“This is my nonna’s recipe.”
“I think I’m in love with her.”
He sits down beside me, his own bowl in his hands. It looks tiny in comparison, like it’s a bowl meant for a doll. His T-shirt is just the right amount of tight around his rounded biceps and muscled shoulders.
The masculinity of this man is overwhelming.
I’m also still processing how weirdly…thoughtful he’s being. And decent. He boarded up the windows of my house, and now he’s feeding me? Who is this guy?
My perception of him is shifting in a very dangerous direction.
“You’re not working tomorrow, are you?” he asks.
“It’s my day off, thank God. I’m going to spend all day getting quotes for the repairs. I’ll have to do what I can to secure the house before we get more snow, but fixing up the interior willtake a while longer.” The thought of how much the repairs are going to cost fills my lungs with dread. I’ve got a bit saved up, but there’s no chance it’ll be enough. “I’d rather know what kind of financial hit I’m looking at sooner rather than later.”
What if it takes me a year? A whole year of working at Frostbite and dealing with Brett, tightening my belt when it’s already been pretty damn tight.
I swallow down the ball in my throat. One stupid mistake, and all the work I did on the house was for nothing.
“Your financial hit is zero.”
I glance at him. What’s he talking about? “I don’t have insurance. I thought I already told you that.” I take another bite.
His arm brushes against my shoulder as he lifts the fork to his mouth. “I’ll take care of it.”
I nearly choke. “I hope you’re joking.”
“I was the one who suggested starting a fire last night, so I feel responsible. Plus, you’re my woman now, remember? What kind of a shitty boyfriend would I be if I didn’t repair your house for free? I do own a renovation firm, you know.”
His woman?This time, I really do choke on my pasta. Rowan pats my back as I cough.
“What is wrong with you?” I force out when I manage to finally breathe again.
“Weird way to say thanks, Blake.”
I put my bowl down and turn to face him. “You are not repairing my house for free. That’s ludicrous.”
“I’ll get Sam over here in the next day or two to scope out the project.”
My head spins. “Rowan, it’s been a long day. If this is your idea of a joke—”
“Take a deep breath.” His hand appears on my knee. “Like I said, I’ll take care of it all.”
I stand up, needing to put some space between us. I’m starting to believe he’s serious, and I’m having a hard time processing the sudden onslaught of feelings I’m experiencing.
“It’s going to cost a fortune.”
He puts his bowl down beside mine and leans back against the couch, throwing his arm over the back. “I’m doing what any good boyfriend would do.”
“We’re notactuallydating.”
“Our agreement is important to me. We need to sell this if it’s going to work. What better way to show how serious I am about you than to work on your house?”
I feel so dizzy that I have to sit back down. “This is nuts. I already told you I’m not good at accepting help, and this is— God, Rowan. I’m not used to someone doing things like this for me.” A mixture of gratefulness and vulnerability swirls inside my lungs.
His gaze burrows into me, intent and unrelenting. “Then you better get used to it, because I take care of what’s mine, Sunshine.”
My pulse picks up speed. There’s something about the sure way those words roll off his lips that makes the hairs on my nape stand up straight.
