By the Book

Chapter Three

Amanda didn’t exactly remember what she said to Shamus when she let him in the house, but whatever it was, it must have made sense because he hadn’t seemed to notice anything amiss. She didn’t remember much of anything but the mesmerizing kiss that Jonah had given her.

She wrapped her fingers tight around her cheerful sunflower coffee mug and stood at the top of the stairs, listening to the male voices drifting up from below. She could easily distinguish Jonah’s voice from Shamus’s. They both had deep voices, but Jonah’s made her entire body tingle.

Ignoring the way her nipples puckered, she turned away from the open door of the basement and wandered aimlessly around the kitchen. She really should start cleaning the cupboards. If that was done, she could begin to unpack and get organized.

But she couldn’t focus on cleaning. Not with Jonah so close. “Stop thinking about him,” she muttered as she tipped up her mug and drank the last of her coffee before plunking it down on the counter. “Think about electrical repairs.”

She was praying the repair job wouldn’t be a big one, but that hope was growing slimmer by the second. When Shamus had arrived, he’d descended into the bowels of the basement to join Jonah in checking out the electrical panel. They’d made their way back upstairs and Jonah had grabbed some tools before they’d gone from room to room checking outlets. Looking grim, they’d headed back down to the basement. They’d been down there at least ten minutes now.

To try and distract herself from thoughts of her electrical problem and the even bigger problem of her attraction to Jonah, she decided to make a fresh pot of coffee. It only took her a minute to scoop fresh grounds into a paper filter and fill the coffeemaker with water. While the coffee was perking, she opened several boxes and found more mugs, which she laid next to the coffee pot. The men would probably want coffee when they were finished working.

Amanda knew she should probably be in the basement with them. After all, it was her house. But until there was more light down there, she’d happily stay up here. Besides which, being down there would put her in very close contact with Jonah, and she wasn’t ready for that yet.

She sighed and wrapped her arms around her torso. The coffeemaker sputtered and steamed as she peered out through the window. Jonah. Her thoughts always came back to him. Considering she’d only met the man yesterday, he occupied way too many of her thoughts.

She hadn’t been able to look Jonah in the face when he’d been going from room to room, checking out the outlets in each. Not after that mind-blowing kiss. If her hair hadn’t already been curly, it certainly would have been after that kiss.

The fact that she couldn’t look directly at him certainly hadn’t stopped her from following him and Shamus though. She hadn’t been able to take her eyes off him while he worked. His shirt stretched wide across his shoulders and when he’d leaned over once, the tails had ridden up in the back, allowing her a brief glimpse of his vastly superior jeans-clad butt.

His eyes had flicked to her bed when he’d moved his inspection into her bedroom, his gaze lingering ever so briefly on the tangled sheets. Amanda wished she’d taken the time to make the bed when she’d rolled out of it this morning, but she’d had so much she’d wanted to accomplish today that she hadn’t bothered.

Amanda mentally shook away the image of her mussed bed as she touched her fingers to her lips. She could still taste him there—potent and dark and male. She couldn’t quite define his taste. All that she knew was that she like it. A lot.

Her breasts felt swollen and her nipples were still puckered tight. Goose bumps rippled over her skin. She rubbed her hands over her upper arms, grateful that she’d thought to pull on a cardigan while the men had been working upstairs. She didn’t want to advertise her swollen nipples to either man. The sweater wasn’t much protection against the potent sexual attraction Jonah exuded, but it was something.

There was nothing she could do about the persistent throb between her legs. She pressed her thighs closer together to try to ease the ache. It only made things worse. Her panties were damp and the material only seemed to aggravate the situation when it brushed against her sex.

The coffeemaker gave a final whoosh and gurgle, announcing it was finished brewing the fresh pot of coffee. And just in time too. Work boots clumped against the stairs. She moved quickly from the window and leaned against the counter, trying to look nonchalant.

They were finished their inspection. Amanda placed her hand on her stomach and took a deep breath. She didn’t know what worried her more at this point—having to face Jonah again or finding out exactly what was wrong with the electrical system.

Shamus emerged first and the look on his face wasn’t encouraging. He offered her a smile, but it didn’t reach his eyes.

“Tell me.” She didn’t see the need to drag out the situation.

“You want the good news or the bad news?” Shamus walked over to the counter and grabbed one of the clean mugs she’d put there and poured himself a cup of coffee.

“Both.” No need to put off the inevitable. The quicker she knew what she was dealing with, the better.

“The good news is that someone attempted to upgrade the electrical system in the past ten years.”

“That’s good, right?” She didn’t see anything bad in what Shamus was saying.

“The bad news,” Jonah interjected, “is that whoever did it didn’t hire an electrician and they didn’t know what the hell they were doing.”

Her stomach dropped. “What exactly are we talking about?”

“The entire thing needs to be redone and brought up to code. You’ve got old wiring mixed with new. It’s a fire hazard.” Jonah strolled over to the counter, picked up the glass carafe and poured himself a mug of coffee. Amanda tried hard not to look at his large, strong hands. It was all too easy to imagine those hands on her body.

She took a deep breath. “Okay, what am I looking at time-wise?”

“I can start right away.” Jonah brought the mug to his lips and took a swallow of coffee. Amanda stared at his moist lips and the way his Adam’s apple moved up and down as he swallowed.

She mentally shook herself. She was obviously losing her mind if all she could focus on was how sexy Jonah looked drinking a mug of coffee instead of her huge homeowner’s problem. The stress of the past few months was catching up to her.

Pulling her gaze away from Jonah, she focused on Shamus. “Won’t that mean cutting out sections of the walls in each room?” The dollar signs in her head got bigger with each passing moment.

“Probably, but it won’t be too bad. I can fix your walls for you.”

She nodded. “I’ll need an estimate from both of you.”

Shamus shook his head. “You buy the materials, I’ll fix your walls.”

“You can’t do that.” She pushed away from the counter and shoved her gold-rimmed glasses up further on her nose. “This is what you do for a living.”

He sighed, crossing his arms over his chest. “No, this is what I do for a friend.”

When she started to protest again, he held up his hand. “Let me do this for you. You’ve been such a good friend to Cyndi. Let me return the favor.”

Put like that, it would be small of her not to accept. “Thank you.”

He flashed her a smile. “No problem.” Shamus looked at his watch. “If we’re done, I’ve got to get to work.” He glanced over at Jonah, who nodded. Turning back to Amanda, he added, “I’ll see you later tonight.”

Amanda nodded. “Tell Cyndi I’ll be there.”

Shamus stopped long enough to give her a peck on the cheek. “Will do.”

He was gone before she realized it, leaving her alone with Jonah. There was no hiding any longer. Squaring her shoulders, she faced him. “I’ll need an estimate before you begin to work.” She’d never dealt with these sorts of repairs before, but she knew enough to get it in writing.

“I’ll be fair.”

She raised an eyebrow and stared at him. He had a lot of nerve to assume she’d take his word for anything after the way he questioned her professional reputation. “I’ll need references as well.”

His eyes widened. Obviously, he wasn’t used to having his word questioned. It was childish for sure, but she was glad to be able to give him a taste of his own medicine.

His frown disappeared and a slow smile spread across his face. Oh, no. She locked her knees, ignoring the way that his smile made her stomach, and other parts of her body, flutter wildly.

“I guess I deserve that.” He set his mug down on the counter, the sound echoing in the mostly empty room. “The thing is, I’ve only been back in town a few months so I haven’t done that many jobs for private citizens. Most of my work has been as a subcontractor to B & O Construction. Shamus is my best reference and he was the one who called me.”

He was right about that. “I still want an estimate.” She wouldn’t compromise on that.

“Fair enough. I’ll have one to you by tomorrow.” Jonah walked toward her and she found herself backing away from him. He ignored her and went straight to his toolbox.

Pulling a screwdriver and a few other items from his pockets, he crouched down and put them back in the box before closing the lid.

What he’d said was still ringing in her brain. “I thought you grew up here.”

“I did.” He stood, brushing his hands on the front of his jeans. “But I was gone for more than fifteen years.”

“What did you do all those years?” She placed her mug on the counter beside his and folded her arms loosely across her stomach, trying to calm the fluttering feeling in her belly.

“Army.”

She smiled then. “Excuse me for saying so, but I’m having a hard time picturing you in the army. You don’t seem like the type who would take orders well.”

He gave a small chuckle and threaded his fingers through his hair, pushing the dark mass away from his face. “That was a problem at times, but my group had a lot of leeway and we were pretty independent.”

“Your group?” She could hear the affection and respect in his voice.

“Special Forces.” He turned away and walked toward the window. He stood with his back to her, peering out over the slightly overgrown yard. She knew all the trees needed to be pruned and the grass needed to be cut. When it was done, it would be a beautiful space for her to enjoy.

“Why did you come back?” She knew it was none of her business, but she couldn’t seem to stop herself. Everything about Jonah fascinated her. She couldn’t claim to know him well, but she could hear the pride he had in his former career.

He turned to face her, hands on his hips. “My father died and my sister needed me.”

The brusque tone told her that this was a closed subject.

“I’m sorry. It’s none of my business.”

“No, it’s not. But you’d hear about it eventually anyway. The one thing that never changes in a small town is the love of gossip.” He came toward her and this time she forced herself not to back away from him. It wasn’t easy.

He was bigger than her, but not as big as Shamus. She frowned. Shamus might be taller, but Jonah exuded a sense of power, of menace. Maybe it was because she was attracted to Jonah, while Shamus was nothing more than a friend. Whatever the reason, Jonah made her heart pound faster with each step closer he came. He stopped right in front of her.

Reaching out his hand, he touched her hair. She scowled. “I know it’s a mess.”

“It’s beautiful. Like fire.” He threaded his fingers through the mass that fell below the ponytail holder. “Much like you. You try and keep all that fire contained, but it’s there just below the surface. Waiting for the right man to release it.”

Having Jonah close to her set her internal furnace rumbling on full. Her earlier chill was gone and Amanda could feel a bead of sweat rolling down the center of her back.

She swallowed, trying to think of something witty to say. She came up empty. No man had ever said anything like that to her before.

She was no virgin, but she wasn’t exactly overly experienced either. Two serious relationships, both with staid, sensible men, did not make her an expert by any means.

Still, she had to say something. “You think you’re the right man?” She couldn’t believe she was challenging him. Was she out of her mind? A man like him would respond instantly to a challenge. Was that what she wanted?

Jonah’s smile deepened. “Oh yeah, sugar. I’m definitely the man to release all that pent-up fire.” He shifted his body so close she could feel the heat rolling off him even though they weren’t touching anywhere. Her nipples tightened and her core clenched.

His fingers feathered over her cheek and down the side of her neck. A shiver racked her body, raising goose bumps on her arms, but it certainly wasn’t because she was cold.

If anything she was hot. Too hot.

He traced her collarbone and even through the layers of her shirt and her sweater, she felt scorched by the heat of his touch.

“Maybe,” she countered.

He closed his hand over her breast and squeezed gently. “Definitely.” She moaned, unable to stop herself.

He only cupped her breast for a second before sliding his hand over her belly.

Amanda felt her arms falling to her sides and her breath caught in her chest as his fingers crept lower. When they were almost to her mound, he stopped. “Thing is, I’m not looking for a relationship. Nothing permanent.”

His words dampened her sexual excitement as effectively as a cold shower, but they didn’t smother them completely. Arousal still simmered beneath her skin as she forced herself to take a step away from him. “I see.”

He sighed and let his hand drop back to his side. “Do you?” Jonah stared at her, his green eyes ablaze with pure sexual heat. “I want you, Amanda. Make no mistake about it.

But I’m not the settling down type of guy.”

“I see.” She wished she could think of something else to say, but those two words seemed to be the extent of her vocabulary at the moment. Knowing she needed to collect herself, she turned away from him and walked over to stand in the empty eating nook.

“I’m not the kind of woman who has a one-night stand.”

“It wouldn’t be one night.” The whisper startled her. She hadn’t heard him moving to stand right behind her. “I’d need a lot more time than that to sate myself with you. That will take days, maybe weeks. I want to take you fast and hard. Then I want to fuck you slow and easy. I want to pound into your sweet flesh until you scream with pleasure.”

Amanda swayed. The pictures he was putting in her brain threatened to overwhelm her totally. “I can’t think.” This was outside of her realm of experience. Hot guys like Jonah didn’t say things like this to a frizzy-headed woman with freckles. Sleek, sophisticated blondes were more likely to be the target of all this potent testosterone. “I don’t understand.”

“What’s to understand?” He pressed closer and she could feel the hard ridge of his erection against her ass. “I want you and you want me. We’re both single, healthy adults.

What’s the harm?”

He stepped back then and went calmly to his toolbox. “I’ll have an estimate for you by tomorrow.”

She faced him, unable to believe he was just going to drop that bombshell and then leave. “You’re going?”

“Unless you want me to stay?”

The way he said it left no doubt in her mind that if he stayed it would be for one reason only. As attracted to him as she was, she’d just met him. She shook her head.

“I didn’t think so, but you can’t blame a guy for trying.” He hefted the heavy red box in his left hand. “I’ll keep asking.”

His work boots rang against the hardwood floor as he walked calmly down the hallway. Amanda heard the door open and close.

She stood in the center of the kitchen and stared at the plain white walls. “What have I gotten myself into?”