So I stand, gathering my purse and shoving papers into it.“Don’t flatter yourself.This isn’t a team.It’s an obligation.”
For once, he doesn’t grin.He watches me, something raw flickering in his gaze.“Keep telling yourself that, Lennie.”
And I do.I tell myself all the way out the door, down the porch steps, and across the gravel drive.I tell myself that until I slam my car door shut.
But I can’t make the echo of his laugh, the heat of his eyes, and the memory of his mouth disappear.No matter how much I lie to myself.
****
Of all the days forthe pipes to burst, it has to be today.
I stand in the narrow hallway of the bed-and-breakfast, water pooling around my ankles, while Mrs.Peters, my most difficult guest in recent history, clicks her tongue like this is a personal failure on my part.
“Unacceptable,” she huffs, clutching her pearls.“I was promised hot water.Do you know how much I paid for this room?”
I pinch the bridge of my nose.My head is pounding, my heart racing, and the wet socks squishing in my shoes aren’t helping.
“I’ll take care of it,” I manage, forcing a smile.“Please, just wait in the dining room.I’ll have someone come as quickly as possible.”
The second she disappears, I let out a low groan.I don’t have someone.I’ve been juggling everything myself—bookings, cooking, cleaning, and now plumbing?I could call the handyman in town, but he’s busy for days, and I can’t exactly have guests showering in cold water until then.
“Everything okay, Lennie?”
The voice that makes my stomach flip comes from behind me.Of course.Of course Adam Blake chooses this moment to show up, leaning against the doorway with his usual infuriating grin, arms crossed like he has all the time in the world.His dark t-shirt clings to his broad shoulders, and I hate myself for noticing that more than the flood spreading down my hall.
“Go away, Adam,” I snap, kneeling to shove a bucket under the dripping pipe.
He crouches beside me instead, ignoring the command completely.“It looks like you’ve got a leak.”
“Brilliant observation, genius.”My hair falls in my face as I try to tighten the valve with bare hands.“Maybe I’ll hire you as my resident useless information dispenser.”
He chuckles, low and warm.“There’s no need to hire me, Lennie.You’ve got me for free.”
I shoot him a glare, but he just smirks wider, rolling up his sleeves.“Move over.”
“I don’t need...”
“Lennie.”His tone softens, his eyes catching mine.“Let me help you.”
The fight drains out of me before I can stop it.I slide back against the wall, watching as he gets to work.His hands are steady, sure, like he’s done this a hundred times.Which, knowing him, he probably has.The Blake boys grew up fixing things for everyone else in town.
“What are you even doing here?”I ask, trying to focus on anything but the flex of his forearms.
“Wes asked me to grab a box of wine from your cellar.He said you had a case he ordered.”He glances up, his grin quick and sharp.“I didn’t know I’d be saving you from indoor swimming.”
“I had it under control.”
“Sure you did.”He twists the wrench one last time, and the dripping slows, then stops.He sits back on his heels, wiping his hands on his jeans.“There.It won’t hold forever, but it’ll get you through until you can get someone in that can fix it properly.”
Relief floods me.I didn’t realize how close to tears I was until the sound of silence replaces the maddening drip-drip-drip.
“Thank you,” I say quietly.
His eyes soften.“Anytime, Lennie.”
We sit there for a moment, the air thick between us.My heart won’t settle.Because this is the Adam people don’t see.Not the reckless flirt, or the troublemaker.The man who shows up when things fall apart.The man who steadies me even when I don’t want to admit I need him.
He rises, offering me his hand.“Come on.Let’s get you out of those wet socks before you catch a cold or something.”
