Page 60 of A Touch of Fire
“Well, you’re a natural with them.”
“They’re good listeners. I just try to listen back.”
Troy watched her gentleness as she folded back into herself with his praise, unsure of what to say or how to act. Her shyness was still there along with her stutter—a part of her but one she had worked to hide from the world.
Since there were no more treats, the horses ambled off to graze as the morning sun crested over the mountains. The view was peaceful but far more beautiful with Megan in it. As the sun hit her hair, bringing out all of the different colors as it moved on the breeze almost with a life of its own, his breath caught in his chest at how in this moment, for once he had no thought of the past or the future. All he needed was to stay here in the present and appreciate the beauty around him.
A rumbling of a distant truck broke the soft birdsong.
“Looks like the flooring is here,” Megan said, turning to him with a smile.
“Good, I was hoping to get your opinion.”
“Did you go with the one I liked?”
“Sure did, so all of the credit and all of the blame is yours.”
“Oh God,” she said as she laughed. “I hope I didn’t disappoint. I can’t wait to see it.”
“Do you have any other plans for today?”
Troy smiled when Megan shook her head.
“Good, because I didn’t order installation, so I may need an extra hand.”
“Seriously?”
“You don’t have to if you don’t want to, but seeing as you did pick it out—Ow!” he said in mock pain when she smacked his arm with a grin.
“The only experience I have with flooring is walking on one.”
“You’re hired,” he said and grinned when she laughed again.
Two hours later, Troy was on his knees trying not to bash his thumb again like he had several times each time he got distracted by Megan bending over. The floor was easy enough once they got going and sorted through all of the directions. Since it was a laminate, it was going to float over the vapor barrier without any glue or thin-set.
Megan had proven to be a huge help and a quick study. Once they had centered the room with the chalk line and got the first few pieces together, they had made quick work and had most of the center of the room finished. The progress would slow down when they needed to cut the edges, but still it felt good to see the project coming together.
“I told you it would look good,” Megan had said with a smile when they laid out the first few pieces, and she hadn’t been wrong. It was just the right shade with the right amount of grain to show off the history of the house while keeping the space fresh.
After a full morning, it was early afternoon by the time the floor was in, and Megan was starting to sweep up after all of the cuts were made. Troy dusted off his hands before he walked back in.
“That’s the last of the trash.”
“Perfect. Let me just finish up here with this dustpan. You got the other trashcan?”
“Right here.” He brought it over and helped her make quick work of the last of the dust from their cuts before they stood back to admire their work.
“It really does look incredible.”
The sun came streaming in through the new windows, bouncing off the fresh coat of paint, letting the floor shine. But none of that was what captured his attention.
He shifted until he was behind her, cupping her hair and tucking it out of the way around her shoulders before he began to knead the knots that were forming in her strong back.
Megan let out a sound that nearly undid him. She pressed herself back against him, letting him take some of her weight.
The side of her neck, exposed without her hair, invited him to leave a trail of kisses up and down the smooth column of her perfect skin.
It wasn’t long before his hands moved to her arms, stomach, and other places.