Page 22 of Nailing Studs

“Door’s still locked,” I said, pretending like that was the reason we were both still standing there.

“I know.” And yet his hands did not move to unlock the truck.

“Is there a reason we’re not getting into the truck?” I asked, tucking a hair behind my ear partially because the wind tugged at it and partially because I could not have been more nervous under his gaze.

“Taylor thinks we should do this,” he said, ignoring my question. “He thinks it’s a good idea.”

I frowned. “I’m assuming you mean this house proposal. Are you not convinced?”

“I wasn’t. And then I was. And now….” He gnawed on his lip like he was pondering some great, unknown question.

Wait—did he mean he didn’t want to work on my house, or was he talking about something entirely different? “Look,” I said, still slightly confused, “if you don’t want to do the reno—”

“I think it’s dangerous,” Dom interrupted, his voice dark and low. “I think it could be very, very dangerous.”

His words made my stomach flip. The way the word “dangerous”slipped from his lips, oh, I wanted to hear it again and again and again. But I also wanted to understand what we were talking about here. Because this intensity could not be about replacing crown molding and rewiring a kitchen.

“Someone could get hurt,” he continued, suddenly moving in closer to me.

“Like falling off a ladder?” My voice was nothing but a whisper. I wasn’t even sure he heard it over the slight breeze.

“Not exactly,” he said with a hint of asmile. He stepped forward and twisted his finger around the strand of hair I’d tucked behind my ear. He pressed one hand against the window and for a moment, I thought he would kiss me.

“And you’re not sure if I—if my house is worth the risk?”

He shook his head. “Not your house. You. We knew from the moment we laid eyes on you, you were worth the risk,” he whispered, his face inches from mine.

Oh, we were most definitely not talking about the renovation job any more.

I gasped when he leaned forward, invading my personal space, his scent permeating my senses. “We want to work on your house, Kayla. But more than that, we want to spend more time with you.” He pushed his key into the door’s lock, then, right as I thought he was about to kiss me, he winked and disappeared around to his side, leaving my lungs burning and my knees ready to give way.

What was that? What the hell was that?

I paused with my hand on the door handle before climbing inside when something struck me.

Wait. Had Dom said… “we”?

8

Kayla

As I slid into the seat, a million question marks fluttered through my mind. I was silent for the first few moments as Dom started the engine and then peeled out of the parking lot and onto the main road. I knew he was shooting me looks, but I kept my focus on the road ahead. And on breathing.

Finally, Dom’s voice broke the silence. “You look a little stunned, Kayla. You doing okay?”

I wasn’t sure how to answer—fake it? Tell him the truth? But the memory of Tabitha getting stung by the bee came back to me and I knew I was done forever with answering Fine.

I heaved a deep breath and plunged forward. “You said ‘we,’ when normally a guy tells you he wants to spend time with you. It seems a little weird, you speaking on Taylor’s behalf, almost as if you and he are…I don’t know…one unit?”

He blew out a sharp breath. “Look, it’s clear that both Taylor and I are attracted to you. I saw you and Taylor locked in a moment when you were in your towel. Drove me nuts, because you had a moment with me, too.”

I swallowed. Well, he was right there. When he’d looked at me back at the house, I couldn’t help the way my body had reacted, and he saw it right through my shirt.

Dominic went on. “All I meant was that working on your house would give us both the chance to hang around you more, get to know you better. And we’re hoping that once you get to know us better, you might want more than just a professional relationship. With Taylor. With me. Maybe even with…both of us.”

Wow. Talk about laying it all out there. In a few sentences, he’d acknowledged the physical attraction between me and him, and me and Taylor, and indicated they both wanted to…what?...date me while they renovated the house?

Yeah, I’d go with that for now. They wanted to date me.