“Why do I get the feeling there’s an except coming?” she prodded.
One side of his mouth twitched. “Maybe because there is.”
“And what is it?”
He turned so his back faced the table, and he was staring at the wall behind her. He shoved his hands into his pockets and breathed out a heavy breath. “I think I like fixing things.”
“How do you mean?”
Marcus pressed his lips together and breathed in a deep, settling sort of breath. “Like here. For Nora. I like fixing things around the house. I might not be great at it, but I know there’s potential there. It’s hard to explain.”
“No, it’s not. I understand completely.” Wynter placed a hand on his forearm. “And I think you’re right.”
His focus slid from where she touched him up to her face. He stared at her expectantly.
“That furnace? The plumbing. You might have to look up a few videos to get you started, but you’ve been fixing a lot of stuff that I know I wouldn’t be able to. You have a knack for it. Maybe you should consider going into that line of work.”
He scoffed.
“What?” She laughed. “You’d be good at it, and with some training…”
“Mateo would never want me to do that.”
“What does Mateo have to do with this?”
Marcus opened his mouth, then shut it just as quickly. “Nothing.”
“No. None of that. What does your brother have to do with any of this? It’s your life. Your career. You get to decide what you want to do with it.”
He watched her for what felt like an eternity, and just when she thought he was going to answer her, he lifted a hand and swiped his thumb across the corner of her mouth. She went stock still, waiting, not knowing what to expect next.
“Frosting,” Marcus whispered.
Hot, searing, Marcus’s touch lingered on her skin long after he’d pulled away. It almost felt reminiscent of the time he’d kissed her all those years ago. Worst of all, the heat from his gentle touch was still spreading through her body. She felt the need to move closer, to lean in and…
What, exactly?
Allow herself to explore something she’d told herself over and over was a bad idea?
Yep. That’s exactly what she wanted to do.
And she knew it was only a matter of time before she fell completely under his spell.
13
MARCUS
“How did it go?”
Marcus sent a disgruntled look toward Jason as he came around the counter and placed an Italian sub in front of him. “What do you think? She’s still got her walls up.”
“It’s not going to happen overnight. Just ask my brother.” Jason nodded to the other guy at the table. They looked similar enough that Marcus had assumed as much. This was the first time he’d been introduced to the doctor.
Mathew Klein was as tall as Jason, reaching about six feet. But he wasn’t as built. Where Jason had to maintain a certain physique when he helped out at the ranch, it was clear that Mathew only needed to remain as fit as an ER doctor needed to be. They both had dirty-blond hair and blue-gray eyes. There was something about the duo that practically drew others in. Marcus couldn’t put his finger on it. All he knew was that themore time he spent with Jason, the more he wanted to trust the guy implicitly.
Mathew nodded, taking a sip of his water. “It doesn’t matter if it’s a guy or a girl. People tend to shield themselves from hurt. If Wynter has put up walls, then it’s because she believes that something is going to happen. Something she may or may not survive.”
Marcus shook his head. “There’s no reason for her to believe that. If anything, it should be me who tries to put a protective wall around my heart. I’m the one who got left high and dry. I’m the one who was hurt.”
