Page 24 of Handy

I’m still enjoying the loose, satisfied feeling in my bones from that lovely hump-fest, but Griff’s shoulders are tense again as he sticks his face under the shower spray and just grunts in response.

Damn. Did I push him too far? Did I say something stupid? It’s hard to remember what exactly my mouth got up to while I was so focused on playing with his dick. I could have proposed marriage for all I know.Sigh. An outdoor wedding in the spring would be nice, wouldn’t it? If I promise to give him handjobs and belly rubs every day, is there a chance he would say yes?

The water goes from hot to lukewarm, which means I only have about a minute before we’re blasted with ice water. I shake off the cozy fantasy and hurry to turn the water off. I want to wrap my arms around him again and kiss that frown right off his lips. I want to towel him dry and then drag him to my bed and snuggle him all night like he’s my favorite stuffed animal. But what Ireallywant is to magically know the right words to unlock whatever thoughts have him pulling back and shutting down.

Is this what Jericho meant when he said I go for guys like Griff so Ican’tget hurt? The softness never lasts long enough for me to get used to it, and maybe there’s some safety in that.

Griff towels off and gets dressed in a hurry while I take my time, lingering so that once he’s ready to bolt, I won’t make it weird by following him out. He pulls his shirt over his head then stops right by the bathroom door with his shoulders tense.

“Hey, Griff.” I nibble on my bottom lip, still waiting for those magic words to pop into my head; some way to unlock whatever’s holding him back. But maybe there’s nothing. Some guys are just fucking terrified of intimacy, and maybe that’s all this is. “This was fun.”

He grunts, putting one hand on the doorknob but not running for it yet.

“I’ll do the bathroom reno,” he rumbles.

I cock my head, not sure I heard him right.

“The…”

“The bathroom. Unless you were joking and don’t want it done.” He turns back to glance around the small bathroom with a look on his face that says it all.

I sputter a laugh and my heart jumps.

“Okay,” I say easily. “I’m sure we can work out apaymentplan.”

He rumbles with amusement and cranes his neck to look at me without turning around. His lips are still turned down, but his eyes have softened a little. He drags them over me slowly then nods.

“Have a good night.”

“You too, big bear.” I grin.

He grunts one last time and then he’s gone.

Okay, so he can’t talk about his feelings, but if he wants to do more work for me that has to mean he wants to keep hanging around me, right? That’s a start. It’s definitely a start.

Chapter 10

GRIFF

“She has her firstdate this weekend, and I swear it’s about to make me go gray prematurely,” Ev grumbles somewhere down the hall as West and I step into the Four Bears Construction offices.

With the framing on the house done, Stone, Miller, and Apollo, along with a few contract workers, are getting the electrics and plumbing done before the rest of us head back to do the insulation and then start on drywall. Which means we’re picking up smaller jobs in the meantime. All things considered, getting saddled with a kitchen reno with West isn’t the worst possible outcome. He’s a good worker and he doesn’t push so hard to try to be BFFs like the rest of the guys.

“I cannot believe little Livi is old enough to date.” Cole laughs.

“Don’t let her hear you call her Livi. It’sOlivianow. Apparently, ‘Livi’ is too childish.” Ev sighs and I hear Ollie chuckle. “I mean, this girl taking her out is sixteen. She has herown car. That can’t be right, can it? I swear she was just in diapers last week.”

“Liv is a good kid. I’m sure it’ll be fine,” Ollie assures him.

Not that I’m eavesdropping or anything, but damn, there’s something heartwarming about hearing them talk so casually about queer teenage dating. The world is far from fucking perfect, but at least we’ve made progress in some areas.

West and I reach the end of the hall, and I start to turn towards the lockers so I can drop off my hard hat and shit before I head home for the day, but he grabs my arm to stop me.

I grunt, arching an eyebrow questioningly.

West grins and grabs the marker attached to the bingo board hanging on the wall. I groan and he just waves the marker at me.

“Come on, it’s a free round of drinks,” he coaxes. “I’ll sign your name for you if I have to.”

---