All The Way (All Series Book 3) (5 page)

Mutual

If Brynn didn’t know better she would think Alec was avoiding her, except he really wasn’t. She had talked to him on the phone a few times this week, he texted her several times, and just now she got an instant message from him. Only she hadn’t seen him once.

It had been five days since their consultations and lunch. After that one really awkward moment when she mentioned having a big appetite for things in life, the rest of the lunch went by without a hitch. They switched topics back to work and kept it all above reproach.

Then they’d left and made their way to the last appointment of the day.

Arriving at the final house on their list, they found the homeowners took it upon themselves to start a demo of a bathroom and realized they had no clue what to do after that. The walls were all gone, the flooring ripped up, and there was no sink or tub, just a toilet. Most likely they put the toilet back so they could at least use that.

The homeowners were so impressed with everything Brynn was doing, her measurements, pictures and lists of finishes with prices, they agreed to a contract on the spot—even though Alec said it would be months before he could get to it. Score another one for her.

The only awkward moment there came when she was backing up to get a wide-angle picture and hadn’t realized Alec was behind her. She bumped into him, then tried to jump away just as quick and started to stumble. He reached out fast and grabbed her by the waist to steady her.

To the average person, it looked normal enough. Only it wasn’t. His hands on her waist were rough and callused, yet warm. And she knew because her shirt lifted slightly and he was touching her bare skin.

A tingling sensation ran through her at the touch, adding chilly goose bumps that spread across her arms and back. She’d bet there were several under his hand too.

He held her longer than was polite, almost as if he was shocked at the feelings himself. Then just as abruptly he let go of her and grabbed her shoulders to make sure she was steady, then stepped back.

Neither of them said a word after that, at least to each other. They talked with the homeowners, answered all their questions and gave them the estimate, then left shortly after.

The drive back to the office was quiet. Brynn was starting to feel uneasy, so to break the silence she tried to crack a joke. It was what he always seemed to do. “Thanks for catching me back there. That would have surely ruined our chances of the contract if I fell on their property by tripping over my own two feet.”

He looked over, startled, with his eyes opened more than normal. Then slowly, the brown irises started to dance, and his grin widened. She swore her breath caught in her throat, and damn it all if he didn’t notice it, but he held her stare. Thankfully they were sitting at a red light. He opened his mouth and said, “I’m good with my hands, no worries.”

Oh man. The worst thing he could have said, because she turned bright red right in his truck, and he noticed it.

***

Alec wasn’t trying to avoid the office, he really wasn’t. Nor was he trying to avoid Brynn. He was swamped, really swamped. One thing after another seemed to be going wrong this week. But anytime she needed something, he stopped what he was doing and answered her questions whether she called or texted him.

After all, it wasn’t like she bugged him often. Both Sean and Phil had commented on the same thing. She seemed to be finding her way around well, drumming up all sorts of business, and organizing things more efficiently than even Phil did, and that said a lot.

He was crazy Saturday for saying what he did before he dropped her back off at the office, only he couldn’t help it.

He’d spent the whole day with her and he could tell she was attracted to him. He would give her credit for trying to hide it, but she wasn’t doing a very good job at it. It didn’t seem like he was either, so he decided to go with it and throw a line out and see what happened. He’d always liked fishing, so why not? It was time to see what he caught.

When he tossed out the “I’m good with my hands” he knew he had her. Her eyes went right to them on the steering wheel and her face turned scarlet.

But now he didn’t know what to do. He’d thought about it all week long, too. Does he address it? Do they pretend it doesn’t exist? Or would it only make things more awkward? It seemed to him she was pretending like nothing had happened, and he was trying not to get irked that it might be one-sided after all.

One thing he realized this week was that there had to be a reason for his reaction to her. He finally stopped telling himself she wasn’t his type, because deep down he knew it was a lie. She was exactly his type…only he wasn’t sure what to do about it, other than explore their possibilities. Except he wasn’t sure if she would be open to anything since she was pretending indifference most of the time. At least he hoped she was pretending it.

He wished Phil were around to talk to him about it, but Phil had left for Manhattan today with Sophia and wouldn’t be back until sometime Sunday. Which was another reason why Alec was rushing this morning. He needed to get into the office.

Phil had been there all week, but obviously not today. And Alec was starting to feel bad he hadn’t shown up one day yet. So the least he could do was show up on a Friday afternoon to see how she was doing and if there were any problems. Not that she seemed to have any, or that Sean couldn’t handle them.

As a peace offering, he called Mary to place an order for sandwiches around the corner and he would treat the staff to lunch today, picking everything up on his way in.

He was balancing everything in both of his hands after he shut the door to his truck with his hip, when Brynn came rushing out. “Let me help you.”

“Thanks,” he said while she reached out and took the bag holding all the chips off the top. “Did Mary get drinks? That was the one thing I didn’t want to deal with.”

“Yes. We’re all set. This was nice of you. Do you do this often? Treat the whole office to lunch out of the blue?”

He shrugged. “We try to now and again. I guess it’s been a while. Things have been a bit crazy, but now that you’re here, it feels like we can breathe again.”

She smiled sweetly at him. “Thanks. I’m glad.”

So was he. Glad that she was here, that she was smiling at him, and that she was staring at him longer than manners dictated. She shook her head as if realizing that herself, rushed forward and opened the door, then followed him into the conference room where he laid the food down.

Not five minutes later, ten people were seated along the table eating, laughing and talking about their weekend plans. “How much more work do you have left on your flip, Alec?” Sean asked him.

“Not a ton, the kitchen and baths are done. It’s just taping and mudding the sheetrock, installing the rest of the flooring, and painting. It’s moving fast now.”

“Are you selling or renting? Did you decide yet?”

Alec looked away from Sean and over to Brynn to explain. “We buy a house to flip and I live in it while I’m rehabbing. Then once it’s done we either add it to the rental properties for income or sell it for a profit. Phil and I weren’t sure what to do with this house yet. It’s in an older part of the city, and we were leaning toward selling. Either way, we wanted your take on it once it’s done, since you know about real estate. Maybe you could do some research around the area and let us know your thoughts?”

“I would love to. I’d love to see it too, even right now. Heck, I’d love to help if I could.”

He opened his mouth and shut it, then opened it again. “What do you by mean help?”

“With the flip. That’s my dream,” she said, excitedly. “To buy a home and flip it myself. I actually was going to look around while I was here and see if anything caught my eye. I figured since I’m living in the model home for a year, it would give me plenty of time to work on a flip of my own. I miss getting my hands dirty.”

And there he went, over the last edge of reason. A beautiful woman who had the same interests as him,
and
one that wasn’t afraid to get dirty. Not that he doubted it, but so far she hadn’t really done anything other than take measurements. Now all that thinking about her this week and his reaction to her started to make even more sense, but he had to tread carefully.

Switching his mind back to work; he was sure she knew her stuff, but he hadn’t seen any work she’d done. Not physical work, that is. Maybe he could feel things out some more on her skill level. For work purposes, he tried to convince himself. It was just the perfect opening. “Anytime you want, just let me know. I could always use another set of hands.”

“I’ve got nothing but time on my hands. I could do it any time after work, or on the weekend.” She laughed, a little giddy sound escaping her lips. “I could help tonight. Not that I’m being overly eager.” Then she laughed again.

“Tonight works just fine.”

***

Six hours later, Alec was opening the door of his home to her. “Come on in. Excuse the mess,” he said.

But she looked around and didn’t see any mess. She expected one, except there was nothing. He obviously saved up all his organizational skills for the job site.

Following him through the front entry, she took note of the sheetrock all installed, but not taped or mudded yet. The floors were all missing, just plywood covering them now. “What are you doing for flooring?”

“Hardwood. Just haven’t decided on the shade yet. I’ve got a few samples here, maybe you can help me?” he suggested over his shoulder as he led her into the kitchen.

Wow, oh wow. It was stunning. Beautiful. A piece of art. White shaker cabinets, white and gray granite counters with a huge island and more cabinet space underneath. The floor was a lovely slate gray tile and the backsplash was a lighter gray subway tile. It was very clean and modern, but actually feminine just the same. “Stainless steel appliances?” she asked, since there were none in the kitchen right now.

“Yes. They’re on order and should be here next week. The first shipment was wrong.”

“You said you’re living here, right? How can you if you don’t have any appliances?”

“I don’t cook,” he said, laughing. “There is a mini fridge in the bedroom. That’s enough for me. I eat out, or at my parents’ or sister’s house most of the time.”

She nodded and followed him through the rest of the rooms that were bare, then into a half bath. It was tiny, but very modern and styled well. Nice and neutral, like the kitchen, actually. More grays and whites with a splash of black.

Then he led her upstairs. The bedrooms all looked like the rest of the rooms downstairs, bare, with recently installed sheetrock. “Are you doing hardwood up here too, or carpet?”

“I haven’t decided yet. I lean toward hardwood, figuring anyone could put a throw rug over it if they want.”

She nodded again. She’d always felt the same way. It was easier to cover up the hardwood if you wanted carpet than it was to rip up carpet and install the hardwood.

Next he showed her a full bath, this one done in creams and browns with a big tiled tub and shower unit and double sinks lining the wall. “The double sinks are nice for the main bath.”

“I always thought so. I hated fighting for sink time or space with my brothers growing up. Kaitlin had her own bathroom.”

“Brothers?” she asked.

“Yeah. Sorry, I thought you knew. My younger brother, Ben. He’s two years younger than me, four years older than Kaitlin.”

“What does he do?” she asked casually.

“He is the Director of Security at Albany Medical Center. His fiancée is a nurse. They met there.”

“Does he look like you?”

“I guess. Why?” he asked around a grin. “He’s taken.”

She smiled and shook her head. She liked this teasing side of him…liked it a lot. “Just curious. Kaitlin looks so much like you, and I was wondering if maybe Ben was the black sheep.”

“He’s the black sheep, all right, only not like you think. He used to be a Navy SEAL, but I guess you could say he is the most like me in personality, at least that’s what everyone says. Those that don’t really know Ben well, that is.”

“Why is that?”

“Ben’s funny. Always smiling and laughing, but he runs deep, very deep. Me, not so much. I’m the laid-back one in the bunch.” He shrugged again and then ushered her down the hall to the master suite. She wouldn’t bet on that. She’d bet Alec Harper ran deeper than most people would ever imagine, even though she would agree with his laid-back assessment.

After opening the door to the master suite, her eyes landed on the bed. Suddenly she realized that this wasn’t just a house he was flipping, this was
his
home, and that was
his
bed that he slept in every night.

He cleared his throat, and her eyes flew to his. Caught, she knew it, but she pretended like it didn’t happen, just like she’d been doing for weeks. “It’s nice and big in here. Lots of natural light.” She turned to the door on the left and walked forward, asking, “Do you mind?”

“No, go ahead. It’s the walk-in closet. Check it out.”

She opened the door and tried not to groan. He was a slob, no way around it. Things were hung up, but they were half on and half off hangers, nothing was folded neatly. There wasn’t a lot on the floor, but it was enough. And nothing was lined up just right—not the way she liked things. She did notice his bed was made, but barely, like he ran in the door and pulled the comforter up fast.