Page 39 of Let Me Show You

“Yes, you are, and I’m grateful for it. I was just gonna say, I could help you with some of this, Katie. This is a huge project to undertake.”

“No, thank you. I don’t need your help. At least not anymore. When I did, you pushed me away, so I’m not taking your pity offer now.”

“It wasn’t a pity offer,” he says, then chuckles softly to himself. “You were always so damn stubborn. Should’ve known that’d never change.”

Narrowing my eyes, I’m over this conversation and want to get to work. “Follow me, I’ll show you the room.”

I open the door. By the expression on his face, I’m positive he’s in shock I actually have a liveable room in this house.

“This is really nice,” he admits, which is good to hear considering how long I’ve worked on it.

I ripped out the old carpet, repainted the walls, and installed crown molding around the ceiling. I still have a small list of things to finish here. The entire house still needs new windows and lighting fixtures.

“Where should I put my bed?” he asks, holding the air mattress bag.

I nod toward the opposite wall. “Probably best you stay away from the window since I don’t have any curtains in here.”

“Alright.” Noah walks over and sets it down with his small duffel bag.

“I packed some things for you too.”

“Really?” he asks, surprised.

“Yeah, they’re in my trunk. I grabbed some extra blankets and pillows, in case you needed them. I also have bottled water in a small cooler in case you get thirsty. There are paper plates in the kitchen, though, if someone brings you food or whatever.” My voice lingers, and now it’s awkward. “I’ll just go grab them.”

“Great, thank you again,” he says sincerely as he blows up the mattress.

I quietly make my way outside, and it feels like I’m gulping in the fresh air. It could be because I’ve been holding my breath since the moment he arrived. It takes me two trips to bring it all in. I take a moment to notice how muscular and fit he is as he arranges his area. When the pump stops, I clear my throat to get his attention.

“That’s all you have to eat?” I blurt when I notice his bag of snacks.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine. Don’t worry about me.”

“Alright well…I have a lot to do today, so I’m gonna get started,” I tell him as I bounce between my feet.

“Anything I can help you with?” He cocks a brow.

I inhale sharply, not wanting to snap again. “As I said before, I don’t want your help.”

“Well, you just said you had a lot to do, and I’m basically doing nothing, so…”

His arrogant smirk makes my blood boil. Yeah, he’s gonna stay out of my way, my ass.

“How about a quick house tour then?” he asks when I don’t respond.

I let out a sigh. “Fine, as long as you don’t make any more negative comments.”

“Deal.”

He follows me out of the bedroom, and I swear I can feel his eyes burning through me.

After I show him the guest bathroom, dining room, and living room, we make our way to the second floor, which is awkward as hell. Silence lingers other than the hum of a small space heater.

“This is a lot of house,” Noah finally says once we’re back downstairs. “But I see why you bought it. Has a lot of potential.”

“It really does,” I agree. “I envision myself growing old here and hopefully playing with my grandkids someday, but anyway, I really only get the weekends to work on it.”

“So no time to date then, I assume?” He crosses his arms as he moves closer.