I looked up and met his big blue eyes. “Yeah?”
“I said…okay.” He smiled. “Dinner sounds good.”
And it was…
But what happened after that was even better.
CHAPTERFOURTEEN
BREWER
I suckedat keeping my distance from Delaney.
This was especially true when the man was bent over, perfect ass showcased in faded jeans, reaching for the pipe connection under the sink cabinet I’d pointed out thirty seconds ago.
Christ, how was any red-blooded man supposed to maintain professional boundaries when faced with that view?
Then again, my plan to stay professional had basically crumbled when I’d heard him through the wall last night, moaning my name. And when he’d returned from meeting Samuel Purchase, flushed with excitement about a long-lost love story?
Moth, meet fucking flame.
Watching Delaney’s eyes light up as he shared the discovery about his house’s previous owners had done something to me I couldn’t explain. His whole face transformed when he talked about things that mattered to him, and knowing how quick he was to care about women he’d never met had pulled me in even deeper.
Our conversation had continued over a sandwich dinner, Delaney getting choked up about Elizabeth hiding her paintings, me finding any excuse I could to touch him or breathe his air because I wanted to be as close to him as possible.
The strength of my reaction scared the fuck out of me. It felt like Delaney wasn’t just breaking through my walls; he was making me want to disassemble them myself, brick by brick.
“What am I looking for here, Brewer?”
I snapped my head up and squinted at Delaney. While staring at his ass was an incredible way to spend an evening, it wasn’t conducive to high brain function. “Hmm?”
Delaney shook a wrench at me. “Do I want this dealie or the other thingamajig?”
Right.Plumbing.We were working on the pipes under the freshly installed sink cabinet in the kitchen. Because, scared as fuck or not, I hadn’t been ready for good night, so when we’d finished dinner, I’d blurted out an offer to teach him about plumbing.
Because nothing saiddistancelike seeing Delaney on his knees, head in the cabinet, presenting his tight ass to me, right? Nothing saidcontrollike watching his pants slide down his hip bones inch by inch as he shimmied around. Nothing saidresistancelike hearing him breathlessly mutter, “Jesus, you’re so tight,” to a particularly stubborn piece of PVC or growl, “That’s right, you fucking stay where I put you,” to the P-trap that had slipped out of alignment.
It was the most porn-tastic scenario I’d ever witnessed in real life, starring the most gorgeous man I’d ever met, and if I hadn’t already known I had a knack for unintentional self-torture, plumbing with Delaney would’ve been all the proof I needed.
Still, the man was so damn enthusiastic, it almost—almost—made the torture worthwhile.
“Okay, first off,” I said mock-severely, crouching by his hip, “they aren’t ‘dealies’ or ‘thingamajigs.’ Respect your tools, Monroe.” After a pause, I picked up a wrench and added, “You want this doohickey here, with the open end.”
“Doohickey. Got it.” Blue eyes twinkled under his glasses. “Thank you for teaching me your language, Brewer. If I’m ever off on assignment and find myself stranded in a remote mountain Home Depot, I’ll be able to communicate.”
I snorted. “Yes, you’ll stun them with your understanding of P-trap assemblies and instantly be accepted as one of them.”
“New life goal.” Delaney’s answering grin was infectious. “Now, get under here with me and tell me what to do with these nuts.”
Jesus Christ.If I continued down this path of “enjoying the ride while it lasted,” I’d be riding this fucker straight to hell.
But because I still hadn’t learned my lesson, I obeyed and slid to the floor beside him.
“These,” I said, picking up a metal fitting, “are hex nuts. They secure the pipe connections. You tighten them with the wrench I just gave you.”
“How tight do I want my nuts?” he asked, all innocence.
I rolled my eyes. “Not so tight they crack, but tighter than you can get them with, ah… with just your fingers.” I took a deep breath and inhaled Delaney’s sexy bodywash and fabric-softener scent. “You kind of have to go by… feel.”
