“He said in his email he took pictures and had Aiden and Reid start digging into the history. The owner inherited the cabin from his grandfather and has no interest in it. He lives in the States and only remembers how difficult it was to get to the cabin and how boring it was to stay there when he was a kid. He had a few renos done and rented it out in the summers for a few years, but he found it too much trouble, and it’s sat empty for the past while.”
“Huh. It must be worth a lot with the land.”
“No doubt Bentley made him a fair offer. Once BAM develops the whole concept, it’ll be worth more.”
I groaned. “He already bought it? Sight unseen?”
“Yep.”
“So, either way, we have another job.” I looked at the various folders on my desk. “Is it a priority?”
“No. But he wants us to go with him to see it in a couple of weeks and give him our thoughts.”
I grabbed a piece of paper and scribbled a note to myself. Liv snickered as I turned, looking for a tack to add it to the various other notes pinned to the bulletin board behind me.
“Your computer could keep better track for you.” She shook her head. “I have a terrible memory at times. My mom always swore I would forget my head if it weren’t screwed on. I forget things all the time if I don’t put them in my calendar or use notes on my phone.”
I shook my head. “I hate them. I have to use one here for things, but I prefer my own system.”
“You call that a system?”
“It works.”
“Reid must hate coming in here.”
It was my turn to laugh. Reid was the IT genius of BAM—his brilliant mind was ten steps ahead of everyone else, and our systems were incredible thanks to him.
“Reid and I get along fine. I use what I have to use for all the business stuff. And I’ll add it to my notes in my phone, but I prefer the old-fashioned ways of doing things. I have a laptop at home I rarely open.”
“No social media stuff?”
“Nope. Nothing. No Facebook, Twitter, Instagram. None of it.”
“I get that. I hate texting, although everyone does it.” Her brow furrowed. “What about your gigs?”
I lifted my shoulder, trying not to wince. It still ached. “One of the other guys posts stuff. I go to play and enjoy the music. I let them handle it. When I do a solo gig, if there is someone I want there, I let them know. Otherwise, I just play. It’s not about the crowds or the money…”
“It’s about the music,” she finished for me.
“Yeah.”
She frowned, looking worried. “Are you okay? You keep wincing.”
“Little stiff, that’s all. Long day.”
“Are you overdoing it?”
I was touched by her concern. “I’m fine, Liv. I have an old injury that flares up at times if I push too hard. We were drywalling a ceiling today and I was a man short, so more lifting. It’ll be fine tomorrow.”
“Massage.”
“Pardon?”
“Massage would help. Some simple yoga stretches would keep the muscles loose too.”
I cleared my throat. “Ah, yoga?”
I was gifted another one of her smiles and quiet laughter. “I know you work out a lot with Aiden. But yoga does wonders for your body. It helps me a great deal.”
I tried not to imagine her doing yoga. In my mind, the loose shirt and leggings were replaced with a tight shirt and shorts. I had seen her once in a dress. It had hugged the curves she kept hidden and showed off her shapely legs, emphasized her heavy breasts and hourglass figure. It had been the first time I had noticed how incredibly attractive she was and made me wonder why she kept her beauty hidden. The thought of her body stretching and bending while doing yoga was enough to set my imagination flying and allow the thoughts I kept locked away to escape. Watching her bend and stretch, her body arching. Seeing her skin glisten with moisture. Joining her on the mat and showing her a whole new workout routine that ended up with me inside her and my name falling from her lips.
“Van?”
I startled, realizing my head had fallen back and my eyes had drifted shut. I was fantasizing about Liv’s body and fucking her.
What the hell was going on with me tonight?
I sat up, shaking my head and fumbling for words.
“Yeah, ah, sorry. Guess I’m more tired than I thought.”
“I have the name of a great masseuse if you decide you want to try it. Eve is awesome.”
“I’ll keep it in mind.”
There was a pause before she spoke. “You look really tired.”
“This project is a lot of work.” I chuckled as I tugged on my hair, and a piece of drywall compound hit my desk. “And messy.”
She laughed, the sound melodic. “Part of the job. Last week, I was painting a room with Kim. I bent over to get a spot I missed, and she bumped into me. I went around the rest of the day with deep turquoise all over the top of my head. Took me forever to scrub it out. Sammy wanted me to leave it in. She thought it was cool.”
I caught the undercurrent of affection when she mentioned her five-year-old daughter. I had only met her once, but she was a cute kid. Polite and quiet. She looked like Liv, except her eyes were dark. I knew nothing about Sammy’s father, other than he was out of the picture and Liv raised her on her own. Her mother helped her out a lot and was close to them both, but aside from some humorous stories Liv would share, that was all I knew.
“I bet she did.”
“I had to tell her my boss preferred me without turquoise hair.”
“Bummer.”
Laughing, she stood and slid her hands down the front of her shirt to smooth the wrinkles. I tried not to imagine what her curves would feel like under my hands.
“You should head home and get some rest. I need to go too,” she stated.
“Big plans?” I asked, trying to sound casual.
She shook her head. “I have to pick up Sammy soon. Mom took her to a birthday party that involved pizza and the early movie, so I took advantage and caught up with some work.”
“Ah.”
I didn’t ask her any questions. Liv was intensely private, much like myself, so I never pried.
Our relationship was, after all, strictly professional.
She smiled. “At least it’s the weekend. You can rest.”
“Yeah, thank goodness for that.”
She walked toward the door, pausing. “Voltaren cream works really well on joints.”
I didn’t bother telling her I had a cupboard full of medications and creams to try to help with the aches. “Thanks.”
Her phone slipped from her hand, and she bent over to grab it. The action caused her shirt to ride up, giving me a long glimpse of her ass. Her spectacular, full, round ass.
Suddenly I wanted to jump out of my chair and cross the room. Grab her ass and stroke it. Bite it. Lift her into my arms and use my desk as a place to sit her sweet ass on while I fucked her.
She stood, the movement interrupting my lust-filled thoughts. Her brow furrowed as she took in my expression, then she lifted her hand with a quick wave.
“Have a good weekend, Van. I hope your shoulder feels better.”
I returned her wave with one of my own, unable to speak, confused at the sudden onslaught of sex-driven thoughts when it came to Liv.