’re glowing. Have you got someone special in your life? Come on, spill the beans. Liz will want to know.”
Ashley felt her face heat up. “Oh, God, no. Not me. No one yet. Who’s got time?”
“Make time, Ashley. We don’t want you to be alone. You don’t deserve that.”
She looked at him and asked, “Have you seen him?”
“Who?”
“Brody.”
“Honestly, Ash, I haven’t. I don’t even know where he’s living.”
She felt herself tear up, the agony from Brody still there and raw. But knowing people cared so much about her was touching, and it warmed her all over.
“I will find someone eventually. I don’t want to be alone forever. It will just take some more time. For now, it’s just Tootsie and me, and that’s enough,” she said as she leaned down and rubbed her dog’s belly.
Rex hugged her then and changed the subject by asking about some details on the Smith-Broker home she’d be working on next. She went straight to business mode, and the night was full of G & J Renovation’s talk that made them both comfortable and confident.
As Rex left for the two-plus hour drive to Vermont, he squatted down to pat Tootsie and said, “You take good care of Ashley, you hear.” Then he turned to Ashley and kissed her on the cheek and said, “We’ll talk soon.”