My One and Only: Book 1 in the Love and Weddings Trilogy (11 page)

              Meredith waved him off with a happy grin and he made his way down to his car. Now where to find Asher? He threw his keys up in the air a few times as he thought about it and then realized he really didn’t want to put that much energy into it. He took out his phone and texted Asher.

             
Hey man, where you at? Let’s hang out.

              Five seconds later, he got a reply.

             
I’m at Ivy and Becket’s house helping them install a new faucet. Come over.

              Pule hopped in his car and headed towards the older part of town. He was surprised that Becket would ask Asher, but then again maybe he shouldn’t be. Becket and Garrett were closer than any two brothers he’d ever known and Becket knew how much Garrett loved his little brother. It only made sense that he’d go to any lengths to make the relationship work.

              Driving up to the old Nyman house, he smiled at the changes. Garrett had redone all of the landscaping and had removed probably the ugliest tree in the world from the yard, making the house shine. He ran up the stairs and let himself in the front door, surprised that it wasn’t locked. Just a few months ago, they had bodyguards and a tight security team watching over them. Ivy and Rayne had come close more than a few times to dying because of greed and what he still thought of as a clear case of insanity. But now that Graham and his mother were behind bars, they were free to live their lives and they were doing a good job of it.

              Ivy and Rayne laughed more often now and practically glowed with happiness. Of course, being married to men who adored them might have something to do with that too.
But it was more than that
, Pule thought. The blessing of having that constant burden completely gone had given the two women a new lease on life. Ivy was now fearless when it came to singing and living life. Rayne had taken the other route though and had decided to simplify life. If he wasn’t mistaken, she was a couple months pregnant. Her eyes were bright and filled with joy now. And he was happy for them. He’d started out just helping the girls but now he loved them like sisters.

              He walked into the kitchen to see Becket on his back with his head under the sink while Ivy stood at the counter studying a diagram on her laptop. She glanced up as he walked in and grinned.

              “Pule! I haven’t seen you since last week,” she said and walked over to give him a hug.

              Pule hugged her back, lifting her off the ground and then walked over and kicked Becket’s work boot.

              “How’s it going down there?” he asked, glad it wasn’t him.

              Becket scooted out and by the fierce frown on his face, not well. “It’s going. Is Asher back yet from the hardware store?”

              Ivy shook her head. “He’ll be back any minute. Why don’t you take a little break since there’s nothing you can do? Let Pule have a look. Maybe he can help?” Ivy said, looking at him with big, pleading eyes.

              Pule’s eyes went wide with dread. Plumbing was not his bag. “Yeah, sure, I’ll take a look,” he said unenthusiastically as Becket smiled for the first time and handed him a wrench.

              “Huge leak. Find and fix,” he said.

              Pule grumbled a little. “What’s a big, strong, back hoe driving man like you doing having a problem with a little leak?” he asked, as he flipped onto his back and grabbed the flashlight that was lying on the floor.

              Becket shrugged and put his arm around his wife’s waist. “We each have our expertise. Mine is dirt. Not plumbing.”             

              Pule rolled his eyes and moved the light around in circles, looking at where the water was coming from. He could see clearly the water was dripping down the big, main pipe and making a large puddle. He shuddered as he saw a large patch of black mold creeping up the side of the cabinet. “Yuck,” he mumbled and then followed the stream of water up the pipe.

              He thought the water would come from a joint or a crack in the pipe, but as he followed the water, he could see it coming from where the sprayer was connected. He scooted further in and watched the drops of water for a moment before moving out and standing up. He turned around and grabbed the sprayer out of the sink and pulled it out, staring at it with a frown. He felt the base of the sprayer with his fingers and felt how loose it was. He unscrewed the sprayer and saw that the washer inside the sprayer was twisted on the side, allowing water to get past. He fixed the washer and screwed the sprayer back together tightly. He turned the water on and sprayed into the sink and then knelt down and flipped over, scooting back inside the sink and shining the light. He watched the drips of water but instead of coming fast, they slowed down and then stopped.

             
No way.
He’d just fixed a simple plumbing problem. He grinned happily and scooted out, jumping up and gesturing to the sink. “Problem solved, my friends. Faulty washer in the sprayer.”

              Becket glared at him and then grabbed the flashlight, staring down under the sink before looking back at Ivy. “Well, this is humbling,” he said with a faint smile.

              Ivy laughed and hugged Pule again. “Pule, have I mentioned how much we miss having you around every day? Why in the world would you want to be a police officer when you can be paid to hang out with me and do little, fun odds and ends all day long? I have a bathroom light that needs to be fixed and a closet door that has come off its hinges.”

              Becket made a loud huffing sound. “Hey, I told you last week I was going to fix those items. I’ve been a little busy at work is all.”

              Ivy walked over and kissed her husband on the cheek. “
Last
week, being the key word.”

              Pule held up his hands for peace. “I’m just happy to help some friends. Now, you can help me. Where’s Asher and how long is he going to be?”

              Ivy frowned. “He left about ten minutes ago to get a few things Becket thought we needed. He should be back very soon.”             

              Becket narrowed his brown eyes at him and crossed his arms over his chest as he leaned up against the counter. “What’s up? Why are you trying to find Asher?”

              Pule whistled a few tuneless notes and looked at the ceiling as he tried to look innocent. “Can’t a man just want to spend a few quality moments with one of his closest friends?”

              Becket snorted and Ivy’s eyes turned into lasers as she stepped closer to him. “You’re right, Becket. Something is up. Come on, Pule. We’re your closest friends. Tell us what’s going on.”

              Pule glanced over his shoulder and shrugged. Why not? Maybe they could actually help him fix this for Meredith. “So here’s the deal. Asher made a play for Meredith but Meredith turned him down flat because they’re business partners now.”

              Ivy grinned. “I heard about this. They’re starting this really fun dating website. It sounds amazing. Too bad it wasn’t up when I was single. I would have been all over that,” she said, sighing loudly.

              Becket grabbed Ivy around the waist and began tickling her. “Oh really,” he said, his deep voice so low it sounded gravelly.

              “I was teasing!” she squealed, trying to escape.

              Becket let her go and then grinned at him, his eyes bright and full of light. “So what? What does this have to do with you?”

              Pule walked over and grabbed a chair and flipped it around before sitting down. “I stupidly offered to fix things between Meredith and Asher. She’s all torn up about hurting him and she wants everything to go back to the way things used to be between them.”

              Ivy frowned and joined him at the table. “But how can it? If Asher has feelings for Meredith and she rejects him, how could it?”

              Pule pointed at her. “You rejected him and you two are friends now.”

              Becket laughed at that and joined them. “Well, I wouldn’t call things the same between them. But I do think Asher is maturing. Poor guy has had to deal with a lot of rejection lately. First Ivy, then Cleo and now Meredith? Maybe instead of fixing Asher, we should work on Meredith. Sounds like if she’s that torn up about it, then part of her wants to be with Asher.”

              Ivy nodded her head and leaned forward on the table. “I totally agree. Asher deserves a little love and happiness. I say we turn the tables on Meredith and get her to go out with him.”

              Pule frowned, not liking this plan at all. “Actually, I think convincing Asher that he should just give up and be good friends with Meredith is the best course of action. And besides, that’s what Meredith wants.”

              Ivy waved her hand in the air. “
Psh
. Don’t believe it for a second. Let’s do this.”

              Pule swallowed sickly. Why hadn’t he just kept his mouth shut? “Okay, but can she really have a relationship with a man she’s in business with? She’s worried that if they go out and then break up, that it will ruin their business. She’s terrified of being a failure.”

              Becket rubbed his face and smiled. “The best small businesses are run by families or couples. Besides, they have Brogan in this deal, right? He can run interference if things go bad. Problem solved.”

              Pule rolled his eyes. “I’ll think about it,” he said, secretly swearing that he never would.

              Ivy shook her head. “Not good enough. We’ve got to actively plan a way to get those two together. I can talk to Rayne and Garrett. They might be able to help too.”

              Becket nodded his head. “The more the merrier. I’ll talk to Brogan about the situation and give him a head’s up. Maybe he can help us figure out a way to get those two together?”

              Pule groaned and leaned his head in his hands. This was not turning out the way he’d planned. When he’d first thought of confiding in Ivy and Becket, he’d never imagined that they’d want to push them together. Ivy and Rayne hadn’t exactly bonded with Meredith when Cleo moved in with her. He better remind her of that.

              “Ivy, you and Rayne don’t even get along with Meredith. Do you really want Asher in a relationship with her? You’d be seeing her a lot more than you already do. Think about that,” he said in a serious voice.

              Ivy stared at him as if he lacked intelligence. “Are you insane? Asher and Meredith would be perfect for each other. He needs a strong woman to keep him on his toes. The man gets bored way too easily which is why he’s dated just about everybody in the Pacific Northwest. She’s the only girl that’s kept his interest.”

              Pule glanced at Becket with a raised eyebrow. Becket grinned and held up his hands as if to say he was staying out of this one. “With one exception,” he said, shaking his head and pointing a finger at Ivy.

              Ivy blushed and flicked non-existent crumbs off her pants. “That was just because he saw me as a challenge. When I didn’t automatically fall into his arms he was intrigued. Give us two weeks of solid dating and the man would be running for the hills.”

              Becket rolled his eyes at that and Pule decided to change the subject. “Regardless, you and your sister don’t click with her.”

              Ivy shrugged and walked over to the fridge, opening it and glancing around. “Rayne and I talked about Meredith the other day and we think we have her figured out. Rayne is positive we can win her over. She just loves Cleo so much that she sees Rayne and I as threats to her friendship with her. As soon as she realizes that Cleo isn’t the cliquey type and likes to have as many best friends as humanly possible, she’ll relax and get to know us. Layla was telling Rayne that she thinks Meredith actually has a very tender heart and that’s why she puts so many walls up. She only allows a few people inside and she gets nervous when people get too close. That woman needs more friends and you know what? She needs love. She’s been burned by Kam and that guy, Dane, she was engaged to who died. She’s used to getting burned. She needs to experience what it feels like to be in a relationship and not be burned. Simple as that,” she said and closed the door.

              Pule began to say something but stopped when he saw how Ivy’s eyes were large with horror. “Crap,” he muttered and turned around to see Asher standing in the doorway with a hard look in his eyes that didn’t bode well for any of them.

              “There you are,” Pule said easily and smiled as he went to stand next to Ivy.

              Becket sighed in exasperation and took the bag Asher had in his hands and glanced at the receipts. He took a few bills out of his pocket and handed them to Asher before clapping him on the shoulder.

              “Thanks, Man. You saved me a trip to the store. Luckily, Pule showed up and fixed the problem while you were gone. No more leaks.”

              Asher nodded his head as he continued to stare at Ivy. “Who exactly were you talking about just now?” he asked in a soft voice that had Pule blinking worriedly.

              Ivy cleared her throat and looked at the ceiling. “Me? Oh I was just talking about Rayne and Layla. I’m so glad you’re back, Ash. Pule showed up and was talking about taking you out for a boys night on the town. Sounds like fun to me,” she said heartily and turned to walk out of the room.