Page 23 of Falling for a Grumpy Hero

Long but clearly strong fingers. A smattering of short, dark hair on his knuckles. Bulging veins over a broad hand that disappeared past his wrist and into the sleeve of his shirt. “This is generally what architects and engineers use when they’re designing. You should get used to using the tech, even if you’re going to pursue interior design instead.”

Whoa. Instead? What the holy heck does that mean? Instead of what, exactly? I was too shocked by the gesture to ask, though. I knew exactly what kind of tablet this was, and now that I’d forced myself to focus on it instead of the hand holding it, I also knew that it cost several grand. I’d been looking at one just a couple weeks ago.

I’d desperately wanted it, but I hadn’t been able to afford it yet. Numbly reaching for the slim box, I blinked a few times before I looked back up into his eyes. “You really didn’t have to do this.”

“I know, but I insist. Besides, you have to take it. I’ve already registered it and had it set up for you. I can’t return it and I wouldn’t want to.”

Taken aback by this extreme act of generosity and kindness, I smiled and opened my arms, silently asking if I could give him a hug. “I’d like to thank you now.”

He waved me off, literally taking a step back as he shook his head, those handsome, sharp features back to a closed-off frown. “Don’t mention it, but stay out of my office from now on. Please.”

Tacking on that last word, he sighed. I accepted what he’d said with a smug smile. Neither of us spoke again for a long moment, just staring right into each other’s eyes. I saw every crystal and dash in those stormy blue eyes, even finally realizing that those, combined with the slightly darker ring around his irises, were what gave them that stormy appearance.

A strange electricity seemed to spark to life between us, a magnetic force that made me want to drift closer to him. Once I realized that it was going to become awkward real fast if we both just kept staring, I broke the silence. “Are you really not firing me?”

“I probably could.” He shrugged. “I’m not going to, though.”

A ghost of a smile tugged at his lips when he said it, like this was his idea of teasing me. It was an endearing thing to notice, and as if he’d had the same realization at the same time, the tension between us suddenly felt thick.

Out of the office, here in my personal space, I was seeing him as a man more than a boss right now, and that was probably why I’d never felt this tension with him quite so acutely before. My gaze locked onto him again and I noticed for the first time the tiny, shiny scars he had on the backs of his hands and his chest.

He’d left the top couple of buttons of his shirt undone, and the light must’ve been hitting him just right because there were dozens upon dozens of marks just on his hands and his chest. It made me itch to ask what had happened and if he had more, carefully hidden by his clothing, but I felt like I already knew how that would go.

“Get dressed,” he said suddenly. “We have somewhere to be.”

My eyebrows shot up. “I’ve already called out of work today.”

“That’s too bad. I’ll be waiting downstairs in my truck.” He strode toward my door and opened it, but he stopped and turned to look at me again. “Wear something you don’t mind getting dirty and, uh, bring that tablet with you. It’s all charged up and you’re going to need it.”

12

FORD

“The Fierras are out for the moment.” I pushed the front door of the grand old house open and waved Lila in ahead of me. “They know we’re here. Don’t worry. They’ll be here soon. I told them we were fine doing a walkthrough with just the two of us to discuss some of their plans and a few of the structural concerns I have.”

She strode into the spacious foyer and paused to look back at me. I saw the confusion in those pretty, light blue eyes, but she didn’t question me, which I liked. Now that I knew she had an actual backbone, I was sure she would call me out when she felt like she needed to, and that made me feel significantly more at ease around her.

“Alright,” she said. “What structural concerns do you have about their plans? As far as I know, they’re not asking for anything too outlandish.”

“They’re not, but based on what they submitted to me during the bidding phase, one thing that they want, that the house doesn’t have, is a sunroom on the upper level. I’m concerned that converting a couple of the current rooms into a sunroom wouldn’t be structurally sound.”

“Why not?” She frowned, bringing her red braid over her shoulder and toying with the end of it again as she stared into my eyes like she was trying to x-ray my brain.

She seemed to prefer her hair in that braid when she was out of her house, but this morning when I’d arrived unannounced, it’d all been thrown up into an extremely messy knot type thing on top of her head. It’d looked nice. Comfortable, at the very least.

I cleared my throat, yanking my gaze away from her delicate fingers twisting the ends of her hair and looking up at the ceiling. “Well, if we install a sunroom with the dimensions they’ve asked for by simply merging two of the bedrooms, knocking out walls and putting in windows, what’s left of the roof would collapse.”

“Sure, but I don’t see any issues with it as long as new supports are added.”

There we go. She’d just confirmed my suspicions that she knew a lot more about architecture than she’d ever let on. Than she’d let on to me, anyway, which wasn’t saying much, but also, I was her boss. And a structural engineer. At an engineering firm that also worked with tons of architects, so yeah. She probably should’ve let on that she knew something about it.

“Why are you so interested in interior design?” I asked, leaning against a wall separating the living area from the foyer. “There are so many career choices in that environment. Why that one?”

“Well, for starters, I lived in New York City, but I’m from southern California. The architecture in those two places is so different, but then again, I suppose it differs from neighborhood to neighborhood too. I also traveled a bit as a kid. My parents, well, let’s just say they wanted to show me some stuff while they still could, and I was always drawn to buildings. The history they’ve witnessed and how they transform the landscape.”

“All of which says that you should’ve been thinking about architecture, unless I’m missing something here?”

“Nah, I like the quirky, creative side of design and I think I’ll be good at it.” She went on and on about her past experiences and the buildings she’d visited, and I didn’t stop her.