Chapter Four
THESOUNDOFthunder preceded the rapid beating of rain against the back screen door. Tamara’s head jerked up and she dropped the bag of break-and-bake cookies in her hand on the counter. Her breath caught in her throat as she ran to the back door.
Andre was still up on that ladder. She’d known the thunderstorm was going to come quickly. She should have insisted he stop working immediately. She had homeowner’s insurance. She could get the house fixed if water damage happened because of the messed-up siding. Why had she let him go back up there? What if he was struck by lightning? She’d never forgive herself.
Images of Andre on the ground sizzling with steam rising off his limp body as he lay unmoving on the wet grass in her backyard flashed through her mind. His mom was going to kill her. Her son was finally back in town only to be injured helping Tamara be a responsible homeowner.
She burst through the back door. Rain pelted her. She was soaked through in two breaths. On the third breath she ran into an immovable wall. A hard, warm immovable wall that reached out and wrapped strong arms around her waist.
Her head fell back, and she looked up into Andre’s hazel eyes. Water streamed down his face and poured off his chin. Her hands pressed into his chest, where his T-shirt was plastered to the muscles. She tried to breathe. Sucked in air that smelled of the storm mixed with his intoxicating cologne.
“What are you doing?” His voice boomed like thunder.
“Making sure you were okay,” she called back.
His arm around her waist pulled her tighter against him. “I’m okay.”
Her heart pounded like the rain against her ribs. He was definitely okay. He was hard, hot and whole in her arms. She was surprised the rain didn’t sizzle when it hit his skin.
“Yeah... I see that.”
His gaze dropped from her eyes to her lips. His fingers flexed against her side. The pounding of her pulse increased. All she had to do was lift up on her toes and bring her lips to his. Would he push her away?
A flickering of lightning illuminated the dark sky and a clap of thunder made the house shake almost instantaneously. Tamara started and Andre jerked back.
“Let’s get inside,” he yelled.
Tamara jumped out of his arms and hurried to the back door. Her cheeks flamed. She was such a dummy. Her overreactive imagination was having a field day. Making her think he would have stayed on the ladder during a thunderstorm instead of getting down immediately. The man was a professional contractor. He would know the dangers of working in the rain.
“Do you need a towel?” she asked after they were back in her kitchen.
Water dripped from both of them, leaving small puddles on the floor.
“I should go.”
She shook her head. “No, at least let me get you a towel to dry off first before you go home. You got soaked doing me a favor.”
She hurried out of the kitchen without meeting his eyes. Once in the hall, she let out a long breath. The rain, his hard body, her roller-coaster feelings for him had all combined and she’d had a second in the rain where she’d thought about going with the moment, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him senseless. Worse, now she wanted to know how he kissed.
She couldn’t kiss him. Andre was one of those hard-to-read guys. He thought she was a Goody Two-shoes, regardless of the apology. They hadn’t seen each other in over a decade and she knew nothing about him. Not to mention she was overseeing his project and the conflict of interest that would cause. On top of all that, she’d just broken up with Thomas because she’d claimed she wanted space. Thomas, the guy her parents loved and wanted her to marry. Their breakup was so new, her parents still hoped for a reconciliation.
She’d told Thomas she needed time to figure out what she wanted. She knew what she wanted. Passion, excitement, a spark. All of the things she’d felt in a quick instant in the rain with Andre. She didn’t want to jump into...well, she didn’t know what with Andre. Kissing him didn’t mean it would turn into a relationship. People could change in adulthood, but the Andre she’d once known was not the relationship type of guy.
She grabbed a few towels out of the downstairs laundry room and hurried back to the kitchen. He stood in the same spot she’d left him, a puddle of water beneath his feet.
“Here.” She tossed him a towel. “Do you need anything else?”
He caught the towel with one hand and wiped it over his face. “Nah, this is good. I’ll get the water off the floor.”
She pulled off the cute scarf she’d opted for versus a bonnet and dried her wet hair with the towel. “Don’t worry about it. I’ve got a mop in the mudroom. I’ll handle it. Hey, thanks again. You really didn’t have to come and fix the siding.”
“If you tell me that one more time, I’m going to go out and rip it back off.” He softened the words with a lift of his lips. He raised his arms to run the towel over the back of his head. The wet T-shirt slid up, revealing a tantalizing glimpse of bronze skin and rippled muscles.
Tamara cleared her throat and jerked her eyes up. “I’m just trying to say thanks. I appreciate what you did. How much is left to go?”
He wrapped the towel around his neck and held on to the ends. “Nothing. I got it all done.”
“Already? That was quick.”
“I told you it wouldn’t take long. You doubted me?”
“I will admit I did, but I stand corrected.” She placed a hand to her chest and bent slightly from her waist in a slight bow. “You are the professional.”
His grin sent a rumble of awareness through her midsection. “I’m glad to know I’ve earned your trust.”
His gaze dropped from her face to her chest. Heat prickled her cheeks. She didn’t have to look down to guess what he saw. Her T-shirt was thin, she was soaked and the black sports bra she wore would be clearly visible. Along with her nipples, hardened from the cold rain and the look in his eye.
Clearing her throat, she wrapped the towel around her neck like he had, then crossed her arms over her chest. “Well, thank you. I was just about to make cookies. Did you want one?”
His eyes met hers and she swallowed hard at the heat reflected in his gaze. Quickly, he glanced over his shoulder out the back door. The rain still came down hard and thunder rolled between flashes of lightning. “I think I’ll get back home now.”
She hated the wave of disappointment that went through her. There wasn’t a good reason for him to stick around. They weren’t friends anymore despite the easy banter and familiarity they’d had earlier. A vestige of the friendship they’d once had. He’d done her a neighborly favor and now he could go do whatever it was he had to do on a Saturday in Peachtree Cove.
She went to her purse, which was hanging on the back of the kitchen chair, where she’d placed it the night before. “How much do I owe you for the siding?”
He waved a hand. “Nothing. I wanted to do that. Can’t stand to see things unfinished.”
“Oh, well, at least let me do something for you. I mean, you’ve apparently saved me from a ton of water damage.” She pointed to the rain outside. “And you were soaked in the process.”
Andre walked over to her. Not so close that he touched, but close enough for her body to react to his nearness. He studied her intently, his gaze traveling over her face, lingering on her lips before rising back to her eyes. Goose bumps popped up over her skin and her nerves prickled in anticipation.
The corner of his lips lifted in a seductive smirk. “You can bring over a few cookies later today after the rain.” His voice was low and brushed across her like a caress.
Did he have to make delivering cookies sound so damn sinful? She swallowed and nodded. “I can do that.”
He nodded slowly before lifting one long finger. “And there’s one other thing.”
“What’s that?”
He leaned in closer. “The next time you think about kissing me like you did a few minutes ago in the rain, go ahead and do it.”
ANDREWATCHEDWITHa hum of expectancy as Tamara’s brown eyes widened. She was going to deny it. He would bet his truck on it, and he loved his truck. But he’d seen the interest in her eyes. Felt the way her breath had quickened against his chest. The rain had washed away the awkwardness, and he’d sensed the spark of attraction between them and had known she wanted to kiss him. He’d hesitated with acting on his attraction, but knowing she felt the same had made up his mind.
She shook her head. “I...”
He raised a brow. “You what?”
She sighed and shrugged. “I thought better of it. I didn’t need to kiss you.”
She wasn’t going to deny it. Impressive. In hindsight, maybe not surprising. Tamara hadn’t been one to hide from confrontation. She’d called him on his bullshit enough when they were younger for him to know that. She was just classy with her clapbacks.
“You didn’t need to kiss me. Feel like telling me why?”
“For one.” She took a step back. “I’m regulating you. I have enough to deal with from other developers and contractors, not to mention council members, without including rumors of being biased toward one contractor in particular.”
He understood her reasoning. It was one of the reasons he was trying to ignore what he felt for her. But he still found himself asking “And if you weren’t regulating me?”
“If I weren’t regulating you, I still wouldn’t kiss you. I’ve had enough experience with men who run hot then cold. Not really interested in doing that again.”
“What do you mean running hot then cold?” He didn’t like the idea of her comparing him to other men.
She placed one hand on her hip, then shrugged. She looked at him as if the answer to his question was obvious. “You’ve always been that way. Even in high school. One day we were cool and then the next day...well. The next day you started treating me like I was the last person you ever wanted to see. I know years have passed, but I still see signs of the guy who flipped the switch one day. I don’t kiss guys like that.”
He had no excuse. He had switched on her. In a blink after she’d caught him crying in a closet. As a teen, explaining his quick switch would have been just as embarrassing as being caught crying. Now, as a fully grown man who didn’t want petty teenage feelings keeping him from exploring the vibe he felt with Tamara, he wasn’t one bit embarrassed.
“About what happened back then.”
She shook her head. “Please. You don’t have to explain.”
“You brought it up, so I think I do have to explain. You caught me in an awkward position. I didn’t know how to act after that.”
Her brows drew together. “Awkward position?”
“The day you caught me crying,” he prompted.
She continued to look confused. After a few moments of staring at each other, her face cleared and her lips parted. “Oh...that?”
“That? Tamara, you caught me crying in a closet. I didn’t want anyone to see me like that. Especially a girl that I thought was cute. My own mom never saw me cry after my dad walked out.”
Her brows drew together. “Is that why you were crying? Because of your dad?”
“They’d argued the night before. They always argued, but I hoped it was just another day. But my mom told my dad, ‘if you don’t want to be here, then leave.’ He packed a bag and walked out. He didn’t come back that night or the next morning. I knew that time he was gone for good.”
Sympathy filled her eyes. “I didn’t know.”
“No one knew. Not then anyway. Later, everyone knew he’d walked out on my mom. When you caught me crying, I didn’t know how to act around you. I thought you’d tell everyone.”
“Why would I tell anyone? What kind of a person did you think I was? When I saw you, I knew something had to be going on for you to do that. You weren’t the type of person to get emotional like that. I didn’t know what to do or how to help, so I just left you alone. I never thought about telling anyone what I saw because we were friends.”
He understood that now. As an adult he could look back on the situation without the embarrassment or fear he’d had as a teen. Tamara hadn’t been the kind of person to play off of other people’s pain. She’d been kind to everyone in her circle. He’d been foolish to think she would embarrass him. Foolish, and consumed with his own anger and pain about his parents’ failing relationship. He couldn’t lash out at his mom, and his dad hadn’t been around to receive his anger. Which meant he had no one to take things out on but Tamara.
“I’m sorry,” he said.
“For crying?”
“No, for being an asshole back then. I didn’t know how to handle everything that was happening in my life. I took my frustration out on you and that wasn’t right. Later, when everyone found out about my dad leaving, they kept bad-mouthing him or saying my mom did something to drive him away. Everyone had a reason, but it wasn’t what I believed. I thought I was the reason he finally left.”
Her eyes filled with empathy, and she closed the space between them. “Andre, no, don’t say that.”
“I know that now. He made his own choice. But back then, I’d gotten angry. I shouted in the middle of their argument and begged them to just stop it already. That’s when my mom gave him the ultimatum and he left. I know it wasn’t really my fault. But he walked out after that and never came back. It was hard not to believe it was because of me.”
She placed a hand on his arm. “I’m sorry.”
He pulled back. Not liking the way the compassion in her eyes brought back those feelings of loss, anguish and guilt after his dad left. He’d had to step up and start taking care of himself and his mom after that day. His mom, while she’d still tried to keep things together, had also clung to him and let him become the man of the house. A role that meant she stopped nurturing and started relying on him to fill in where his dad had left off. His chores became the things his dad used to do around the house. Getting a job to provide money for bills became one of his responsibilities. Andre didn’t resent or regret doing what he could to step in. He wanted to help his mom, but the change in role meant he’d learned quickly that he was responsible for himself, and no one was going to look out for him anymore.
He didn’t need people to care for or look out for him. So why did the compassion in Tamara’s eyes make him feel a little less alone? He’d never talked in depth about that turbulent time in his life. No details, just a gloss over of his parents divorcing like so many other married couples. He never thought he’d needed to tell anyone, yet he’d just poured everything out to Tamara.
“I’ve got to get going,” he said. “Let me know how the siding holds up.”
He avoided her eyes and hurried toward the front door before he spilled any more of the emotions bubbling up inside him. The sound of her lighter footsteps followed. He turned at the door and met her eyes. “And, Tamara, despite the way I’ve acted in the past when it comes you, I’m never cold. I always run hot.”