care. “We’ll build a wall right here where the tape is on the floor. And we’re using the washstand out there in the hallway for the vanity. The tub and shower enclosure will be kind of modern. But we’re going to try to keep the old-world flavor.”
“That sounds wonderful, Tucker, but we really should be going. Don’t you have an appointment to meet up with the church Prayer Angels?” Dotty asked Lucy.
“Yes, I do,” Lucy huffed. “And for your information, I just sell antiques. I don’t build houses.” She turned her attention to Jolene. “But it looks good. Let’s go back down to the living room and sing some more. I liked that better than lookin’ at bathtubs in bedrooms.”
“I’m sure you did.” Flossie winked at Tucker. “You are doing an amazing job. Sugar would be so proud. You sending lots of pictures to her, Jolene?”
“Every day,” Jolene answered. “I take before, after, and in-progress pictures. I’ve been sending them daily and talking to her at least every other day.”
“I do sing well, and I will pray for you.” Lucy poked Tucker in the chest. “I will ask God to take away your desire to drink.”
Tucker didn’t even argue. He could use all the help he could get, but if God had been standing watch, he thought, then his Melanie wouldn’t be dead.
“You do that, Miz Lucy.” He put her arm back in his and dreaded going down the stairs even more than he had climbing up them. But at least if she pitched forward, she would only take him with her.
They made it to the ground, where Dotty took control and chattered the whole time she helped Lucy into her coat. “Thank you for a wonderful visit. I can’t wait for the construction part to be done and the pretty stuff to start. You can bring our dishes home next Sunday. Dinner will be at Flossie’s house. One o’clock sharp. Don’t be late. We’ve always taken turns hosting Sunday dinner.” She paused for a breath.
“Yes, ma’am.” Tucker jerked on his boots and followed them out to the car to open doors for them. “And you call me if you have a headache later on tonight, Miz Lucy.”
“Honey, I never felt better in my life. I just wish we’d got to the end of the ninety-nine sips of wine song. I was havin’ fun,” she said.
Dotty winked at him. “Thanks for everything. Sugar would be proud of you and Jolene. And now that she’s three sheets to the wind, we’re hoping that Lucy’ll get off this crazy merry-go-round she’s been on.” Dotty lowered her voice. “Sometimes it takes a good hangover to realize that you’ve been goin’ down the wrong path.”
Most of the time, a person has to want to take a step into the future, rather than living in the past. What do you want, Tucker? This time his grandfather’s voice was in his head.
Chapter Ten
Jolene could hardly believe that it was already Friday again, but the calendar on her phone didn’t lie. She and Tucker had gotten more done the past five days than she’d thought possible. The bathroom walls were up, and the dining room now had a hole big enough for a door where he’d knocked out the wall to put in new water lines. That morning he was under the house working on getting the last bits of plumbing done. After that he said they’d be ready for drywall.
She rolled her neck a few times to get the soreness out. This construction business was harder on the body than standing on her feet eight hours behind a bar for sure. But she was beginning to get a picture of what he’d visualized all along. Maybe as Aunt Sugar and Uncle Jasper came back across the United States on their way to California, they’d stop by and see all the improvements. Jolene was almost giddy as she thought about showing off the new bathrooms and all the remodeling.
Tucker’s hand stuck out of the crawl hole. “Hey, I need a crescent wrench.”
She put a tool in his hand, but in five seconds it came back out. “A crescent wrench, not pliers.”
“Sorry about that,” she said. “Don’t fire me. I’m still learning.”
“No way.” He chuckled. “At least you didn’t give me a pry bar, like my last assistant did,” he said.
“That’s because I’m not an assistant. I’m a partner, and I work real cheap.”
When he finished, he inched out from under the house on his back, face-first. She