Page 17 of Under the Radar

“I love it. You’re so talented.”

“Thank you.”

Silence fell, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. We ate and put away the food. “Dinner tomorrow is on me.”

“You will have worked all day.”

“You too,” I pointed out. “If I was on my own, I would cook, so it’s no big deal, Chase. Anything you hate?”

He made a face. “Liver and brussels sprouts. Salmon.”

“I can relate to both.” I nodded in sympathy. “Not a fan.”

He shuddered. “I agree.”

“If it’s nice, we could barbecue. I saw you had a grill.”

“Oh yeah. I’m good at grilling.”

“Then I’ll pick up something easy. Next week, we can figure out a plan going forward.”

“Sounds good.”

After dinner, Chase moved some boxes, his muscles flexing, showing off his tattoos.

“I like your ink,” I said without thinking.

He grinned. “Yeah? Thanks.”

“Is it, ah, all over…I mean, just on your arms?”

He pulled up his sleeve. “Both go to my shoulder. Stefano drew them for me. He’s really talented. He does a lot of the custom work at the garage. I told him what I was thinking, and he came up with these.”

“They are incredible.”

“Incredibly sexy,” I added in my head. I reached for a box, and he stopped me, chastising me sweetly over dragging my bed into my room when I got home from work. “Stop with the heavy lifting,” he ordered. “I’ll do it. You take a little one.”

I tried not to laugh at him. I was used to doing things on my own. I had to admit it was nice to have someone worrying about me, though.

I carried a couple of lighter boxes to my room, deciding to leave the furniture until the next day. The walls would be dry enough then; I could position it all the way I wanted.

I returned to the kitchen, where Chase added the last box to the pile. I poured us each a glass of water, and we sipped the cold liquid.

I rolled my shoulders, feeling the ache from the painting and moving the bed.

“Why don’t you have a bath?” Chase asked.

“My room only has a shower.”

“Mine has a soaker tub. You can use it. Relax for a bit and go to bed early.”

I smiled. “That would be awesome.”

He grinned. “I even cleaned it last week to show off the house. It was pretty dusty.”

“Not a tub guy?”

“No.”