He forced his mind off the wet-naked-Lorelei fantasy that was threatening to overcome him and back to reality.
“Listen, I know it’s late, and you’re cold, and I have to get back to work. Maybe we could talk about this later. I’d be happy to give you some names of people to call, if nothing else.”
“Sure, thanks. That would be great.”
“How about tomorrow? Will you be around for me to stop by?”
“It’s my day off.”
“Great, I’ll see you then,” he said, then turned and walked away before he said anything else stupid in the face of her panties.
He needed to get a grip. But dammit, he wanted her. His whole body was so pent-up with frustrated desire, his dick pressing against the front of his pants, his mouth parched…it was a minor miracle he hadn’t grabbed her and made love to her right then and there.
No, he wasn’t going to behave like a Neanderthal. Not again. Not when he had a chance to make things right. He’d help her with her house, if she’d let him, and when the time was right, he’d tell her how sorry he was for his behavior in high school. His self-respect depended on it-he couldn’t walk around in the world knowing he’d been a jerk without making amends for his actions.
That was it. He’d apologize, and all would be right in the world again.
He absolutely wasn’t going to sleep with her again. Well…not unless she really wanted to.
5
AS SHE WAITED for someone at Monroe Brothers Roofing to pick up the phone, Lorelei stared up at the growing water stain on the ceiling and muttered a curse. Living in a house should not be so hard. She was beginning to think the hut she’d lived in in Kenya had not been such a bad idea. At least when a thatched roof leaked, no one was surprised.
Finally the phone was picked up, but it was only a recorded voice explaining, “Monroe Brothers Roofing is currently unable to take on new roofing jobs for the immediate future, due to high demand for roof work. Please call us back in February if you need an estimate for new work. If you are a current customer-”
Lorelei hung up the phone and muttered a curse at the phone book. The other two roofing companies she’d already tried were not working during the winter months. She was beginning to feel as if she were starring in a bad movie version of her own life, in which the hapless, overeducated doctor meets her match in a house determined to fall down rather than be renovated.
Her brooding was interrupted by a knock at the door. As she went to answer it, she did a quick check in the mirror and saw that she hadn’t yet brushed her hair, and her face, untouched by makeup, bore the puffy, dark- circled evidence that she hadn’t slept much the night before.
Whatever. Anyone who dared to knock on her door at nine in the morning after an epic thunderstorm would get the frightful sight they deserved. It was probably a neighbor knocking to ask if she had electricity-the answer was no, she didn’t-or to tell her that some of her belongings/tree branches/whatever had blown into their yard and needed to be removed.
But the moment she jerked the door open, she regretted having answered it at all. Ryan Quinn stood on her doorstep, still wearing his uniform.
Him again. Was fate trying to beat her over the head with him or what? She said a silent
“Hi,” he said, grinning sheepishly. “Sorry to bother you so early-”
“I’ve been up for a while,” she said, cutting him off. She didn’t want to stand here engaging in niceties right now, not when she looked like this.
How was she supposed to conquer the ghosts of her past with bad hair and raccoon eyes?
Her gaze dropped to his hand, and the bouquet of red and yellow daisies he held. He presented them to her.
“These are for you,” he said.
“Oh,” she said dumbly, taking the bouquet. “What for?”
“Can I come in for just a minute?”
“I’m…kind of busy right now,” she said, torn between not wanting to be rude to her future conquest and not wanting him to get any more of a look at her poorly groomed self.
“Sorry, I just need a minute to talk to you. Please?”
He might have been the source of her worst teenage angst, but that was then, and right now, he looked so earnest, she couldn’t manage to feel the least bit cold and hostile.
He flashed a weak grin, and she looked down at the flowers in her hands. Flowers? Really?
Curiosity nearly overcame her desire to send him away.
How could she refuse? Kinsei would probably curse her if she did. But the old man didn’t understand a girl’s need to prepare herself for seduction.
“Um, sure, I guess.” She stepped aside and opened the door wider for him to enter. Upon doing so, she got a view of all the leaves, tree branches and debris from the storm that would now need to be cleaned up, adding to her ever-growing list of household tasks.
But the problem vanished from her head almost immediately, because when she turned to face Ryan again, she was struck by just how damn attractive he really was. Still. After all these years.
He filled up the space in her entryway, and the flowers-what was with the flowers? She smelled them. They were a lovely contrast to the dreary morning sky outside.
His expression turned to a mixture of serious and sheepish. “I wanted to check on you, first, and make sure you’re okay after your ordeal last night. And bring you those references you asked about.”
Lorelei blinked. This concern was in sharp contrast to her long-held belief that he was an insensitive jerk. “Other than being a wee bit sleep-deprived, I’m fine.”
“Good.” He handed her a list of names and numbers. “These are my recommendations of people to contact for work on the house.”
“Oh, thanks,” she said, and took the paper. She looked at it, and the roofers were ones she’d already tried. Her heart sank.
“What’s wrong?”
“Any chance you know of a roofer who isn’t booked solid with work right now?”
“Oh, you’ve already tried them, huh?”
Lorelei nodded.
“Well, that’s perfect. So you don’t have any choice but to let me help you repair the roof-and remove your pajama bottoms from their rooftop imprisonment.”
“No, really, I can’t ask you such a big favor. We don’t even know each other.”
“I’d really like to help. I feel like I owe you,” he said, his gaze steady on her as if he was hoping she’d understand another level of his meaning.
“You don’t owe me anything,” she said too quickly. Was he thinking of what had happened in high school? Did he remember?
The flowers, the offer of help, the early arrival on her doorstep…it was all adding up to…what? Was she really going to get laid that easily?
Following Kinsei’s advice usually involved much work and sacrifice. Success didn’t crawl into her lap like a lovesick puppy.
“The other reason I’m here is a bit more awkward. I…” He hesitated. “I owe you an apology for what happened when we were teenagers.”
Lorelei blinked again, her brain refusing to catch up to his words. “What?”
“I behaved like a total jerk when we were in high school together. I know that now, and I’m very sorry. I wish I could go back and change my actions, but I can’t, so the best I can do is offer amends now. I was hoping you’d let
