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So, I took a deep breath and imagined a concrete wall sliding down to shield my heart. Then I took long, confident steps toward the door. I jerked it open and stepped inside.
My plan was to blurt out a “good morning” if Sierra was in the lobby. Chances were, though, she wouldn’t be. She spent most of her day in her boss’s empty office. She’d sit on the floor, laptop on her lap, and work for hours.
Not today, though. Today, she was standing in front of that office door, and she wasn’t alone. A brunette stood next to her.
“Hi,” the brunette said.
I nodded at her. “Morning.”
Then I shifted my gaze to Sierra, determined to keep things as impersonal as possible. But I felt my features softening at the sight of her. It would take more than an imaginary concrete wall to keep this woman away from my heart.
“This is Travis,” Sierra told the brunette. “He’s the contractor. Travis, this is Montana. She’ll be setting up our spa. She’s a massage therapist.”
I had a frown on my face as I shifted my attention to the brunette. My frown had everything to do with the chill I felt from Sierra’s general direction. I might not be able to keep things impersonal, but she sure could.
Maybe I’d misjudged things. Maybe our encounter in the office meant nothing to her, and I was the only one getting way too serious.
My words didn’t match my thoughts, though. “The spa isn’t even built yet, and you’ve already hired a massage therapist?”
“My grandma and Ashlynn’s grandma were best friends,” Montana said. “I’m helping set up the business, especially the salon, but I run my own massage therapy business in Knoxville.”
“She’s really good,” Sierra said. “If you have any aches and pains, she can help.”
I stared at Sierra, trying to make sense of my own emotions right now. I didn’t want a woman touching me, professional or otherwise, ever again.
Okay, that might be extreme. Eventually, I’d have to go to a doctor for something. I might even need a massage therapist someday if I injured myself on a job site.
But the very thought of another woman laying hands on me right now made me cringe. And that was a problem if I didn’t want to get serious about Sierra.
Montana suddenly dropped her gaze to her phone. She had a strange expression as she did so. I guessed she’d been studying me and Sierra, trying to figure out what was going on between us.
That told me Sierra hadn’t mentioned what happened yesterday. Of course not. This was a professional setting, and Montana obviously knew Sierra’s boss.
Yes, it made no sense, but it still bugged me that Sierra hadn’t been talking about me. I wanted her so shaken by having sex with me, she had to tell someone.
“Nice meeting you,” I told Montana.
I tugged my gaze away from the two women, stepping back and turning around. My attention went straight to the paint can on the floor to my left. That was what we’d been doing yesterday when the storm rolled in.
I started working, determined to keep my back to her. I didn’t even realize she’d retreated to the office at some point. When I turned around, she was nowhere to be seen and the door was closed.
Good. It was for the best. I’d finish out my work today and maybe over the weekend, I could get my head on straight.
But the more I thought about her choosing to stay behind that door and ignoring me, the more restless I felt. She should be wondering why I was pushing her away. It wasn’t even that I was bothered that she seemed to have brushed off what’d happened yesterday. I simply could not bear being away from her.
I barely made it a half hour before I was knocking on the door. I heard her rustling around in there for at least a couple of minutes. She still didn’t answer.
I knocked again, more persistent this time. That seemed to get her attention. The door burst open and she stood there, left hand on her hip, right hand on the door handle.
“Do you need something?” she asked.
Her face was the picture of professionalism. She gave me an impersonal smile—the same smile she probably would have given someone stopping by to sell her something.
“Why are you hiding in here?” I asked.
Now that it was out, the question sounded even more absurd to me than it no doubt did to her. There was nothing saying she had to stay out in the lobby. She usually left this door open, but if she’d closed it the first or second or third day, I wouldn’t have thought a thing of it. After what happened yesterday, though, it felt deliberate.
“Just trying to get some work done.” She tilted her head. “Did you need me for something?”
