AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He wore one of his usual olive T-shirts, and her gaze fixated on the way his biceps bulged with every shake of the can. Her hormones flared at the sight.
“Will that work?” he asked.
“Uh, what?”
“You using the roller.”
“Oh, sure.” Crystal bit her lower lip and eyed the painting stuff. The helpful man in the hardware store had gathered up everything he thought they’d need. Otherwise, she’d have been clueless.
On the way back in the car, she’d watched some YouTube videos on how to prep. That was as far as she’d gotten. Still, how hard could it be?
Zach opened the lid. He poured primer into a paint tray with a liner and gestured across the room. “The roller’s right there.”
After filling an empty coffee can with paint, he turned his back to her and reached up to brush it on near the ceiling. Made sense for him to do it since he wouldn’t need the ladder. She snatched the metal roller frame and slid on a fuzzy cylinder.
Nothing to it. She had this. Her gaze darted to Zach, and she stalled again. Now his broad shoulders flexed as he moved the brush across the wall. A hot flame ignited in her core. He caught her staring when he dipped the brush for more paint.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“Nothing. I was…thinking about where to start.” More like not thinking at all since her brain went on vacation when he got her stirred up.
He pointed to the doorway. “If you start there, we won’t get in each other’s way.”
“Okay.” She carried the tray over, coated the roller, and ran it up the wall. Drops of paint splattered on her shirt. Oops. She slowed down and glanced at Zach. Phew. He hadn’t noticed.
Two more swipes with no problems. She sighed in relief. Once she got into a rhythm, she finished three walls in short order. “This isn’t so hard.”
Zach turned around. “You sound surprised. When’s the last time you did this?”
Uh oh. Busted. “I can’t even remember.” Not a total lie. She dipped the roller again to avoid his scrutiny and made another pass.
“What’s this?” Zach asked. “I almost stepped on it, doing the ceiling trim.”
She swung around as he picked up a sketchpad she’d left on the floor.
Damn.
While Erin was making dinner earlier, Crystal had played with colors and dabbed paint beside the flowers she’d drawn. They’d stopped at a craft store on the way back from town, and she’d picked up everything she’d need for stenciling. She’d meant to stash the sketchbook away but had forgotten. At some point, Zach would see the final product, but she never shared her works-in-progress with anyone and didn’t know what he’d think.
“It’s nothing. I’ll get it out of your way.” She reached for the pad. He held it tight, studying the page.
“These flower sketches are amazing. Did you draw this?”
“Well, yeah. Like I said, I do paint.”
“I’m impressed. Did you take art lessons?” he asked.
A wave of pride soared through her. “No, I taught myself. I plan to come back and detail the walls after everything dries.” She waved a hand around the room. “I’m going to sketch these flowers along the borders, and they’ll blend with the pictures your mom and I picked out today at the thrift store. She seems so excited to have a pretty room to host her friends.”
Zach rubbed the side of his face. “Okay, one thing at a time. First of all,youwent to a thrift store?”
Crystal flinched. “Are you judging me? Your mother wanted to go there. We found some nice—”
“No. I’m not judging you. I’m just…surprised.”
She peered up from under her cap. “Why?”
“Doesn’t seem like the kind of store you’d shop in. And I’d think you’d have been worried about someone recognizing you.”
