Playing For Keeps (Emerald Lake Billionaires 2) Read Free Page B

could unpack her suitcases and sort through everything she’d thrown in her car before she’d left Chicago. “Thank you. You don’t know how much this means to me.”
    “I think I might have a small idea. Sometimes you just need a helping hand. That’s what we do in Montana.”
    Sophie wiped her eyes. Bozeman had been a good choice after all.
     
    ***
    The next day, Ryan lifted a bucket of paint out of the back of his truck. Once the temperature had cooled down, he’d start painting the laundry. In the meantime, he had a lot more prep work to do.
    “Did you get the sandpaper?”
    Ryan passed Jamie O’Brien another bucket of paint. Jamie and a couple of other contractors had been working with him for the past three months. Before Ryan started making money from his music, he’d earned a living as a contractor. When he needed to get out of Nashville, he’d decided it was as good a time as any to start building his new house.
    About a year ago, he’d come to Montana for his cousin’s wedding. While he was in Bozeman, he’d seen a parcel of land advertised in the local paper. Jacob Green, a well-known property developer, had shown him around. He was selling three unique properties around Emerald Lake.
    Ryan had never wanted to build his own home. It had always been easier to walk into a house, check that it had the required swimming pool, music studio, and media room, then make an offer the owners couldn’t refuse. But as soon as he’d seen the parcel of land he knew he had to buy it. It had stirred something deep inside him. He’d imagined coming back to Montana; creating a life for himself that was better than what he had.
    He just hadn’t realized he’d be coming back so soon.
    Jamie had been building another house beside Emerald Lake. When Ryan had seen the craftsmanship and care they’d taken with Molly and Jacob’s house, he’d decided to ask Jamie to manage the construction of his home.
    “The sandpaper is in the back of the truck. I bought extra brushes, too.”
    Jamie grunted. “If you washed the other brushes out properly, you wouldn’t need to buy new ones every second day.”
    Ryan smiled. After four months of working with Jamie, he was beginning to appreciate his sense of humor. For the last two weeks, he’d had to put up with jokes about his painting abilities. Leaving a paintbrush in the sun before cleaning it had turned into a big drama. Anyone would think he’d put the roof on backward with the number of jokes going backward and forward.
    “You do know that I left the brush in the sun on purpose? I didn’t want you to think I was perfect.”
    “You don’t need to worry about that,” Jamie said. “We’ve seen the way you swing a hammer. Reminds me of someone playing a guitar.”
    Ryan opened the back door of his truck and passed Jamie the sandpaper. “Old habits die hard. I was more worried about the blisters on my hands after the first week of working with you.”
    “You’re doing a good job for someone who hasn’t been on a building site in years. Put the paint in the living room. Danny’s in the second bedroom putting the architraves around the door. Once he’s done that, the frame will be ready for an undercoat. Just remember to wash your brush out at the end of it.” With the sandpaper and buckets of paint in his hands, Jamie walked toward Ryan’s home.
    The two-story house was everything Ryan had wanted it to be. From the moment he’d seen the architect’s plans, he’d been blown away by the use of glass and steel. Most of the rooms had incredible views of the lake; views he’d enjoy even more when his home was finished.
    He hoisted another bucket of paint out of the back of the truck. If he didn’t get a move on, Jamie would be after him for loitering in the front yard.
    He walked inside the entranceway and looked at what they’d done over the last couple of days. Danny had plastered the drywall, sanding everything back to a smooth finish. He’d done a good