by Ann, Natalie
“Have you decided on what a fair price is to ask for my flip?”
“I’ve got a range. I figured we can talk about it tomorrow at the meeting unless you want to now?”
“No, we can tomorrow.” He tried not to cringe. An eight o’clock meeting with Sean and Phil tomorrow, along with Brynn. He hated meetings. He all but groaned when she texted him before she left for the day, saying that Sean asked her to remind him about the meeting. He wouldn’t have forgotten, he never did. Just because he missed them didn’t mean he forgot; he just got busy and time got away from him.
“Don’t miss it,” she said, smiling at him.
“I won’t. If I ride in with you then I can’t. How does that sound?” She looked startled for a moment and he wondered if maybe he shouldn’t have said that. “Or not.”
“That works. I can run you back here around eleven if you want. I’ve got some appointments unless you need to get back sooner.”
“No. Eleven is good. I’ve got paperwork to take care of and some things to talk to Phil about.”
He pulled the covers back for her to slide in next to him. Then he pulled her close and held her. He loved this time when they just lay together at night. He didn’t think he was sentimental, but something about this downtime together always made him feel good, feel right about her. Right about being with her.
“Where are you going to live if the house sells fast?” she asked out of the blue.
He shrugged. He’d been thinking about it himself and trying to figure out where to go and how to handle this. He wasn’t sure it was smart to move in here with her, except he wasn’t thinking smart right now either. “I guess it depends on how fast it sells.”
He felt her head nod and held his breath. He shouldn’t have expected that she would suggest he move in.
“I can get it listed within the week and run an open house. I’ve got meetings with some realtors tomorrow too, to let them know. I’m trying to form some working relationships with the local realtors.”
“That’s good. It takes the pressure off of us.”
“That is what I’m here for.”
“Just that?” he asked. “Right now I was hoping you would be here for me.”
“I’m always here for you,” she said softly.
His heart melted on the spot. He wasn’t sure if she meant it the way it came across or not, but that was how he was taking it.
Couldn’t Say it
Alec leaned up on his elbow and gazed down at Brynn’s sleeping form next to him. He had such an emotional tug toward her and didn’t know why. Sometimes he wondered what spell he might be under and if she even knew it. He had to try to keep it all in. There was something about her that just pulled him, made him stronger, made him a better person. Better than he ever thought he would be. Maybe the person he always wanted to be without even knowing.
He shook his head of the crazy thoughts. He didn’t know where they were coming from.
Slowly, he glided his knuckles over her hair, barely touching her. She didn’t stir, just slept on deeply like she always did.
Lying back down, he stacked his hands behind his head and thought about tonight.
She’d come in the door laughing. He’d actually gotten to the house before her tonight. For some reason it felt odd to him to unlock the door and walk in without her here. He owned the house so he shouldn’t feel that way. Only it felt like her home now, everything in it was hers.
When he asked her what was so funny, she just shrugged and tucked her phone back in her pocket, saying, “Carly is being a tool. She’s around kids so much that she starts thinking like them.”
“So you had fun tonight?”
“Yeah. I always have fun with Carly. She said the kids were driving her insane and she needed some adult company.”
“You should go out with her more.”
“Are you trying to push me away?” she asked, teasing.
“Not at all,” he assured her, then pulled her into his arms for a hug and a kiss. This coming home to her at the end of the day was a wonderful feeling.
“I’ll try. She is pretty busy herself with school. She’s on all sorts of committees too. She has always enjoyed being part of the community.”
“That’s nice,” he’d said.
“Did you eat? I can throw something together quick. We had some snacks at the bar, but I could eat something small myself right now.”
“Whatever you want works for me.”
“I like hearing that,” she said, her eyes sparkling. At that moment, with the look in her eyes and the laughter behind them, his breath lodged in his throat. Crazy, he knew, but he couldn’t help it, it just reminded him again how bewitched he was with her.
She’d thrown together a few sandwiches while he ran up and showered quickly. He’d only beaten her to the house by ten minutes. Actually he’d stayed at the site working until the last of the crew left. Fred, of course, stayed the longest and he knew it was on purpose. Alec almost told him he was calling it a night and was going to drive here just to see what Fred said.
But he didn’t need to worry. Fred burst out laughing after catching him staring at Brynn’s house across the street again and said, “Oh, just go over there and wait for her. I’m done babysitting you anyway.” Just like that it was out. No need to say anything else.
After their quick dinner, he pulled her up to the bedroom and undressed her slowly. Everything he did was slow tonight. He wasn’t sure why, but he wasn’t in a hurry.
When they were naked and lying in bed, he reached over her and cupped her face in his hands, his eyes searching hers. He didn’t know for what, but he just wanted to look at her, just follow her eyes as they searched his face. He tried to tell himself he wasn’t looking for signs of something deeper, but he would be lying.
No words were spoken. He lowered his mouth to hers and kissed her tenderly, sweetly, gently, moving his lips around hers to the corner of her mouth, then covering her completely. Slow and steady. A nice change of pace for them.
He had kissed every part of her body tonight. He couldn’t get enough of her. Everywhere he touched, he had to kiss and then touch some more and go back and kiss again. By the time he was done, she was wiggling underneath him. She’d never said a word, never urged him on, nothing. Just let him do what he wanted to her tonight.
When he thought she’d had enough, he reached for a condom, then covered her body with his again and slowly slid inside her welcoming warmth. She met him with her hips, not fast and demanding like she had before. No, she was almost slower than he was, dragging it out, prolonging that moment when they became one.
He threaded his fingers through hers, and they rocked together to a song in their head that only they seemed to be able to hear. He felt stronger than ever when he was with her and he thought she felt the same way. Or at least hoped she did.
By time they both crested to the top, he held her close, listening to the beating of her heart, matching the rhythm of his. Again as one, so in tune with each other. Always.
They’d been together for two months now. He was counting the thirty days they waited as still being a couple. They’d been dating in his mind. It had all the elements of it but sex. Sex didn’t define a relationship in his mind, not now. It always had before, but with her, he didn’t think that anymore.
Turning his head, he looked at her again, wishing. Wishing he could say the words that were stuck in his throat right now. He knew he loved her, but he couldn’t say it. He didn’t even know how to say it, and was hoping maybe she would have said it first. Maybe she will. Then he could just return those words. Or maybe she didn’t love him and that was why she wasn’t saying it—that stupid humongous fear flying over his head.
He’d never said the words to anyone else before. He’d never been in a serious enough relationship to feel what he felt for her. Not even close.
It had been said to him a few times and he always managed to wiggle out of returning the words. He never felt it wa
s right to say it if he didn’t mean it, and he never had.
But now he did mean it, now he did feel it. Only he couldn’t say it.
***
Brynn glided through the dream. She was so happy, so carefree. Everything in life was going so well. It was everything she always dreamed of. She only wished her mother were alive to see how her dreams had come true.
She was working at a job she loved. She was making her mark on the construction world. Not everyone respected her, she knew that, but she was working through it.
Not everyone was going to change and accept a woman in her position, but she had good employers and they supported her. They helped pave the way; she just had to keep her eyes open for those that didn’t accept it. Those that were old fashioned.
Pushing those thoughts aside, she was walking through the new house with her clipboard, checking to make sure everything she ordered was done for the day.
Hearing a noise behind her, she turned quickly and scanned the site. Her hardhat slipped to one side, so she lifted a hand and adjusted it back in place.
Moving around more, she didn’t see anything that could have caused the noise, so she went back to her checklist, smiling away, not a care in the world. Just happy to be doing what she loved so much.
A loud clatter had her swinging around and gasping, hot fingers of fear running up her spine.
She bolted upright in bed, her breath panting and her heart beating a mile a minute.
“What is it?” Alec asked, sitting up next to her, his hand rubbing up and down her arm. How he knew she was frantic was beyond her, but she appreciated that he was trying to soothe her.
“Nothing,” she replied. “Just a bad dream.”
“You sure you’re okay?” he asked after she lay back down, and he pulled her close. She knew he could feel her heart still beating rapidly, but she couldn’t say it. She couldn’t say what the dream was about. She hadn’t said it to anyone before, not the complete truth of it. Not everything, only what she needed to say after it happened.
“Yeah,” she lied.
A few minutes later she felt Alec’s breath on her neck, the even breathing of him relaxing back into sleep. The rain started to fall outside, a calm tranquil sound against the roof, and soon her body was drifting off next to him.
A loud clap of thunder had her tensing again, but she convinced herself enough to not sit right up in bed. Alec barely stirred, just pulled her in closer and held her tight.
She lay there longer trying to get back to sleep, but her mind wouldn’t relax enough. Then she heard creaking, probably the house settling. The wind was blowing pretty hard too.
Then she heard it again and sat up, waking Alec up again.
“What’s wrong, another bad dream?” he asked.
“No. I heard something. Listen,” she told him.
He did. They both sat there and listened and both heard the creaking again. “It’s just the wind.”
“No, I heard something else.” She didn’t want him to think she was crazy. Maybe she was, but it sounded like something was moving against the house. She would never go back to sleep until she knew for sure.
He reached over and turned the light on. “I’ll go check. I’m sure it’s nothing though.”
She watched him pull his jeans on, so she threw the covers back. “I’m going with you.”
He looked over and smirked at her. “What’s the matter, you don’t think I can protect you?”
She knew he was joking, but she took his comment seriously. “I trust you to watch out for me and be there for me.”
His smile faded, and a soft look came into his eyes. He reached for her when they both heard the noise again, louder this time. “The wind is really bad out there. It’s probably stuff blowing around. I better go and check out the properties right now. Shit, not what I wanted to do in the rain.”
“Then I’m coming with you. We can get it done faster.”
As they made their way down the stairs, they heard the noise louder, coming from the backyard. Detouring that way, they saw all the deck furniture had been overturned and the wind was moving it all over the deck. Well, at least that explained the noise.
The rain had let up just enough for them to rush outside and grab the chairs and bring them in the kitchen without getting completely drenched. The table was too heavy and too big, but Alec turned it on its side and wedged it into the corner.
Once the deck furniture was taken care of, he and Brynn finished getting dressed and got in his truck to drive around the development, looking for any damage.
Cool Off
“I heard you had a little bit of a mess last night.”
Brynn turned when she heard Phil’s statement. Alec had just dropped her off and run home quickly to check on his flip. She thought she would have been the first one in this morning, but Phil beat her. “Yeah. Not as bad as it could have been. How did you know?”
“Alec texted me this morning. He knew I would be up checking out my own property and he wanted to know if I had any damage.”
“Did you?”
“Nothing major, just some tree limbs down. The wind is normally worse on the lake and Alec knew that. It was Sophia’s first storm though. She actually found it fascinating.”
“Did she now?” Brynn didn’t think it was so great. She’d never been a big fan of storms—she wasn’t sure why—not even as a kid. As an adult she was more skittish of them. Always afraid the loud noises could block out the sound of other things going on in her house. Things she always paid attention to now.
“Yeah. After that first clap of thunder she went to sit in the window seat and watched the storm out over the water for a few minutes. Then she got bored and came back to bed,” he said chuckling. “Where’s Alec right now?”
“He ran to his house. He said he wanted to make sure there wasn’t any damage from the trees around the property.”
“We’ve seen our fair share of limbs going through windows and roofs.”
So had she over the years. Which was another reason she hated storms. “They’re good for business.”
“True.”
“Alec said he would be back before the meeting started as long as there weren’t any problems.”
Phil nodded. “So fill me in on what you found last night.”
“We drove around the development and everything looked to be fine and buttoned up good. As we got closer to my house, I noticed a window opened on the second floor of the house across the street.”
The crew had started framing in that house just this past week. The first home was almost finished, only the final touches being done, paint, molding and electrical sockets installed. The new owners would be closing on the house within a few weeks and she would no longer be alone in the development, even if it was half a mile away.
“What made you look up?”
“Honestly? A crack of thunder, then lightning. It caused my head to swing around and that’s when I saw it, when the sky lit up. We got a little drenched unlocking the door. You should have heard Alec cursing about not being able to open the garage door from his truck.”
“I bet.”
“Anyway, by time we got upstairs the rain was just pouring through the window, just bad luck it was coming from that direction. Thankfully not much work had been done upstairs yet. The plywood on the floor needs to be replaced and a few two by fours around the window framing, not much more.”
“How mad was Alec over it? He hates carelessness. Not that I like it much more, but he takes those things to heart.”
“He was pretty ticked. Said he was going to find out who was there yesterday and rip them a new one about buttoning up the house when they’re done at night.”
Phil nodded. “They should know better. Construction is a breeding ground for break-ins and theft, not to mention vandalism. I don’t want to be around when Alec finds out who did it.”
“Who did what?” Sean asked as he walked in the door and saw the two of them standing the
re talking. “And where’s Alec? He better not blow this meeting off.”
Brynn chuckled. Before she could answer, she heard her phone go off in her pocketbook and fished it out. “Alec’s on his way now with breakfast,” she added.
“Guess there is no damage to his house, then,” Phil said. “Not if he is on his way back.”
Sean looked concerned. “Was there damage to anyone’s house last night?”
“One of the homes in the development. Someone left a window open and the rain poured in,” Phil said.
Sean shook his head. “I don’t want to be anywhere near Alec when he finds out who did it.”
Brynn couldn’t believe what they were both saying. Alec didn’t seem to have it in him to be angry. Even after what she’d said, insulting him in the office that one Saturday morning, he wasn’t angry, just hurt and disappointed. That wasn’t hard to miss. He just seemed too laid-back to show any other emotions. She knew he took a lot of pride in his work. She did too, but she still couldn’t imagine the Alec that Sean and Phil were talking about.
Five minutes later, Alec rushed through the doors with his arms full of food. She walked over and pulled the box of donuts out of his hands. “Thanks,” he said, then leaned in and kissed her in front of Mary and a few other workers that were milling around up front.
She felt the heat spreading across her face and looked around, but no one reacted at all. In fact, Mary was grinning from ear to ear, then winked at her.
***
“I want to know who was at that house yesterday,” Alec said to Fred later that afternoon. He hadn’t had much more time than to just send Fred a message and let him know to check out the house first thing and explained why he was asking.
“Do you think I wouldn’t have anticipated your request?” Fred replied.
“Well, who was it?”
“It was Steve, Mike and Eric. Steve was apologetic and said that he sent Eric upstairs to open the windows to get a cross-breeze going before they went to work on the second floor. He took the blame for it all.”