Franklyn & Rhodes – Part 8

By D

Chapter XV

"C'mon, Es. All I'm asking you to do is take a look around the place. You're gonna love it – I promise."

Esther looked around at the neighborhood in the waning afternoon sunlight. She knew what Cameron was talking about; there really were a lot of possibilities here and this was probably the best property on the market. But it still gave her the creeps to be down in this depressed, deserted part of town. She bit her lip apprehensively. "I dunno, Cam."

"Trust me, Es. If you really don't like it, we won't buy it. But I think you're gonna be pleasantly surprised. The area is due for a revival and we're gonna get in on the ground floor of things."

She sighed. She knew he was enthusiastic about this, but she really didn't see any signs of rejuvenation down in this area. Ever since the riots here in the sixties, the area - and this building in particular - had been left to ruin. It had become known for drugs and crime. In truth, the police and the community had made some serious effort to clean up the area, but that simply left it feeling empty and neglected. But he looked so hopeful, so Es took a deep breath and sighed again.

"All right, Cam. I'll look... but no promises."

Cam’s smile was huge. “Thanks, Es. You won’t be sorry.

Esther took his rough face in her hands and brushed the corner of his mouth with her lips. "I already am, Cameron. 'Sup to you to change my mind." Cam chuckled wryly and pulled the realtor's key from his pocket.

************

The first time he had come in, Cam had stumbled into what little sanctuary I could offer him. He had been doing survey work in this part of town when the bottom literally dropped out of the sky. I was the closest cover and since I was part of the survey work, he had a key to get in. It didn't take much effort to slip inside.

I wasn't sure how I felt about that, honestly. It had been a long time since I had served a legitimate purpose... almost forty years... and I was tired and lonely. I was torn between wanting to be left alone to rot in peace and anxious for him to find a reason to breathe new life into this old frame.

I watched him walk around slowly, taking in the still strong marble floor and leaded glass windows. He cursed, wishing for a flashlight to investigate my bowels and if I could have chuckled at the frustration in his voice, I most certainly would have.

I shouldn't have been too surprised when he returned a couple days later, dressed for scouting and carrying the largest flashlight I had ever seen. He spent more than three hours going through the place top to bottom, examining every little nook and cranny. I wasn't sure if the noises he was making were of approval or dismay, but it didn't take long for me to understand when he brought his sister out to investigate with him. I figured she had to like it before anything new could happen to me. And I realized for the first time in a very long time, I wanted something new to happen. The trick was how to make sure she wanted that as well.

************

The room was damp and musty smelling and Esther's nose crinkled up in distaste. She stood still, grasping his arm and waiting for Cameron to turn on the big flashlight he'd brought. When he did, she gasped in surprise.

The floor was covered in filth and debris, but she could see the marble peeking out in spots around the room. Most of the structure was still sound and in place. Only here and there did pieces seem to be missing, but Esther could see the possibilities in the room. Cam remained silent, letting Esther make her own observations. His grin couldn't be seen when she released his arm and took the flashlight from his hand, but it was big and broad.

Esther walked slowly around the entire length and breadth of the bottom floor, not touching anything, but looking at everything. When she got to the bottom of the stairs, she turned back toward Cam. "Can we go upstairs; are they safe?"

For answer, he took her arm, and together they headed up to the second floor.

The damage was more minimalized up here, though there was a large scattering of moldy furniture and bedding throughout the rooms. The outdated bathroom stank to high heaven, mold and old sewage the most prevalent scents. But now Esther looked beyond the smell and the destruction and saw the potential instead. She wasn't ready to concede his victory yet, but Cam could see the tide turning in his direction.

"Is there more?"

Cam nodded. "One more floor. It was mostly been used for storage from what I can tell."

"Lots of stuff still up there?"

"Well, lots of boxes at any rate. I didn't go through them. You wanna go take a look?"

Esther thought about it for a long moment, then nodded. "Yeah... may as well see the whole place." Cam smiled and gestured towards the staircase. Esther took his arm and they mounted the steps as one, the flashlight guiding their way up still strong stairs.

Esther sneezed violently several times when they reached the top and Cam followed suit. When they were able to stand upright without sneezing any longer, they stepped into the hallway, crammed with various sundry boxes. Together they investigated the rooms, some of them empty and the rest haphazardly filled with bits and pieces of the past.

Cam accompanied Esther as she wandered from room to room and the back down the stairs without another word. She stepped back out into the waning sunlight and Cam turned and locked the door behind them before taking Esther's elbow and escorting her back to his car.

The ride back to town was made in silence, Cam anxious to ask for Esther's impressions but wisely holding back and letting her process. He pulled up under the portico of her apartment building and put the car in park. Then he scrambled around to open her door.

"Meet you for dinner tonight?"

"Yes," Esther agreed. "Pick me up at seven-thirty and we'll talk then."

Cam waited until she was inside and on the elevator before he pumped his fist in victory. Then he ran around to the driver's side of the car and headed back to the building at Franklyn & Rhodes.

“You made the right decision, Es. This is gonna be so awesome!” Esther smiled sadly at Cam. She still wasn’t completely convinced this was a good idea, but she couldn’t come up with a real plausible reason not to try it, especially in the face of his obvious enthusiasm. It wasn’t like she had anything left to lose at this point, and as her grandmother had pointed out, the project would be good for Cam. It might even be good for you, dear... if you let it.

So they had gone to the realtor – paid their money and signed the papers – and now found themselves the proud co-owners of the three storied building on the corner of Franklyn and Rhodes.

It didn’t look any better in the light of early morning; the difference was that now the building was theirs, and for Esther, that made all the difference.

Cam’s construction company had already set up shop around the perimeter, taking up space in the road while they waited for Cam to show up to give them their orders. In very little time, he was out directing vehicles and supplies and had the crews setting up; then a hand on his arm drew him up short.

“Es?”

“Cam, are we in a rush?”

He shook his head and pushed his hardhat back off his forehead. “Not really. The faster we get done, the sooner we can move in, but the timetable is ours to set. Why?”

“I know there is a lot of work to do, but I’d like to go through those boxes and things... before they start carting stuff out and just tossing it. I know it is probably just a lot of junk, but....”

“No, no! I think that’s wonderful, Es. You can take whatever time you want. You want to do it alone or would you like some company?” There would have been a time when he wouldn’t have needed to ask, but that had been before. Everything had changed when Esther’s family had been killed unexpectedly. This had been the first interest she had shown in anything in almost a year and he was thrilled to see some enthusiasm again. With a little luck, maybe she wouldn’t beat him up too badly when she found out what he planned to convert the building into.

“I... um... if you wanna. I don’t think it would take long – maybe a day or two... at least on the bottom two floors.”

“Tell ya what,” Cam said, tucking his hands into his jeans pockets. “I’ll have the guys get the dumpster into place and pull the casings off the windows and doors. Then you and I will start going through things on the bottom floor while I send them off to work on the mill.”

“The mill?”

Cam chuckled and nodded. “Yeah, I bought that one too. I’m gonna turn it into Amelia’s restaurant.”

Esther though about it a moment and nodded her agreement. “That’s a great idea. So what are you planning to do with this one?”

“I would like to plead the fifth.”

Esther stepped into Cameron’s personal space, and it was all he could do to stand his ground. It had been a long time since he had been the focus of her rather formidable will; it was a little disconcerting. “Cameron,” she said with disturbing calm, “what are you planning to do?”

He blew out a frustrated breath. He had hoped to be much further along in the remodeling and rejuvenation of this building before he had to share all the details. His head dropped. “I’m gonna put in a bookstore with a little coffee bar on the ground floor. The third floor is for a penthouse.”

“Uh huh... and the second?”

“The second?”

“Cameron!”

“I’m going to convert it into an art gallery... for you.”

“An art gallery?” Esther’s voice was soft and controlled and Cameron just nodded. “For me?” a little shakier and quieter than before and his nod this time was hesitant. “Even though you know I haven’t picked up a pencil or a brush or a chisel in over a year?” Her voice was a bare whisper and he didn’t move. “Cameron, how could you?” She turned away from him.

Cameron stepped up behind her, close enough that she knew he was there but not touching. “I could because I care about you, Esther. I know in a lot of ways your world ended when Mark and Rebecca died....” He held onto her arm firmly when she would have walked off to escape his words. “No,” he said with determination. “You may not like it, but you need to hear this. You didn’t die, Esther. You can’t keep living like you did.”

He saw it coming, but he did nothing to stop it, knowing she needed the release of emotion and realizing he had presented himself to her as the perfect target. The sound echoed loud enough that all motion stopped and the crew waited for Cameron to react. Instead, he stood still and watched as Esther walked back to her car, climbed in and left without a backwards glance at him.

Cameron watched her leave. Then he sighed and turned back to the crew. “All right... what’re you all standing around looking at?? Get the dumpster set up and the door and windows unboarded. I want the trailer moved into the back and the lines run. Trey, you and your crew take care of the set-up here. The rest of you move down to the mill location and get started there. Let’s move – we’ve got work to do.”

His words were enough to spur everyone into action. Cameron watched for another moment, satisfied that his directives were being followed. Then he walked back to his truck and picked up his phone, dialing the number from memory. “Keep an eye out for Esther. Things didn’t quite go as planned.” He paused. “You don’t have to... all right – I’ll be here.”

Cameron turned to find his foreman Sam at the front bumper waiting to talk. “What’s up?”

“Everything all right, boss?”

“Yeah, Sam... thanks. I’m gonna need you to go down to the mill site though and supervise things down there for now. I’ll let you know when to move everyone back up here.”

“Will do, boss. We’ve got the plans for that place already, but I’ll call you if there’s any problems.”

“Thanks, Sam.”

Most of the men and equipment were loaded up and headed the short distance down the road to the mill that had been standing guard at the whitewater bend of the river for more than two hundred years. There was enough work for them to do there until Esther was ready for them to start here. He just hoped she would still be willing when she calmed down.

Trey had already sorted his crew out – two moving in the trailer and dumpster into place while another couple started running the lines for the phones and the power. The rest – Trey and two other men – began the grueling process of removing the steel bolts and covers that protected the doors and windows of the building. Cameron walked over to join them and soon they found a rhythm. But it was still slow, heavy work and they hadn’t made much progress when a car pulled into the construction area and an older woman opened the door and got out. Cam put his tools down and went over to greet her.

“Hi, Grams,” taking her hand. “I’m sorry you had to come all the way out here.”

She put her free hand on his cheek. “What happened?”

“I pushed,” he replied simply. “I pushed and she didn’t want to hear what I had to say. And when she found out what I am planning to do with this building....” He let the thought trail off.

“Sweetie, I know you think she should be over what happened because you’ve been able to work through what happened, but she lost a lot more than you did. I know Mark meant a lot to you; he was your brother... your best friend and business partner, but he was Esther’s husband and Rebecca was their child. Those two were her whole world. And she feels guilty that she didn’t die with them.”

“That doesn’t mean she gets to... I dunno... live like she was already dead. She has so much left to give... so much left to share with the world. She doesn’t get to give up; she got a second chance.” He huffed and dropped her hand, stepping back a pace and turning away from her. “I hate seeing her like this, Grams. Mark wouldn’t like it either.”

“No, he wouldn’t, but it doesn’t mean you should go charging in like a bull in a china shop either. You can’t force her, Cameron. You can’t make her love art again or demand she go back to creating. It may not be in her to do that anymore; that part of her really may have died.”

He shook his head. “I didn’t, Grams. All I did was tell her the second floor was gonna be her gallery. We never actually got around to logistics.” He shook his head. “Dammit!! It took me months to convince her just to come down and look at this place! Given her reaction to the idea, she may not come back to help with the remodeling.”

“You don’t really need her help....”

“No, of course not, but this was something.... She could have gotten involved with this. It would have given her... I dunno – a sense of renewed purpose or something, maybe.”

Grams padded silently up behind him and turned him around to face her. “Cameron, why is this so important to you?”

Cam blew out a breath. “Because I promised Mark.”

“You promised Mark?? But when? Why?

Hearing the confusion plainly in her voice, he decided to elaborate. “On their wedding day, he asked me to take care of her if anything happened to him.” A beat. “After he died, I wondered if he knew something was going to happen.”

Grams blinked. “Wow - that’s... amazing.”

“And a little freaky.”

She chuckled. “Yes,” she agreed. “Just a little bit.” Then she sobered and bit her lip in thought. “All right... while I applaud your motives, I’m not sure about your method. However,” she continued before he could defend himself, “there is nothing to be done about it now except to go forward. Go ahead and start cleaning things out or whatever your original plan was. Eventually Esther will come to me and I’ll talk to her.”

“Thanks, Grams.”

She patted Cam on the back. “I know your heart was in the right place, Cameron. I just wonder about your head sometimes.” She shook her head and said it so seriously, he had to chuckle. He looked at her with a twinkle in his eye.

“Like that hasn’t always been the case.”

Grams rolled her eyes. “That is very true. Come on... show an old woman around this new investment.”

Cameron grinned at her and extended his elbow. “Grams, you’re the only one who could get away with calling you an old woman. No one I know would have the balls to try.”

She laughed and patted his arm; then headed towards the building with Cameron in tow.

************

The first thing the crew had removed was the steel over the doors, making them much easier for Cameron to open for Grams. He left them open to allow some daylight to spill into the room from them. As they removed the remaining covers it would be much easier to see, but for now it was good just to allow some fresh air and a bit of light into the building with them.

Cam switched on his powerful flashlight and showed her around slowly, explaining in great detail what he planned to do with each part of the building. He had told her briefly before, but it was much easier to show and explain. Grams smiled at him when they exited the building, a few windows now missing their covers and providing even more light and air.

“So what do you think now that you’ve actually seen inside, Grams?”

They crossed to her car and he opened the door for her. Grams stepped behind it but didn’t sit; instead, she turned to look at him. “Well, I think your very first priority should be that bathroom. My God, that was atrocious... just disgusting, really. Otherwise, I think you made a good decision. This area has a great potential for revitalization. This could turn out very well... not just as a business investment, but for the neighborhood.”

“I just hope it turns out to be a good thing for Esther.”

************

Of course, I heard this next bit much later. I never knew for sure what the emotion was between them when they relived it. I do know that it made all the difference in what happened to me then.

************

Three days passed with no sign of or word from Esther. Even Grams had moved passed concerned to genuinely worried. Finally, early the morning of the fourth day, Cameron picked Grams up from her house and together they went to Esther’s apartment. They didn’t bother to knock, knowing Esther would simply ignore them if she didn’t feel like company; she’d done it on several occasions since Mark’s death. Instead, Grams used her key and slowly they walked in together.

Esther was standing in the kitchen drinking a cup of coffee, and she simply looked at them with disdain before brushing past them and heading into the living room. They followed her a little more slowly, trying to figure out how to proceed.

“Well,” she asked as she took a seat. “Since I don’t even rate a knock these days, would one of you like to tell me to what I owe the pleasure of your company?”

“You’re kidding, right?” Cameron started, the anger clear in his tone. Grams put a hand on his arm and he hesitated, then stepped back. The glint in Grams’ eyes told him she was going to handle Esther and he would be best served by staying out of her firing line. He bowed his head and actually took a physical step back.

“Esther Marie, you put that coffee down and march your butt into that bedroom and put some clothes on. There is work to do at the site and it’s time you live up to your responsibilities.”

“What?!? How dare you....”

“How dare *I*?!? How dare you?? I told Cameron he probably shouldn’t have pushed you, but I think a push is just what you need. Don’t!” holding up a hand when Esther would have interrupted her; Grams was on a roll. “I know what happened to you was appalling, honey, but you cannot let that be all you are. And you damn sure don’t get to take advantage of it anymore like you like you have been. Three days, Esther... three days without a word from you. You didn’t answer your phone or the door and we were worried sick. That stops now, do you understand me?”

“But....”

“Do you understand me??”

“Yes ma’am,” said contritely.

“All right, then. Now go get dressed and be quick or I’ll come help you, and trust me when I tell you that you won’t like that. You remember what you wound up wearing the last time I dressed you.” The look of horror that crossed Esther’s face showed that she remembered all too well exactly what outfit Grams was talking about and she almost ran out if the living room in her haste to avoid a repeat.

Cameron turned to Grams who just looked at him with an evil twinkle and shrugged at him with her palms turned up. He just shook his head and sat down, knowing even with the threat of Grams’ help, it was going to take Esther a few minutes to get dressed. And he had no desire to invade her privacy any more than they already had. If things worked out the way he hoped, she would be willing to share again sooner rather than later.

In short order, Esther was walking out of her room dressed in a comfortable pair of jeans and sneakers. Without a word, she shut everything down and went to the door, waiting for them to follow here. Then she ushered them out and together they went down the elevator and out to Cameron’s truck. From there it was a short ride out to the building at Franklyn & Rhodes.

The ride over was silent and Cam pulled around into the back where the work trailer had been set up. Beside it was a second trailer and as they watched, the men brought out more of the old boxes that had been in the building and stacked them neatly inside. Esther looked at him and then back to them. He shrugged.

“We started pulling the plumbing out of the second floor, and the smell was....” He made a face. “Incredible.” He put the truck in park, but no one moved to get out.

“Worse than before?” Esther asked, wrinkling her nose in response.

“Yeah. It wasn’t pretty. So we decided to move the boxes out before the smell could permeate everything in the building. Oh... and we opened all the windows to help get rid of the smell. I’m gonna send most of the guys down to the other site until we can figure out the best way to get rid of the old plumbing without ripping the place apart or spilling raw sewage everywhere.”

“So what do you want me to do?”

“I thought you wanted to go through those boxes. Esther, you don’t have to have anything else to do with this project if you don’t want to. The plans are in place and there’s really no need for you to be involved. I’m still gonna put an art gallery in on the second floor. If you don’t want it, I imagine I can find another artist who will rent the space out. Or I will make it into reading rooms for the bookstore.” He shrugged. “Whatever. So don’t worry about it, all right?”

Strangely, despite her unwillingness to be involved in life anymore, she felt a little stung about his lackadaisical attitude towards her participation in this project. “Then if you really don’t need me, why exactly am I here?”

“You’re here,” Grams cut in, “because you are a part owner of this building and you need to take some responsibility for that decision.”

“I need to take responsibility for being a part owner, but I don’t get to have any input about what it gets direction the rejuvenation takes??”

“Esther, you’ve made it pretty plain you didn’t want to be involved at all, but since you did want to go through those boxes and Cameron did make a special effort to ensure you’d be able to, the least you can do is be here and take whatever time and effort is necessary to go through this stuff.”

Esther didn’t answer verbally; she simply got out of the truck and closed the door firmly behind her, striding purposefully towards the second trailer without a backwards glance. Cameron and Grams exchanged looks and he shook his head.

“I dunno, Grams. I think she needed a push, but I don’t want her to hate us.”

Grams patted his leg. “She won’t... at least not forever. When she thinks about it, she will get over her mad. She may not be any more involved in life than she is now, but at least we’ll have tried everything to keep your promise to Mark. Now, go on and get back to work. I’ve got a bridge game and a lunch date with the girls, but if you need me for anything, you know how to reach me.”

Cameron leaned over and kissed her cheek, then opened the door and hopped out. He turned and helped her down and escorted her to her car. “Thanks, Grams; I will.”

He watched her leave the yard, then stood debating about his next course of action. After a moment’s hesitation, he shook his head again and went into the building that still needed so much work. If he was lucky, Esther would come to him when she cooled off. Otherwise, he would go to her at lunch and see if they could talk.

Even with the smell, work was progressing satisfactorily when Sam knocked on the doorjamb of the room Cam was working in. He looked up, surprise clear in his expression.

“Hey, Sam... what’s up?”

“Hey, boss. I just wanted to let you know that we found some more stuff stored up in the attic of the old mill. I know you were keeping the stuff here for Miss Esther to go through, so I brought this down for her as well. It’s not much – some papers and books, mostly. I opened them up to make sure there weren’t any critters or varmints, but otherwise, I didn’t really pay much attention. You want I should put it out in the trailer with the other stuff?”

“Actually... you say there’s not much?”

“Nah. Couple tin boxes – not really that big, but heavy considering their size.”

“I’ll take them. Esther’s here going through the boxes we moved outta here. It might be best if I be the one to disturb her, all things considered.”

Sam nodded and fingered the cap he held in his hands. Then he led the way back to his truck, removing the boxes and handing them to Cameron with little difficulty. Cam took them; the only indication of his surprise at their weight was the widening of his eyes. Sam moved to get into his truck before he turned back to Cam.

“Boss?” A raised eyebrow answered him. “Is Miss Esther gonna be all right? All the guys are kinda worried about her... ‘specially after the other day.”

Cameron looked towards the trailer where Esther had been for the better part of the morning. “I hope so, Sam. I really do hope so.”

Sam looked like he wanted to say more, but instead nodded his acceptance of Cameron’s words and crawled into his truck, leaving without another word. Then Cameron turned and headed towards the second trailer, hoping Esther would let him in.

Before he could raise his hand to talk, Esther opened the door. She appeared startled to see Cam standing right outside the door, but she recovered nicely. “Do you think we could talk?”

Cameron nodded. “Yeah, you wanna...?” motioning inside the trailer.

Esther shook her head. “No. I’d like to go in there,” gesturing towards the building.

“Oh, sure, sure,” he replied with sudden enthusiasm. “Um, can I put these down first though? They’re kinda heavy.”

“Of course,” stepping back to hold the door open and allowing him to pass into the trailer. She watched him look around with interest as he set the tin boxes on the floor. Then he held the door so they could walk out together.

“What’s in the boxes?”

He shrugged. “Dunno. Sam brought them up from the mill; thought you might want to investigate them too. Anything interesting so far?” asked as they crossed the threshold into the building.

“A few things. Some of that stuff has been up there for a while. Some of it made me start thinking.” They walked over to the wood counter that had been in place for almost a hundred years. Esther hopped up to sit on it while Cameron was content to lean against it. He was content to wait until she was ready to talk. He didn’t think it would take very long; he was right. But what she said took him by surprise.

Chapter XVI

"Cameron, do you trust me?"

"What? Of course, Esther. You know I do. Why would you ask me a question like that?"

"Well it's not like I have been the epitome of stability recently, Cam. I'm not sure I would be as quick to trust me as you seem to be."

Cameron chuckled at her wry tone and Esther had to give him a depreciating smile. "Es, given your unwavering faith in me when I was being a stupid college kid, I don't think it is too much to ask for me to return the favor when you're going through a rough patch."

"A rough patch...." Esther blew out a breath. There really wasn't a better way to describe it, she supposed, but it really didn't begin to cover it either. However.... "Yeah, I guess you could call it that."

"Besides," he added with a grin, "if it wasn't for you, Amelia never would have given me a chance – she told me as much. And she is the best thing that ever happened to me... aside from you becoming part of the family, I mean. So don't think I don't know how much I owe you."

Esther shrugged and gave him a shy grin. "Amelia really did like you on her own, Cam. I just gave her a push in the right direction."

"I know what you did, Es. And even if you weren't already part of the family, I'd still have faith in you. Now," he rushed on, "before we get too sentimental, what can I do for you?"

Now that the moment was here, Esther was hesitant. But she blew out a nervous breath and took the plunge. "Will you let me handle this building? Will you let me do the interior design?"

Cameron blinked. He wasn't sure what he had expected her to say, but this wasn't anywhere close. He was silent for so long, Esther sighed and slid down from the counter, headed back toward the solid front doors which stood propped open to help with the light and airflow. Cam scrambled to catch her before Esther could make it out the door. He grabbed her by the elbow.

"Esther, hold on a minute."

"It's all right, Cameron," she said with defeat. "I really didn't expect you to say yes. No one has that much faith in anyone... besides themselves."

"Esther, wait - please," unwilling to hurt her by holding her any tighter, but not wanting her to leave before he had a chance to speak. "Es, I do have faith in you – you just took me by surprise with your request. You were so adamant about staying out of this project I had already decided to let it go – to stop pushing you to participate."

"Why did you?"

Cam raised an eyebrow at her and chuckled. "Why did I what? Why did I push or why did I stop?"

"Yes," making a face at him, though her eyes remained sad and serious.

"I pushed...." He sighed and looked at the floor. "I pushed because I promised Mark... I promised Mark that if anything happened to him, that I would do my best to look after you."

"What? When?" her voice a bare whisper, harsh and aching. "Why?"

Cam shrugged. "I don’t know why; I certainly didn't understand it then. But on your wedding day, before we went out to stand and wait for you to march down the aisle, Mark took me aside and made me promise that if anything ever happened to him, I'd be there for you. I laughed about it because he knew that I would; you've been part of the family since you moved into Grams' neighborhood when we were kids. But I promised anyway, because he was so solemn and serious about it." He paused. "I always wondered, after the accident, if he knew something."

Silence reigned while Esther thought about what Cam had said. Finally she nodded and looked at him again. "So why did you stop?"

"Because Grams was right... no matter how much I wanted to change it, a part of you died when Mark and Rebecca did. There was nothing I could do to make you want to live again. All I could do for you was do my best to watch over you; anything else had to come from you."

"That is very profound," Esther said with a little smile.

"It is also very true," Cameron replied seriously. "Esther, I would love for you to take over the renovation of this building. Although I honestly didn't buy with the intention of making it your project, I would be thrilled to let you have it to do... whatever."

"You wouldn't mind if I didn't turn the second floor into a gallery?"

He shrugged and shoved his hands in his pockets, glancing down at the floor. "I can't say I wouldn't be a little disappointed...." He shrugged again and met her eyes. "But no, if you would like to take over the work on this building, I'll be glad to step aside as the project manager. Just remember that any changes you make have to be approved by the downtown rejuvenation committee."

"What if I just want to handle the interior design... leave the structural part to you and the crew?"

Cameron nodded. "I'll tell you what – how about after work tonight, you and I take the plans and I'll show you how I was planning on redoing the space. That will give us a chance to finish pulling the pipes upstairs. You can tell me if there are any changes you want to make, then we can go from there."

Esther nodded. "All right. That will give me a chance to look through a few more of those boxes. I think there are some interesting things we could work with as part of the design of this place. And Amelia too depending on what she wants to do for a theme in her restaurant."

"Well, I'll bet if you offered, she'd be glad to hear some ideas. She's been so busy working on the cuisine end, I'm not sure she's given much though to the decorating part yet."

Esther shook her head. "No, Cam. I'm not going to butt into her project. This has been her dream since we were in college together. If she wants help, I will. But only if she asks for it, Cam. And you don't get to mention it to her... promise me."

"Scout's honor, Es. I have to live with her you know, and I know how independent she is."

Esther chuckled – a sad, wry sound, but her first laughter in months. "Spent a few nights on the couch learning that lesson, huh?"

Cameron nodded furiously. "And it isn't an experience I'd like to repeat again in my lifetime."