Chapter 10
Chapter Ten
S hiloh didn’t move. The hair that was between her fingers slipped and fell back into a messy pile on Zane’s head, but she couldn’t bring herself to pull her hand back. She must have heard something wrong. “Excuse me?” she finally managed to get out. “What if Arthur thought I had a boyfriend?”
Granger’s eyes were nearly as wide as Shiloh’s were, but he swallowed and began to nod. “Yeah…what if he thought you were taken? Do you think he would still bother you?”
“He’s got a good point,” Jett said calmly. “I was thinking we might have to send Luca down to play bodyguard if one of us wasn’t available, but this is better. If you aren’t available, maybe Arthur will move on. All you have to do is tell him you’re off the market.”
“Will he care though?” Tate argued. “The kind of guy who was willing to grab her might not be the kind to back off at the thought of competition. The guy is a Class A Narcissist. Her declaring she’s taken probably won’t make much of a difference.”
“Then we get her someone real,” Jett concluded. “Instead of just saying she has a guy, we actually get her a guy.”
Shiloh laughed uncomfortably. “Right. Because they just grow in trees around here. I’ll go pick one in the morning, when the dew is bright and fresh.”
Jett gave her a grave look. “We’re serious, Shi. While we all understand your reasons behind not wanting to stop progress on the house, we also want you safe.”
“Like I said, I’ll take mace.”
“That’s not a cure-all,” Granger ground out. “What if he has your hands pinned? What if it falls out of your pocket? What if it malfunctions?”
Shiloh frowned. “Why do you even care? You helped this afternoon, and I’m grateful for that, but you’ve made it clear from the beginning that you’re not a fan of mine. I don’t know if this conversation even needs to involve you at all.”
She wasn’t proud of it. Shiloh knew that her defenses were growing weak and she’d pulled out something that wasn’t kind, but was still utterly true. Granger hated her. If she wanted him to back off and leave her alone, reminding him of that fact was probably the quickest way to go about it.
But it made her feel icky inside. She had no problem saying things like they were, but she definitely didn’t go out of her way to be cruel…and this felt cruel.
Jett sat back, his eyebrows high. “Wow, Shi. Tell us how you really feel.”
“No,” Granger quickly replied. “She’s right.” He sat up straighter. “But that’s a discussion for another time.” Standing, he walked around and gently pulled Zane off her lap and into his arms.
Zane made a few noises, but wrapped his arms around his dad’s neck and laid his head down.
Shiloh’s heart gave a painful lurch at the scene. She was walking a dangerous line here, getting attached to someone who wouldn’t be in her life that long. She’d always loved kids, and Zane’s little personality was just the perfect for her.
But he didn’t belong to her…and Zane’s dad didn’t like Shiloh.
She was asking for heavy heartbreak if she didn’t get herself under control.
“Thank you for dinner. I’ll be out to work on the yard soon.” Nodding at the brothers, Granger headed back into the house, and Shiloh heard the front door open and close not long after.
“That was cold, Shi,” Tate scolded.
She spun around, a righteous indignation rising in her belly. “I’m aware, Tate, but what I said wasn’t untrue either. I don’t know why Granger has taken such a severe dislike to me,” she continued, “but it’s there. Forgive me for not being open to taking advice from the very person who wishes he’d never met me.”
She started to rise, but Jett put his hand on her arm, stopping her. “You’re right,” he said in a calmer tone than she’d been using. “Granger’s been a jerk.”
Shiloh huffed and dropped back into her seat, her pride deflating. “He has. But so was I.”
Tate chuckled, but a sharp look from Jett had him shutting up.
Jett cleared his throat. “So…about Arthur.”
“Arthur is my problem,” Shiloh insisted. This time she did rise to her feet. “Thank you for your concern. I already told you I’ll take care of myself. He won’t catch me off guard again.” Gathering dishes, Shiloh took them into the house and started putting away the food.
Lingering after a good dinner was always one of her favorite things to do, but tonight, she wished they hadn’t. The conversation hadn’t ended on a good note, and now all the nice parts were soured.
What a terrible way to end an evening.
“Shiloh,” Jett warned.
“Thank you for your concern, Jett,” Shiloh threw over her shoulder as she worked.
The men grumbled for a moment before they started cleaning up outside. Shiloh ignored them. They were going to have to agree to disagree. She wasn’t going to back down on this, though she would apologize to Granger. Her remark had been uncalled for.
The men came in and brought everything else from the table with them.
“Thanks for dinner,” Jett said, wrapping his arms around her with a little squeeze.
“Anytime,” Shiloh said. After stepping back, she tucked her hair behind her ear. “I think Serenity is planning another neighborhood meeting soon, so maybe I’ll make marshmallows for it.”
Tate lunged forward with another hug for her. “I knew you’d cave,” he crowed.
Shiloh shoved him off with a laugh. “You’re a dork,” she teased. “Let’s please refrain from breaking me before I finish my latest project.”
“I’m sending over some roofing supplies tomorrow,” Jett said as they walked toward the door. “They can just be stored in the garage.”
“Sounds good.” Shiloh waved. “Thanks for coming.” She’d called them knowing that Granger would have a hard time if they were the only two adults. Nobody livened up a social gathering like Tate McCoy, and Jett was just a sweetheart.
And considering Granger’s departure, Shiloh knew she’d made the right call.
Tipping an imaginary hat, Tate pulled open the door, and the men disappeared into the night, leaving Shiloh all alone with her thoughts.
Which was almost worse than opening her heart to little Zane.
It was looking more and more like this project was going to be a doozy and for more reasons than the state of the house.
The state of Shiloh’s heart was already taking a beating, and she wasn’t sure what to do about it.
Shiloh had always been an all or nothing girl. She gave everything she had to every project, and every person she let into her life. Zane was already stealing her heart. How in the world could she save it?
Her attraction to Granger was totally superficial, which made it easier to ignore, but her draw to Zane was different. It wouldn’t take much for her to completely fall in love with that little boy.
And then where would she be when the house was done?
Shaking her head, Shiloh put her focus back on the clean up. She could no more keep herself from Zane than she could control the waves of the sea.
“Better just keep the freezer stocked with ice cream,” she told herself. “It’s the only thing that’ll help you survive the next couple of months.”
“Dad! I’m ready!” Zane came skidding into the kitchen, his sneakers squeaking on the hardwood and striking a pose.
Granger looked over his shoulder. “For what?”
Zane gave his dad a look. “To go to Shiloh’s.”
Granger raised his eyebrows. “Oh. Um…”
Zane patted his hat. “It’s sunny today, so I got my hat. And my sneakers. Do you think we’ll get as dirty as we did yesterday? I liked her hamburgers. Will we eat at her house again tonight? Does Shiloh like tacos? Maybe you can make her your tacos since she made us her hamburgers.”
Granger put a wet hand in the air. “Whoa, bud. Slow down, okay?”
Zane snapped his mouth shut.
“I don’t know if we’re going to Shiloh’s today. I need to check on some other projects.”
“But, Dad!”
“Zane,” Granger warned. “I know you like Shiloh, but we don’t even know if she’ll be at the house today. She has other jobs, too.”
“She’ll be there,” Zane said confidently.
“Yeah?” Granger went back to loading the dishwasher. “How do you know?”
Strutting out of the kitchen, Zane went straight for the front door. “I know!” he called.
Granger sighed and rested his hands on the edge of the sink. He really did have projects to check in on. His schedule was light, but not completely empty. But he couldn’t help wanting to go by Shiloh’s place as well, though Granger wasn’t as confident as Zane that the woman would be there.
He hated how things had ended last night, but Granger had deserved it. Shiloh lashed out. She was being ganged up on, and she lashed out. He’d seen and understood it, but it had still stung.
“You don’t have a say in her life,” Granger scolded himself quietly. Working for her and knowing her for less than two weeks didn’t give him anything but the right to keep mowing her lawn.
So why did it bother him so much that he had to bow out? Every protective instinct in his body wanted to throw Shiloh over his shoulder and protect her from the world. Especially the “Arthur” part of the world.
But he couldn’t, and she didn’t want him to.
He’d started their rough relationship by treating her badly, and now she was throwing it back in his face.
Granger rubbed the spot on his sternum that had been stinging since the night before. Nothing seemed to be able to ease the ache.
“Dad! Let’s go!”
Granger’s head hung a little lower. He huffed. “Give me a second to finish up.” It was no use. He wouldn’t be able to calm his curiosity or his protectiveness unless he checked in to make sure Shiloh was alright and tried to right their relationship.
Which meant Granger was going to have to apologize. While that wasn’t normally that big of a deal, the fact that he was already barely holding onto his attraction made it worse. Once one barrier was broken, it would be all the harder to keep the other barriers up.
“You’re the world’s biggest idiot,” Granger told himself as he finished up, then wiped his hands on a towel. “Grab a water bottle,” he told Zane. “I’ll get some snacks, and then we’ll go.”
Zane rushed back into the kitchen, and together they put together some food for the day, then headed out to the truck.
Granger convinced Zane that he needed to stop by a couple other job sites first, but it was only a little over an hour later that they pulled up to Shiloh’s fixer upper.
Unluckily, or luckily, depending on how Granger wanted to look at it, Shiloh’s vehicle wasn’t there.
“Looks like it’s just us,” Granger announced, putting the truck in park. “We need to finish weed eating, and then do some damage assessment.” He turned in his seat to look at Zane. “Ready?”
Zane smiled. “Yep.”
Granger couldn’t help but smile back. He should do that more often. Zane probably gravitated toward Shiloh because she was always smiling.
Or because she was gorgeous.
Either or.
It took several minutes to get the equipment down and safety gear on, but soon Granger was lost in his work, Zane pulling random weeds as they made their way through the second half of the yard.
He had no idea how much time had passed when Zane jumped to his feet and ran behind Granger.
Frowning, Granger quickly turned off the weed whacker and spun. His panic immediately calmed down when he saw Zane hugging Shiloh. Until he noticed that Shiloh was in a fitted skirt and heels.
“Crap.” Hurrying over, Granger put his hand on Zane’s shoulder, tugging. “Hey, bud. You’re gonna get grass and dirt all over Ms. Baxter.”
“But—”
“It’s fine.” Shiloh waved off Granger’s concerns. “I don’t buy anything that doesn’t wash well.” She looked down at Zane and rubbed his head. “A little dirt never hurt anyone, right?”
“You look pretty today,” Zane said quickly.
Granger rubbed his heated neck. His son was gonna be a player.
Granger blamed Tate.
“Aw…” Shiloh bent down in her heels. “And that is why you’re my favorite.” She leaned forward just enough to give Zane a kiss on the cheek.
“Yuck.” Zane wiped at his cheek at the same time a surge of jealousy went through Granger.
He would not be jealous of his six-year-old.
He wouldn’t.
“Yuck!” Shiloh tsked her tongue. “You’re missing out. Wiping off my kisses.” She winked. “They have special powers, you know.”
Zane was not convinced, but Granger might find himself persuaded.
Nope. Not jealous at all.
“What brings you by, all dressed up?” Granger asked, desperately trying to change the subject.
Shiloh stood straighter and ran a hand through her hair. It fell in large chunks and waves around her shoulders, gleaming in the sunlight. “I had a showing this morning, but I figured it was easier to come straight here, rather than going all the way home.” She pointed to a bag near her feet. “I always bring work clothes with me, so I’ll just change inside. You never know when you’ll need them.”
“Ah.” Granger nodded and shifted his weight. He needed to talk to her, but their pint-sized companion probably shouldn’t be present for that. Humbling himself was hard enough. Doing it in front of Zane was out of the question.
A car door closed, and Shiloh leaned back to look around the corner. “Jett said they were sending roofing supplies. I’m gonna guess that’s it.” She smiled at the two. “I’ll go take care of it, then be working inside.”
Granger nodded, and Zane complained but let her go. Unable to help himself, Granger followed around the corner. It was probably time to add gas to the weed whacker anyway. He’d just do it now.
But when he got around the first corner, he hesitated, seeing Shiloh pressed up against the house, a look of horror on her face.
She looked back at him, eyes wide.
Granger looked around, but didn’t see anything. “Did you find a snake or something?” he asked.
Shiloh shook her head, leaning forward just enough to look into the front yard again before slamming back against the house. “Arthur,” she mouthed.
Anger, hot and heavy, immediately sank into Granger’s gut, and he stormed forward, only stopping when Shiloh’s hand landed on his chest. He glared down at her. “Let me go,” he whispered hoarsely.
Shiloh shook her head. “No way am I letting you out there to beat him up.” She scrunched up her face. “I totally left my mace in the car.” She smacked her forehead.
Granger fought the urge to say “Told you so” and instead pressed forward again, but Shiloh stepped in front of him, blocking his path. “Shiloh,” Granger warned. He could hear footsteps coming around the sidewalk.
Shiloh shook her head again. “No,” she said. “That’s not how we’re handling this.”
Granger clenched and unclenched his fists, needing to do something. He had way too much energy at the moment, and it all wanted to be used toward putting Arthur in his place.
“Granger.” Shiloh palm shifted on his chest, spreading flat and nearly burning a hole in his shirt.
The footsteps were nearly to them, and Granger’s heart was speeding up, whether from Shiloh’s touch or Arthur’s approach, he wasn’t sure, but Granger was absolutely positive that he was going to do something. And Shiloh probably wouldn’t like it.
“Granger, look at me.”
He obeyed, looking down and meeting Shiloh’s golden eyes. “Get ready,” he rasped.
Shiloh frowned. “What?”
Without any more warning, Granger grabbed the back of Shiloh’s neck and pulled her closer. He had a small moment to be surprised at how far he had to bend down to reach her, but once his mouth was on hers, all thoughts fled. Every. Single. One. Of. Them.