“I didn’t ask him to do it,” Amanda grumbled stubbornly.
“You should thank him for it. He did an amazing job.” Sallie moved back to her chair next to Dew.
“Thanks. You ruined my lunch.” Amanda got up and left the table without another word. She retreated to her workroom, where she knew nobody would bother her. Bringing up the J-word was the best way to bring out the worst in Amanda. She had caught him kissing another woman on the day they were going to marry, and he had been wasted out of his mind. He tried to convince her that she had put something in his drink, which wasn’t his fault.
Amanda was done with him at that point. She had been trying to leave the room when he attacked her. There was no way that he would be dumped by his fiancée right before they were to be married. He had hit her in an attempt to make her do what he wanted. Amanda had fought back viciously and broke his left leg. It had been a complete and total accident. She wasn’t even sure how she had done it. Everything had been a blur.
Joseph had sued her, offering to drop the charges if she married him. Amanda was not about to give in. He had struck her, and if he did it once, he would do it again. He won the case, and Amanda still owed him thousands, which she was paying off a little at a time. She had moved to get away from him.
It was unfair to Dunc that she had not believed him when he told her he had been drugged. But he was a man, and she didn’t trust men after what she had been through. He was nice to look at, but she didn’t want to go any further than that.
Chapter 2
D unc was startled to see Amanda walk into the garage with Dew and Sallie the next morning. All three were dressed in jeans and t-shirts, ready to get to work. His friends had already arrived and were eating omelets in the kitchen. His mother was cooking for them. Dunc had already eaten and was pulling out the equipment they were going to be using during the day. There were also 20 gallons of paint to be set out.
“Good morning, Duncy!” Sallie bounced into the garage with far more energy than any one person should ever have in the morning. Dew was right behind her. Then a very uncomfortable Amanda trailed the two.
“That’s Duncan.” Dunc sighed and wondered if this was going to be the start of a thing with her. “Breakfast is in the kitchen.” Dunc motioned to the door that led into the house from the garage. “When you’re done, I’ll find something for you to do.” Dew and Sallie waved and headed inside.
Dunc went to his drafting table and began organizing his building plans. Amanda wandered over to stand in front of Dunc on the other side of the table. She held her hands behind her back. Amanda was fidgeting with her fingers. Dunc had hoped that she would follow Dew and Sallie inside. She stood in front of him while he had his head down, ignoring her. After a few minutes of pretending to look over one of his plans, Dunc looked up. Her current demeanor wasn’t threatening and didn’t cause the typical shy, ‘don’t yell at me’ reaction he tended to have in her presence.
“Thank you.” Amanda couldn’t look him in the eye.
“No problem. Why don’t you have some breakfast? My mother will be happy to see you.” Dunc stared at her. She was a confusing woman. Beautiful and confusing. Her short golden brown hair was sticking up wildly. Amanda looked up, and their eyes met. It was the oddest feeling. He couldn’t look away. He didn’t want to. She had the prettiest soulful eyes. The few times Dunc had seen them up close was when she was yelling at him, and they held a frightening fire. Right now, they were embarrassed and ashamed. He liked them better like this.
“Hey, Dunc, your annoying neighbor isn’t going to pitch a fit when we start making a lot of noise, is she?” One of Dunc’s friends called from the kitchen.
“No. My annoying neighbor is not going to pitch a fit.” Dunc yelled back, still focused on Amanda. A look of embarrassment crossed her face.
“Just tell her you have a crush on her with your sweet Scottish accent, and she’ll be all over you. Maybe try one of those other languages you know!” Someone else added. Dunc closed his eyes and grimaced. Now it was his turn to be embarrassed. There was a lot of laughter following that, and Amanda heard Sallie and Dew’s laughter mixing in it.
“It’s okay. Amanda watches him through the window every chance she gets!’ That was Sallie. And that was mean! Sallie knew she was in the garage. “You should have seen her yesterday morning when he was walking around shirtless!”
Amanda groaned and looked like she wanted to crawl under a rock. Dunc smirked and leaned forward. His face turned a dark shade of crimson. He whispered mischievously. “Oh, you watch me from your windows, eh? Like a regular stalker?”
“It’s not like that.” Amanda took a step back. “I enjoy the view of the trees and your nice yard.”
“Ah.” Dunc nodded. Then he began taking off his shirt. It was an awkward gesture with Dunc getting stuck in his shirt halfway through the process of getting it off. He swore, whirled around, and finally got free. Then he tossed his shirt at her with a smirk. “Small price to pay if you enjoy the view.” Amanda wasn’t sure if it was possible to blush any harder than she already was. She also wasn’t sure if he
