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Kain sighed. “Shane is a master carpenter.”
Shane slanted a look at him. “I’m a carpenter.”
Kain held his hand out to Kendall. “Let me show you something.”
Shane cracked his knuckles as she took his friend’s hand and followed him. If Kain was looking for a fight, he was going to get one if he didn’t stop manhandling her. Shane tossed back another inch of whiskey and followed them out into the entertaining area. He knew what Kain was going to show off. It was one of his personal favorite pieces. And the reason he’d started Avery Furniture.
Kendall had squatted down, and he bit back an oath. The soft pants hugged every inch of her perfect ass. He forced his attention back on the task at hand. The bench was made from koa wood. The striations reminded him of marble and had taken hours to sand and plank to find just the right thickness. He’d left some of the natural edges and varnished them until the surface was smooth as glass. He’d taken it a step further and planked boards up the wall and added a water feature with a bed of river rocks Kain had flown in from Honolulu. The entire piece had cost thousands, but it suited the space and Kain down to the ground.
She stood and turned. “You did this?”
He tucked his hands under his arms. “Yeah.”
“Yeah?” Her face was incredulous. “All you have to say isyeah?” She swiveled to Kain. “Does he always downplay his work?”
“Yep.”
Kendall’s face softened. “This is what you want to do?”
His jaw hardened. “This is why I have no money in the bank. Building a company doesn’t come cheap.”
“If you let me back you—”
“No.” Shane rocked back on his heels. “We’ve been over this, Kain. I’m doing it on my own. I don’t want to owe you anything, let alone twenty percent of my profits.”
“It doesn’t make you weak to ask for help. I had to ask your father for help.”
Shane’s breath stalled in his chest. “Yeah, and you had to dig him out of a hole because I didn’t pay attention.”
Kain sliced a hand through the air. “It wasn’t like that. He was just too proud to show that he couldn’t take care of everyone.”
Shane turned and went to the sideboard. All he knew was that his father hadn’t trusted him. And nothing was the same. He took the first bottle he saw. “I’m taking my usual room.”
FOUR
“Son of a bitch.”Kain stalked back into the kitchen.
She followed him, rubbing her arms against the tiny hairs that had risen. Shane’s emotions were volatile and made her want to go to him. To fix it and soothe him. It wasn’t her job, dammit. She should be home taking care of the Heron and her mother, not dealing with this minefield of emotions.
The room felt empty without his prowling, angry presence. Not that it should, especially with a man like Kain in the room with her. Confidence and the indefinable male charisma infused the space around him. She wasn’t sure she’d want to be one of his enemies, but she’d spent her life trusting her instincts about people. Strangers were her livelihood, and Kain was a nice guy under all the wealth and power.
If she weren’t in the middle of this insane situation, she’d have jumped at the chance to flirt and see where things went with him. Normally, an easygoing attitude and offhand way of flirting were two of her draws. But the only thing she felt was comfort. Kain didn’t stir her up or make her skin feel too tight.
Shane was too intense, too volatile, and filled with far too much anger.
All she should want was a bed and six straight hours on her face. If she was dumb enough to be interested in anything, Kain was the better choice. He was the wild weekend of laughter and sun-baked sex. Kain hadfun flingwritten all over him.
So why did she want to go upstairs and check on Shane? Why did she want to grab on to the man who was more like a lightning rod? And why did she want more of that contact burn that left her shaky and tingling?
“You sure you know what you’re doing?”
She looked up. Kain’s weighty stare had lost the easygoing edge, and his voice was serious instead of playful. “What?”
“I can spot a woman hatching a plan. And you are wading into dangerous territory, Kendall.”
Could Kain read her damn mind? She lifted her hand to her cheek. Was she as flushed as she felt on the inside? “How do you mean?”
“He’s angry, and his pride has taken a helluva hit. Now’s probably not the right time to start something.”
