North Dakota Weddings by Elizabeth Goddard Read Free Book Online Page B

“That’s all right. I had intended for her to work with me.”
    “But I thought she wasn’t feeling well.”
    Andi frowned. “I—”
    “She’s punishing me.” Elisa slipped past her sister and meandered toward the exit.
    Andi looked at him apologetically. “I’m sorry about this. She won’t interfere with your work, or mine for that matter.”
    “There’s nothing to apologize for.” What was going on with Andi and her sister? “Is there anything I can do to help?”
    “It’s that obvious?”
    Vance set the laptop on the coffee table and stood up to look directly into Andi’s soft blue eyes. “Nah. Just the usual family drama when adult and teenage worlds collide.”
    “I guess you’re right.”
    Women liked men who were sensitive, understanding. “It helps to talk about your problems. I’m a good listener.”
    “Thanks for your offer, but it’s not your problem.” She sighed, her guard up again. “You have work to do. So do I.” She gave him a flat smile and followed Elisa out.
    Vance plopped against the sofa back. She put on a tough veneer but he’d seen a glimpse of the softness inside. Why did he have to be curious about this woman?

Chapter 5
    A t the end of the day, Andi stood with Lars in the tunnel junction outside of the equipment room. “The electrician should be here on Thursday. Hopefully he’ll get the power on in there so we can begin work.”
    “Karl will be back in the morning, but I’ve got another job,” Lars said.
    “I understand. There’s not enough work left in the other room for all of us at this point. Just the trim. Can you ask Karl to bring the pump so we can get that water out tomorrow? Then we can seal the leaks.”
    Lars tilted his head. “You betcha.”
    “In the meantime, I’m going to explore.” Andi rattled her flashlight for Lars’s benefit.
    “Be careful.” He nodded and left.
    With Lars and Karl gone for the day, she was free to conduct her search, even though it was mostly in the dark. Nothing could pull Vance away from his computer so she needn’t worry about him. She’d put Elisa to work with the Shop-Vac in the room that was near completion.
    After opening the blast door, Andi switched on the flashlight, shining it around the large equipment room. Every time she read the letter, she became more convinced that Vance Erickson had hired her to renovate the place so she could find what her grandfather had hidden decades before. Why anyone would go to so much trouble she didn’t know.
    Hidden in the underground launch center was something of value meant for her grandmother, and Andi intended to discover it. Like everything else in her life, she had to work hard for it, earn it.
    She took a step down into an inch of water. A slow drip joined the echo of her footsteps as she explored. Why hadn’t Mr. E just told her what to look for? Good grief. What if one of the other workers had found it and said nothing?
    Yet another thing she’d never know. All she had to go on was the letter she’d discovered in her grandmother’s things, written by Mr. E. At least Andi could have asked him about it if she’d found it before he’d died.
    She wasn’t sure how the new owner would take to the news that she was searching for something that belonged to her family but was hidden on his property, and until she knew him well enough, she probably wouldn’t tell him. For that matter, would she want to know him that well? He might be cute with his charming grin and searching gaze, but he was a geek in anybody’s world—consumed by things like computers and telescopes. She’d already been discarded by his type—no sense in setting herself up for that again.
    For the time being, she’d keep things to herself. She sure hoped Mr. E knew what he was doing when he’d given this place to his nephew. At the moment, it didn’t appear that he did. Vance Young wasn’t keen on living underground.
    Though she was excited at the challenge—at the opportunity she’d