“No one said love.” His tone came out far more clipped than he intended.
“This place kicks ass,” Rosie said. They made their way through the house, and Noah was surprised that Grace didn’t offer more commentary on her thoughts. He didn’t want to ask. He wouldn’t ask. She was a student. Not even a professional.
“I’m surprised you don’t have more furniture,” Grace said when they went back to the kitchen.
“I’m interviewing designers. I have the essentials,” he said, nodding toward the big-screen TV and couch.
“Interviewinginteriordesigners?” Rosie’s voice rose an octave.
Shit.Way to put that out there. Not awkward at all.Josh was trying to send some sort of weird-ass signals with his eyes and eyebrows.
Rosie looked back and forth between Grace and Noah, her chin moving up and down in a gentle nod. “Right. Okay. Well, I should go.” She looked at Josh.
Josh’s gaze locked on Rosie’s. “Me too.”
“What?” Grace looked at her friend. “You said you were helping me paint.”
Rosie looked flustered for all of two seconds. “Rain check? It’s not going anywhere.”
“Cold, Rosie. Cold.”
Her friend winked, and she and Josh left like their asses were on fire. Noah stared after them, a little dumbfounded.
“What the f—”
“My thoughts exactly.” Grace’s tone was the kind of irritated he’d heard directed only at him. It was kind of nice not to be the reason.
They looked at each other and laughed at the same time. “You think they’ll hook up immediately or just exchange numbers?” Grace started for the door.
“I honestly don’t want to know. You’re leaving?”
“Gutters, remember.”
He didn’t like the thought of her up on the ladder but he didn’t like the thought ofhimup on a ladder either. He especially didn’t like the thought of either of them breaking their necks falling off said ladder.
“You should wait until…” He trailed off.
She turned at the door. “Until? Some big, strong man can do it? Until I can hire someone?”
“At least until you have someone holding the ladder.” He wondered if she was too stubborn to ask. The strain of silence stretched between them.
He broke first. “I’ll hold the ladder.”
The grin she gave him made him feel like he’d won a prize he didn’t even want. “That’s very neighborly of you.”
Frowning, irritated to be helping her, at the fact that hewantedto help her, he just shook his head. “Don’t get used to it.”
10
Grace wanted to shove the debris she yanked out of the gutters in Noah’s face. If she weren’t on a schedule of chores that needed doing, she might have told him to shove his offer of help. But beggars fell off ladders when they climbed them without a spotter.Not exactly the saying but whatever.Damn, her mood had taken a serious dive. Seven texts from Tammy, Rosie ditching her for her own hot surfer guy, and Noah’s attitude created a ball of irritation she wanted to take a sledgehammer to.
The gutters actually weren’t that bad, but it was something she wanted done before she borrowed Morty’s pressure washer. Less mess overall was her way of thinking.
“You’re leaning too far to the left. You’re going to fall,” Noah shouted up.
“You are stomping all over my nerves,” she muttered.
“What?”
