Terms of Service by Emma Nichols Page A

lower lip as she answered the door.  Gavin was beginning to see a pattern here.  This was her “I-may-be-in-trouble look.”  Smirking he folded his arms over his chest. “Care to introduce me to your friend?”
    “The name’s Joe, sir.  Yer lady friend hired me.  Said there was some work to be done and if the quote was fair and the work good, she’d give me plenty of it.”  He shook Gavin’s hand firmly.
    Looking at Hannah with both brows arched, he said, “Hannah?”
    “Well, Joe,” Hannah said with a nervous giggle, “you are certainly eager.”  She turned to Gavin briefly and offered a weak smile before giving her full attention once more to the handy man.  “What if I show you to the first room, briefly explain my vision, give you an opportunity to make an estimate, and I’ll let Mr. Meyers know what’s going on.”
    Gavin stood there with a smile on his face, completely dumbfounded.  She seemed to have everything under control, which he had mixed feelings about.  Once rooted to the spot, he now decided to blend into the scenery and hide in his sanctuary.
    Hannah caught him.  “I’ll be in to talk to you in the study in a few minutes, okay?”  Then she looped her arm through Joe’s and led him up the stairs, all the while explaining her ideas for the bedroom and the particular problems she saw with the room.
    She was prattling on all the way up the stairs, and she had her arm through his.  For some reason, Gavin found it particularly disturbing.  He soon caught himself pacing again and sighed before dropping into his chair and trying to concentrate on some of the files he brought home for the weekend.  It was no use.  Instead, he would just massage his temples until Hannah came to speak with him.  This had better be good.
     
    ***
     
    As she walked back up the stairs, Hannah had seen Gavin’s scowl.  He was moody.  It really surprised her because when they first met he had given her the impression of being so even- keeled, so reserved.  Ever since she had been here she had experienced more than a few instances where the many facets of his personality were displayed, and not always to his advantage.  Clearly, Gavin had issues.  Luckily, she had patience.  She could help him work through it.
    “Well,” she began as she watched Joe make notes and pull out a calculator.  “Is it that bad?  And you should know I intend to do some of the work myself and work along side you as much as possible on the rest.  You have some very useful skills I would love to develop.”  She sighed.  “I mean, Mr. Meyers won’t always be there to foot the bill for me, you know?”
    Joe nodded sympathetically.  “I’ll let you work with me, Miss Hannah.  I’ll teach you what I know.”  He turned his attention back to his notes and scribbled some more.  Then he plucked away at his calculator with a furrowed brow until he was somehow satisfied.  “How’s this look?”
    Hannah swallowed, afraid of what she might have to ask Gavin for.  Slowly, she reached for the estimate.  Her eyes tracked down the page until she found the total.  She tried not to blink.
    Having noticed, Joe cleared his throat.  “That’s my estimate for the whole house,” he said quietly.  He tucked his head a little, shyly.  “Just so’s you know.”
    Suddenly, it didn’t look so bad.  Hannah tugged at her chin, careful not to give too much away.  “I think we can work with that.”  She did a mental tally of how much she would be spending on linens and nodded confidently.  “So, when can you start?”
    “Well, ma’am,” he said smiling.  “I see you have everything we need to patch these walls.  And I happen to have the rest of the afternoon free.  We’ll have this room in shape in no time.”
    A smile spread across Hannah’s face.  She was going to like working with Joe.  He was a simple southern guy, very genuine.  “Just let me go talk to Ga…Mr. Meyers and I’ll be back and ready