Page 16 of Man Glitter
“That’s quite a lot to take in all at once and yet I feel like I need to apologize for zipping my pants more so than being naked in front of you. Is that right?” Charlie scratched the side of his head, looking quite uncertain.
I sighed. “I don’t know. Let’s just go out to your workshop and have a conversation. Okay?”
Charlie swooped his hand toward the back door. “Sounds good.”
I walked out and took a deep inhale of fresh pine-scented air. Maybe I did overreact a bit in there. I just needed to calmly tell him I was moving out and then enlist his help to squash the shacking up rumor. Easy peasy.
“You forgot your smoothie,” Charlie said behind me.
“No, I didn’t.”
I marched off to the workshop, happy to have escaped drinking that crap. Going hungry was a better option than vegan protein and ground up wheatgrass. I was all for staying healthy, but that just seemed like a recipe for the runs. I didn’t own enough Pepto Bismol to sip that every morning.
Charlie ran ahead of me, Chester yipping at his heels. That dog was always up for a good time and Charlie was all too happy to give it to him. Despite being angry at Charlie for both flashing me—leaving me unbelievably and annoyingly turned on—and for the rumor swirling through Auburn Hill, I couldn’t help but smile at the man and his best friend. A softer heart than mine would melt at the scene they made together.
Instead, I focused on all the reasons I needed to get away from Charlie and followed him into the workshop to lay down the law. He flipped on the lights and Chester went to lie down on the ginormous suede doggie bed in the far corner.
I had a seat on a stool at the workshop and put my elbows on the table, clasping my hands. “Okay, so—”
Charlie yanked on the tarp that covered a piece of artwork he must have been working on. It fell to the concrete floor in a heap, leaving a towering pergola naked to my eyes. And what a pergola it was. Smaller, but more ornate than the one Charlie had on the back of his property. It had carved details so fine I stood up and walked over without even realizing I’d left my stool. Vines climbed up the columns to burst into leaves and blooms at eye level, so intricate you could see every detail as if the wood sculpture had come alive.
“You made this?”
Charlie stood back, watching me admire his work. He smiled, but this smile didn’t look like the rest. It was almost shy. Not arrogant at all.
“Yeah. I had to fashion a strap around my hand to get it done, what with the injury and all. But it turned out okay.”
I twirled under the structure, taking in the masterful wood working details that must have taken hours and hours of work to complete. “Are you kidding me? This is a million more times more than okay, Charlie. It’s incredible.”
I stopped twirling and stood in front of Charlie, who wouldn’t meet my eye. He rubbed the back of his neck and looked extremely uncomfortable. “You’re a fucking wood working genius, Charlie. Say it.”
He looked at me then, wanting to laugh, I could tell by the way he fought it. “No.”
I grabbed his shoulders and tried to shake him, but he didn’t budge. “Yes! Your man glitter is your magical pixie dust. Say it.”
He looked up at the ceiling and sighed. When he looked at me, the smug look of a jokester was back. “I’m a fucking genius with wood.” He winked suggestively.
My face went red as all I could see was Charlie, naked, his cock so happy to see me.
Dammit. He probably was just as good with that wood as he was with this wood. And the hundreds of flowers carved from a hunk of tree behind me told me he was pretty fucking good.
Charlie moved away, my hands slipping from his shoulders. He slapped me on the ass, making me yelp, and dashed away to grab a simple board on the worktable.
“Come on. I’ll show you how to sand this sucker and maybe you can make your own masterpiece, huh?”
I walked over on shaky legs, wondering why I felt so out of control around this particular man. He made me angry, then turned me on, and then did something that made me wonder what was beneath all those smirks and smiles. I wanted away from him right this very second when in the next second I couldn’t wait to see what he’d do next. I liked things to be expected, scientifically proven, and orderly. Charlie was most definitely none of the above.
Charlie switched on the huge sander and stood so close behind me I could feel his heat through my tank top. His hands slid down my arms, and it was all I could do to hold in the full body shudder of delight. He held the wood plank with me, the scent of his soap filling my brain when I really should have been focused on the huge sand belt spinning by my fingertips. He pushed gently, and the board touched the sander, changing the sound of the whine as it smoothed the rough edge of the board. Saw dust flew up in the air before Charlie pulled back. We checked the board and it was already smooth on one side. The instant transformation intrigued me and I was the one to push the board back toward the sander to smooth the other side.
I couldn’t guess how long we spent just sanding a single piece of wood, but when we were done, it was as smooth as silk on all sides. Charlie spun me around and put the board on the worktable for us to admire.
“Nicely done, Rudolfina,” Charlie said sweetly, his genuine smile saying he was proud of me.
I smiled back, feeling accomplished and oddly calm for the first time in many months. Maybe Charlie was on to something. Maybe working out here with your hands really was the cure for a racing mind and a troubled heart.
“You got a little something…” Charlie muttered, reaching up to my hair.
I gulped in a breath at his nearness, my breasts brushing against his chest. He drew his fingers through my hair and my eyes fluttered shut at the onslaught of sensations cascading through my body.
