Chapter 19—Wolfe
Wolfe worked to builda holder for the half-dozen extension cords in his possession.They were neatly stacked in the corner of his one-car garage that served more as a workshop than anything, but the cords needed to be organized.
Hell, maybe he didn’t need that many extension cords.He wasn’t a full-time contractor; he was a professional hockey player for fuck’s sake.
The dark clouds rolling over the mountains to the west marked another typical summer day filled with an afternoon shower or lightning storm in Colorado.The angry-colored clouds matched Wolfe’s mood, that was for certain.Bach’sToccata and Fugue in D Minorripped through the speaker mounted in the garage and paralleled his foul attitude with its powerful notes blasting from the organ.
He just didn’t get Aspen, or the financial hole she seemed to be stuck in.He could help.He offered to help and yet she continued to decline his proposals.
Her unwillingness to allow Wolfe to help when he had the means to provide her financial assistance formed a wedge between them.
Wolfe thought back to the argument they had after another round of incredible sex.Her obstinance at accepting his monetary help poked at him until his own frustration burst forth.In a moment where they should have been touching and tasting and preparing for round two, they were both blustering and jockeying for position.And not sexual positions.
It seemed so senseless that the only help she would accept from him was in the form of the small handyman tasks he’d completed around the shop.He already had the name of an HVAC specialist to replace her pitiful air conditioning unit with a newer model.A unit that would maximize energy efficiency and save her money in the long run, but the boss baker wouldn’t budge from her stance of not accepting his financial help.
He still couldn’t define where they were on the relationship scale.Did off-the-chart sex and hanging out constitute as a full-blown relationship?Casual, friends-with-benefits, quasi-dating?
This entire situation involved a scenario Wolfe had never faced.All he knew was that he wanted, no needed, to make things easier for Aspen but she wouldn’t budge.
Stubborn woman.
He wasn’t being a dick about it.Providing her with some capital so she had firmer ground on which to stand with her business meant little to his bottom line.Damn, he’d blown thirty-grand during a Vegas weekend when a teammate turned twenty-one a couple of years ago.
Was it so hard for her to accept that he just wanted to make her life a little easier?
Yes, they’d dropped the debate quicker than a hot potato the other day, each of them retreating to their respective corners as to not upset this growing and undefined thing between them.
Wolfe was an extreme competitor and always won, so he’d figure out a way to get what he wanted in this scenario.In fact, he’d been researching some statewide grants for women business owners and planned to apply on BB’s behalf.There was no way she would turn down a grant if she was awarded the money.
His phone rang, pausing the building finale of one of Bach’s finest pieces and interrupting his grand plans.
BB’s contact displayed on his phone.
“Hey, BB.What’s up?”
“Hi, Connor,” she seemed hesitant in her response.“I was wondering if you were around.I have something for you.Would you mind if I stopped by?”
Her tone was totally out of character for his—was she his?— bold, wild-haired woman, who tried to dictate all of the playground rules.But what confounded him was the notion she wanted to stop by.
Women didn’t come to his house.Ever.
His teammates didn’t come to his house.Ever.Not even Dante.
