Page 7 of Bond Strength

“Then that.” His eyes crinkled around the edges, giving them a softness. Not like he ever had hard eyes or anything.

Crap, the tea water would be done boiling.

“I’ll go finish the tea.” I pivoted and dashed inside. Again, my skin prickled as if his presence overwhelmed me. I tapped my thigh, trying to cool the jumble of confusion I became around Noah. Twice in a week was unreasonable. Usually, I could pace our encounters with a few months of padding them out. They were never long because someone always needed him, and then he’d rush away.

My chest clenched. No point in chasing people who didn’t have the time for me.

The electric kettle had clicked off, and I placed the Irish breakfast in his mug and a lavender Earl Grey in mine. I poured the water in, and the color trailing from the bag mesmerized me. I checked the clock for the precise time. Black tea only needed to steep for three to five minutes, though I preferred five.

My heart thrummed harder like I’d been running at a cross-country pace. While I waited for the tea to be ready, I stared up at the ceiling. The project I had for the formula for longer-lasting batteries beckoned me. They had nothing to do with my job and everything to do with advancing our efforts to explore space. People often focused on the big and flashy aspects of venturing into the universe and forgot about the details, this being one of them.

A knock sounded on my door.

“Come on in.” My gaze drifted to the clock on the microwave. Time to take the tea bags out. I moved on automatic, getting them prepared and then bringing the honey out. Like this, I could pretend Noah was just anyone, not the person I had the most complicated relationship with on the face of this earth.

Except then he stepped into the kitchen, and he swallowed up all the space in here. My chest grew a little tighter, and I scratched at it. Even removed from the sun, his blond strands were still glossy andartfully tousled, and the way his blue tee clung to his shoulders kept drawing my attention.

“The tea’s ready.” I pointed at the mug. “And there’s honey here, so you can doctor it how you want.”

He brushed by me to reach for the honey, and our arms touched. A shock like static electricity rippled through me, and I shivered. This was one of the many reasons why I avoided him so much. No one else affected me like he did.

Noah clutched the mug and passed me another grin, though it wavered. “So I have some bad news.”

“I assume my house is about to fall down.”

Noah let out a laugh. “All paper houses here, baby.”

“Paper would cost a lot less to fix.” I took a sip of the tea. The taste and warmth that greeted my tongue put me at ease.

“Your exterior walls have a lot of stress fractures and need major restoration work. It’s not cheap.”

I shrugged. “I mean, that’s why I have a job, right? To cover repairs like this.”

Noah shook his head. “Wow, no struggle? No back and forth here? I’ll take it. I can start the repair this week if that works?”

“I’m guessing if I don’t get it fixed, my house will crumble around me when the next storm hits. So, yes.”

“Mmm, ever get water pouring in through your walls?” he asked.

“Can’t say I have, but I assume I’ll get the delight of the experience soon with the walls in the shape they are.”

“What the fuck did you do to them, Dec?” Noah sipped his tea. His eyes widened. “This is really good.”

Pride thrummed through me. “I know. And as for the walls, nothing. They were okay when I moved in, and they got worse and worse over the past five years.”

He tapped the side of my countertop, the sound echoing in my kitchen. “Want me to send you the quote via email with the breakdowns of what needs to be done?”

“I’d prefer that, yes.” I continued to sip at my tea, blissfully not thinking about my walls. The positive of working the career I did was not having to worry about things like house repairs. Unless the walls did break and my project in the basement got flooded. The first fringes of panic filtered in. Damn, okay, it was good I got this dealt with.

Noah leaned against my counter with a casualness that should bother me. However, he seemed to be enjoying the tea I’d made, and that stole my attention. The way the liquid glossed his lips and his light hum after he finished drinking it. My heart thumped hard like it tried to remind me I was alive. Clearly, I didn’t need a reminder, since I was still upright.

He placed the cup on the counter. “All right. I’d better be off…” He lifted an eyebrow as if he were waiting for…well, I wasn’t sure what. He’d done the assessment, so his job was complete.

I nodded in acknowledgment.

He dipped his head, but when he looked up, he flashed me another grin. “I’m heading out. Get ready to see a lot of me this week.” With that, he sauntered toward the door.

I watched him walk away, his strides powerful.

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