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Chapter thirty-six

Chapter Thirty-Six

"Did you finally decide to come up for air?" Pete demanded before laughing heartily at his own words. Michael flushed and looked around the carpentry shop which Michael hadn't been inside for nearly a full week. For the last week he and Allie had been locked up inside their bedroom nearly all day every day.

Michael had already known Allie's heart and soul just as she had known his but together in that room, he had learned everything else about her. Just thinking about the soft touches and gentle love making caused a smile to curve Michael's lips.

"Haha!" Pete slapped his back, "I know that smile. That's the smile of a man who has thoroughly enjoyed himself. But now the fun times are over and you have to be gettin' back to work! I got spoiled havin' you around and I've fallen behind the last week without you here. Not to mention all the folks wantin' to come in to talk to their favorite store keep and being disappointed because he's off havin' himself a good ol' time."

"I'm sorry," Michael frowned. "I didn't mean to put you in a tight spot...."

Pete's laughter boomed in the tiny shop, "Don't you worry about it none. Now between my eleven fingers and your lumpy knuckles let's see what kinds of things we can create today."

Michael smiled, happy to be spending time with his friend once again. Though he was eager for lunchtime when Allie would be bringing him something from the café and it wasn't the thought of food that had him so excited.

"Get your mind off that woman for a minute!" Pete scolded with a wink. "You'll end up cuttin' off a finger or two and only being able to count to eight or nine the rest of your life!"

It was nearly lunch and Michael had tended to several customers who had indeed seemed to have missed him, or at least seemed happy to have him back. He was beginning to grow more and more anxious for Allie's arrival when Pete came out of the back and walked up to the counter.

"I want to talk to you about somethin'."

Michael frowned and picked at the scarred up wood of the countertop, "What?"

"Well stop looking at me like I'm about to tell ya you have six days to live or somethin'! It's good news I'd like to talk to ya about."

Michael relaxed a bit and blew out a breath, "Okay."

Pete rolled his eyes, "Okay. Now look, I know y'all are all cozy over at that hotel and all but surely you don't want to live there forever. Now I have my place up above the shop here where I lay my head at night but I got another house at the edge of town to the east. It's a small little place and it's a bit rundown so it'll need some work but I'd like for you and Allie to have it."

Michael didn't know what to say. He stared at Pete with shock and shook his head, "It's yours though..."

Pete snorted, "And what do I need with a three bedroom house with a garden plot and window boxes? That's a family house and I don't reckon I'm too keen on ever havin' one of those of my own so I want you to have it. Like I said, it'll need work, but seein' as how we're such skilled carpenters we should be able to take care of that fairly easy. And it's less than a five minute walk into town so it won't be out of the way for you to keep workin' here and Amelia to keep going to school."

Michael was speechless. He looked out the window and saw Allie coming down the road with a basket hanging from her arm, "I'll talk to Allie..."

"Again you've proven you have this marriage situation under control," Pete teased warmly. "I'll just slip into the back and let you do your talkin' then."