Last Play: Book 1 The Last Play Series by Taylor Hart Read Free Book Online

a man. Not a football player, not someone to be manipulated or worked over for some ad they wanted to run. He snorted.
    She shook her head back and forth. “Your uncle made this place into a legacy. He made it something that families came back to every year. Did you know I’ve been getting calls from families that came to this place when they were kids? Now they have grandkids and want to bring them here.”
    Roman snorted again. “Seriously? This place is a dump.” Before he’d even let the words come all the way out, he wanted to take them back.
    Her lips pursed together and she glared at him, shaking her head. If she were a cartoon, smoke would be coming out her ears. “Do you even realize what it means to have a home?” she spat out. “Some place that means something.”
    He didn’t respond. She looked like she was just getting started.
    “Your uncle gave you this place because he loved it, and he obviously loved you. Now, you can either disregard something that’s old because you think there’s no life left in it, or you can work and mold it and give it a new life. That’s your choice.” She pointed at him then moved down the stairs. “But if I were you, I would hold on and thank God everyday that you have something to hold on to.”
    He watched her walk away and felt the adrenaline spiking through him. That woman made him want to rip something. So he continued to rip out carpet. Hearing her footsteps fading away, he muttered to himself, “There’s nothing worth holding onto that doesn’t hurt you.”
    Two hours later, the carpet was out, and they were starting to fix the subfloor.
    Katie jerked to a standing position. “Oh my gosh! I have to go get Josh!” She dropped her hammer on the stairs and dashed for her winter gear.
    Panic surged inside of him. Roman didn’t know what to do with the silly lost puppy feeling that suddenly washed through him. He’d been with her all day, and as she dashed off, he suddenly came back to the present. The present where she was married to someone else with a kid. He stumbled down the stairs in his haste to catch her before she left. “When will you be back?”
    Shoving on the pink pom, pom cap, she turned to face him and gave him a wink. “Don’t look so desperate, quarterback, you’re not getting rid of me that easy. Tomorrow. Same time, same place.”

Chapter 3
    T he rest of the afternoon and evening was filled with two impressive things. Roman finished getting all the pad and carpet out to the barn and he even pounded in or replaced nails. On two of the steps he had to tear off the tops and he went to the barn and found scraps to replace them. He brought them into the house to show Katie tomorrow morning and then cleaned up the workspace, feeling quite satisfied with himself.
    A knock sounded at the kitchen door, and he quickly pushed through to find Mrs. K smiling through the glass windows. He flung the door back, making room for her to come in.
    She didn’t budge, staring him up and down. “She worked ya, did she?”
    “She’s a task master for sure.” Worry flooded him about the cancer Katie had told him about.
    Mrs. K grinned and handed over a warm container that looked to have soup and foil that contained some kind of hot bread. “You go get some rest, young man. I’ll see ya in the morning.”
    Immediately, Roman rushed for his wallet on the table. “Here, let me pay you.”
    “Oh heavens,” she was already trudging down the steps and headed for the small trail between their houses. “Your grandfather paid me well enough. I just thought there would be no one to look after you, so I thought I’d help out a bit.”
    Warmth swelled in Roman and he waved. “Thanks, Mrs. K.”
    She stopped and turned back. “Go up to the new room. I went ahead and made it up for you.”
    After scarfing down the soup and sumptuous bread, he couldn’t shake the thought of Mrs. K struggling with cancer. Which was odd for him. He couldn’t remember the last