“It’s okay,” he responded just as softly.
“I probably need to put some clothes on,” she murmured.
He ran a hand down her back and discovered she didn’t have a bra on under her baggy T-shirt. He realized she had literally rolled out of bed and wandered down the stairs without remembering what day it was. “I’ll leave you to get dressed. Do you need coffee?”
“I would forever be in your debt if you made that happen.”
Damn, she was adorable. “Cream? Sugar?”
“Both. And ice.”
“Got it.” He slid his hands down to clasp hers, not wanting to let her go just yet. “Be back in five with coffee, and I’ll help you disassemble the bed.”
She nodded. “Got it. Thank you.”
He took the stairs two at a time, not caring that he was grinning.
When he reached the kitchen, he found Hatch leaning against the counter. The Keurig was gurgling at his back. “You look extraordinarily pleased. You weren’t up there long enough to look that happy.”
Mack rolled his eyes. “Don’t even go there. Christa needs coffee.”
“So does Libby. You can go after me.” He grinned. “So… I assume your date went well the other night? You’ve been quiet about it all week.”
“It did.” Mack wasn’t about to share more than that. Normally, he would brag about a conquest, but this time was different. His relationship with Christa was off-limits.
“That’s it? That’s all I get?” Hatch started chuckling. “This must be serious.”
Sweets stepped into the kitchen. “You two gonna help your women move, or you just gonna stand in here gabbing like a couple girls while Tank and I do all the work?” His voice was teasing. He grabbed two bottles of water from the fridge and headed back out front.
Mack pursed his lips. Christa was hardly his woman. Not yet. One date. One date that ended in a delicious kiss, leaving him wanting so much more. But he wasn’t about to point that out because as far as he was concerned, she wasn’t available to any of them, either.
Hatch grabbed the full cup of coffee and stepped out of the way to doctor it while Mack took over. Five minutes later, he was back upstairs, iced-coffee in hand.
Christa was dressed and he paused in the doorway to stare at her. Jean shorts and a pink tank top that hugged her body and left nothing to the imagination. Her hair was in two braids now, swinging against her back as she stripped her bed.
He couldn’t breathe as he watched her move, her butt cheeks peeking out from under her shorts when she bent over. His dick was twice as hard as it had been when he left her five minutes ago.
Finally, he cleared his throat and stepped into the room.
She spun around, giving him a view of the front of her. Small, perfect breasts encased in a white lace bra. He knew this because the straps were not fully hidden by her tank top and a little lace poked out from the scoop neck.
He needed to rein in his lust before he tossed her sweet body onto this mattress and devoured every inch of her. She wasn’t that kind of girl, but that’s exactly what he wanted to do. If she had any idea how badly he wanted to control her... That sweet smile on her face… Her teasing him with her revealing outfit… He was tempted to pull her over his knee and spank her bottom for torturing him. But she was oblivious to that detail.
She beamed at him. “Hey. I’m awake now. Sorry about that.” She stepped forward and reached for the coffee he forgot he was even holding. “And bless you for this. I promise I’ll even make coherent sentences as soon as I consume coffee.”
He released the glass, tongue-tied. That was so unlike him. This woman was way under his skin already. Also unlike him.
She stopped talking and stared at him while she drank the coffee.
“I can see the benefit of having it iced,” he pointed out as she downed it. “Much faster to get the caffeine flowing.”
“Yep.” She set the glass on the bedside table and took a deep breath. “Thank you for giving up your Saturday to help us. We really appreciate it.” She rubbed her palms on her shorts and turned to grab the bedding and stuff it in a packing box.
“Of course.” He wanted to establish a plan with her. Now. Before they got busy. “Can I buy you dinner tonight after we get everything moved?”
She smiled at him. “Maayybee.” She dragged that word out forever. “Let’s see how I feel when we get to that point. I might drop dead of exhaustion and be totally worthless to you.”
He nodded. “Fair enough.” Though the thought of leaving her in her new apartment and going home later made his chest tighten.
She pointed at the bed. “You want to help me take the mattress off and disassemble the bed frame?”
And so it began. Moving day.
Chapter 5
It turned out that even though Christa and Libby didn’t have that much stuff, they weren’t entirely ready to move. In addition, the logistics of which boxes belonged to which woman kept slowing things down.
It was midafternoon before everything was out of the condo and loaded into the two moving trucks. Hatch was obviously driving Libby’s to his place, and Mack quickly claimed his spot driving Christa’s. He insisted he could handle the unloading on the other end. It wouldn’t take nearly as long as the loading, so Sweets and Tank were relieved of their duties and took off.
Mack drove the truck and followed Christa in her Civic to her new apartment. He parked carefully along the street while she headed into the main office. She had already been inside for a few minutes when he joined her.
The first thing he noticed was her red face. She flattened both hands on the counter and calmly said, “Please tell me you’re kidding.”
The willowy young man behind the counter winced and shook his head. “I’m so sorry. I had no idea this would happen. I thought the tenant was moving out last weekend.”
“What’s going on?” Mack asked, setting a hand on Christa’s back while glancing at the man’s name tag. Jerry.
Christa jerked her head to face Mack. “Apparently, the person living in my apartment decided to renew his lease at the last moment and it’s no longer available.” Her anger and sarcasm leaked out, but not to the extent Mack would have expressed if he were her.
Mack turned his attention to the man behind the counter. “That’s impossible. Doesn’t she have a lease?”
Jerry shook his head. “She didn’t sign it yet.”
Christa groaned and dropped her forehead to the counter.
“You didn’t sign the lease?” Mack asked her, trying not to sound judgmental.
She lifted her head and narrowed her gaze at Mack. “I spoke to him on the phone several times. I came by to see the layout. He told me not to worry about it, I could finish the paperwork when I got here.”
Mack nodded. That made sense. “Okay.” He smoothed his hand up her back and settled it on her neck, turning his attention back to the man behind the counter. “So, you promised her an apartment today, and now you don’t have one?”
Jerry cringed. “That’s about right. I didn’t do it on purpose. The guy told me he was moving out.”
“When? When was he moving out? Obviously not today. You would’ve needed to clean it.”
Jerry winced again. “Yeah. It’s been a busy few days. I forgot to contact Ms. Boyce.”
Mack stared at him. Was he kidding? “Then you need to honor your commitment and give her whatever you have available at the agreed-upon price.”
Jerry held up both hands. “I’m sorry. The complex is totally full. We don’t even have a model available. I rented that out a month ago.”
Mack was growing impatient even though he was wasting his breath. “Why would you promise someone a unit and then let the inhabitant renew it?”
“I wasn’t here that day. My coworker renewed it. Took me a few days to realize the problem, and then I forgot to call Ms. Boyce, like I said.”
Mack drew in a deep breath. What a shitty-ass business model. Continuing to argue
with this man was going to accomplish nothing, and even if he had ten units available, Mack wouldn’t want Christa to rent from this guy.
Christa shoved off the counter, turned around, and walked right out the door without a word.
Mack glared at Jerry. “What a shitty way to treat a prospective tenant. How on earth do you manage to rent any units at all with your business model? What do your reviews look like? Because they’re going to look pretty fucking awful in about ten minutes.”
Jerry winced. “Look man, it was a mistake.”
Mack leaned in closer. “A mistake?” He pointed outside where he’d parked the moving van. “It’s Saturday afternoon. My friend has no place to go. That’s way beyond a mistake.”
Jerry shuffled back and forth, glancing down to avoid Mack’s eye contact.
“Jesus.” Mack spun around and headed toward the door. Arguing with this asshole was getting him nowhere.
Christa had marched across the parking lot and was now leaning against the side of her car, arms crossed. She jerked her gaze up as Mack reached her. “What the hell am I supposed to do now?” she asked the world at large.
Mack didn’t have a clue. It wasn’t as if they could find another place at this hour on a Saturday. He realized they had only one choice. “You’ll stay with me until we figure it out.”
She lifted her head and cocked it to one side. “That’s not realistic. We just met.”
He stepped closer and inhaled deeply. She was right, but God, he was tingling just at the thought of having her in his home tonight. He set his hands on her hips. “You really don’t have options. It’s Saturday afternoon. You’d never be able to secure a lease right now. The easiest thing to do is find a storage unit, unload your stuff, and deal with this Monday.”
She sighed, keeping her gaze on his. “You don’t even know me that well.”
“I know you well enough.” It occurred to him that maybe he was giving her the wrong idea. “I don’t mean to insinuate you would be sleeping with me. I have a guest room. You can use it as long as you need while you find another place. This isn’t some ploy to get in your pants.” Though Lord, it pained him to say that. He really wanted in her pants. He wanted to yank those shorts off her body, spread her legs open, and devour her.
She flushed adorably and glanced down as if she’d read his thoughts. After a few seconds, she took a deep breath. “Okay. But only for a few days. I promise I’ll figure something out soon.”
Yes. He gave a mental fist-pump. “Let’s get moving then.”
Chapter 6
Christa was a ball of nerves by the time they finished unloading her belongings into a damn storage unit and returned the truck. She was hungry and tired and angry, too.
She let Mack drive her car back to her condo to get his, and then she followed him to his house. He opened the two-car garage and waved her forward after he parked, pointing to the other bay.
She felt weird parking in his garage, but she did it anyway. She was about to drop from exhaustion, both mental and physical, when she climbed from her Civic. And the shit of it all was that she really needed to force herself to stay awake until morning. At least ten more hours. That was the bummer of working nights.
Mack opened her trunk and grabbed the boxes she’d brought to his house. The ones she’d packed last that were marked “FIRST” on them. He easily carried two of them stacked in his arms. “Come on. I’ll get the rest. You need to sit.”
She followed him through the garage entrance into his kitchen. This was an older home, but the kitchen was remodeled. The cabinets were dark brown, the counters a brown speckled marble, and the appliances stainless steel. The tile floor was just as clean as the rest of the kitchen, and she wondered if he was a neat freak. Not enough to ask right now though. She didn’t have the energy to speak.
She followed him through an archway into a living room, eyeing the brown leather sectional.
Mack nodded toward the inviting cushions. “Sit. I’ll be right back.” He continued down a hallway while she dropped onto his sofa with a sigh. When he returned empty-handed a few moments later, she knew he’d dropped the boxes off in his guest room. “Be right back.” He made a second trip to her car, repeated the path with two more boxes, and then passed her up once more.
Seconds later, he returned, holding two bottles of water.
“Bless you,” she said as he opened the first one and handed it to her. Tingles raced up her spine at the reminder of how damn polite he was. Chivalrous. It was endearing.
He was still standing when the doorbell rang. “That’ll be the pizza.”
Her stomach rumbled. Was he serious?
He winked at her as he turned toward the door. “I ordered it on the way here. Figured you were starving. If you need your food like you need your coffee in the morning, I didn’t want you to pass out on me.”
She watched his fantastic ass encased in worn jeans as he headed for the door, and moaned at the scent of pizza when he set it down on the coffee table.
“I’ll grab napkins.” The man was a robot. He had to be exhausted, too. He’d worked his ass off all day loading and unloading her shit, and now he had to entertain her.
“I don’t want to get in your way or interrupt your evening if you had something planned,” she said when he returned.
He sat next to her and shot her a frown. “My plan was to feed you after moving your stuff, remember?” He opened the pizza box, and the smell of delicious sauce and pepperoni filled the air. He lifted a slice out and handed it to her on a napkin.
She narrowed her gaze at him. “How old are you?”
He frowned. “Thirty-four, why?”
“Because so far you’ve been the kindest man I’ve ever met. Why are you single? There must be a catch. What’s in your closet?”
He started laughing and then shook his head and reached for his own slice of pizza. After eating half of it in one bite, he swallowed and met her gaze again. “Honestly, I’m not always this way. Some people would probably say I’m aloof and unapproachable.”
“So, it’s just me?” she joked.
His expression was serious when he responded. “Yeah. It kinda is. I’m trying to impress you.”
She stopped chewing mid-bite and swallowed hard. She didn’t think any man had ever gone out of his way to impress her as hard as Mack was. “Why?”
His eyes scrunched closer. “Because I like you?”
She felt her cheeks heat.
“Surely men trip over themselves to get a chance with you.”
This time she narrowed her gaze. “Because I’m pretty? Are you talking about my looks?” She knew she had the classic blond looks most men went for. And yes, sometimes they did trip over themselves to get to her. But they proved themselves to be assholes nearly every time within minutes. Except Mack.
He set his napkin down and gulped some of his water before responding. “You’re certainly pretty. There’s no reason why I should lie about that. I was initially drawn to you for your looks. But you can’t tell me you weren’t drawn to me for mine.” He lifted a brow.
She squirmed and nodded. “Touché.”
“That was superficial. Most dates start because of a physical attraction. And then we make a choice. Do we like this person for more than their looks? Or is this purely physical? If the answer is B, then we have to decide if we want to walk away or enjoy a one-night stand. If the answer is A, we make a conscious decision to see that person again. In which case, for me at least, sex is off the table because respect is more important.”
She stared at him, blinking. He sounded like a psychologist. He was dead on. She’d never heard anyone so succinctly describe first dates. He seemed so genuine, and she felt like a bitch for doubting him for even a second.
Christa crossed her arms and rubbed them with her fingers. “I’m sorry for being so leery. You’ve given me no reason to doubt your sincerity. I’m just not very trusting. Of men in general.”
He reached out and set a
hand on her thigh, giving it a squeeze. “Why is that? Did something specific shape your view of men?”
His touch made her pulse beat faster. His hand on her leg made her crave more. The way he rubbed her inner thigh with his thumb was maddening.
She wouldn’t tell him any of that, of course. Instead, she cleared her throat and tried to ignore his touch. “No. Just a lifetime of jeers and catcalls and people asking me if my hair was real. If the carpet matches the drapes. People assuming I must be dumb since I’m blond. It builds up over time and spills over. So, yes, you’re right. I was attracted to you. I wanted to go out with you. But honestly, I didn’t expect you to walk away without pressuring me for more than a kiss. I didn’t have high hopes you would find me interesting enough to go out with again. And I certainly didn’t think five days later I’d be homeless, sleeping in your guest room. I’m unnerved.”
He smiled and released her leg to cup her face. “Well, Christa Boyce, it turns out I’m not a dick this time.”
Her eyes went wide. “Are you usually a dick?” He kind of did insinuate that.
He shrugged. “I have been. I mean, I’ve certainly had shallow relationships. I’m sure women have walked away from me thinking I disappointed them. I’m not proud of it, but somehow I knew as soon as I picked you up that I respected you more than previous women, and I want to get to know you better.”
She nodded. “Okay.” She still had her arms crossed, closed off from him, but she finally dropped them and set a hand on top of his on her cheek. “I’m gonna shut up now because I haven’t slept and I don’t want to stick my foot any farther down my throat.”
He chuckled. “You haven’t done anything of the sort. Don’t worry. If anyone has said too much, it’s been me.” He flipped his hand over and grabbed her palm, bringing it to his lips to kiss her knuckles. “If you want to go to sleep, you can do that. I’ll show you around a bit and help you get settled.”
She shook her head. “Can’t do that. I’ll be messed up. Gotta warn you about inviting someone who works nights to stay in your house. I need to force myself to stay up until at least five a.m. or I’ll be screwed when I go to work tomorrow night.”
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