Stop it. You don’t need this, he told himself. And Lottie definitely doesn’t need you. She was made for fun, laughter. Spontaneity. A guy who wore a pair of jeans like they were second nature. Not a flaming stuffed shirt, as Amy had so aptly pointed out.
The moment they walked into his office, Lottie turned to him. ‘I’m sorry about that. It must have sounded like I wanted to get you alone – which I did, but not, you know, for any dodgy reason.’
‘Dodgy?’ He had to laugh. ‘You mean like you want to raid the safe, or…’ He let the sentence trail, knowing if he put a voice to the images that had played in his head, she’d be out of the door like a shot.
Her gaze dropped to his mouth. ‘I believe it was the or.’
Christ. The temperature in his office shot up and Matt didn’t know where to look, or what to say. If he didn’t feel so scarred by his marriage, so uncertain what he could offer, he’d take a step towards her. Place his hands on her shoulders. Pull her towards him and give her exactly what it looked like she might want. What he definitely wanted.
But he wasn’t a guy who had casual sex. And he wasn’t sure he could offer Lottie anything else right now.
‘So, anyway.’ Lottie seemed to shake herself. ‘I just wanted to say I’ve known Shaun a long time. We were at college together. He’s a first-rate plumber but also a really good guy.’ She looked earnestly at him. ‘I know you felt the same sparks between them that I did, and I wanted to ask you not to be put off by Shaun’s tattoos and cocky humour. He’s a complete softie when it comes to women. Amy would be in good hands if he asked her out.’
Okay, so the wanting to kiss him had clearly all been in his head. ‘You think I’m that judgemental?’ he asked, stung.
Her cheeks flushed. ‘No, that’s not what I meant. I just… I could see you getting into big-brother mode and I wanted to reassure you, that’s all.’
Great. Now he’d managed to piss her off. He drew in a breath, forced his scattering emotions to calm. ‘Sorry.’ Rubbing a hand across his face, he gave her a weak smile. ‘What you saw was me worrying how to be a big brother. I hadn’t got as far as worrying about Shaun.’
‘Oh.’ She looked confused. ‘I assumed you and Amy were close. I mean, she works with you, she lives with you.’ She smiled. ‘You bicker like siblings.’
He did not want to talk about this. Personal conversation was hard enough, but talking about his mistakes to a woman he liked?
His expression must have given him away because she waved a hand. ‘None of which is any of my business. So I’ll leave you in peace.’
As she turned to go, Matt felt a tug of acute disappointment. A few minutes ago he’d contemplated kissing her. Now they were back to mere acquaintances. ‘We lost touch for a long while.’ She halted, a puzzled expression on her face, so he added, ‘Amy and I.’
‘Ah, I see.’ Her feet shifted and she smiled at him. ‘In which case I’m sure you’ll find that bond again. I mean, you both clearly want it to work, or you wouldn’t be living and working together.’
Her words made sense, but Lottie didn’t know the whole picture. That Amy was here not through choice, but through lack of choice. ‘Maybe trying to do both is part of the problem.’ Matt shook the unhelpful thought away. He’d focus on Amy later. For now, he wanted to get back on track with the woman who made him feel, made him want, like he hadn’t in a long time. ‘You owe me a slice of pizza, by the way.’ He didn’t usually eat it – too many carbs – but it was worth it for the excuse to have her pop back.
Her eyes flared with surprise. ‘So I do. I’ll bring one round if there’s any left.’
Better, he thought as he watched her leave. Mere acquaintances didn’t share pizza. Now, if he could just stop thinking about kissing her, maybe they could move on to being friends.
Chapter Ten
The pizza had been eaten – and yes, she’d given a slice to Matt. The man she’d as good as admitted she wanted to jump half an hour ago.
Lottie cringed at the memory as she helped clear the plates from the coffee table. For a second she’d thought he wanted the same, but then his guard had come up again. All part of the mixed signals he kept giving out.
Time to stop making a twit of herself, she decided. She’d given him two openings now, and he’d turned them both down. Which was actually a good thing, because she was used to easy and straightforward … she liked easy and straightforward. Her family, her friends, Henry, they were open books. Matthew Steele had complicated written all over his darkly handsome face. Just coming through the other side of a broken heart, she did not need that in her life.
‘So Amy, what did you think?’ Sally asked as she bundled a sleepy Freddie into his pram. ‘Are you going to join us every month or did Audrey and her gin scare you off?’
Lottie watched as Amy gave Sally a shy smile. ‘I enjoyed it. Nearly as much as Heidi’s lemon drizzle cake.’
Heidi chuckled. ‘Thank you, dear. Baking is keeping me sane. It’s just a shame these meetings are only monthly. So many cakes, not enough people to eat them.’
Amy frowned and looked like she was about to say something, but then she shook her head.
‘All fixed.’ Toolbox in hand, Shaun swaggered into the café in that cocky way he had that made Lottie roll her eyes. People often wondered if the pair of them were more than friends, but she’d never felt the tingle. Not like she’d felt with Henry. Not like you feel with Matt.
Crap, she really had to stop thinking about him that way.
Speaking of tingles … Shaun looked at Amy, who glanced away, a smile hovering over her lips. ‘That’s amazing, thanks.’
‘Amazing.’ He grinned. ‘I’ll take that.’
Lottie watched as Amy tried to overcome her shyness enough to look Shaun in the eye. ‘How much do we owe you?’
‘I’ll pop in tomorrow with the invoice.’ He winked at her. ‘Be a good excuse to see you again.’
As Amy blushed all the way to her hairline Matt appeared from around the corner. He slowed his pace when he saw them, clearly not expecting such a crowd still. His gaze latched onto Amy, then Shaun. ‘Have you managed to sort the problem?’
‘Yep, I’ve left the dishwasher going through the quick-wash cycle. Reckon it’s got about ten minutes left.’
‘Great.’
Matt shoved his hands in his pockets, a gesture Lottie was starting to understand meant he felt uncomfortable. It was clear he wanted to ask about the bill but didn’t want to step on Amy’s toes again.
Amy read her brother’s unspoken message. ‘He’s bringing the bill in tomorrow.’
‘Okay, good.’
For a few seconds, there was an awkward silence due to the tension between Amy and Matt, maybe also the presence of Matt. He might have discarded the suit, but he still conveyed an air of formality; the boss rather than one of the team.
‘Ah, it’s the boss man.’ Audrey, who’d been chatting away to Gira, either didn’t feel the tension, or didn’t give two hoots about it. ‘Have you changed your mind about coming to our little book club yet?’ She glanced around her. ‘What do you think, ladies? A male point of view might be interesting.’ She winked. ‘Especially for the sexy bits.’
Matt’s big brown eyes widened and Lottie stifled a grin. Way to clear the atmosphere, Audrey. Bring up sex again.
‘I don’t believe I would be much help,’ Matt said slowly, as if carefully picking out his words. ‘I’m more into … doing than talking about it.’
Audrey boomed out a laugh. ‘Aren’t we all, dear. Even those of us considered well past our sell-by date.’
Matt’s discomfort was obvious. It wasn’t just the rigid expression, or the stiff set of his shoulders. His whole aura screamed, Floor, please swallow me up, yet so far he hadn’t made an excuse to leave. Maybe she was wrong, but she sensed, in his own way, he was trying to bond with them, even though he was clearly ill at ease doing it.
‘There’s no age limit to having sex.’ Hands still in
his pockets, Matt gave Audrey a small smile. ‘It’s a question of finding the right partner. As it is for all of us,’ he added quietly. Then looked straight at Lottie.
Boom. Her belly swooped and her heart banged against her ribs. Was he thinking, suggesting …? Before she could ask the question of herself, Heidi chipped in with a ‘Well said’ and Matt averted his eyes, the moment broken.
The next few minutes were a flurry of activity. Chairs were moved back, plates washed, the dishwasher emptied, goodbyes said. Finally, it was just Lottie and Amy left in the café.
‘I hope you’ll stay and join us next month, too,’ Lottie said as she placed the last glass back in the cupboard. ‘It’s been lovely having another face round the coffee table.’
‘Thanks, I’d like that.’ Amy started to giggle. ‘Audrey’s such a hoot. I thought Matt was going to bust a blood vessel when she started talking sex to him. He’s like, so serious most of the time now. It’s weird.’
Suddenly all the lights when out and the café went dark. A split second later a muffled curse came from the back of the shop where Matt must have disappeared to.
‘Oops.’ Amy winced. ‘He’s not going to be happy.’
Lottie stifled a sigh. Typical. She was convinced Amy had been about to tell her a bit more about her brother. ‘Probably just a fuse. I’ll go and check it out.’ She switched on the torch light on her phone and waited as Amy did the same. ‘Look, there’s no need for you to hang about if you don’t want. I’ll tell Matt you’ve gone home.’
‘Are you sure? I mean, he is my brother. I should go and help.’
‘True.’ She winked. ‘But I’m an electrician.’
Amy’s eyes widened. ‘For real?’
‘Yep, so off you go. He’s in safe hands.’
‘Thanks. He’s grumpy enough with me. I could do without walking back with him.’
Lottie wanted to tell Amy she believed her brother was annoyed with himself, not her, but it wasn’t any of her business.
‘Everyone okay?’ Matt’s voice drifted over as they made their way towards the front door.
His question was followed by a thud and then another curse. Amy looked at her questioningly and Lottie mouthed at her to go.
‘It’s just me,’ she shouted as she closed the door behind Amy. ‘I told Amy to go home. Where’s your fusebox?’
‘That’s what I’m trying to find.’
Using her phone-torch, she picked her way through the deserted shop, trying not to focus on how intimate it felt, just her and Matt. Alone in the dark. As she turned past a bookshelf, suddenly there he was, his face illuminated by his own phone. A slow smile spread across his face when he saw her. ‘Hi.’
It was a strange thing to say, considering they’d seen each other several times already this evening, yet maybe he was feeling this intimacy, too. ‘Hi back.’
He laughed quietly, dragging a hand down his face. ‘Sorry, the dark must be getting to me. No fusebox on the walls. It might be in the office.’
‘What were you doing when the lights went off?’
He nodded to the switch on the back wall. ‘Turning that off.’
Together they searched the office, finding the fusebox on the wall behind the door. Immediately she scanned the switches. ‘This has no place in a business. It should be in a museum. Didn’t it come up on the survey when you bought the shop?’ She flashed the light in his direction and when she saw him staring at her, she realised he had no clue what she did for a living. ‘Ah, you’re wondering why I’m slagging off your electrics.’
‘I’m curious, yes.’
‘I’m a sparky.’ When he didn’t reply, just kept looking at her, she added, ‘You know, an electrician.’
Matt knew he was gawping but he couldn’t help it. Lottie had been coming to his place for a few months, yet only now he was finding out she was an electrician? It didn’t say much for his vow to immerse himself more in the community when he couldn’t even manage basic conversation with the woman who spent several hours a month in his shop.
A woman he found incredibly attractive. One he’d nearly kissed not that long ago.
‘You look surprised,’ she commented dryly as she fiddled with the switches.
He shook himself. ‘Sorry, yes, I suppose I am.’
‘I get that all the time.’
There was a slight edge to her voice and he could only imagine how difficult it must be to be a pretty blonde in what many still considered to be a man’s world. ‘My surprise wasn’t so much the job you do,’ he clarified. ‘More that we’ve known each other for several months and I’m only now finding it out.’
She glanced sideways at him. ‘Neat catch.’
‘It’s also true.’ He perched on the desk, watching as she examined the fusebox. There was something about the dark that made it easier to talk. ‘Why an electrician?’ She raised an eyebrow and he let out a sharp laugh. ‘I guess that’s a sexist question, as I probably wouldn’t ask it of a man, but I’m fascinated.’ By you, he could have added, but caution and self-preservation held him back. ‘I have no useful skills at all. I can’t change a plug.’
‘With a surname like mine, what else could I be?’
He tried to recall the email she’d sent. ‘Watt?’ She nodded, a smile playing around her mouth. ‘Very good, but that’s your glib answer. I was hoping for the real answer.’
For a moment she looked taken aback and he worried he’d offended her, but then she huffed out a breath. ‘Honestly, I’m not sure. I hated school. I was probably a bad student, or so I kept being told, so there was no way I was going to spend any more years being lectured to by teachers who’d basically written me off. And I couldn’t stand the idea of being cooped up in an office. I needed something practical where I could be out and about, and where I could meet people because, as you know, I love a good chat. Plus, I was a tomboy, so the idea of doing something that guys usually did was quite a hook.’ She paused for what Matt thought was a much-needed breath. ‘Mainly though, while I was still deciding what to do, I joined a book club and one of the books we read had a really cool blonde heroine who happened to be an electrician.’ A fond smile tilted her mouth at the memory. ‘Sure, I was blonde, but I certainly wasn’t cool. Still, the group decided that was the job for me.’
‘Hence your interest in book clubs.’ When she looked confused, he added, ‘It helped you find your path.’
‘Funny, I’d not thought of it like that. Mainly, I think book clubs are important because they showed me how to enjoy books. I hated reading when I was at school.’ She screwed up her face. ‘I remember trying to wade through Of Mice and Men and totally missing whatever deep meaning the teacher reckoned was behind the words. But then when I left school I worked in this coffee shop that hosted a monthly book club. I was supposed to be serving customers but when the club met I used to hang around at the back of the café where they sat, pretending to clear tables when actually I was listening in. I couldn’t figure out how they could be so excited, just talking about books.’
‘Watching you all in action, I would say you know now.’
She laughed. ‘Yeah. I found out it was all about finding the right book.’ The light from her phone bounced round the office as she pushed the fusebox door shut. ‘I need to look at that light switch. I don’t suppose you’ve got a screwdriver around here?’
‘The guy I bought the shop from—’
‘Larry.’
Of course she knew his name. ‘Yes, Larry left a few things in the store cupboard. I think there was a toolbox.’ He backed up and opened the door opposite the study. Right at the back he found the rusty old toolbox. ‘Here… Oooph.’ He hadn’t realised she’d followed him. For a few humming seconds they stood nose to nose in the dark. Maybe because he couldn’t really see her, just the shadows provided by the light from the phone-torches, suddenly he was acutely aware of how sexy she smelt. A hint of orange and something else, maybe ginger? Whatever it was, it was playing havoc with his system
.
Then again, that could be down to the soft press of her breast against his arm.
His body began to kick into life and he stepped back, stunned. No. This was bad timing. Maybe when he was more settled, more certain of what he could offer. And when his dad and Amy were happier. Swallowing hard, he handed her the toolbox. ‘Hopefully you’ll find what you need in here.’
He wasn’t sure whether to be pleased or worried that she looked as unbalanced as he did. ‘Thanks.’ She settled it on the floor and crouched down to look inside. ‘Bingo.’ Raising a small screwdriver aloft, she nodded to him. ‘Can you shine the light from your phone at the switch?’
He did as instructed and she immediately set about removing the cover from the light switch.
It felt odd, watching her work. The testosterone in him wanted to be the one doing the fixing, yet he was in awe of the deft way she dealt with the wires she revealed, very much aware he wouldn’t know where to start.
‘Those teachers were wrong.’
She looked up, surprise crossing her face. ‘Thanks. I like to think so, but it’s too early to say yet.’
He nodded to the wires. ‘Not from where I’m standing.’ For a few beats there was silence and it surprised him that he was the one to break it. ‘So how’s the book club coming along?’
She let out a small laugh. ‘I guess that depends on your definition of what a good book club should look like. If Eve were to come… She’s the woman who runs the library book club—’
‘The one you left,’ he interrupted. ‘If I recall correctly, you went on to accost a poor bookshop owner and demand a refund for an unread book.’
Briefly he shifted the focus of the light from the switch, to her face. His reward was a fully illuminated sight of her laughter. ‘True, but I did spend the refund in his shop.’
‘Also true.’ From that day on, he realised, he’d been entranced by her.
‘Anyway, Eve would have a hissy fit at how we’re running the club. The booze, the choice of book, the lack of focus.’
The Beach Reads Book Club: The most heartwarming and feel good summer holiday read of 2021! (The Kathryn Freeman Romcom Collection, Book 5) Page 9