Page 29 of Asher's Assignment
“Awesome.” He opened his door and climbed out. “I’ll probably need your help, if you don’t mind?”
“That’s fine. So long as you let me change first.”
“You don’t want to climb ladders and walk around in your yard in pointy heels and a skirt?”
Smiling, she fished out her house keys. “No.”
“I don’t want to wear a tie and do it, either.” He flicked the maroon silk.
An image of what he could do with that tie besides wear it struck her. Heat suffused her cheeks, and she turned away, thankful they’d reached the front door and she had to concentrate on letting them in.
Pushing the door inward, she hurried inside. With a quick detour to leave her purse on the island, she headed for the stairs. Asher was ahead of her. Unfortunately—or fortunately, depending on how she looked at it—there was enough sunlight streaming through the windows to see the globes of his perfect butt move beneath the thin fabric of his trousers as he climbed the stairs. She could imagine how it would look, flexing with each step, sans the pants. She hoped he put on jeans, though she wasn’t sure that would be much better. She’d seen his jeans. He liked the kind that clung to his hips and thighs.
Why couldn’t he be one of those computer geeks who liked the baggy grunge style?
They reached the landing, and she turned into her bedroom, thankfully shutting the door on the sinful deliciousness that was Asher Horn.
Esther wandered into her closet and stripped out of her skirt and blouse, kicking her heels into a corner. She’d put them away later; when she did laundry. Grabbing a pair of jeans, she stepped into them, then took a long-sleeved shirt off a shelf and slipped it over her head. Back in her bedroom, she found a pair of socks and slid them onto her feet. She’d put on her gardening shoes, which she kept downstairs in the laundry-slash-mud room.
Dressed, she left her room. Asher emerged at the same time and they went down together, but she made sure to go first. She was sure she’d get her fill of staring at his denim-clad butt while he was on the ladder.
Her inner wild child rolled her eyes, saying no, she wouldn’t. Esther bit back a snort, knowing she was right. She’d never get enough of staring at his rear. At any of him, really.
“Can you get out your drill, a tape measure, and a sharpie while I grab the boxes from the car?” He glanced back at her as he walked toward the front door.
“Sure.” She detoured toward the garage. Stepping through the doorway, she turned on the lights, then opened the overhead door, figuring it would be easier for him to just come through that way. The electrical panel was on the back wall.
Asher walked into the garage with an armload of boxes and bags. “All right. Let’s start by marking where we want to put everything. Then I’ll get the lights up. We’ll do the camera last. It’s the easiest.”
“Sounds good.” She followed him out front.
“I’m thinking on the corner of the garage, there, for the light.” He pointed. “It covers the walkway and the drive. I’m not sure it’ll cover your front windows, though. It’ll be close.”
“Wherever is fine. I’m just here to hand you things.”
He tossed her a smile. “Let’s go around back.”
They rounded the corner of the house and repeated the process of staring at the façade. Asher picked a point in between the back door and the door that led out of the garage. Once they had locations figured out, he opened the electrical panel.
Esther hung back, not having a clue what to do. “How do you know how to do this? I thought your forte was computers.”
“It is, but there’s an electrical component to computer science. I’ve rewired buildings so they have the infrastructure to run high-tech systems. Not often, but I know how to do it. A couple of lights are simple.”
“If you say so.”
Mouth twitching with a suppressed smile, he shut the panel door. “Come on. Where’s your ladder?”
For the next hour, she followed him around with boxes and tools, passing things to him and even crawling up into the attic to help as he threaded wires down the walls.
“I’m glad it’s not hotter.” Esther fanned her face as they closed up the attic. It had been warm up there, and she was sweaty. And itchy from the insulation. They’d worn masks to keep from inhaling any they kicked up, but it stuck to her sweaty skin. She needed a shower. It would have to wait, though. They weren’t done yet.
Out back, Asher set the ladder against the house and climbed up to attach the light, before they moved around front to do the same. Once both were up, he flipped the main breaker back on.
“Go wave your arms at the one out front. Once we know they work, I’ll change the setting so they don’t come on unless it’s dark.”
Esther left the garage. As she broke the plane of the garage door and rounded the corner, the light turned on. “Well, that was easy.” She went back inside. Asher was coming in through the back door. “It works. Does the one out back?”
“Yep.” He closed the electrical panel. “Let’s get the doorbell camera up.”
