But like Rain and Claire told him yesterday, if he acted like her friend, that’s how he made her see him. Tonight, he’d make her see him as the man who wanted her as his lover and wife.
“Now, honey, I’m asking you out on a date. I may not have seen you for a few days, but you didn’t exactly call to see what I was doing. Please, Jess, go out with me. We’ll have a nice dinner and talk.”
“I have to shingle this roof. Why are you here so early anyway?”
Stubborn woman kept stalling. He wouldn’t let her get away with it. It was like she was afraid to be alone with him. He’d put a stop to that line of thinking immediately.
“I got off work early to come and see you. I’ve been working like a maniac the last two days, and I want to spend a quiet evening with you.” He noted the tar paper, hammers, and shingles spread over the roof. She had everything set up to get the job done. “If I help you shingle the roof, will you have dinner with me?”
“Dylan, you haven’t done construction work in years. You’ve worked all day. The last thing you want to do is work with me. Besides, if I needed help, I’ve an entire crew to call on.”
“Fine. Then let them do it and come with me,” he snapped, losing his patience with her.
“This is my house. I’ve done almost all the work myself. I’m not handing it over to the crew now that I’m almost done.”
He read it in her eyes. She wanted to do it herself and feel the satisfaction in knowing she could. Seeing the finished product made her love her work. He decided to try another tactic.
“You take that side and I’ll take the other. If I finish before you, you go to dinner with me tonight.”
She cocked her head and glanced over her shoulder at him. “And if I win?”
“You’ll get half your roof done for nothing.”
“Free labor, definitely a plus. I’d get the roof done faster and have more time to work on Will’s furniture.”
“Cocky, aren’t you?”
She surveyed him from his black Stetson to his black-booted feet, looking more like an outlaw than a sheriff. The badge gleaming on his shirt said otherwise, but the dark hair brushing his collar and day-old beard said more about the renegade in him.
“You’re talking to a girl who spends her days on top of roofs. I’ve been doing manual labor since I was old enough to hold a hammer in my hands and swing it hard enough to pound in a nail.” She removed her gloves from her tool belt and slapped them onto his chest. “I wouldn’t want you to get a blister on those soft hands of yours.”
He took the gloves and smiled at her. “Honey, these hands are anything but soft. If you give me a chance, I’ll prove it to you.” He traced his fingertips over her cheek.
She felt the roughness of his skin and just how gently he could make those hands caress her A tingling tickled her gut and warmed her blood.
“You’ll have to beat me on this roof. Then, maybe, maybe I’ll let you buy me dinner.”
“If I beat you, you’re going to dinner. Then, I might get my hands on that delectable body of yours.”
She lost a little of her smile. The thought of making love to him again held a lot of appeal. She’d thought about it and him night after night. Always at the back of her mind was the result of their last time together and how badly it turned out in the end. She wanted him, dreamed of him, and was afraid of him all at the same time.
“You’ll have to win first to get me to do anything.”
“I love a challenge.” He gave her a cocky grin and slid the gloves on his hands while she got things ready. To make the job go faster, she called down to one of her men to send up two pneumatic nail guns. Then, to his embarrassment, she insisted on tying a rope around him. He had to admit, it felt good to have her worry about his safety. On the other hand, his ego took a hit.
He stood and moved to his starting position, his boots sliding on the roofing paper, throwing him off balance before he caught himself. She had a point.
Word spread like wildfire through the construction site: Jessie had taken on the sheriff. She was leading him, but only because he was slowed by not having all the tools he needed to open the packaging for the roofing shingles. Nail guns went off like automatic weapons, and he kept his head down and his pace steady. He worked his ass off trying to get the job done. At one point, Brian joined him on the roof to help him get things set up. Dylan caught up to Jessie; only then did she pick up the pace. At some point, Greg arrived and helped him too. The guys down below started placing bets, and Dylan wanted to laugh. The odds were still against him, even though he had Brian and Greg helping.