Page 29 of Booked on a Feeling

“Yeah. You should volunteer to help fix up Sparrow.” Lizzy fiddled with the mini screwdriver set on the counter. “That way you could keep an eye on me without her suspecting that you’re providing her with unsolicited protection.”

“So you need my help with the bookstore?” He grinned at her transparent ploy.

“Who said I needed help?” She scoffed. “You’re the one who wants to keep an eye on me.”

As they walked out the store with their heads close together, Ol’ Arthur called out, “Thank you. Come again.”

“I’ll be happy to lend a hand if you ask nicely,” Jack pressed for the fun of it, even though he’d already decided to help out. For the sake of Option Two, of course. Lizzy would probably drive him up the wall with unreasonable demands in her quest to complete the to-do list. As an added bonus, the extra work should keep him busy enough to distract him from obsessing over the results of his job interview.

“You accused me of being a list bully. I don’t want to asknicely.” She followed him to his car, forgetting that she’d refused his offer to give her a ride.

“Hey, I wasn’t calling you a bully. I was just reminding you that you could be a little overbearing when it comes to completing tasks and checking little boxes off.”

“Not helping.”

“Okay. I’m sorry.”

“If you’re sorry, you should help out at the bookstore.”

“You’re not even really mad, are you?” He shut the trunk after putting the propane tanks away.

She grinned as she slipped into the passenger seat. “I might be. You never know.”

“Fine,” he said ponderously as he got in the car. A quick glance at the rearview mirror confirmed that he was doing a piss-poor job of looking like someone who’d gotten suckered into a raw deal. He gave up and returned her smile. “I’ll go undercover.”

CHAPTER SEVEN

“I brought reinforcements,” Lizzy announced as she stepped into the bookstore with Jack in tow.

She glanced over her shoulder but whipped back around when he arched an eyebrow at her. Once the shock—or the thrill might be more accurate—of being thrown over his shoulder had worn off, she had trouble looking him in the eye.

She couldn’t believe she’d pawed at his arm like that, but the mesmerizing juxtaposition of his smooth skin and hard muscles had made it impossible to stop touching him. Things had really gotten out of hand when her boobs were molded to his broad back and his aforementioned muscular arm was pressed against the backs of her thighs. Was she so hard up that some playful roughhousing between friends was enough to light a fire in her panties?

Instead of putting as much distance between them as possible while she got her libido in check, Lizzy had finagled Jack into helping her with her bookstore project. What was she thinking? She wasn’t. Overthinking about what had happened would unnecessarily weird her out. She was right not to make a big deal out of her body’s reaction to him. It had slipped hermind for a second that she onlyobjectivelythought he was gorgeous. She wasn’tattractedto him or anything. It was a fluke. Nothing more.

“I thought you went to buy a bell for the door,” Shannon said, coming around the cash register.

“I did.” Lizzy raised the bell as evidence. “But we need someone to install it.”

“I guess that’s where I come in,” Jack said, stepping forward with his hand outstretched. “Hi. I’m Jack.”

“Lovely to meet you.” Shannon’s voice dipped shyly as she tucked her hand into his. “I’m Shannon.”

“Anyway,” Lizzy said louder than technically necessary and shoved the shopkeeper’s bell at Jack, forcing him to release Shannon’s hand. “In case you’re worried, I didn’t snatch a stranger off the street. Jack and I’ve been friends since we were nine, and his family runs the renowned Weldon Brewery.”

“Weldon Brewery? I’ve heard such great things about it.” Shannon kept her warm smile directed at Jack.

“You should come by sometime,” he suggested right away in that kind, unaffected way he had.

Oh, look. They were hitting it off. How nice.

“The bell is made of real solid brass,” Lizzy blurted. She grabbed the bell back from Jack and shook it in the air. “It makes such a pretty sound.”

“That is pretty.” Shannon finally turned to Lizzy. “I’m going to smile every time I hear it ring.”

“I could install it for you now.” Jack retrieved the bell and studied it for a minute. “Do you have an electric drill?”

“No, I’m afraid not.” Shannon scrunched her lips to one side. “I might have some screwdrivers at home, though.”

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