Page 143 of Down & Dirty

He shuffled on his feet, looking more uncomfortable by the second. “Well, if this stupid idea works, and you end up back here, we could put you to work, me and Dad. We could use the help.”

“I’ve been saying that for years.”

“Yeah, well.”

“So, you’re offering me a job?” I fought to keep from laughing, but he saw it anyway.

He ground his teeth, turning to stomp down the stairs into the snow.“If you’re too good for it, that’s fine. I know it’s not as refined as those watch ads.”

Working in the construction business sounded about as much fun as licking stamps all day. But even if it didn’t last long, I knew I could get them more organized than they were now. Maybe even scaled up a bit.

“I’m in.”

Mack paused halfway to his truck, glancing back at me over his shoulder. “If she says yes.”

“If she says yesagain.”

She’d given me a chance once, and I promised if she did again, I’d never make her regret it.

“I’m heading out,” Mack called up the stairs as I rolled a second coat of white on the guest bedroom walls.

“Okay. Don’t forget the ladder tomorrow to fix the gutters.”

“Bring it yourself.”

I sighed. “It’s in your basement. You want me coming by to look for it?”

He grumbled an inaudible response, and then, “Stay the hell out of my house.”

“Sounds good, see you tomorrow.” I chuckled, dipping my roller in the pan as his truck pulled out, the sound of the snow crunching under his tires.

It was finally starting to stay lit past five, so I wanted to get at least one more coat done in this room before I called it a day.

When I heard the sound of him pulling back in, I shook my head, dropping the roller to go down and meet him. I didn’t need him tracking any more snow over the hardwood floors than he already had.

But when I yanked the door open, the air in my lungs turned to ice. “Skylar?”

She gave me a weak smile, shrugging one shoulder as she shut the door to a rented four by four. “Your dad told me where to find you.”

My feet were stuck in place on the top step, and I leaned into the rail, glad we’d fixed that first.

“I guess you’re ready?” I asked, huffing out a laugh, because suddenly I wasn’t. The sight of her threw me so far off balance, I felt like I’d need more than a minute to regain myself.

She came around the hood of the car, her steps hesitant as she took in the state of the house. It wasn’t ready for her yet either.

“I wasn’t expecting you to see it like this.” But whatever fear I had of her appraisal, it faded with the grin that spread across her face.

“Whatwereyou expecting?” She cocked a brow, the spark of challenge in her eye giving me hope and making my heart race.

“To fly in with some mocked-up photos of this place’s potential and a lot of promises.”

When she shook her head, her smile slanted. “More Hollywood magic, then?”

“No,” I told her as she hit the bottom step, her face tilted up to hold my gaze. “Nothing fake about this.”

She dropped her eyes to where her hand skimmed up the rail, climbing each step so slowly my palms began to sweat. When she got the top, I backed up to give her room, and she turned to face the driveway and the field on the other side.

“This is quite the spot.”

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