How to Love Your Neighbour(39)

She was feeling so good about her yard, about her decision to keep things platonic and neutral with Noah, about Morty doing something so sweet. Basically, she was walking on plenty of sunshine when she went into the house, grabbed some drinks, and brought them out to the guys.

Across the fence, she saw two guys working on the palms. They had a truck parked outside the back gate. Another guy was strolling up the side of Noah’s yard, paying particular attention to the fence.

“About time. I’m dying of thirst out here,” Morty said, grabbing a can of soda from her hand.

She gave him a wry smile. “You keep saying your feet work just fine. You know where the fridge is.” She passed the other soda to Shane.

He smiled, used his forearm to wipe his forehead. It was going to be a hot one today.

“Thanks. Appreciate it.” He popped the top, drank half the can down.

Grace looked at Morty. “See? That’s how manners work.”

The old guy just snorted out a laugh and leaned back in the lawn chair.

Her gaze wandered to the guy strolling her fence line. Curiosity wrinkled her brow, making her miss what Shane said.

Doing her best to refocus, she asked, “Pardon?”

Shane looked over at the guy who’d pulled her attention, then back at Grace. “I was just saying, this is a great place you’ve got here. I won’t be doing the wall today. I’ll bring a couple guys back with me for that but the bones look good.”

She grinned, oddly pleased that he said so. “I’m really happy with it.” She couldn’t believe she’d thought of selling for even a minute. Unlike Noah, money didn’t make her world go round. Guilt nagged at her as soon as she finished the thought. There was more to him than that. She’d seen it. She’d felt it.

Her cheeks heated and she broke eye contact with Shane.

Grace pointed. “What do you think that guy is doing?” Maybe he was checking the fence for any damage where Noah had the hedges removed.

Shane looked again. “Looks like he’s surveying the property lines.”

Something way too close to panic gripped her gut. Why would he do that? Morty sat up, looked over at the guy, who was consulting his clipboard.

“Hey there. What’s that you’re doing?” Morty yelled.

The guys all looked over. Grace wanted to hide. “Morty.”

He shrugged. “What? You wanted to know.”

The guy adjusted his baseball cap. “Just surveying the land,” he called back.

The tree cutters went back to work, and ball-cap guy went back to his clipboard.

“Can he do that?” Grace asked.

Shane looked down at her. “It’s his land. He can do what he wants.”

“What if part of my land is his?”

“Then you’d have to move the fence line. I’m sure that won’t happen.”

She shook off the nervous tingles in her stomach. Funny how one man could produce such a wide array of feelings within a twenty-four-hour span.

Smiling overly bright, she focused on the deck. Shane had repaired the rotted boards, fixed the railing. “This looks awesome. I’m so excited. I’m going to get a couple of Adirondack chairs for out here.”

“Those chairs swallow you whole,” Morty complained.

Grace’s nerves wouldn’t settle down. When Noah came out of his house, locked his gaze on her, it didn’t help. It was possible she was an almost-thirty-year-old with a teenager’s reactive reflexes. Damn. So much for her resolve. It was just a kiss, she’d told herself repeatedly.

When Morty and Shane started talking about chairs, Grace casually leaned against the edge of the porch so she could watch Noah walk toward his front yard.

A car pulled into his driveway. She recognized Josh when he got out of the car but not the woman he helped out. Interesting. Rosie and Josh had been inseparable for days.

Josh gestured to Noah, who shook hands with the woman, glanced Grace’s way once more, then led them toward the house.

“You okay?” Shane asked. He finished off his soda.

“Fine. Um, I’m going to go finish the planting.”

Shane leaned over the rail. “Looks awesome. You picked some beauties.”

With a tight smile, she nodded and headed off the porch, trying to hear what Noah and his guests were discussing.

Fine. She couldn’t help herself. She approached the guy at the fence line. “Hey.”

He looked up, smiled at her. “How’s it going?”

“Fine. I’m just wondering, is it standard for you to be surveying a yard after people have moved in?”

From the corner of her eye, she saw Noah watching.

“Not without a request, no.”

She knew it. That son of a bitch. “Hmm. Is that so. How are the property lines looking?” She spoke through clenched teeth.

The guy looked at Noah, back at Grace. “I should probably write up my report for the customer before I say anything.”

God damn it. If she had to pay to have the fence moved over, she was going to throw the slats at him.

“For argument’s sake, what if your findings show part of my property is Mr. Jansen’s?” She wasn’t sure why she’d gone all professional, but it seemed like a necessary buffer.

The man shifted from one foot to the other. “It would depend on the residents but in most cases, adjustments would need to be made.”