Page 32 of On the Ropes
He tapped the shovel a few more times. “I’ve taken knockouts that feel better than asking for help or accepting it when it’s offered. I hate doing it. But if you’re offering—and could help me with this—I could use it. I could use a…friend.”
His sincere tone, coupled with his earnest expression, propelled me toward promises without hesitation.
“Absolutely,” I said. Gushed was more like it. “It’s practically in Aunt Linda’s backyard, and I can’t let you take on such a huge project by yourself. Besides, I’m not only an incredible neighbor. I’m a hard worker, skilled at team building, I love working with my hands. I’m sure they’re not as skilled as yours, which are quite skilled. Right? I swear I haven’t been thinking about your hands, it only sounds like I have.”
I trailed off at the very end and knew my face was a unique shade of red my sister Alexis swore made me look like a tomato.
Dean looked equally amused. “Tabitha.”
“I feel like if I apologize again for talking about your hands, I’m only going to make it sound creepier.”
He was clearly fighting a smile. “You’re not wrong. But thank you for helping me.”
I swayed on my feet, the motion a warning. I had more than enough on my plate and needed to keep my movements here light and relaxed, untangled and loose. I had a rare break from the grind of video producing and should have been using this time like the gift it was. It was a time to assess and re-prioritize my career, to hustle up contracts and meaningful stories. Offering to help Dean, to help this street was already giving me that heart-stuck-in-my-throat feeling, that craving for home I had successfully resisted for years now.
But I’d always been able to control my emotions—and entanglements—in the past, so I decided not to worry.
A lopsided grin appeared on his face. “Whatever happens with this space, it’ll probably be a beautiful thing to behold,” he said, repeating my words from the other night. “Don’t you think?”
“I certainly agree. The person who said that sounds super smart and amazing.”
He nodded, the heat in his eyes taking my breath away. “And she’s definitely a distraction.”
