7. Niam
7
NIAM
After a restless night that was filled with dreams of a certain alpha, I arrived at the shop a few minutes early because I didn’t want Todd to be waiting for me. There was a chill in the air, but it looked like it would be a clear day as I got out of my car. Steam flowed from the vent holes in the two coffees that sat next to the donuts I picked up for us on my way in.
Hopefully, Todd had a sweet tooth because we would both need as much energy as possible to make a dent in the work waiting for us upstairs. While I witnessed the hard work and knew that we made progress, it looked twice the mess it was in the beginning.
No one worked in the shop on the weekends unless there was an emergency call and then they usually went straight to the job site. I headed up to the office with our treats. Despite growing up spending more time here than home, it had always felt cold and a bit dreary. But after yesterday, I had new memories that gave me a whole new perspective on the place.
Todd came in at ten, but not empty-handed. He also carried a box of donuts and two steaming cups of coffee. “Oh, great minds…”
I chuckled and made some room next to my offering so he could put his down too. “Well, it’s better to have too many pastries than not enough.”
“Word.” Todd winked and then handed me one of the coffee cups. “I’m not much of a coffee drinker, so I got peppermint hot chocolate. You don’t have to drink it if you?—”
My jaw dropped as I snagged a cup from his hand. “I love hot chocolate. I used to get this every day on my way to work.” I shrugged and nodded toward the coffee cups I brought. “My dad doesn’t have a steamer, so I’ve been drinking coffee lately.” I pulled the cup to my chest and inhaled the steam wafting from it. “This smells so good.”
Todd chuckled as he opened the box I brought. “Oh, maple frosted!” He reached in and pulled out one of the four donuts in the not-so-assorted assortment. I had a few favorites and preferred to have several of each of those rather than one or two of everything and getting stuck with a bunch of coconut or plain cake at the end of the day. “These are the best.”
“Glad you like them.” I grabbed one too. “They’re my favorite too. Francis is the only place I know that insists on using real maple syrup for his frosting instead of using extracts.”
Todd’s eyes rolled back as he chewed the last bite of the bar that he’d basically inhaled. “That man makes a mean donut. I just hope he doesn’t plan on retiring any time soon. He’s been my donut guy since I was a baby.”
I smiled at the image of a baby Todd sucking on a maple donut. Maybe he was a deer or moose shifter and naturally loved maple syrup. It was on the tip of my tongue to ask, but I didn’t want to be rude.
Once I finished my donut, I dropped into one of the chairs and scooted closer to the window. Todd’s presence was overwhelming in the best possible way, like he was the true owner of the space.
As I pretended to be sorting stacks again, Todd grabbed another donut and then another. Each one disappeared in quick succession.
When he had his fill, he powered up his laptop. “I’m going to enter everything into an account system that will help you send quotes, collect payments, pay bills, and handle payroll. There’s a small monthly fee for the software, but it’ll only take you a few minutes each day to scan in documents and approve payments. You’re going to need to get a computer younger than a college student to support it.” His fingers danced across the keyboard, surprisingly nimble for their size. “Is that cool with you?”
“Yeah, that’s amazing with me.” I nodded and almost forgot how badly I wanted to jump his bones. I’d figure out the computer part later. “But I might still need some help from time to time.” I chuckled, hoping to make that sound like a joke when it was anything but.
“Yeah, of course. I can set you up on a small retainer so you can call me anytime you need me.” He cleared his throat and seemed to rethink what he’d just said. “I mean, you’ll have a set number of hours per month that I can come and work. Some clients have me come two or three hours a week and just handle everything for the week then.”
I nodded, loving that I might get to see Todd every week. “Yeah, we’ll probably need something like that.” I chuckled as reality set in. “If we can afford it. I guess you’ll let me know.”
Todd’s gaze locked with mine, and he smiled. “Don’t forget our deal. I’ve got a big house with a lot of projects. I’m sure we’ll be seeing a lot of each other for the foreseeable future.”
Yes, yes, yes! “Cool.”
Todd began the methodical work of automating our finances. It was the kind of project that required patience and precision—qualities Todd had but that made my brain hurt from looking at too many little words and numbers.
As often happened when I was bored, I’d somehow acquired a pen and notepad and was sketching Todd’s sneaker. If he knew what I was doing, he didn’t let on. And even better, he didn’t put me back to work. He just kept up the steady rhythm of keystrokes and shuffling papers while the morning passed in comfortable silence.
“Fuck.” Todd was holding a sheet of paper that seemed to have some bad news on it, and then he quickly thumbed through the stack in front of him and pulled out four other sheets. “Did you know you’re being audited?”
“What!” I dropped my notepad on the floor and scurried over to where he was holding up a notice from the Internal Revenue Service. My heart slammed against my chest as panic stole my breath and made the room spin. “Nooooo…”
Todd's large hand gripped my shoulder, and his touch instantly grounded me back to reality. His deep voice rumbled from him in a firm and confident tone. “We’ll get this figured out, Niam. You’re not alone in this. I promise we’ll navigate this storm together.”
His assurance was a balm to my frayed nerves and allowed me to catch my breath as I nodded. “Yeah, okay.” I wasn’t alone. Todd was here to help me. He was here…for me.
For the next few hours, I bounced between looking over his shoulder, doodling by the window, and pacing near the door. I was worried about the audit, but I was also unsettled. My skin felt itchy and cold and hot all at the same time. I’d never experienced anything like it.
At two pm, hunger gnawed at us, so we ordered lunch. There was a sandwich place I loved just a few blocks away, and I had them deliver sandwiches, chips, and sodas. It wasn’t fancy, but Todd was in the zone and didn’t take me up on my offer to take him to lunch at a local restaurant. I loved watching him, especially when he smiled now and then as he set up our chart of accounts, as if this truly was his happy place.
He was the epitome of #workgoals.
As the afternoon waned and shadows grew long, a different kind of hunger began to stir within me. It was one that demanded attention in a way I couldn't ignore. As hard as I tried to deny my physical desires, my body betrayed me and slick began to slowly leak out of me. What the fuck? This had never happened to me before. Sure, I’d been around hot alphas and had crushes on a few. But this was different.
Desperate for fresh air so I could escape the confines of the shop that suddenly felt stiflingly small, I stood and made my chair slide across the room and bounce off the wall. "We should start our barter now," I blurted out, more to give myself a reason to leave than out of any real interest in working on his plumbing.
At least, not his house plumbing.
"Oh, don’t worry about that. We can do that anytime. Once your books are organized, we can figure out a time for you to look at that stuff. Maybe next month.” Todd’s focus was still on his laptop, and he didn’t even look up.
“Um, actually.” I took a few steps closer. “I think we need some fresh air. Like, now. Let’s go to your place.”
Todd looked at me as if I was now the puzzle. “Oh, right.” His breath hitched as he saved his work and then closed up his laptop. “I can just head out for today and come back tomorrow or a few nights during the week.”
I shook my head, unsure why I was pushing this topic so hard but unable to stop myself. “Nonsense. I promised you plumbing help, and I don’t break my promises." I backed up toward the door as slick threatened to drip down my thighs. I just had to get outside and he’d never notice how strongly my body was reacting to him. And more importantly, it wouldn’t seem like an overt invitation for the alpha in front of me to fill me with his knot.
Todd inhaled again, and his eyes fluttered shut for a moment as he processed the scent of my arousal. At least that’s what I thought he was doing. Shifters did that, right?
It was a physical thing I couldn’t control. And from the looks of it, neither could he. We just had to ignore the way the air seemed to shift between us so we could move on.
"Yeah, okay. Let's go to my place," he said suddenly. He rose to his feet in a swift motion that contradicted his earlier reluctance and headed for the door with a purpose that spoke volumes.
I followed several steps behind him, hoping if there was any air moving in the building it was moving away from him. I just hoped I didn’t do anything to embarrass myself once I got there. Subtlety didn’t feel like a trait I could engage at this moment, but if he was willing to take me to his home, I was more than willing to go.
Regardless of whatever happened after that.