Page 18 of A Little More

Nash grinned, wishing they’d be together long enough to make sure she understood his meaning. “Both are basic needs of a woman.” Lexi’s eyebrows shot up, but he didn’t give her a chance to respond. “Now, tell me what else did Charlie screw up so I can do it right.” Probably a dozen other things, proving a man like him wouldn’t appreciate Lexi.

A sweet smile played on her lips. “I think you have enough to go on, and we need to change the conversation before we forget this is abusinesslunch. My boss, Julien, is coming down tomorrow. He’s on the lookout for any unprofessional behavior.” She cut her eyes back at him. “The kind you seem to like to imply if I’m reading you right.”

“I’m easy to read.”

She narrowed her eyes. “On a different, unrelated topic, what’s over there?” She pointed towards the tree line. “Anything that would affect the construction.”

He snagged her hand. “I’ll show you.”

“Are we going to utilize it?”

“I love the way you talk. No. We aren’t going toutilizeit.”

She held up their hands, clasped together. “Is this necessary?”

“No.”

She flattened out her hand, forcing him to drop it. “Business, Nash.”

“I figured Charlie didn’t hold your hand.”

She pressed her lips into a tight line, gearing up to argue with him, but instead she crossed her arms and muttered, “you’re helpless.”

He chuckled. This conversation helped in two ways. He got to show her all the ways he’d like to treat her if she’d agreed to a real date, and he got the opportunity to slam Charlie in the process. “This spot has a nice view.”

She hesitated, but he continued toward the trees. Even a farmer knew when to take a moment and look at the world. Lexi might not appreciate a man picking her up or paying for a meal, but she seemed like she’d enjoy the view of the creek bed between the store’s property and his house. Maybe a quarter-mile wide at the farthest point.

Her long legs caught up with him in a couple of strides. She could date whoever she wanted after they ended their association. She could date every Charlie in the world. And remain disappointed. Right now, he wanted a shot.

He pulled back a limb, guiding her forward with a hand along her lower back. Another utterly unnecessary reason to touch her. She stiffened slightly but didn’t pull away. A few more feet and she’d get a glimpse of his favorite view in the county.

“Who lives over there?” Lexi pointed through the thinning tree line to the ridge on the other side of the river.

“I do.”

She blinked, her expression softening. He tried to look at it the way she might. But he’d grown up running around on those hills, playing down near the creek. It still looked like his nana’s house in need of some major repairs.

“It’s the family house. It stood empty for a while. When I came back home, I moved in.” He might have lost his father, his pride from ending his marriage, but he could not move back in with his mother. She didn’t want him there anyway.

“It’s a Folk Victorian,” she said with reverent awe. “About the turn of the century, right?”

“1899.”

“Has it been renovated?” She’d almost whispered her question.

“I think my nana had the bathrooms redone in the fifties. The roof was replaced about twenty years ago. There’s some tacky wood paneling in some of the rooms, wallpaper in others. Nothing structurally has been done one way or the other, I don’t think. It’s in pretty rough shape.”

“But you live there?”

“I had plans to build my own place but haven’t had the time.” Marrying, moving, and a divorce put several plans on hold.

Her gaze tracked away from the house and over the valley. With a breathy sigh, her lips parted. So much yearning for something he’d taken for granted for so many years. He loved the view, but it’d never captivated him like that. She did, though. He could watch her the same way.

“It’s gorgeous,” she mumbled.

She was gorgeous.

“Can I…”

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