by Molly McLain
She fired Kelly? Not what he expected. “I need a little more than that, Car.”
“He refused to show Reed the wiring he was in a big hurry to wall up today and...” She gave him a play by play of the day’s confrontations, including Kelly’s typical two-year-old style temper tantrum. “So I told him to leave. I can’t afford to pay for his mistakes and I certainly don’t have time to play his games. And why am I even telling you this?” She fisted her hands at the top of her head and groaned. “I swear to God, Josh, if you so much as look at me with ‘I told you so’ in your eyes, I will not be held accountable for what I do to you.”
What the hell? “I never said a word about you hiring Alex. In fact, up until now, I think I’ve done a pretty damn good job keeping my mouth shut about it.” Yes, he’d been concerned and a little disappointed when he found out she’d given Kelly the contract on her flip. Not that he’d honestly expected her to come to him with the project either. He hadn’t even bid, because frankly he didn’t do small renovations like hers anymore. And the reality was, even if he did, he and Carissa would never be able to work together, all things considered.
“You didn’t need to say anything. At least not to my face. Going behind my back to Reed was enough.” She gave a heavy sigh and she suddenly looked completely defeated, which had him feeling like a schmuck. “You really don’t understand what this means for me, Josh. I don’t have the luxury of time right now.”
“I get that. I’ve worked flips before.”
“It’s not just a matter of finishing so I can put the house up for sale.”
Again with the alluding. “What aren’t you telling me?”
She held his gaze for several moments, before glancing away, reluctant. Like she wasn’t sure she could trust him with what she was about to say and, despite knowing where he stood with her, it hurt a little. “I’ve been evicted from my apartment,” she finally blurted out.
Shit.
“I’m not on the streets yet. But I will be thirty days from now if the flip isn’t livable.”
“Why?” He couldn’t imagine her doing anything to warrant eviction. She was a school counselor, for chrissake.
“My building was bought out by some non-profit from Omaha. They’re gonna demo it and put a youth center in its place. Big shot businessman you are, I’m surprised you didn’t already know.” She eyed him suspiciously, then shook her head. “Anyhow, I found out this morning and I started looking for another place right away. Problem is everything I’ve come across is more rent than I’ve been paying and I can’t swing an increase and a mortgage payment. I’m going to have to live in the house until it sells.”
“Car, I’m sorry. I had no idea.”
She sighed. “How did you know about Alex?”
“Dan called me. Told me you’d been talking to Maddie about the money Kelly’s been spending. Didn’t add up to what Dan had seen when he stopped by last week.”
She held a hand to her forehead. “Of course.”
“We’re just looking out for you, Car.”
She glowered and propped her hand on her hips again. Her tits jiggled accordingly and it took a concerted effort to be a professional and not stare. “If I hear those words one more time, I swear I’m gonna blow. I’m a grown woman, Josh.”
Yeah. He got that loud and clear. So did the semi in his pants. “I’m well aware of that.”
“Why? Why couldn’t you just leave well enough alone?” she asked, exhaustion weighing down her words and her pretty face once again.
He sensed the opening to try and assuage what he’d done, so he took his time answering, hoping he didn’t screw things up even more.
“I acted like a prick at Dan and Maddie’s party. I made assumptions and I embarrassed us both. But, honest to God, Carissa, I was just trying to keep you from getting hurt. I know things with us are messed up, but I consider you a friend. And I don’t let bad shit happen to my friends.”
She gave a tired sigh, pinched the bridge of her nose, and clenched her eyes shut. “Your timing sucks, you know that? Why couldn’t you have done this a week ago? When I wasn’t already on the verge of a nervous freaking breakdown?”
He gave her a sympathetic smile and instinctively reached out to touch her arm. As soon as his fingers grazed her warm, soft skin, he realized his error. But damn if he could pull away. The connection, however small, sent shocks of electricity zinging through him. Just like every friggin’ time he touched her.
A friend? Really, Hudson?
Carissa’s eyes opened slowly, casting downward to where his fingers lingered. She wet her lips and carefully met his gaze. “Josh?”
“It was never my intention to make trouble for you, baby girl.” His fingers closed around her slight wrist, his thumb sliding down to stroke the inside of her palm. Vaguely he realized he’d used his intimate nickname for her, wondered if she’d call him on it...
“No? What about Saturday?”
“I was definitely looking to cause trouble on Saturday.”
“So you’re sorry?” She bit at her lip and looked up at him from beneath her lashes.
“For breaking up your party with Tony? Hell no.”
“You’re not making any sense.”
“I’m not, am I?” He shrugged and shifted closer, his feet moving of their own accord until he was close enough to wrap his arms around her shoulders and bury his face in her hair.
For a moment, she didn’t move, but slowly he felt her relax against him, her hands light and featherlike at his waist. Then she slid them to his lower back, fisted his t-shirt, and...trembled?
He pulled back and brushed loose strands of hair from her face, watching a storm of barely contained emotion gather in her eyes. His chest ached, a deep, bone crushing pressure that made him want to take it all away for her and promise to make it right.
Gently, he swept his thumb over her quivering bottom lip, his gaze trained on the soft pink pillow and, just like that, the wall he’d tried so hard to keep between them crumbled.
“What are you doing?” she whispered.
He shook his head, his gaze unwavering from her lips and what he wanted, and when he spoke his voice was hoarse with longing. “I don’t know. Maybe something I should have done a long time ago.”
Her eyes went wide with panic, but she didn’t try to escape his procession. “Don’t you dare kiss me. Josh. Don’t. You. Dare.”
Chuckling, he reached up to cup her jaw while the other hand pulled her even tighter against him. He felt out of his own body, like he was watching the moment unfold from behind a thick glass window. His mind warned him to stop—Don’t do it, man, you know the rules!—but his ears couldn’t hear.
He leaned down, crowded her. Took a deep breath and...kissed her.
He let go of her waist to hold her face with both hands and, despite her warning, she pushed up on her toes to meet him. She pressed her hands against his chest as his tongue teased the seam of her lips, begging entrance and needing to taste her, to know if she was still as sweet as he remembered.
She obliged with a soft moan, and the husky sound compelled him to back her up against the counter as they fell into a lingual game of cat and mouse. Velvet tongue against velvet tongue, chasing and teasing. Her hands slid up to his hair, tugging at what she could to bring him even closer.
Peaches. She still tasted like peaches. And honey. Thick and sweet and addicting.
He wedged a knee between her legs and went for the hem of her tank top, needing more. When his fingers dipped beneath, she shuddered and nipped hard at his bottom lip.
He slid his hand upward, over the flat of her belly to her ribcage and...
Slap!
“No!” She shoved him away, his hands still curved as they’d been on her body as he staggered backward, the side of his face stinging.
“You are one arrogant man, thinking you can use my attraction to you to make me forget what you’ve done.” She righted her shirt and pushed her hair back from her face.
“You might have been able to bring me down with that wicked tongue three years ago, but I’m won’t be played so easily this time.”
Helpless to do anything but stare, his body still engaged for seduction, Josh just stood there, thoughts of protest and explanation screaming through his head. His mouth, however, seemed unable to form a single word let alone a coherent sentence.
She was wrong, so wrong, but he couldn’t spit it out. Couldn’t stop her from marching toward the door just as promptly as she marched in, throwing one last jibe over her shoulder. “Do yourself a favor and save your saliva for someone who hasn’t already figured out what you’re about, Josh.”
Chapter Six
So he knew she was still hot for him. Fabulous.
Of course, it could have been worse—he could’ve realized she still wanted him while she’d been with Reed. And how many kinds of awkward would that have been? Hell, it was awkward enough now. And damn ballsy of Josh to think he could distract her—maybe even make her forget he’d stuck his nose in her business at all—by sticking his tongue in her mouth and using his sex appeal to break her down.
No way was she about to forget his role in the recent fallings apart of her life just because he kissed like both heaven and hell and did other things even better. No way, no how. Never again.
Juggling the drill she’d pilfered from Dan’s garage between her knees, Carissa lowered a panel of drywall from the wall in the living room. The muscles in her arms twitching, she turned it on its side and slid it across the room by the others she’d removed.
She’d spent the better part of Wednesday making phone calls to almost every contracting and construction company in the phone book, hoping to find someone benevolent enough to take pity on her situation and squeeze her and her little house into their schedule. But, as predicted, everyone was out of the office, tending to their busy agendas. She’d left at least a dozen messages, but, as of four o’clock, not a single one had called back.
Refusing to let the lack of response ruffle her, she decided to keep things moving along by herself until a willing replacement presented itself.
She blew out a breath, pulled her damp t-shirt away from her skin, and adjusted her ponytail, pleased with the work she’d done so far. Even if she wasn’t sure she’d done it correctly. It had been a long time since she’d done manual labor on a construction site and even then, she’d just been a kid playing around.
She wondered what her dad would think of her taking on a home renovation. Would he think her crazy? Or would he be proud of her?
Stupid girl. He probably hasn’t thought about you in months, so it’s not likely he’d give a damn either way.
Chastising herself for going down that futile road again, she succumbed to Pat Benatar blaring in her ear, wailing about best shots and girl power. Hell yeah. She could totally do this.
Except the drill didn’t seem to agree, as it gave way to a slow, drained battery death before she’d could unfasten another screw.
Crap. Why hadn’t she thought to grab the battery charger? She’d loaded half of Dan’s tools into her car; surely adding one more piece of stolen equipment to the mix wouldn’t earn her any additional jail time, should Dan decided to press theft charges.
She eyed the wall in which Alex had taken out his frustrations and twisted her mouth around as she contemplated her options. Saving the drywall wasn’t going to happen, seeing as it had a gaping hole in it, roughly the size of Alex Kelly and Josh Hudson’s egos combined. So...
She grabbed a crowbar and started yanking.
And damn if shredding a wall didn’t prove to be the perfect outlet for her anxiety and pissy disposition.
The lower half of the sheetrock remaining, she hooked the curved end of the bar around a chalky edge and gave a jerk that sent her fumbling promptly backwards when she met little resistance.
One of her earbuds popped out during the fall and snagged around her earring. But of bigger concern was that she’d somehow managed to land smack dab on top of the crowbar. Her tailbone screamed in protest.
“Ah, now that’s gonna hurt like a mother in the morning.”
Carissa started at the sound of the deeply masculine voice in the kitchen. Which, in turn, sent shocks of pain jolting down both of her legs. She bit her lips together to contain her whimper.
With an amused smirk stretched across his stubble shadowed face, Josh strolled into view, his hands tucked into the front pockets of his jeans. “I’d offer to rub it for you, but you’d probably slap me again.”
“Ha, you’re funny.” Ever so carefully, she pushed to her feet, muttering four-letter vulgarities of every sort as she did. Yep, this was definitely gonna hurt in the morning and probably the entire next week. “You think you could’ve knocked? It’s not nice to sneak up on people. Especially a woman with a crowbar.” With a grimace, she bent down to retrieve the tool.
“Yeah, well, I’ve seen enough to not be worried.” He rocked back on the heels of his boots and made an open appraisal of the house. “I’ve always liked this place. Lots of potential.”
Carissa eyed him warily. “I’d like to think so.”
“It’ll need a hell of a lot of work to get it there though.” He took a couple steps to the left, then a few back to the right. Bounced a little on the balls of his feet. “The floor needs re-bracing. You’ve got slope and way too much give.”
“Well, it’s not like I plan on having two-hundred and some pound Marines jumping around in my living room.”
“Maybe not, but whoever eventually buys it might.” He waggled his dark eyebrows.
She rolled her eyes and rubbed her butt. “Why exactly are you here again?”
“Was in the neighborhood.”
“Checking up on me, are you?”
He grinned. “If I answer that honestly, are you going to assault me again?”
“Are you going to assault me again?” She arched an eyebrow.
His eyes drifted over down her body, slowing up a little at her chest and then her legs. He took a deep breath, sounded almost regretful, then shook his head. “It’s been a rough week. It won’t happen again.”
She continued to stare, gauging him. Fleetingly curious as to why was she felt slighted, disappointed even, with his explanation. “So?” she prodded him. “To what honor do I owe your intrusive presence?”
He didn’t answer right away, just made his way around the room, poking at the fireplace, then at the windows. “I hear you need a contractor.”
Oh, hell no.
“I happen to know a guy,” he continued on and Carissa held her breath. This conversation was starting to sound eerily familiar. And they so were not going there again.
“If you’re here because you feel guilty about what happened with Alex, then let me ease your conscience, okay? I might have taken it out on you yesterday, but letting him go was inevitable. You inadvertently saved me a lot of time and money.”
Josh inclined his chin. “Probably true, but that doesn’t solve your problem.”
“No, it doesn’t.” She sighed, trying to fight off the urge to be open with him. He was the last person she should be talking to, yet... “I tried I don’t even know how many contractors today, but haven’t had a single bite.”
“You didn’t call me.”
“Nope, I didn’t,” she said, popping her lips.
“Why not?” His narrowed-eyed expression was more challenging than his spiteful tone let on.
She chuckled and stepped around him to retrieve her bottle of water from the kitchen counter. “Come on, Josh. I think the course of events over the last few days says it all, don’t you? Not to mention the obvious.”
“That was a long time ago. And we’re both adults, aren’t we?” He crossed his arms over his chest and she blinked against the sight of all that delicious, bulging flesh.
“Oh, you were thinking that?” she teased, unable to resist. “I was referring to your pigheadedness.”
That earned her a smile. “Do
you enjoy being difficult?”
“When it comes to you, most definitely.”
“Well, you might want to reconsider your strategy, because it looks like we’re gonna be business partners.”
“It won’t work, Josh.” She gave her head a sharp shake. “I appreciate the offer, but...” I’m not sure I’m desperate enough just yet to subject myself to that kind of torture.
“I don’t think you have a choice.”
She ran her hand over her forehead. Of course, she didn’t. But that didn’t mean she could just give in. “Why would you even want to do this? You’re so busy.”
He lifted his palms. “I think I’ve made it pretty clear I don’t want to see this house go down the crapper for you. I have a crew ready to start first thing in the morning. The only hang up here is you, Car. How bad do you want this?”
Carissa ventured a look directly into his eyes, watching sincerity storm in them. Ugh, why did he have to be so virtuous? “I want it. You know I do.”
“Then let’s do this.” He stuck out his hand and Carissa stared at it for a long beat, taking in his long fingers, his big, calloused palm, the scars on his knuckles...
The man seriously needed to get a grip on his nobility issues. But he was right—she wasn’t in a place to refuse the help he offered.
“Are you sure?” Because I really don’t want this to be another mistake you regret.
“I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t.”
“I’m sorry I slapped you.”
He chuckled. “You’ll probably want to do it again before all is said and done.”
“I will?”
He scrubbed a hand over his bristled jaw, but it didn’t hide the faint blush that had crept there and across his high cheekbones. “I mean, with us working together.”
“In that case, I’ll try to refrain.” With that, she slid her hand into his, fairly certain she’d just taken a leap she might not be able to climb up from.
She’d just have to hope her rope held.
***
He needed a beer.
Josh drove from Carissa’s straight to McCauley’s Pub, an indulgence he rarely allowed himself these days. But then a guy could only take so much shit in one week without needing a beer back-up. Officially calling it a day, something he didn’t do often enough either, he pulled his cell from his pocket, turned it off, and tossed it onto the passenger seat.