He would not even mention that the HVAC repairman who would do the job was his buddy.
North stepped back. “I already looked at the central heater, that’s why I’m late. You need a new one.” Tess withdrew her hands from the sling’s straps and lowered her voice to a hiss. “What do you mean I need a new boiler?” “The one you have is older than you are. I tracked down somebody to replace it.” Tess had forgotten that she’d muted her phone to keep from waking the baby and had missed a call from him. “I ordered a new one for you,” he said. Tess did not like the fact that North had taken over her house. Her heater was her business, and she would have eventually called the heating and cooling provider. Tess had anticipated that the HVAC technician would recommend a boiler repair, but replacing the electric furnace was something other than what she anticipated. How would she afford a new heating and cooling system at such a time? Why couldn’t it be that the HVAC equipment only needed a furnace/heater tune-up? North could see the wheels turning in Tess’s head, and he told her he had taken care of the boiler and any anticipated expenses. To save face, she made a fuss about maintaining the same heating technology and how the heating contractor had to be qualified. She also unnecessarily mentioned how ell she North had learned quite a bit about Tess in the short time they had been neighbors, and he knew better than to bring up an argument. He would not even mention that the HVAC repairman who would do the job was his buddy. When she got like this, not even logic was welcome. It had taken much of him to accept his help, and he knew better than to push her further. The only reason she accepted his kind gesture was because of the baby.