Her Surprise Family

“Sure. Go right ahead.”

Rick tipped his baseball cap. “Nice meeting you, Shelby. And welcome to Haven Springs. I hope you’re going to like it here.”

“I’m sure I will.”

“Our mother asked us to extend you an invitation to stop by the restaurant—Maria’s Ristorante. She and my nonna would like to meet you. My wife, Jill, also works there.”

Shelby’s head was spinning. She couldn’t believe these too men were brothers. One was open and friendly, the other brooding. She glanced at Rafe, who was busy writing something on his clipboard. “That would be nice, Rick. I’ve been pretty busy with moving in and trying to catch up on my work. I run a computer-graphics business from the house.”

Rick smiled again. “Interesting work. Just don’t let Rafe anywhere close to your machine. He and computers don’t get along.”

Rafe glared at his brother. “Don’t you thinks it’s about time you started working, bro?”

“All right,” Rick said cheerfully, heading for the house. “I’ll be on the third floor if you need anything.”

Rafe introduced the older man as Charlie. Then another truck pulled into the driveway. It bore the logo of Norton Construction.

Shelby ignored Rafe’s look as she walked toward the man getting out of the truck. “Hello, I’m Shelby Harris,” she said, and shook his hand. “You must be Gus.” The man appeared to be in his late thirties. He was heavyset and evidently hadn’t taken the time to shave. And although it was early morning, his clothes were already dirty.

“Howdy, ma’am,” Gus Norton said. He looked around. “I see Covelli is doing your exterior.” He shook his head. “I don’t blame you for not accepting his inflated prices. Old Gus here, I can do it for you at a lower cost I’ll fix up the old Stewart place for ya.”

Shelby knew she was making a mistake. “Like I said on the phone, Mr. Norton, I can’t afford to do much right now.”

He nodded and gave her a wicked grin. “That’s right, sweetheart. You said you wanted to work something out.”

Shelby cringed. Asking for a bid from this man had been a mistake.

“Well, hey there, Rafe,” Gus said. “I hear you’re doing these facade renovations. It’s a shame you had to get out of new construction because of what happened to your daddy.”

“I’m doing exactly what I want to be doing, Norton,” Rafe said coldly.

Shelby could only stand back and watch the sparks fly between the two men. Then Charlie leaped into the fray. “Since when did they allow you inside the city limits, Norton?”

Gus just grinned. “Hey, Charlie. You ever want to work in real construction again, give me a call.”

Charlie started to say something, but he glanced at Shelby and seemed to think better of it. He walked away.

Shelby quickly ushered Gus into the house and sent him off to his task. In the kitchen she made a pot of coffee. She needed the caffeine to get her going this morning.

She’d spent most of the previous evening at the computer, trying to hammer out the ideas that were due tomorrow. She’d been behind with her work since she’d come to Haven Springs.

With her business doing so well, it had been a bad time to do the move from Louisville, but she couldn’t wait to get into her new home. Now she was paying for it. If she didn’t finish the story she’d been working on in time, she wouldn’t get paid—and she desperately needed the money for the restoration of her new home.

Home. The word seemed strange to her. In her almost twenty-nine years she’d never been able to call anyplace home.

“I can’t believe you actually went ahead and called that guy for a bid.”

Shelby turned around to find Rafe Covelli standing in the doorway.

“I told you, Mr. Covelli, that I needed to get some things done on this house. The rains don’t stop just because I can’t afford to fix the roof.”

“I’ll fix the roof. You already have enough materials in the attic for a decent patch job. I could have it done in a few days. Then you can take your time on some of the other repairs. Just don’t hire that jerk upstairs. Believe me, he doesn’t know a router from a chisel.”

Shelby was tempted to smile but didn’t. She was curious to know why Rafe Covelli was coming to her rescue. Or maybe she shouldn’t ask why and just accept it. “I won’t take charity. I’m going to pay you.”

“You can pay me by getting that jerk who calls himself a contractor out of this house. Stewart Manor deserves the best. That’s me.” Rafe entered the kitchen and stopped, eyeing the oak cabinets.

Shelby smiled. “They’re beautiful, aren’t they? But I don’t think they’re part of the original house.”

Rafe ran his hand over the fine wood grain. “No, they weren’t. They were put in about twenty years ago.”

“How do you know that?”

“Because my dad did the work.” He said this with such pride that she envied him his childhood and the obvious love and respect he had for his father.

“The cabinets are my favorite thing in this kitchen,” she said.

He turned to her. “And if you love this house as much as I think you do, get rid of Norton.”

“Stop giving me orders, Mr. Covelli.”

“It’s Rafe.”

Shelby swallowed as she looked into his intense dark eyes.

“What do you say, Shelby? Do we have a deal? I’ll do the repairs on the roof if you tell Gus to get lost.”

“I told you I won’t take your charity. Maybe we can trade something.”

A twinkle appeared in his eyes and she rushed on to suggest, “How about I teach you about computers?”

He blinked. “You’ve got to be kidding.”

“Take it or leave it,” Shelby said.

Rafe couldn’t believe this was happening. He was bargaining to get the privilege to repair her roof. When had he lost the upper hand here? But it was worth it when Shelby went upstairs to find Gus Norton and told him the bad news.

Just as she returned to the kitchen, a teenage boy came rushing to the back door. “Miss Harris. Miss Harris.”

Shelby dashed outside, Rafe following. “What is it, Josh?”

“It’s my grandfather. I think he fell.” The boy pointed to the yard.

Shelby hurried across the lawn. Rafe was right behind her. When they reached the rose garden, they found Ely Cullen lying on the ground.

“Don’t move him,” Rafe said. He knelt down beside the man. “Ely, can you hear me?”

“Of course I can hear you.” The old man tried to get up. “I just lost my balance. Bum knee gave out.” He sat up with help from Rafe.

“Wait. Let me check to see if anything is broken.”

“Ain’t nothin’ broken—just my pride.”

“Maybe I should take you to the doctor just in case,” Rate suggested as he pulled out a handkerchief and dabbed at the scratch on Ely’s head. “Does anything hurt?”

“Son, at my age something always hurts.”

“Grandpa, maybe you should go. You have scratches on your face and arm.” The blond teenager looked concerned.

“Josh, I fell on the grass. I’m fine. Like I said, my knee gave out. Just need a little help getting up.”

Rate eased the man to his feet. The old man did seem steady enough. “Ely, what are you doing out here at seven in the morning?”

“I’m working for Miss Shelby. We’re going to get the lawn and garden in shape by the end of the summer.”

Rafe had had just about enough. Shelby Harris had hired the area’s worst contractor, and then a seventy-seven-year-old man to help with the yard work. He assisted Ely into a lawn chair.

“I’ll get you a glass of water,” Shelby said.

Rafe stopped her. “I think, to be on the safe side, we should run Ely to the clinic.”

“I don’t need to go,” Ely argued.

Rafe exchanged a worried glance with Shelby. She swallowed hard and he could see her fear. “Please, Ely. I’d feel better if you were checked out. I am responsible for your safety, after all.”

The older man smiled. “It wasn’t your fault.”

Shelby wanted to kiss the old man. “I know it wasn’t. It wasn’t anyone’s. But an accident happened.” Oh, Lord, she thought, what if he really was hurt?

“Okay, I’ll go to the doctor as long as this doesn’t mean I can’t work in the garden.”

“If the doctor says it’s okay, you can work here all you want.”

“I’ll get the truck,” Rafe said, and rushed off.

Shelby watched him go, knowing that Rafe Covelli was going to give her a lecture over this one. But right now all she cared about was getting Ely taken care of.

Chapter Three

Shelby sat in the Mayfair Clinic waiting room with Josh. As she anxiously waited for news, she played a few games of hearts and thumbed through every old magazine on the table.

“I promised my dad I’d watch Grandpa. I’m sorry, Miss Harris.”

“Call me, Shelby, Josh. And I’m not blaming you for anything. It was an accident. We just have to watch your grandfather more closely.”

“He isn’t going to lose his job, is he? Ever since he came home two days ago telling us about the new owner of Stewart Manor, all he’s talked about is working in Miss Hannah’s garden again. I haven’t seen him so happy in a long time. If I promise to stay with him, can he still work?”

“Of course. I’d love to have Ely working at the house. His gardening experience is a valuable asset.”

Just then Rafe and Ely came down the hall. Ely had a bandage on his forehead. She and Josh both went to them. “Are you okay, Grandpa?”

Shelby looked at Rafe for verification. “Ely is fine. The doctor said he’s got a few bruises and scratches. He just put a little too much strain on his bad knee.”

“It’s the pits being old,” Ely said. “You feel so dang useless.”

“You aren’t useless, Ely. Your skills are priceless. Just don’t overdo.” She surprised herself and grasped both his hands. “I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

The older man nodded. “I’ll have Josh do the hard physical work.”

“You just go slower,” Shelby suggested. “And concentrate on the rose garden. I think I can scrape together enough to have some men come in and do the mowing and trimming.”

Ely grinned. “I know a few men who could use a little money, and if I supervise, it’ll get done right.”

Shelby turned to Rafe and found a pleased look on his face. “How about we go to lunch and discuss it?” he asked. “My treat.”

When they all started out the door, Shelby hung back to talk with Rafe. “You don’t need to take us to lunch. I can handle that. I’m paying.”

“Fine. You try and convince my mother to take your money.”

“I will,” she said, determinedly. “And I’m responsible for Ely’s doctor bill, too. How much was it?”

Rafe kept walking. “I’ll just add it to whatever else you owe me.”

“I owe you nothing,” she insisted in a hushed tone.

“The patch job on the roof,” he reminded her.

“I thought we were doing a trade. I was going to teach you how to use a computer.”

Rafe frowned. “Get real, Ms. Harris. I have no desire to learn about computers.”

“You get real, Mr. Covelli. This is the computer age. It’s time you caught up with the times. Don’t you know we’re about to enter the twenty-first century?”

Rafe wanted to give Shelby Harris a piece of his mind, but not right now. He needed to get something into his empty stomach. He’d missed breakfast that morning, and it was nearly one o’clock.

He opened the door to Maria’s and the cool air hit him. After his eyes adjusted to the dim light, he ushered everyone to the table in the corner. He waved to Jill, their waitress.

At first his sister-in-law looked surprised, then a bright smile appeared. She called out to him that she would be right over, then disappeared into the kitchen. He wasn’t surprised when she returned with his mother and his grandmother. All three Covelli women made their way to the table.

His mother was tiny and still beautiful with her sparkling brown eyes and short gray hair. Nonna Vittoria was also small in build, but not quite so lively. Her shoulders were slumped, as if she carried the weight of the world on them. But her seventy-plus years hadn’t put an end to the quickness of her mind.

“Ely, it’s so good to see you,” Maria said cheerfully.

“Hello, Ms. Maria, Ms. Vittoria. Nice to see you again.”

His mother turned to the teenager. “And this must be your grandson, Josh. My, you have grown into a fine-looking young man.”

“Thank you, ma’am. I’ll be a senior this year.”

Finally Maria turned to her son and placed a kiss on his cheek. “You didn’t stop by for breakfast this morning.”

“Sorry, Mom,” he said. “I was running late.”

“You’re forgiven. Just introduce me to your friend.”

“Mom, Nonna, Jill, this is Shelby Harris. She bought the Stewart place, where we’re doing the facade restoration. Ely and Josh are helping her with some landscape work. We decided to come in for lunch and introduce Shelby around.”

Vittoria stepped forward and touched Shelby’s cheek. “So pretty. Are you from around here?”

Shelby shook her head. “No, Louisville.”

“Ah, no family from here. But you look familiar. Your green eyes, so bonita.” Nonna turned to her grandson and smiled. “Isn’t she, Rafaele?”

Rafe bit back a groan. “Yes, Nonna. Now, we’d better eat so I can get back to work.”

“Fine, I’ll bring the lunch special,” Maria said. She and Vittoria bustled back to the kitchen.

“Your family is very nice,” Shelby said.

“You sound surprised. What did you expect?”

Shelby took a bread stick from the glass container on the table. “I just meant that you’re very lucky.”

Shelby didn’t think she would ever be able to eat again.

The ravioli had been wonderful, plus, Mrs. Covelli had insisted she take some home, along with her homemade bread.

Back at the house, she put the food in the refrigerator and decided to try to get some work done. But she couldn’t concentrate on anything.

Thunder sounded in the distance, and she glanced out the window to see that the wind had picked up and the sky had darkened. It was going to storm. Feeling the sudden drop in temperature, she rubbed her bare arms. She’d sent Ely and Josh home. And the crew from Covelli’s had also gone. For some reason, she was restless. More thunder rumbled, alerting her that the front was moving through. She went from room to room, checking to see that the windows were shut. She climbed to the second floor and, after cleaning off the window seat in the master suite, sat and watched as the rain poured down and the lightning zigzagged across the gray sky.

Even as a kid, Shelby had liked thunderstorms. Now she only wished her roof was repaired so she could enjoy them without worrying about the ceiling falling in on her!

She got up and walked down the hall to the attic entrance. Maybe she could find the leaks and put a couple of buckets out to catch the water and stop further damage. Besides, she’d never been in the attic and was curious. Opening the raised wood door to the third floor, she flipped on the switch. A single bulb brightened the dusty narrow staircase. A little apprehensive, Shelby avoided the railing and started the climb. Smelling the musty dampness as she made her way up, she arrived into a large open room. She glanced up at the cobwebs laced in the open rafters.

Oh my, this is... spooky, she thought. She jumped at a sharp crack of thunder and saw lightning flash across the small attic window. Undaunted, she walked to the stack of furniture in the middle of the room—the realtor had told her that there were some things left behind. Shelby pulled back one of the blankets and was surprised to find an oak table and chairs, an iron bed frame and several other treasures she could use to decorate the house.

Then she spied a door in the far wall. She walked over and tried to open it, but it was locked. The key must be downstairs with the other house keys. Hearing the rain pounding on the roof, she decided to wait until another day to investigate.

Shelby continued her search for the source of the main leak. Finally she located a puddle. The rain wasn’t coming from overhead but from the window. The runoff from the roof was coming in around the frame and running down the wall to the floor. A bucket wouldn’t do any good. Maybe some towels stuffed around the window frame would soak up the moisture. Or she could use the blankets.

She pulled one off a table and carried it to the window. Realizing she wasn’t quite tall enough, she dragged over a chair and climbed onto it. When she stood on tiptoe to reach the top of the frame, lightning flashed again. This time the lights flickered and went out.

Shelby screamed as she lost her balance and fell off the chair onto the floor. When her weight came down on her ankle, she felt it twist at an odd angle. The pain hit her and she cried out again.

In the dark Shelby tried not to panic, but she was all alone. Then she heard the noise downstairs. Oh, God. Someone was in the house. She cringed when the sound of footsteps came closer. Her heart pounded, until she heard her name called out.

“Shelby? You up there?” It was Rafe Covelli. She sighed in relief.

“Rafe. I’m here.”

A beam from a flashlight illuminated the steps, and then he came into view. “Where are you?”

She could hear the concern in his voice. “Over here.”

He hurried across the room and knelt beside her. He looked relieved to see her, then he grinned. “Well, Ms. Harris, seems you need my help once again. What are you going to use to barter yourself out of this one?”

Shelby wanted to punch him in his smug nose, but thought better of it.

“I don’t need your help,” she insisted as she braced her hand on the chair and tried to stand. She got to her knees then she felt the pain in her ankle and groaned. Automatically Rafe reached out to help, but she shoved his hand away. “I can manage. Just hold the light.”

“Sure, you can,” he said. “But I’ll stand by just in case.”

She finally made it to her feet, or at least to one foot. She didn’t dare put any weight on her tender ankle. “See, I’m fine,” she said through clenched teeth.

“Okay,” he said. “Then we should get downstairs. It isn’t safe up here since the storm took out the power.”

He stepped back, allowing Shelby to go first. But when she let go of the chair and tried to walk, the pain in her sprained ankle made her cry out.

Rafe dropped the flashlight on the floor and caught her to him. “I’ve got you,” he said hoarsely.

Shelby was pulled against his solid chest, her hands gripping his muscular arms. The comfort of his strength and the soothing sound of his voice was almost intoxicating. He smelled like rain.

But she knew she couldn’t continue leaning on him. Experience had taught her that the only person she could depend on was herself. She pushed back, trying to break his hold.

Rafe resisted. “Hey, you can’t go it alone, no matter how stubborn you are,” he said. He grabbed the flashlight off the floor and handed it to her. Then to her shock, he scooped her up in his arms.

“Put me down,” she said, but his grip tightened and her struggles were useless.

“Hush, green eyes,” he murmured. “I only want to take you downstairs and check your injury.” His dark eyes brimmed with tenderness and compassion.

She felt herself relax, and she nodded. The lightning flashed again. “But...but I’m too heavy.”

“You feel fine to me.” He smiled. “Now train the flashlight on the stairs, so I can see where I’m going.”

Shelby did as he asked and he managed to get her down the narrow steps without further problem. He took her into the master suite and deposited her on the window seat, where light from outside, such as it was, came in. The afternoon sky was still dark gray and the storm showed no sign of letting up.

“Looks like we’re in for a wicked night.” He knelt down in front of her and started to untie her tennis shoe. “Let’s have a look at that ankle.”

“I can do it.”

He raised his gaze to hers. “Is it me, or do you have trouble letting anyone help you?”

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