Page 36 of Cody

“It goes well with the color paint I picked out, right?”

He confirmed this with another nod.

“How is the furniture coming?”

“The bar table is ready. I’m waiting on the glass to arrive before I build the display counter. Is the floor down yet?”

Alina shook her head and put her hand on his arm. “They come tomorrow. If things keep going this smoothly, I should be able to open in a couple of months.”

“We’ll make it happen. So, you have a day off tomorrow?”

There was something in Max’s tone that I didn’t like, a tell that I recognized because I knew him so well. He was getting ready to ask Alina on another date. Before that could happen, I began to drop down the tree, making enough noise to scare a bear. My feet hit the ground with a solid thump, and I released the safety harness to fall around my feet before turning to face them. I could tell by Alina’s expression that I’d surprised—and maybe impressed—her a little.

I liked how her blue eyes moved over me with pleasure.

“Hi, beautiful.” I walked over to them, shooting Max a look I was sure he’d understand. If he hadn’t known that Alina was off limits before, he knew it now.

“Cody!” The pretty shine that appeared in Alina’s bright eyes in response to seeing me turned me warm inside. She hadn’t greeted Max with that much enthusiasm. “I didn’t even know you were here!”

She wouldn’t because I’d ridden with Max and my truck wasn’t there. I wanted to ask her how she’d known how to find Max, but I realized how childish that would come off. I let my gaze drop down her body in a lazy sweep, remembering those killer curves without clothes.

“I’m a hot mess.”

She was a beautiful hot mess. I was thankful when Max received a call, and he walked away to answer it. “It looks like you’ve been working. How’s the coffee shop coming?”

Alina’s smile grew wider, and it was clear that the topic of her shop was her favorite subject. “It’s really coming along well. The sign is up, and the window lettering is done. After the floor is put down tomorrow, the furniture will arrive. I’m sure Max told you he’s making a few pieces for me.”

He had.

She indicated the state of her clothes. “We just finished painting the walls.”

Grinning, I reached forward and ran a fingertip down a strip of green paint decorating her cheek. “I can tell.” My gaze followed the path my finger took as I continued over her chin, down her neck, and between her visible cleavage.

The slight catch of her breath caused my eyes to shoot back up to hers. Awareness flickered there as my finger disappeared beneath her shirt and between her tits. Her skin was warm and slightly damp. I turned hard with the thought of putting my tongue there.

As if reading my thoughts, her cheeks bloomed with hot color and a nervous laugh escaped her. “Crissy and Sarah have been helping me. You should stop by some time.”

Movement and a low mutter drew my gaze over to where Max was walking toward the truck. He was still on the phone, and I watched for a second as he opened the door and slid in. My gaze returned to Alina. “I will.” I removed my finger and held her gaze. “Been on any dates lately?”

Amusement spread across her features, and for some reason her reaction annoyed me. “No time for dates. You?”

Yeah, two dates that had ended with me not getting any kind of relief. But I wasn’t going to tell her that. I didn’t know what Alina did to me, but it was obvious I would have to get her out of my system. “You busy tonight?”

“No,” came her clear and simple response.

“Have dinner with me.” Damn, I hadn’t meant it to come out more like a demand than a question.

She hesitated briefly, and I wondered why. “Sure. Where do you want to meet?”

I couldn’t contain my smirk. That’s how the younger crowd did it these days. When I had a date with a woman, I picked her up, and I wanted to make sure that Alina didn’t have an easy escape if the situation between us got hot.

Like I knew it would.

I slowly shook my head, recognizing the slight unease in her blue depths. What was she worried about? “I’ll pick you up at seven.”

“That was King.” Max slipped his phone back into his back pocket as he rejoined us. I’d been so focused on Alina that I hadn’t even seen him coming. “He wanted us up on Stoney Ridge to help out.”

I gave him a questioning look.

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