“Holy shit, Big Foot. This is big. Big, big. Like, can’t-tell-a-soul big.” I tilted my head again, sleeplessness forgotten entirely. “Or maybe I can use this.” I lifted an eyebrow and got to making coffee, the wheels of my brain turning at rapid speed. Never waste an opportunity handed to you on a silver platter.
And I’d just been handed a big one.
“What the farming hell happened here?” Titus stood in the doorway, his T-shirt straining across his chest as he leaned an arm against the doorway. A ring of sweat already showed through the fabric from the first few hours of work on the damaged guest room.
Why the hell did men look so good all gross and sweaty? Even his worn tool belt looked fucking hot tied around his waist like that. I put down the garbage bag I held in my gloved hand and straightened to give my back a break. And to check out my best friend.
When had Titus gone from the cute boy next door who’d teach me new skate tricks to hot contractor who could step right onto the Magic Mike stage?
My whole body flushed. My eyes widened and I struggled to act normally. Wow. What was that response about? I must be more tired than I thought to be thinking of Titus like that.
“Old MacDonald is the new sex trend, didn’t you know?” I asked, glad my voice came out normally.
Titus’s face scrunched up and he moved into the room. “Seriously, Lia. What the fuck happened in here? There’s hay on the ground.”
I let out a snort. “Listen. As a manager of a hotel, I try to just clean up the messes and not worry my naive little brain about what goes on behind closed doors.”
Titus kicked a rusted cowbell that rested on the carpet, uncovering a used condom. He let out a strangled noise. The guy better not puke. I had enough shit to clean up.
“Can’t you get housekeeping to clean this up?”
I smiled patiently and picked up the garbage bag. “I could, but those girls aren’t paid enough to deal with something of this nature. I’ll get the big stuff cleaned up and they’ll take over the rest.”
I shoved another bunch of hay into the bag and glanced at Titus behind me. He crossed his arms across that chest of his, looking all kinds of mad.
“Last I checked, you don’t get paid enough for this shit either.”
The idea that had been forming since I caught the man sneaking out of this very room, rushed back with a vengeance. I had to tell someone or I might explode. I wasn’t built for secrets. In some respects I now understood Poppy and her gossiping ways.
I put the bag down again and snapped off the gloves, placing my hands on Titus’s crossed forearms.
“Can you keep a secret, T?” I whispered.
His jaw relaxed and his eyes softened, turning him back into the Titus I was used to.
“Depends. How important is it to you that I keep it a secret?” The side of his lips twitched.
The tall devil was teasing me. Based on the fine points my nipples had drawn into, I liked it. Very much. Interesting. “Super-duper important. In fact, I could get paid a lot more if I play my cards right.”
His eyebrows came together and I wanted to run my finger over them. “I don’t follow.”
I leaned in even closer, too short to whisper in his ear. “I think the mayor is having an affair.”
Titus didn’t breathe. Didn’t even blink. He just stared at me for one, two, three long moments. Then his face broke down into a whiny little kid, reminding me of when we first became friends.
“Ah, man. Don’t tell me that! Now I have to keep my mouth shut around Rip.”
I swatted his huge bicep. “Don’t be such a baby. I don’t know for certain, but I’m pretty sure I’m right. Just keep your mouth shut until I can prove it. Then you can decide if you should tell Rip about his dad.”
Titus reached up and pushed my hair behind my ear. “You shouldn’t be trying to prove anything. Let them figure out their sordid affairs. They’re grown adults and don’t need people intruding.”
I grabbed his hand before it went back to his side. “But you don’t get it. If he’s having an affair with this woman, we need to figure out why. He could be doing something shady. Well, besides just cheating on his wife. Mayor Bennett has always seemed shady. Now’s our chance to figure out why.”
Titus sighed and his reluctance to help me on this idea really put a damper on my excitement. “Amelia.” I frowned at his use of my full name. Never a good sign. “I just don’t think getting messed up in other people’s business is a good idea. I care about your safety, and yeah, Mayor Bennett has always been shady, which is exactly why you shouldn’t get involved.”
I stood on tiptoe, getting as much in his face as I could with a man well over six feet tall. “Titus, please. I’m begging you. Help me. I’ll be even safer with you by my side.” I batted my eyelashes, not at all ashamed to flirt my way to what I wanted. If you were given the body parts to influence, why would you be stupid enough not to use them to your advantage?
Titus’s gaze flickered down to my lips and I knew I had him. When his eyes came back up, I could see it in the way he looked at me. Resigned. Excitement filled my chest, knowing he’d help me like he always did.
But then he did something completely unexpected. His hands came up to cup my face, the scrape of his callouses along
