Page 6 of From Grumpy to Forever
“You do want to get in, don’t you?”
“Well…I mean…”
“Yes or no.”
It wouldn’t be hard to crack the door off the frame. I reached down to my toolbox and grabbed my crowbar. “I can just break?—”
“Wait!”
* * *
Avery
I grabbed Reid’s arm moments before he could use his big iron bar to break open the door. It took me a minute to let go. Mostly because I was in shock at the size of the bicep beneath my hands.
Holy shit. This man was ripped.
When Reid lowered his arm and the tool, I had no choice but to release my hold on him.
“Okay.” He turned around. “I thought you wanted to get in.”
“I do, but…” I raised my arms and dropped them uselessly at my sides. “Can’t we do it without destroying something? I mean, there’s already so much for me to fix, I don’t really want to add one more thing to the list. Plus, I don’t really like the idea of being alone in here with a big gaping hole in the house.”
I could see the gears turning in his head as he thought about it. For a moment, I was convinced he was going to pack up his tools and walk away from me and the inn completely. I couldn’t let that happen. Not before I got inside.
Besides, I kind of liked him. Even if he was unbearably grouchy, I was starting to think his brother might be right and there was a gooey center in there somewhere. And I did like a challenge.
Finally, Reid sighed with a shake of his head and dropped the bar. “Okay. Maybe I can find a window to jimmy open. Even if it breaks, it won’t be as big a deal. Besides, you’re probably going to have to replace most of them anyway.”
Fresh hope surged through me. “Great.”
Reid gave me a look. “It’s not great yet. Let me find a window first.”
Like a puppy dog, I trailed behind him as Reid circled the building, testing all the windows. Finally, he stopped at a side window that was one of the first he tested. “I think this is the best chance. It’s loose.” He jiggled it again, and I could see it move. “The locking mechanism probably needs to be replaced.” He pulled a screwdriver from the tool belt that was slung low over his hips. “If I just…” He stuck the screwdriver in the space between the window and the base, and with a twist of his wrist, it popped open.
“Oh my God. You did it.”
For the second time, there was the slightest trace of a grin on his lips. “Did you doubt me?”
“No.” I couldn’t help but laugh. “Well, maybe a little. But I’m so glad you got it. Thank you so much.”
Clearly uncomfortable with the praise, Reid cleared his throat and looked down. “Yeah, it’s nothing.”
He turned to go, and once more, I stopped him with a hand on his arm. I let it linger a little longer, enjoying the feel of his strength under my touch. “Before you go…”
Reid looked at my hand on his arm as he turned around again, but he didn’t pull away.
“Do you think you could give me a lift?”
Together, we both turned to the window that was just high enough off the ground that there was no way I was going to be able to scramble my way up on my own.
I flashed him another grin.
He shook his head and, with an exasperated sigh, said, “Of course.”
Before I could brace myself, Reid’s hands were on my hips. As if I weighed nothing, he lifted me until I was even with the window ledge and could try to scramble up.
There was no way around it—there was nothing glamorous about climbing into a window. I managed to get my knee up on the ledge before I slipped. My squeal died on my lips when Reid’s hands caught me. The last thing I should have been thinking of was his big, strong hands on my ass, but how could I not? They fit perfectly, and I was almost disappointed when he gave me a shove through the window before releasing me.
