Page 4 of The Naughty Elf

I pat the counter between us. “Finish your coffee, then I’ll give you a tour.”

“Do you mind if I call my dad?”

It’s a reminder of who she is. It knocks the wind out of me, but I nod and leave her to it, returning to my office to gather my wits. I worry about my propensity for flirting in this office—mostly with female clients and my assistant Brenda, who’s also my aunt’s best friend.

When it comes to the customer service girls,flirting can get dangerous pretty fast.

Like playing games with Ginger might.

The trouble is, I’m not exactly sure I can help myself with her.

Case in point, I’m leaning against the doorjamb to my office and listening to her side of the phone call.

“Are you sure you didn’t know? I spent two days preparing for this instead of spending time with Gracie. Yes, she did help, but I’m sure she wasn’t having fun. But I’m her mother, I’m supposed to help her with her homework. Yes, Dad, I did…I will. I love you, too.”

I count to five before I retrieve my mostly empty mug and return to the kitchen. After I wash it, I hold my hand out for hers. “Done?”

She nods and hands it over. When it’s clean and laid out to dry, I turn to escort Ginger over to the two active sites—both of which are just now starting to fill up with workers ready to start their day. By the time we return, the office will be full and work will be well under way.

But first, I hold my arm out to Ginger, who’s holding her portfolio to her chest. She reaches up to slip her purse over her shoulder. “You can leave those in my office, and I’ll take you down to meet the crew. We’re a pretty close bunch, and we all work together to make this happen.”

“It will be good for me to meet everyone,” she finishes my thought for me, setting her things on a chair by my desk.

“Exactly.” I close the front door behind us and take her elbow as we go down the steps. Man, I cannot help myself with her.

Ginger leads me down the driveway, heading toward the construction without hesitation. That pencil skirt hugs her curves nicely. And she’s so small, even in those heels.

All of that presence she embodies belies her young age, and damn it, she intrigues me.

She throws a glance at me over her shoulder, catching me looking at her ass and legs. I toss her a wink. What else am I supposed to do?

I catch up to her easily as we make it to the mostly finished site, where Sawyer, my brother and foreman, and Ashley, our engineer, are standing out front. My hand finds the small of her back as I steer her toward them.

Ginger is already smiling at the crew as they notice her, waving. When we reach my business partners, she draws herself up firm and straight. Her smile grows.

She recognizes them, that’s for sure, but she waits for the proper introductions.

I wave to them both in turn. “Ginger, this is Sawyer and Ashley. They’re in charge of the construction side of things.”

“Ashley?” That mouth purse of hers again.

“Ashley.” He flashes her a grin, one that means trouble, but Ashley is always trouble.

She makes thatahface and her expression settles into that almost brooding flirtation Ginger’s been exuding since she recognized me. “So, you’ve got two sites going at the same time. Is that normal?”

“Yes,” Sawyer says. Short, simple, to-the-point, my brother at his finest.

Ginger laughs, like she’s thought the same thing. “Does that mean you have two crews? One that builds the structure and one that finishes the inside? Or is it one crew per house?”

“A little bit of both.” Ashley gestures to the mostly finished house. “Why don’t we show you?”

“Before we move inside, I have a few more questions.” She turns toward the bones of the house across the street. “What day is that project on?”

“Day twenty-nine.” Sawyer watches Ginger like he’s never seen a woman before.

I kind of get it. This spitfire has a gravitational pull that’s hard to miss. And she’s so free with her smiles, sending yetanother one back at my brother. I swear it stuns him. I stifle my laugh.

The arriving crew members stop to say their hellos, half of them introducing themselves to Ginger. She shakes hands and asks easy questions. Not only is she going to do a good job, but she’s going to have all of the support she needs from the team.

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