Page 81 of Resisting the Fall

“You’ve climbed trees taller than this.”

“But there were branches to hold on to. And I’m wearing sneakers. I don’t think their traction is very good.”

Ben directed me toward the ladder. “How about you give me your list of excuses while we climb up? If you come up with a good one by the time we get to the top, I’ll let you off the hook without a word.”

I huffed. “If I fall and die, I will come back and haunt you.”

“You absolutely should.”

Taking hold of a ladder rung, I started up, one cautious step at a time. Ben stayed close as I climbed, and besides being slightly self-conscious about his view looking up, it made me feel better knowing he was right behind me. When I reached the top, Carson came to the edge of the roof and offered me a hand before cautiously directing me away from the edge.

“I’m impressed,” he said. “I didn’t think Ben could convince you to come up.”

“I’m not sure I’d call his method convincing me. It was more a combination of assumption, refusing to let me tell him no, and forcing me up the ladder.”

Carson laughed, and Ben came to stand on the slanted roof next to us.

“So, what now?” I asked, looking at the mostly completed roof instead of the drop behind me. Dominic and Jaxon were at the far end, using a nail gun to secure large pieces of plywood onto the trusses.

“This way.” Ben took hold of my hand again, and we made our way toward the ridge. “Our job is to look for any edges the nail gun missed or anything that looks like it needs to be secured down.”

“Should I be insulted that you thought of me for this task? As though I have some incredible ability to pinpoint every minor imperfection?”

Ben smiled. “I actually just wanted you to see the view from up here, but if you’d prefer, we can go with that.”

At his mention, my gaze lifted. I’d been so concentrated on not pulling an Anne Shirley and taking a tumble from the ridgepole, I hadn’t looked around. Ben took a step closer to me, stabilizing me by the elbow as I scanned the view. The white steepled church was on our left and the river just past it. And there was Carver Maple Farm. The apple orchard. Main Street. Dust & Timber and the workshop behind it. And the hills that hid the high school from view. Then there were trees as far as the eye could see. So many shades and colors of leaves. Peak leaf season in Vermont was no joke. “It’s incredible,” I whispered.

Ben’s focus stayed on me. We didn’t need two of us unstable by looking around simultaneously. “I thought you might like it.”

I met his gaze. “Thanks for making me climb up here.”

Ben smiled.

“Can I go down now?” I was only partially kidding. It was higher than it even looked from the ground, and being on a slanted surface made the whole thing feel even more precarious.

Ben chuckled. “I’m not sure what I’ll do without those sharp eyes of yours, but if you really want to, I can take you back down.”

I stole another glimpse at the view. “I’ll stay. But I’m sitting.” It would be easier to justify counting the time I’d been at the barn raising toward Judge Rost’s seventy-two-hour provision—now down to sixty-three hours—if I actually spent time with him and not just watching him. “And you can do the hammering.”

He pulled a box of nails from his tool belt, and the two of us made our way across the roof, me handing Ben nails that he hammered in place, then scooting along the plywood to my next spot.

Two guys looked over from the other side of the roof. I recognized Archer but not his friend. “Hey, Bennett,” Archer called out before dipping his chin in my direction. “Maven.”

Archer’s friend did likewise, and suddenly I had the strange feeling I knew him.

I lifted a hand. “Hey.”

“We’re finished with the sheathing,” Archer said to Ben. “Anything else we can do up here?”

“Maven and I are finding edges that need to be secured and nailing them down to make sure it’s ready to go when the roofers come Monday. If you two want to do the same on that side, that’d be awesome.” Ben’s gaze slid to his right. “Maybe grab Dean and Wade too. The four of you could make quick work of it. I’ll have Carson, Dom, and Jaxon join us once they’re done. After that, we can head down and help with the siding.”

“Sounds good, boss.”

When they disappeared out of sight again, my gaze returned to Ben, and that same swelling of pride felt like it might suffocate me with how quickly it was expanding, right alongside a very problematic sense of attraction. I was having a difficult time wrapping my mind around this new side of Ben. He was the same, but he was also so different.

“What is it?” Ben asked, catching me staring.

I scrambled for something to say. “Who was that with Archer?”