A Contractor From Palm Springs
By
Nathan Grant
SMASHWORDS EDITION
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PUBLISHED BY:
Nathan Grant at Smashwords
Copyright © 2012 Nathan Grant
Smashwords Edition License Notes
Cover photograph by Kirill Zdorov
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the author's work.
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This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
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For Tom
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A Contractor From Palm Springs
Chapter One
The air outside the car was a sizzling 110 degrees as he neared the turnoff for Palm Springs, California. Ron James had turned his back on his demanding life in the San Francisco Bay Area to find himself and finally get a life.
Spending most of his adult life in Silicon Valley going from one tech giant to another, he created success but not any personal satisfaction. With the demands of his job, his social life was non-existent and so he had remained a loner. It was now two months after his fortieth birthday, when an unexpected event caused him to change his life.
The morning had begun as thousands of others in his life. He did not have many friends, and barely kept in touch with the little family he had, so a birthday celebration was not an expectation. Ron was driving down the Bayshore freeway when he suddenly felt like he was having an asthma attack, and felt his breathing severely constricted.
Fighting down the panic, he raced to the nearest hospital emergency service, and could hardly walk into the crowded room. By this time, he had started experiencing tightness in his chest and his limbs were tingling. He reached the desk but could barely get the words out as he clutched his chest, beginning to feel like he was about to faint.
Seeing his state, they rushed him into an examining room and after a rapid brief examination and an EKG; a mask was placed over his face. While he lay there starting to feel a bit better, all he could think of was how his father had died from an unexpected heart attack at the age of forty-two.
For years, he’d avoided thinking about arriving at that age; it was true his dad was a smoker, didn’t watch his diet, and lived with a lot of stress. Ron has always been one that exercised, ate sensibly, but the stress thing was out of control. He peered up at the doctor, looking panicked he was sure, and was rewarded with a hand on his shoulder.
“Man, I’ve seen panic attacks before, but his one is off the charts. We’ve administered a mild tranquilizer and are monitoring your vitals.”
Ron tried to talk, but the mask garbled his words, and the doctor again patted his shoulder.
“Just stay still and breathe slowly, you were hyperventilating and would have fainted shortly. We’ve checked you out and there were no signs of a heart attack. Once you’re stabilized, we’ll refer you to someone who can find the underlying cause of all this. Now, I’ll be back in a while and you just rest,” he said, giving his shoulder a final pat.
Later, Ron went for a full exam and luckily found he was in great health, but his doctor made it clear the panic attack was a warning. “If you don’t do something about the stress in your life Ron, the next time you might not be so lucky. Don’t take something like this lightly; this kind of thing takes a toll on your whole body. You need to make some changes,” he told him sternly.
So fast-forward several months. Ron had always been an organizer, and the Saturday after his episode at the hospital, he’d sat down to evaluate where he was in his life and what he could do about it.
He was gay and always accepted it; he was out at work and with his family and it was never an issue. Other than a few quick and pointless encounters over the years, he’d never really much acted on it. Ron’s life had always been about business and the drive to get ahead and he had done extremely well. He was an attractive man; about five feet ten, much more hairy than the average, slim and toned, with an unruly head of light brown hair, and a trimmed beard. He’d occasionally gone out with other men, but other than one bad relationship, didn’t have the time or inclination to develop another one.
One afternoon shortly after his scare, he’d been talking to a close friend of his that had left the corporate world to open a small art gallery north of San Francisco. “So how did you do it, Phil? How did you manage the break?” Ron asked.
“It was killing me man, and Carol was about to take our daughter and leave. She told me she wasn’t going to sit by and watch me kill myself with working all the time. It put things in perspective for me, so I talked to a counselor, he helped me sort out what my options were, and here I am. I’m not looking back at all.”
Ron ran his fingers through his thick hair. “Easy for you to say, this has been my life. I don’t even have one damn hobby,” he told him, amazing himself with his words.
Phil stared right back at him, and answered with a stern voice. “Then get one. What do you enjoy there must be something. Level with me, you go home to a big empty house after working all day; don’t you want to share your life with someone?”
A cloud passed over Ron’s features. “Not anyone that I’ve met, and to be honest, I haven’t been looking. I’m not a hermit, I’m just busy, and I enjoy meeting new people and am a fair cook when I have the time. I’ve tossed around the idea of a bed and breakfast for years, but have never gotten much farther than that. Can you imagine me as a host?” he laughed.
Phil smiled at him. “Ron I can imagine you doing anything you put your mind to; look how successful you’ve been in your career. I think it would be a great idea for you to do something completely new.”
“Well, thanks for the vote of confidence, but even though it sounds good, getting from A to B is really puzzling to me.”
“Anything new would be for anyone. Take a class, I see them all the time and go online, as if I have to tell you that,” Phil said, getting enthusiastic about his idea.
“I’ll check it out. You’ve given me some good advice as usual.”
Phil put his hands in the air. “I don’t want to see you die of a heart attack Ron. You’re on the same path I was before I woke up, or before my wife woke me up, I should say. You need to make a change, and you need to do it right away. Get on with your life and make yourself happy,” he said seriously, covering Ron’s hand with his.
Looking back it took some doing, but Ron was enthusiastic and ready for the change, and besides, being in the hospital scared the crap out of him. In the last four months, he’d sold his large house for a terrific profit, most of his possessions, and bought a rundown guesthouse in Palm Springs. It was a place of reasonable size with only ten small suites, located in the Warm Sands area of town. Once a part of a larger resort, it was still large enough to generate a good living, but small enough so he could cater breakfast to his guests, at least a continental one.
He’d spoken to his Palm Springs realtor Brad, several times and when there was a short list, he’d flown down to check them out, and found this unpolished gem. He’d arranged to have both places close on the same day and then planned to move, once he wrapped things up in the Bay Area, into the spacious former manager’s quarters while renovating the other rooms.
While he was down on his shopping trip on Brad’s recommendation, he’d met and hired a hunky very sexy contractor named Paul, who Ron assumed was straight, to take care of the preliminary planning and permits, and create the plans with the architect. Paul was tasked to hire the specialists while Ron finished his business up north. Paul stayed in daily contact and sent him updates via email. Ron was pleased with the project and had approved the remodel plans Paul had sent, and gave him the green light to start, once the property closed.
Ron had to stay up north for about six weeks after his house closed to tie up loose ends and do a final transition of his projects at work, so things were supposedly well underway at the new place, and had seen the updates when Paul sent him pictures. He’d been anxious to leave the Bay Area to start his new life and now that he was approaching the city, he started to have second thoughts about what he was doing.
When he pulled up in front of the place, he couldn’t believe his eyes. When he’d left the last time, it looked like a frumpy 1950’s style place with overgrown vegetation, white gravel with red trim, and walkways that were painted red. There were green and white metal awnings almost rusted through in several places, and tacky doors on the rooms with little fan windows allowing a peek.
Now all the overgrown plants were gone, most of the doors stood open and a chain-link fence surrounded the property. Several shirtless men were moving around the building, causing Ron to double take. He admired the beginning of the courtyard walls going up to surround the place for privacy and the pool had been drained and was being resurfaced in a dark blue color.
Since it was so hot, he got out of the car and wanted to get his stuff inside before he looked around. “Ron, good to see you; it doesn’t look like the same place, does it,” Paul asked walking over to help him unload his things after shaking his hand.
Ron looked around feeling distracted by how close Paul was standing to him. “I can’t believe it, you really move fast. Let me set my things down and you can show me around, this is unbelievable,” he said trying not to stare at Paul’s impressive muscular physique now glistening with a fine sheen of sweat.
“Wait until it’s done, you’ll have people lining up to stay here,” he promised, smiling knowingly as he noticed Ron trying not to stare as he feigned a stretch to show off.
Ron looked around and already the tacky 1950’s façade was long gone; now the U shaped structure looked like a Colonial Spanish/Territorial combination with deep overhangs supported by roughhewn beams. The former crank type windows were history, and now were made of wood painted a light faded olive green against the newly troweled stucco walls in a shade of deep tan.
“Let’s get your things inside and I can show you around some more,” Paul said to him, stepping closer to take one of the heavy bags.
Ron stopped himself from taking a step back when Paul moved close to him. He could feel the heat radiating from his shirtless body, now deeply tanned from the Palm Springs sun. He could see the muscles rippling beneath his smooth brown skin as Paul reached for his bag, and caught the scent of clean sweat on his body.
As Paul stepped closer, Ron noticed the dark trail of hair going down toward the healthy bulge in his tight jeans from his navel, and stared at his taut full nipples rising from his smooth well-developed pecs. When he reached for the bag, Ron saw a thick patch of dark hair in Paul’s armpit still moist from the heat.
“Liking what you see,” Paul asked, with a smile pulling at his lips, exposing his perfect white teeth.
Ron looked away, completely flustered. “What? Oh, sorry to stare; I was thinking of something else,” Ron stammered, now realizing he’d been staring a beat too long and was busted.
“That’s OK; I thought you might have been distracted by all the things going on around here. I have to warn you though, your living area is still under construction; we have the dry wall in and the chocolate Saltillo tile floors; the Venetian plaster will be applied soon. The plumbing fixtures and cabinets are there but no shower doors yet. I put a hot pad in the kitchen, but there are still many wires and such hanging around so be careful. I wanted to get a place for you to stay but it’s only a shadow of what it will soon become. We don’t have the air on yet either so sleeping at night might be kind of warm for a while, but it does cool off at night,” Paul warned.
“I’m sure I can deal with it, I realize you’re doing what you can, and what you’ve done is just amazing,” Ron said, still trying to avoid those mesmerizing erect taut brown nipples.
When they walked into the bedroom, the drywall was taped but there was no plaster and most of the floor was covered with plastic sheets to protect it. A ceiling fan had been added but it only stirred the very warm air.
Ron turned and saw his California King bed had arrived, but stopped in his tracks when he saw it looked like someone had been sleeping in it.
Paul put a hand up to his chin and rubbed the thick black stubble, and looked up at Ron. “Uh, about that,” Paul began. “I thought someone should stay here at night considering all the materials are stored in the building. There is a fence out there but it won’t keep people away from taking what they want if they think they can,” he explained.
Ron set the rest of his things down by a wall and turned to look around. “Sounds reasonable to me, where am I supposed to stay, that is if you’re planning to still sleep here.
“I thought that I could make up a sleeping area over in this part of the room and give you the bed, considering it’s yours,” he laughed.
“Whatever you want to do,” Ron told him, walking into the bathroom to hide the embarrassment he was feeling do to the suggestive conversation.
It was apparent Paul had been using it for his own as his things were spread out over the covered counters. True to his word, there was a beautiful steam shower with black granite slabs and hand rubbed bronze fixtures. Looking very out of place were two large nails supporting a length of cord, and clipped to it was a clear sheet of plastic, obviously to keep the water inside during a shower. Ron couldn’t help but think what a picture Paul must make rubbing down those tanned muscles with soap.
“Where are the bathroom doors?”
“We haven’t hung any of the doors yet, we wanted to finish the plastering first and then trim them out. Most of the doors are being manufactured in Mexico and will be here next week. Since they are finished dark wood, it will be safer to get them up later,” Paul said.
“Doesn’t add much privacy to the place I’d say,” Ron said giving him a grin.
“For modesty, I had them put a temporary door on the bathroom at the other side of the living quarters, but there’s no shower in there just the toilet,” he said grinning back.
“I can live with that, so I guess from what you’re saying, you’re going to stay here for a while.”
Paul gave him a disarming smile. “If that’s OK with you, it makes it easier when we’re working such long days. Look, speaking of which, I should get back out there to keep things moving. Why don’t you settle yourself while I have the guys bring in the rest of your stuff from the car. Once you’re ready, I can show you around and make sure all is to your liking. We can go over the plans and talk about any changes you might want at this stage,” he said.
“That sounds good. Since I’m new around here, if you don’t have any plans for dinner, why don’t we go out and have a pizza and some beer, my treat,” Ron said.
“Great, one of my favorite meals; I’ll want to grab a shower before we go, but I’m fast with that. Come out and find me when you’re ready and we can talk about the progress.”
Without waiting for his answer, Paul turned and went back outside. Soon Paul was back inside to direct the men as they literally moved what was left of Ron’s former life out of his car.
Later, Ron found Paul standing outside one of the suites, watching as one of his men laid the terra cotta tile in a diagonal pattern. Even though the rooms were empty of any furniture, Ron marveled at how welcoming the new cabinets and tile made the room. He suddenly felt his uncertainty about his radical lifestyle change start to fade as he finally could visualize what they had planned.
“Wow Paul, this is just fantastic. I had an idea what this was going to look like from the drawings, but could never imagine it looking like this. This is just amazing,” he enthused.
Paul nodded in agreement. “It does look great considering what we started out with, but the place had good bones as they say, so we just tore it all down to the studs and built it back up. So far, we haven’t had any nasty surprises, unless you consider running into a nest of scorpions a real problem,” he said casually.
Ron stopped dead in his tracks, a look of shock on his face. “Scorpions, what the hell is this about scorpions? No one mentioned anything like that to me,” he said, sounding agitated, looking around.
Paul held up his hands. “A fact of life on the desert; we invaded their space remember? Once we are finished with the construction, they will go somewhere else. You just have to spray a lot to keep their food supply down and you’ll be fine, trust me,” he said, amused at Ron’s reaction.
“Do they get in your bed? I can’t imagine waking up and having something like that near me,” Ron said shuddering.
“They try to get to dark places to hide; keep in mind they don’t want to be around you any more than you want to be around them. They will avoid you if they can, but you just have to remember to shake out your shoes in the morning, and use a light when you walk around at night. You’d be more likely to step on them in the dark, and by the way, they glow in ultraviolet light.”
“That’s comforting,” Ron, said looking around the floor, checking to make sure nothing was moving around.
Paul could see how disturbed Ron looked, and turned around to look at him. “Don’t worry, once this mess is cleaned up we’ll professionally seal off the place. If you keep the pest control up, you won’t have a problem. If you do get stung, it’s no worse than a bee sting.”
Ron wasn’t having any of it. “Wonderful news, I’m so glad. I’m still leery of the bed thing and having one crawl on me, that really gives me the creeps,” Ron told him, holding his arms around his body.
“Well if you’re that worried about it Ron, I can sleep in your bed and at least keep the bugs off you,” he laughed turning away before Ron had a chance to decide if he was kidding. The interesting thing about it was he was beginning to think he wouldn’t mind having Paul in his bed one bit.
“I just might have to take you up on that,” he kidded back, causing Paul to stop, turn around and wink at him, before continuing on his way.
After they finished going through the property, Paul went over to talk to some of his men while Ron went back to his living space. When he saw that some of his things were sitting on the floor, he gingerly picked them up, put them up on the chairs or counters, and then put the rest of his clothes into the closet organizer where it looked like they would be safe from crawling things. It was late in the afternoon, so he pulled out some towels he’d brought with him and then turned on the shower full force to wash the heat of the day off his skin.