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“That sucks.”
“Well, we’re here now. Hopefully, Dakota will bring us in again. This is the kind of work we love getting involved in.”
We went back inside, and Damon gave me a few pointers—though I was doing little more than hauling out debris and bringing in supplies.
I stayed busy for the next hour, working up a sweat. It was good work, though. Important. I liked knowing my labor was going to something bigger than me. That it wasn’t just busy work to earn a paycheck, but a meaningful effort to make life better for someone.
Someone like Dakota.
I wished, fruitlessly, that I could have been there to do this for her. But this was the next-best thing. To pay it forward to someone else.
Once the demo was done, Damon asked me to bring in the cabinets. “We could have custom built these in the house, but Dakota says they’re already behind schedule, so prefab it is.”
We carried the larger cabinet in together, then I went back outside to grab the smaller unit alone while Damon got started on installation. I picked up the box, backing away from the truck. The ground was uneven, and I stumbled a step, my hand slipping.
The box tipped toward the ground. Shit! I couldn’t wreck this too!
“No!” I lurched forward, trying to get a better grip, but it wasn’t working. The cabinet tilted toward the ground. “Damn it!”
“I got it,” a familiar voice called.
Kit stepped into view, his hand shooting out to catch the bottom corner of the cabinet.
I froze, muscles locking up as I stared into his blue-green eyes. He must have been walking along the far side of the truck. I hadn’t seen him coming.
“Let’s get this inside, huh?” He took a step forward, still holding one end of the box, nudging me toward the house.
“I didn’t know you’d be here,” I said, hating how thin my voice sounded.
He adjusted his hold as he took the steps up backwards. He was strong and graceful, because of course he was. Kit was pretty much my idea of the perfect guy. You know, except for the part where he hated my guts.
“I come when I can,” he said. “Had a work meeting.”
“On a Saturday?”
“Yep.”
He didn’t elaborate, and my cheeks heated. Of course, he didn’t want to make conversation the way Damon had. He wasn’t here to be my friend.
Damon glanced over from where he was screwing another cabinet into place. “Oh, hey, you found a friend.”
“This is Dakota’s brother,” I said quickly before Kit decided to tell Damon exactly why we weren’t friends.
“Oh, no kidding? Well, nice to meet you. Your sister is something else.”
Kit chuckled. “Believe me, I know. She giving you hell?”
“Nah, she’s just keeping us on task.”
“Sounds about right.”
Kit grinned, and my breath stuttered. It had been so long since I’d seen that smile, but damn, I’d missed it. It was a gorgeous sight.
I must have made a noise. Kit turned toward me, smile falling away. “Let’s get back to work.”
We silently brought in all the cabinetry, hardware, and appliances for the kitchen while Damon did the installation. Dakota returned to check on our progress, smiling when she saw me and Kit.
“Hey, guys, are you two playing nice?”
