“Sorry.” His self-effacing smirk was a change from the grim dad I’d met with. The whole day, he’d been a different person. Casual. Lighter. Last night too. “I was going to put everything back when I finished.”
“It’s not a problem. I just like…order.”
He flashed a quick smile, and I had to skate my gaze away. He wore simple jeans, cowboy boots, and a tight gray T-shirt with sweat stains. Manly sweat stains. Not like mine. I looked like I should get my blood pressure checked. Maybe have my cholesterol tested.
“I imagine it’s necessary when working with all those kids.”
Shock swept through me. My ex had complained about my need for a calm home when work could be chaotic. “Well, in a way. Mostly because my classroom can get disorderly, I like to come home and have everything in its spot. Simple. No thought. Then, when I’m at work, I can let the chaos go.”
He brushed his forehead with the back of his arm. The guy made pit sweat sexy too, though his bronzed forearms and biceps stole the show. And the way his abdomen tapered into his hips and his jeans hung low?—
“Makes sense.”
He was watching me. And I was ogling him. The corners of his eyes crinkled. HeknewI found him attractive. Not like it was a surprise. Not many people said,You know that Tate Bailey? He should take some care with his appearance.
I’d had that said about me enough.
“My ex used to have a hard time when Chance was a baby. She was used to traveling and doing her own thing on her own schedule, and you can’t do that with a baby.”
“Chance took it hard, didn’t he?”
He nodded, his throat working. “Harder than I thought. I mean, Tamera loves him, don’t get me wrong. But she knew I was the better full-time parent. I knew it too.”
“Kids aren’t so matter of fact.” I toed the half-empty gas can into its spot. The fumes briefly blocked out his fresh mountain air scent. Was that an aftershave, or was even his smell that good?
“Exactly. Listen, I’ll put the ladder and tools away, then do you mind going to Canyon Grill early?”
My heart stopped. Of course he wanted to cut the date short?—
“Then we can go for a walk by the river or something.”
Happiness coursed through me, but also…chagrin. Of course he wasn’t squirming out of things. His sisters always said he was a man of his word. “Sure.”
I needed another shower and then to stress for a good hour about what I would wear since I’d perspired all over my current clothing. I hadn’t wanted to change when he’d started working and have him think I’d been ready since dawn.
“Do you want to come back and pick me up?”
“Nah.” This grin was different. It was sly. Sexy. “But I do need to use your bathroom to shower. I brought a change of clothes.”
“What?” Tiny sparks from neurons imploding flashed in the periphery. A naked Tate would be in my shower? Using my soap? Wiping that strong body off withmytowels?
Not once had I considered never washing an item of clothing because a man had touched it, but I could make my bathroom a shrine to the unattainable man. The unicorn. A man who was hot, considerate, and nude in my bathroom.
His smile widened. “It’s no problem, right? With the half-hour drive to my place and then back, I didn’t want to waste an hour and a half of our time today.”
He could go to Autumn’s. She also lived on her family’s land, but closer. Hell, their parents lived closer than him too.
There was no reason to say no to his requestexcept for self-preservation. My decor streamed through my mind. My decorations were all well and good when I was single. But they’d been a point of contention with more than one ex who lacked a sense of humor.
He waited for my answer, but the wordyeswas stuck in my throat. “I, uh, need to get cleaned up too.” As if that’d get him to offer to go to Autumn’s instead.
He sobered. “You look great, Scarlett. You really do.”
Uh-huh. Tate didn’t have to be a player to plow through women’s hearts. And I wasn’t willing to cost him a few gallons of gas after he’d done hours of work for me when I had an available, albeit embarrassing, bathroom.
“Okay. Um, I need to change and wash up. Why don’t I do that while you’re picking up out here?”
He propped his hands on his hips and it made his chest impossibly wider. “Why doesn’t it seem like you take compliments well?”
