“Sorry about your uncle,” Rand said. “He was a real nice guy.” He smiled, making little crinkles form in the corner of his eyes. While he seemed intense with me, almost overwhelming, it appeared he did that alot. Smiled, that is.
“You knew him better than me. Working here, you had to know him really well,” I admitted. “I was shocked he left me the house and property.”
“You were his only kin, as far I know.” Rand looked up as if he could see through the subfloor. “Needs some work. What are your plans for it?”
I shrugged. “A friend of mine suggested a bed and breakfast, so it can earn some cash.”
Was it me or did they tense up a little when I said that?
I’d thought Rand had been staring before, but now, I felt trapped. Caught in his blue eyes. As if he could see into me.
“You want people to come here and stay?” he asked, as if I’d said tourists should come and shovel manure in the barn.
I frowned, unsure of the issue. “I don’t know anything about ranching, and I don’t want to bartend forever. Income would be a good thing. I like to eat. There isn’t much in the way of jobs out here. At least for what I do.”
“What’s that?” Rand asked.
“Concert violinist.” That was a touchy subject, and Rand gave me the usual wide eyed stare of surprise. I couldn’t see Nash except out of the corner of my eye with Rand standing so close.
I took a deep breath, and my chest bumped Rand’s. “Well, standing in the basement is fun and all, but I’m sure you two have other projects besides me.”
Rand just stared, took another deep breath then stepped back.
I sighed.
Nash went to the fuse box, glanced over his shoulder. “Got a flashlight?” he asked Rand.
Rand pulled one from his back pocket, handed it over along with a new fuse. Kept his gaze on me.
“How did you know to bring that?” I asked. He was well prepared.
His eyes crinkled warmly even though he wasn’t outright smiling. “I used to work here, remember? Nothing’s changed with the electric. I used to have to come down and replace the fuses for your uncle all the time. Got a hell of a shock once. Come on, we’ll go upstairs, and you can holler down and let Nash know when the power comes back on. Always thought this basement was creepy.”
“Probably full of spiders, too,” I murmured, looking around. I freaking hate spiders.
I looked to Nash who gave me a wink, then I turned to go. Walking up the old stairs, I became acutely aware of Rand following. Of his eyes on my ass. This guy had seen me naked the night before! I knew it was him, but there’s no way he knew that I knew.
I couldn’t tell him either. Obviously, he had no intention of telling me the truth. It was like the saying about a secret being the elephant in the room. In this case, it was a sleek, gray wolf.
“Ack!” My foot dropped through a rotted stair. I shrieked, arms flying out to steady myself as my body dropped. Before I even found the handrail, Rand caught me—one hand under my arm, the other at my waist. Instead of steadying me, he tugged me backward, and I tumbled straight into his arms, honeymoon style. I gasped again, this time from the hard feel of him holding me in his arms.
“Easy, Red,” he rumbled. “I got you.”
“What happened?” Nash called from below.
“We’re good, just watch the broken step when you come up,” Rand replied, pulling me in close.
“Oh!” That was the inane sound that came from my lips as he carried me up the remaining stairs.
Slowly.
Like he was in no hurry to get to the top.
And not because I was too heavy, and it was a struggle for him. No, I felt weightless in his arms, like he could carry three of me and still not break a sweat.
Wolf strength.
My startled gaze found his, which had taken on an eerie, beast-like glow. “Careful, darlin’,” he murmured, his warm breath feathering against my cheek.
For some reason, his words—or maybe it was the deep velvet rumble of his voice—seemed to reach right inside me, speaking to my tingling lady parts like he was singing a serenade. He looked even more handsome close up and personal, the strong line of his jaw made even more manly by a pair of sensual lips. He smelled like sawdust and leather and clean soap.
“Wow. Um, th-thank you,” I managed to say as we reached the hall.
“Might have to keep you in my arms just in case something else breaks.”
I laughed. “In this house? Then you’ll never be putting me down.”
“Works for me.”
O.
M.
G.
I looked back down the stairs, where Nash stood with his hands on his hips, watching us. “Huh,” he said, like he just figured something out.