Chapter 2
HUDSON
Eve arrived, and I caught her up on what was going on. Neither of the women were happy with my conclusion that all the pipes in the town's buildings would need to be replaced.
Eve had been adamant that Angela's shop be up and running first. Angela was upset that her shop would be closed for a while, but it couldn't be helped.
I wondered if she was in a bad place financially or maybe just starting her business. I remembered the early years of my plumbing business when I wasn't sure I'd be able to pay my bills, much less be able to hire employees.
Now my business was established, and I worked with my brothers' contracting company. My problem was that I had too many customers and not enough time to do everything. But I could sympathize with Angela's situation.
I'd cleared most of the standing water, leaving behind wet carpet, linoleum, and wood floors. When I heard Cooper's voice, I went to the front to greet him.
Cooper held an industrial-sized fan in his hand while he asked Angela if she wanted to go out tonight to forget about her troubles.
Irritation shot through me. "You here to work or chat like a gossip?"
Cooper broke off mid-sentence. "What crawled up your pipe?"
I scowled deeper at his poor attempt at plumbing humor. "I was looking forward to a Saturday off when I got the call."
Cooper shook his head. "It's not my fault you don't hire anyone to be on call. You could have done it years ago. But you're too stubborn. You think you're the only one who can do it right."
"I am the only one who can do it right," I said, feeling the sentiment deep in my bones as Angela and Eve watched our back-and-forth.
Cooper rolled his eyes but lifted the fan. "Where do you want this?"
"We need a few in front to dry out the wood and then some in the back," I said, eager to focus on work.
Cooper set up the fan by the front counter. He turned it on, and the space filled with white noise.
"I'll help you get the rest." I was eager to get everything set up so that I could get out of here. There was something about being near Angela that had me on edge.
Outside, Cooper had parked his truck, with the lettering Sterling Bros Contracting, at the curb. He rested his forearms on the tailgate, not bothering to pull it down. "Why is Angela wearing your sweatshirt?"
I rubbed my neck. "She was trying on lingerie when I got here."
He looked through the windows behind me as a smile broke over his face. "It looks like she's naked under your sweatshirt. It had me wondering if you two were doing something before the pipe burst, if you know what I mean?"
"She's wearing something under there. Just not much.
" When I'd arrived, she was standing on a chair, her arms stretched over her head as she tried to turn the valve for the water.
Her ass was peeking out from under the lace edge of the shorts.
My brain had short-circuited for a second before I remembered what I was supposed to be doing, turning off the water and assessing the damage.
When I stepped onto the chair, the space was so limited; I had no choice but to press my chest against her back, her ass nestled in my crotch. I felt her lush ass for a second before I reached for the valve so I could put space between us.
Instead of distancing myself from her, I'd maintained my position as she'd slowly turned, her nipples standing at attention. At some point, she must have stumbled into the water because the front of her silky top was sheer.
My fingers itched to touch her, but then she'd trembled, and her teeth chattered. She was cold.
I'd needed to cover her body, erasing the image of her nipples from my brain. The only option was to give her my sweatshirt. I hadn't even thought about Cooper noticing.
Giving her my sweatshirt had felt intimate, something a boyfriend might do for his girlfriend. There was a deep sense of satisfaction that she was covered in my scent.
As soon as I'd had that thought, I hopped down from the chair and grabbed the broom. I needed to clear the water from the floor and scrub the sight of her body from my brain.
After several minutes of pushing water into the drain and listening to it slowly trickle down, I'd realized I wouldn't be able to forget her body anytime soon.
It was every guy's wet dream to know that the lingerie shop owner tried on product when she was alone in the store. When she looked at herself in the mirror, did she get horny? Did she touch herself? Did she take photos?
I'd adjusted myself in my jeans periodically while I cleaned up because I couldn't stop thinking about how she'd looked in wet silk. Then there was the sight of her ass cheeks peeking out at me, the ultimate tease.
I wished I had someone I could give this job to, a firm I partnered with when I was on vacation or even an employee.
But Eve and Natasha Palmer owned the town and only contracted with Sterling Brothers Contracting.
And then there was the issue that Cooper brought up; I didn't like delegating to others.
It was a big job. I needed to inspect every building in town and most likely have the pipes replaced. This was an amazing opportunity for me. I'd been wanting to take on larger projects over residential ones, and this was my opportunity.
Cooper and I worked together to install the fans and turn them on. There wasn't much else we could do until the floors dried out. Then Eve would need to deal with the insurance company.
I put the broom in the break room and joined Cooper in the front of the store where he was holding up a black bra. "I can't imagine working with bras all day long."
"Put it down," I growled, not wanting him to interact with Angela or her products. When she dated someone, did she put on a private show just for him in her store? I didn't like the idea of that. If she were mine, I'd stop by at the close of business every day just to get my hands on her.
Where was this obsession coming from? It had to be because Angela owned a lingerie store. It was hot as hell.
Lately, I hadn't been interested in meeting anyone, and that made me restless. What was I waiting for?
Apparently, it was a sexy lingerie shop owner modeling her own silky products.
Cooper slowly lowered the bra to the basket with more black bras, his gaze intent on mine. "You're on edge today."
If we were alone, he would have told me to get laid. But thankfully, he restrained himself around the ladies.
"You should get dressed. It's cold," I said to Angela, more than a little irritated that her long legs were still on display. Her toes were painted a pale pink, which was incredibly enticing.
She still wore my sweatshirt, which made me irrationally grumpy. She'd looked up at us, tucking a thick chunk of her brown hair behind one ear. She was gorgeous with her perfect skin and supple curves. I'd seen her first, and I didn't want Cooper anywhere near her.
"What are you going to do?" Eve asked her, and I forced myself to focus on their conversation.
"I don't know. It's not like Gus will help."
"He has Ayla for the weekend though, right?" Eve asked, and I struggled to figure out who they were talking about.
Angela sighed. "It's his weekend, but he doesn't always keep Ayla the entire time."
"He has to this weekend. You don't have a place to stay. The inn is booked for the holidays, or I'd offer you a room."
"I don't know what I'm going to do. I suppose I can go to a hotel for the night. Then I'll call the insurance company and see if they cover a rental. Although, I think I only had insurance for the products, not the apartment or the loss of business income."
Cooper leaned a hip against the round table, seemingly unaffected by the lace and skimpy underwear surrounding him, and asked me, "Don't you have a place to rent?"
"I haven't put it up for rent yet." My jaw was starting to ache.
Cooper threw a thumb in my direction. "Hudson just bought a new place and is planning to rent out his old house."
"That could work," Eve said excitedly to Angela.
I shot Cooper an irritated look, which he ignored. I hadn't planned on renting it to anyone yet. It wasn't ready.
Angela's nose scrunched. "I don't know. Rent on a full house is expensive, and I don't have any income from the shop coming in."
I was right in my assessment that she wasn't in a great place financially.
Cooper folded his arms over his chest. "I'm sure Hudson can give you a break, especially since you have a child. She needs a safe place to live. Isn't that right, Hudson?"
He'd made it nearly impossible for me to say no without sounding like a jerk. With the way I'd acted around her, she probably already suspected I was one. "It's not ready to rent."
"What needs to be done? Maybe I can help you with it?" Cooper said, his brow raised expectedly while he waited for me to answer.
"The Realtor was going to take pictures and write up a description." I wasn't ready for someone to live in the house, especially not Angela. I was already going to be seeing her at work for the foreseeable future. I didn't want to deal with her in my old home too.
Cooper gave me a look. "You don't need to do any of that if you're renting to someone you know."
"I suppose not." I didn't know Angela, not really. She wasn't from here. We didn't go to school together. All I knew was that she ran a lingerie shop, and her pipe had burst. I knew more about her body than anything going on in the rest of her life.
"Now I don't have to worry about you and Ayla," Eve said as she resumed folding panties.
"Are you sure it's okay?" Angela asked, picking up on my reticence.
I shrugged, my shoulders tight. "I have an empty house. You need a place to stay."
Angela tipped her head to the side, her hair falling over her shoulder. "What would you want for rent?"
It seemed like she was holding her breath as she waited for my answer.
Cooper waved a hand as if sensing her discomfort. "I'm sure whatever you settle on will be reasonable. Mom would want you to help a single mom out."
Mom had raised us to respect women, especially single moms. "I'll show you the space. Then you can decide if it will work."
"We'll get your stuff packed away and stored upstairs. Then Hudson will take you to see the place. I'm sure it's ready for you to stay there tonight," Cooper said.
"I really appreciate this." Angela's voice was soft.
I wondered if she wasn't used to accepting help any more than I was versed in offering it. I was a bit of a perfectionist, and I wasn't ready to rent it out. There was always something else that needed to be done.
Cooper had backed me into a corner, but he was right; my mother had taught us to help women out. This was the right thing to do, even if I didn't know her.
I wanted to avoid her because I was attracted to her. It wasn't a good idea to get involved because she was a single mother, and I was working with her for the foreseeable future.
"There's nothing else we can do until the space dries out." The doors were propped open, letting in cold air, but it was already smelling musty.
Cooper grabbed a box and threw it on the floor between us. "We can help them pack this stuff. Then we'll have more room to work,”
It would be less distracting too. "You want me to fold panties?"
Angela's lips quirked. "You have a problem with touching panties?"
"No," I retorted, not sure what the right answer was in this situation.
Angela grabbed another box. "I appreciate the help."
"We'll get done faster with more hands," Eve added, her focus on folding.
I tried not to think about the lace and silk I was folding or how often Angela tried these things on when she was here alone. Or how she looked wearing it.
Instead, I thought about how many buildings on Candy Cane Lane needed to be inspected and how much pipe I'd need to order. How long each building would take to replace the pipe, and how much money I'd made from the job.
If I focused on numbers, I wouldn't think about how Angela looked in silky lingerie or how her nipples were hard and begging for my mouth.
My body tensed as I fought with myself over the thoughts in my head. It was impossible to think about anything else but the material in my hands and the way it would look on Angela's body.
I worked faster, thinking that if the tiny scraps of silk and lace were out of sight, I'd stop thinking about how sexy Angela looked in them. I breathed a sigh of relief once everything was packed away. We carried the boxes up the narrow stairs to Angela's apartment.