The House that Love Built

Nineteen




Brooke was surprised when Owen showed up at the store Saturday afternoon. She had reacted rather harshly about his hiring Hunter, and she knew she should have told him the entire story, but he’d gotten a phone call from his uncle and said he needed to leave before she’d had a chance to explain fully.

“Hey.” He strolled up to the counter in his work overalls and white T-shirt. “I need to hire a roofer. That’s one job I can’t do myself.”

Brooke pulled a card from a stack on the counter. “This guy did my house. He’s good—and reasonable.”

Owen studied the card for a moment, then flipped it between his fingers a few times. “Sorry I had to leave so abruptly yesterday.”

“Everything okay?” She sat down on the stool behind the counter and pushed back the rim of her baseball cap.

“Yeah.” He stuffed his hands into his pockets. “My uncle is coming to stay with me. He’ll be here later this week. He was trying to tell me his travel plans, but my cell service was going in and out.”

Brooke sat up a little straighter. “How long is he staying?”

“I’m not sure. He’s a bit eccentric.” Owen chuckled. “He’s my father’s brother. He travels the world, and then he’ll stop for a while to rest and work on his memoirs. Sometimes he stays with my parents in Florida, and sometimes he stays with friends. But this is a first—staying with me.” Owen smirked. “Truthfully, I don’t think he cared for Virginia too much—imagine that! Anyway, I’ve got plenty of room, so when I heard he was coming this way, I invited him.” He pulled his hands from his pockets and scratched his forehead. “Maybe he’ll help with the house.” He paused. “Although I had planned for this project to keep me busy for a long time. If we finish, then what will I do?”

“Listen.” She pulled her eyes from his and stacked some papers on the counter as she spoke. “I need to finish telling you about Hunter.”

Owen sighed. “I probably heard enough.”

“It wasn’t a real gun, just a water pistol with a bag over it.” Brooke searched his face, and when Owen’s eyes met hers, she saw relief in his expression.

“A water gun?” He shook his head. “I guess that’s good. Better than the real thing.”

“Well, I’m sure you understand that I don’t want my children around Hunter.”

Owen was quiet for a while. “Everyone deserves another chance. At the heart of Hunter, I see something good. I just want him to have a fair shake.”

“I agree that everyone deserves another chance, but that vision of Hunter wearing a ski mask and pointing what I believed to be a real gun in my face—that doesn’t just go away. He scares me, Owen.”

“I can understand that.” He didn’t say any more, just looked at her.

Brooke waited, wishing he’d never hired Hunter. She’d done her best the past couple of years to stay away from him. She knew his situation at home, and she and Travis had tried to help him, to include him in family outings. But Hunter had turned on them just the same. “Just don’t be surprised if your attempt at giving him a second chance backfires. He’s . . .”

She let her voice trail off as she realized Owen was staring at her. His gaze roamed boldly downward, then back up again, until his eyes were locked with hers. He took a step closer. “I’ve decided I really believe in second chances.”

Brooke swallowed, suddenly self-conscious, and acutely aware of Owen’s seductive tone. What’s happening?

Owen leaned over, cupped her cheeks, and pressed his lips against hers, gently covering her mouth. It was so random, so unexpected. At first, she tried to pull away, but his lips were persuasive, and his touch sent the pit of her stomach into such a wild swirl that she let out a small moan. When he pulled away, she felt like the breath had been knocked out of her.

“Now”—he smiled—“I have to go call the roofer.” He gave her a playful salute. “Have a great day, Brooke Holloway.”

“You too,” she managed to mumble as he turned to leave. Once he was out of sight, she put a finger to her lips. Am I falling for my new friend?

And even more surprising . . . Is he falling for me?



Owen had wanted that kiss as much as he’d wanted anything. His favorite place to be these days was around Brooke, but his bold move had gone against everything they’d discussed. He’d only known her a month, and already he felt like his heart was climbing up a ladder and onto a chopping block. She was the kind of woman he could fall in love with. But could I ever trust another woman?

He’d done exactly what he said he wouldn’t do—led her on. Or had he? Maybe she didn’t have any feelings for him at all, so it really couldn’t be called leading her on. His thoughts and feelings were jumbled, and he began to question if he really did believe in second chances—for himself.

He spent the rest of the weekend working on the house, and on Monday he scheduled a new roof to be put on the following week. He didn’t hear from Brooke, and he didn’t call her.

But she was on his mind constantly.

Tuesday morning Owen and Hunter were ripping out kitchen cabinets when he decided to ask the boy about Brooke.

“So, what happened at Miller’s Hardware a couple of years ago?” Owen dragged one of the disassembled cabinets across the kitchen floor and piled it with two others.

Hunter was using an electric screwdriver to pull screws from one of the cabinets. He paused for a moment, then went back to work and didn’t look up. “She your girlfriend?”

“Just a friend.” Owen grabbed a rag from his pocket and wiped his face. “She said you held her up at gunpoint.”

Hunter stood up, the screwdriver hanging by his side. “I did not!”

Owen cocked his head to one side. “Really? So she lied?”

Hunter yanked the cabinet he’d been working on free from the wall and pushed it across the floor. “It ain’t like you think.”

Owen waited, but Hunter didn’t offer anything else. “Then how is it?” he finally asked.

Hunter pushed back his red hair and stood up. “It was a water gun with a paper bag over it. I woulda never hurt Mrs. Holloway, no matter what. She and her husband was always nice to me.”

Hunter went back to work on the cabinets. Owen just stood there, dumbfounded. “So you chose to rob people who had always been nice to you?”

“I done told you. I’m trash.” Hunter pulled out the screw he’d just loosened and tossed it onto the floor.

“I’m just trying to understand.” Owen suspected he already knew the motivations behind the crime.

Hunter whirled out another screw. “I needed money, okay? And I seen her load that register with cash before.” He pointed the hammer at Owen. “But I woulda never hurt her. Not ever.”

Owen grunted. “Hunter, I can imagine who you were probably getting the money for, but can you understand the fear you put her through?”

“I think about it every day.”

Owen decided to let the subject drop. Hunter had probably punished himself enough.

“I’ve got a little bit of furniture being delivered later today. My Uncle Denny is coming to stay with me for a while.” Owen opened the door that led to the backyard and dragged some of the cabinet debris out back. When he returned, Hunter was prying the last cabinet from the wall.

“He gonna be helping you now on the house, instead of me?” Hunter wiped his hands on his overalls before giving the cabinet a final tug.

“I’m hoping he’ll help. We can use it, don’t you think?” Owen paused, but Hunter didn’t say anything. “Hunter, you do a good job. I’m not firing you. And your raise will be on your paycheck Friday, just like we talked about.”

The kid’s face lit up. “Thanks, Owen.”

By the end of the day, they’d completely cleared the kitchen of the old cabinets, and Milton’s Furniture had delivered some bedroom furniture for upstairs. The large room at the end of the hallway would be Uncle Denny’s, so Owen had bought a bed, dresser, two bedside tables, and an armoire. While he was at it, he’d ordered himself a dresser and two tables, a couch for the living room, and a coffee table. It wasn’t much, considering the size of the house, but it would make the place a little more livable.

He’d thought about Brooke while he was picking it out, wishing she was there to help him. But every time he considered the possibility of a relationship with her, he thought about Virginia.



Wednesday morning Hunter stood before Judge Landreth. He’d worn his best blue jeans and a new blue short-sleeved shirt, and he’d bought himself some new tennis shoes. Grandma had needed extra money for her medicines and to have someone fix the air conditioner—and he’d found two new bottles of vodka—but it was the first time in Hunter’s life he could remember having some money in his pocket. He’d gotten a haircut too.

It was also the first time anyone had ever appeared with him in court.

“With all due respect, Your Honor”—Owen held up a pile of papers as he stood beside Hunter in front of the judge—“there isn’t any evidence that Hunter is the one who broke into that store. Just because he was running near the scene doesn’t make him guilty. You’ve already got one witness who said it wasn’t Hunter she saw. So how can you press charges against him?”

Hunter had never had anyone go to bat for him. And lots of times, he had to admit, he hadn’t deserved help. But Owen had believed him when he said he just ran when he saw the broken glass and heard the sirens. Owen had said, “I don’t just believe you. I believe in you.” Hunter had never wanted to be a better person more in his life than he did now. For Owen Saunders.

“Mr. Lewis has a history in Smithville, Mr. Saunders, and I know you are new to the area, but we have reason to believe that Mr. Lewis is involved in this crime as well.”

Judge Landreth was an old man with gray hair and lots of wrinkles. He took off his glasses. “I believe you are the one who captured him and brought him in.”

Owen took a step forward. “Well, I turned him over to the police. But I’ve read the case file, and I am prepared to hire an attorney for Hunter to fight this. There’s no evidence to support this case.”

Hunter couldn’t believe it. Again, he wondered why he couldn’t have had a father like Owen.

About ten minutes later, he and Owen left the courtroom, and all charges had been dropped.

“I ain’t never seen nothing like that.” Hunter couldn’t stop the grin from spreading across his face.

“Well, the whole thing was bogus. They were just taking advantage of you because you didn’t have legal representation.” Owen kept walking past his car, and Hunter followed.

“Where we going?”

“I need to make a stop up here in town, and it’s close enough to walk.”

Hunter felt on top of the world. Until Owen slowed down at Miller’s Hardware.

“I can’t go in there.” He stopped outside the glass windows and saw Mrs. Holloway sitting at the counter with her son.

Owen kept going, reached for the door, then turned around before he pulled it open. “Yes, you can. Come on.”

Hunter started to feel like someone was choking him. That medicine he’d gotten helped him most of the time, but he wasn’t sure anything was going to help him with this. He could still remember the scared look on Mrs. Holloway’s face. And the way his father had punched him in the gut and told him to do it, to rob the place and bring back some money. He’d woken up lots of nights in a cold sweat thinking about what he’d put Mrs. Holloway through. No way he could face her. He’d avoided her all over town for almost two years.

“I can’t.” He shook his head. “I’ll wait out here.”

Owen let go of the door handle and walked back to Hunter. “You’re turning your life around, and facing Brooke is part of the process. Have you ever told her you’re sorry?”

Hunter could feel his bottom lip trembling the way it did when he was a nervous sissy baby. “No, and I ain’t going to now. She’ll throw me out if I get two feet inside that door. Or worse yet, Big Daddy will.” He swallowed hard. “I ain’t going in there.”

Owen paced on the sidewalk, rubbing his chin, then stopped in front of Hunter. “You’ve got to let people see the real person you are. The guy I see has parents who probably aren’t the best, but is really trying to be a good member of society. This is a big step, I know, but it’s important.”

Hunter didn’t know what to do. Owen had been so good to him, and he didn’t want to let him down, but he was afraid he might pass smooth out if he had to face Mrs. Holloway. He hesitated, then slowly nodded. His heart raced as he walked in behind Owen, and he jumped when the bell on the door rang behind them. He kept his head down. Mrs. Holloway hated him, and he wasn’t sure why Owen was making him do this.

“Good morning.” Owen walked up to the counter, and Hunter had no choice but to do the same.

“Good morning.” Mrs. Holloway sounded just like he remembered. He finally looked up at her just as she was putting an arm around her son and pulling him close. Hunter looked down again.

“Did my cabinets come in?” Owen stuck his hands into the pockets of his black slacks. He’d dressed real nice for court today. He even had on a white shirt and a tie.

“They did. Big Daddy can deliver them later this morning if that’s okay.” Mrs. Holloway didn’t seem to want to look at Hunter any more than he wanted to look at her.

“Hey, Spencer.” Owen leaned to his left a little until Mrs. Holloway’s son looked up at him. “Whatcha got there?”

Spencer sighed. “It’s a plane that used to be my dad’s. But it doesn’t fly.”

“What’s wrong with it?” Hunter was surprised at the sound of his own voice, but when Mrs. Holloway pulled her son even closer, Hunter wished he’d stayed quiet. All this wasn’t making him feel better like Owen had said. Only worse.

Spencer jerked away from his mother. “Quit, Mom.” He offered the plane to Hunter. “I don’t know. It’s missing some parts.”

“It looks old.” Hunter studied the wingspan, about two feet, then finally found a date stamped inside. “It says 1963.”

“Think it’ll fly?” Spencer stood up from the stool he was sitting on, even though his mother frowned.

Hunter shrugged as he handed the plane back to Spencer. “Don’t know. Maybe.” He was pretty sure that given some time, he could get it to fly. Wasn’t nothing Hunter hadn’t been able to fix before.

“Hey, Spencer.” Owen leaned closer to Spencer. “Why don’t you go check with Big Daddy about my cabinets. I need to talk to your mom for a minute.” He looked up at Mrs. Holloway. She nodded right away and almost pushed her son toward the back.

Hunter wasn’t sure he’d ever felt more ashamed, and he figured the worst part was coming. He looked at Owen, who just nodded. Hunter forced himself to look at Mrs. Holloway.

“Mrs. Holloway, I’m real sorry for what I did to you. You and Mr. Holloway were always real good to me, and . . .” His lip started to tremble, and it took everything he had not to cry. Why am I such a sissy baby? “Anyway, I’m just real sorry.” He took a deep breath. “Especially ’cause I scared you. I’m real sorry.”

It was hard, but he kept his eyes on hers. Wouldn’t it be something if she could forgive him? He’d never gotten away with the money. Big Daddy had seen to that. And the Holloways hadn’t pressed charges. But still.

She raised her chin a little bit. She didn’t smile or anything. “Thank you, Hunter. I appreciate that.”

Owen reached in his pocket and pulled out his keys. “Hunter, why don’t you go get the car and bring it up to the curb here?”

Hunter’s eyes rounded. “Really?”

Owen smiled and nodded. Hunter figured he wanted to be alone with Mrs. Holloway, but he didn’t care. He was gonna get to drive Owen’s fancy car again. Even if it was just down the street.



Brooke could hardly take her eyes off Owen, all dressed up in his slacks, crisp white shirt, and tie. It took everything she had not to tell him how amazing he looked.

“How are you?” Owen’s forehead wrinkled as he spoke, concern etched in his voice.

“I’m fine. You?”

“I’m okay.” He paused. “Listen, I know that was hard for you, but thanks for letting Hunter apologize. I really don’t think he’s a bad person. Just had a bad upbringing.” He grinned. “Can’t believe he tried to hold you up with a water gun.”

Brooke tipped back the rim of her baseball cap. “Yes, but it was just as scary. And not funny.”

“I know. Sorry. I didn’t mean to make light of it.” Owen sighed. “I’d just like to see Hunter turn his life around.”

Brooke was quiet for a few moments. “You’re a good guy, Owen Saunders.”

He chuckled. “I don’t know about that. But I’d like to at least see Hunter have a fair shake. I don’t think he would have if I hadn’t gone to court with him this morning.” He paused. “And all charges were dropped.”

Brooke couldn’t stop staring at his mouth, and her mind was whirling with random ideas about ways she could spend time with him. But she hadn’t even heard from him since he kissed her on Saturday, and she wasn’t sure what to make of that.

Owen put his palms on the counter and leaned closer to Brooke. “I want to kiss you so badly I can’t stand it. Just like I did last time I was here.” He smiled. “What does that mean, Brooke Holloway?”

She bit her bottom lip as the pit of her stomach started to tingle. “What does it mean?” Kiss me now.

Owen slowly brought his face to hers, and his gaze was as soft as if he were touching her with his eyes. His spicy, intoxicating cologne hung in the space around him as his lips met hers. Brooke savored every second. He eased away, leaned in to kiss her once more, then stood tall again.

“Would you and the kids like to have dinner with me tomorrow night?”

Brooke stared into Owen’s amazing blue eyes and realized that any baggage Owen Saunders might have from his first marriage didn’t matter. She had given her heart to only one man.

Until now.