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Plus, it was getting old.
She was lonely and really wished someone would prove her wrong and want to stay no matter how bratty she was or how badly she behaved.
Which brought her back to Reid and their dinner on Sunday night. She’d pushed and he left, no questions asked.
Well…almost no questions.
Still, she’d seen him a few times and he didn’t seem the least bit bothered by the fact that she had pushed him away after one of the greatest kisses of her life.
He was hot, a great kisser, and a fireman. For crying out loud, he was everything most women wanted—herself included—and she ruined it.
Again.
“I’m getting tired of my own company,” she mumbled right before the sound of some kind of power tool started up. “Oh, come on! Really?”
That was it. She was tired of not having any peace in her own damn home. The last time she went up to his apartment, everything was unpacked. There was no reason for all this noise! If it didn’t end soon, she was going to report him to the landlord and ask that they throw him out because she couldn’t live like this. Ashlynn knew she was always respectful of her neighbors, and she hated it when it wasn’t reciprocated.
Storming out of her apartment, she stomped up the stairs. “Damn disrespectful, that’s what it is. How hard is it to just not make so much noise?” Stopping at his door, she pounded her fist against it to be heard over all the racket he was making.
Then she had to knock again.
And ring the bell.
By the time Reid opened the door, she was spitting nails. “You are a crappy reciprocator, you know that?” she yelled.
The look he gave her was full of confusion.
“What can you possibly be doing up here? Are you taking clogging lessons?”
“Clogging? What…?”
“Are you part of that Lord of the Dance thing?” she asked angrily.
“Lord of the…”
“I mean…the stomping, the thumping, the power tools…for the love of it, when are you going to be done and just start living here rather than rudely ruining everyone’s peace and quiet?”
Without a word, Reid took a step back and motioned for her to come in. It was on the tip of her tongue to refuse, but her curiosity got the better of her.
The floor plan was identical, but when she stepped into the living room, she froze. “What the…?”
“I started this project and really thought it would be done a lot faster, so I apologize. Unfortunately, I couldn’t only do half the wall in shiplap.” He stepped up beside her. “I’ve only got a few more rows to go and then I have to install the mount for the TV and the shelves that I bought, so…”
“So what you’re saying is this…this noise…is going to continue for…”
“I’d like to say it will be done tonight, but I’m guessing it will probably be tomorrow night.” He paused and studied the wall. “Definitely tomorrow night.”
Hanging her head, Ashlynn fought the urge to cry. The only way she was going to survive this was to go and stay at Chloe’s—which is what she resigned herself to.
“Okay, then,” she said tightly. “Thanks for the update.”
He hadn’t said anything to stop her or to try to drag out their interaction, he’d simply closed the door behind her.
Going down to her apartment, she told herself it wasn’t a big deal. Once inside, she packed an overnight bag and texted Chloe that she needed to crash there for a couple of nights.
Naturally it wasn’t an issue, but when she came home on that third night and was getting ready to make dinner, there it was.
The noise.
