Turn Up The Heat: Love Won't Wait / Beach House Beginnings / Strong Enough to Love

“Oh.” Merrily looked at the door, but to her, it was just...a door. “So I guess a pet entry is out.”

“No, we can still do it. But if your landlord agrees, I’d rather take that door down and store it so it can be put back in if you ever move. In the meantime we can throw up a cheaper door and use it for the pet entry. It’d still look nice, and it’d be plenty secure. What do you think?”

“Won’t that be more work for you?”

“Not a lot. As long as you don’t mind having me around an extra day or so, it’s not a big deal.”

Mind having him around? He had to be joking. “There’s a shed out back where you could store it or maybe in the basement or attic.” She hated to sound unsympathetic to the old house, and she loved the idea of prolonging his visit, but... “How much would a new door cost me?”

“Nothing. Jesse probably has something lying around that would fit.”

“Jesse?”

“My friend from lunch today.” He tipped his head. “You don’t remember him?”

“I do.” Jesse had an engaging smile, blond hair and green eyes, but sitting across from Brick, he’d been almost invisible—at least to her. Without thinking it through, she admitted, “I heard a few of the other waitresses talking about him.”

“Yeah? Saying what?”

She cleared her throat. “Just...girl talk.”

At her show of discomfort, his gaze brightened and a smile played over his mouth. “Tell me.”

“No.” She shook her head. “I couldn’t.”

He set his drink aside and, with teasing intent, stalked closer. “C’mon, Merrily. Out with it.”

She back-stepped until her backside bumped into the counter. Heat rushed into her face. This was a new game to her, but she didn’t want him to know that.

He got so close that her heart hammered and a strange tingling spread out to her limbs.

It wasn’t at all an unpleasant feeling. Not with Brick.

“Now don’t faint on me.”

“No. I won’t.” She might jump him, but she wouldn’t pass out and miss any of this. She cleared her throat. “They, ah, said that Jesse was so sexy, he...”

“He what?”

To get it over with, she blurted, “Made panties drop.”

Brick didn’t put any space between them. In fact, he brushed her cheek with the backs of his knuckles. “And what about you?”

“What about me?”

“You think Jesse is all that?”

“What? No.” She shook her head hard. “I mean, I’m sure he’s nice enough.”

“He is.”

But he wasn’t Brick. She shrugged. “That’s it. He’s nice.”

Brick’s slow smile said a whole lot of stuff—but she wasn’t sure what exactly. “He’s a carpenter, so he always has extra materials on hand. If he doesn’t have a door that fits exactly, he can cut it down to make it work. Piece of cake for him.”

He was still too darned close for coherent thought, but she muddled through. “I’d have to insist on paying him.”

Slowly, his gaze warm and intimate, Brick tucked her hair behind her ear—and finally gave her some space. “You can take that up with Jesse, but either way, it wouldn’t be much. So what do you say? Why don’t we go discuss it with the landlord right now so I can get to work on this for you?”

Darn it. She didn’t want to. If she had her way, Tonya Bloom would never be within smiling distance of Brick. Tonya smiled and men went stupid—she was that beautiful. But with Tonya living next door, the idea of them never running into each other was unrealistic and she knew it. “I could just talk with her and then let you know what she says.”

Brick studied her. She knew he studied her, that he wondered at her motives, and it made her want to squirm.

After a few nerve-racking seconds of scrutiny, he seemed to come to a conclusion. He nodded at her kitchen table. “Mind if I sit down while I finish my tea?”

Oh. “That’d be fine.” She followed him to the table, but when Brick pulled out a chair, he found Eloise curled up in it. The cat gave him a “do not disturb” look and settled again.

“Sorry, old girl.” He pulled out another chair, and there was Tom draped over the seat. In the next chair was Stan, one leg in the air while he “groomed” himself.

Feeling foolish, she explained, “They like to be where I am.”

“Can’t say as I blame them.” Instead of acting put out, he smiled at the cats. “The couch, then?”

“I could move them.” It was a lame, unenthusiastic offer. She hated to disturb her pets when they slept. So often, she would inconvenience herself first.

Brick curved his big, warm hand around her upper arm. “The couch works.” He led her back through to the living room, Dolly and Dundee following hot on their heels. He sat and urged her down close to him.

But rather than finish off his tea, he set it aside and turned to her, his gaze moving slowly over her face. “So.”

So...what? She waited, uncertain what to say or do, not knowing what he intended.

“Why don’t you want me to meet the landlord?”

Wow, intuitive and straight to the point. She wasn’t used to guys being so up-front.

Actually, she wasn’t all that used to guys, period. But the ones she had known weren’t exactly straight shooters. More like vague with hidden agendas.

By way of an answer, she asked her own question. “What makes you think I don’t?”

His gaze softened in understanding. “Not to brag, Merrily, but I know women.”

She was sort of counting on that.

Casually, he put an arm up along the back of the couch—behind her shoulders. “And I see it in your expression.”

Dolly jumped up to the couch and went into his lap, circled twice, then plopped down with a sigh. As if he barely noticed, Brick scratched the dog’s ears with his free hand and continued to stare at Merrily, waiting for her reaction.

Even after Dundee sat on his foot and leaned into his leg, Brick didn’t pull that unwavering gaze from her face.