Page 19 of Trophy
“What are you doing?” she called out.
He didn’t answer, but she saw the answer for herself when he came back up a few minutes later. He was walking slowly, and she saw why when he turned the corner into the living room, carrying a leather wingback chair.
“You didn’t have to do that,” she said, straightening up.
Before she could even get up, he was heading back down to the basement.
“Rob!” She stood at the top of the stairs looking down. “You don’t need to bring anything else up.”
“Just one more thing,” he replied, starting up the stairs with a small wooden television console that had been too heavy for her to move herself.
She watched him carrying it up. It didn’t even look like he was exerting much effort, but she knew for a fact how heavy that thing was.
He was slightly out of breath when he placed it against an empty wall and then leaned over to pick her TV up off the floor and set it on the console. “There,” he said, clearing his throat. “Now the room isn’t so empty.”
It looked a lot better now. Almost like a real room. Allison couldn’t help the surge of pleasure she felt at the sight. “Thank you,” she mumbled. “You didn’t have to do that.”
“Why shouldn’t I?”
“Because it was my job.”
“But you couldn’t do it, and I could. No big deal.”
She let out a breath, telling herself not to make an issue about it. “Well, thanks,” she said, not knowing what else to say.
“You already said that.” He gave her a teasing little smile. “I wouldn’t say no to a sandwich or something.”
She straightened up. “Oh. Yeah. I can make you something. I’m hungry anyway.” She felt better now that she had something to give him in return.
She went into the kitchen to make sandwiches while he went to the bathroom. She rinsed some grapes and put them on the plates with the sandwiches and filled up their water glasses.
When Rob still hadn’t returned, she started down the hall. The bathroom door was open, so she went to investigate.
Rob was leaning over her sink with some sort of tool in his hand.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
She must have startled him because he jerked. He gave her a sheepish grin as he straightened up. “Your faucet was spraying, so I was fixing it for you.”
“It didn’t need to be fixed.”
He frowned. “Why not? All I had to do was tighten?—”
“You didn’t have to—” She broke off her own words, realizing she was overreacting. She knew she was super sensitive because of her experiences with Arthur, but there was no reason to assume Rob was trying to take over the way Arthur always had. “Sorry,” she said, smiling back at him. “Thank you. That was nice of you to do.”
He relaxed, as if relieved. “You’re welcome. It was easy.” He folded his tool back up and stuck it in his pocket. “Anytime.”
She wondered if he expected her to start calling him up whenever she had an odd job that needed doing.
There was no way in hell she was going to do that.
Rob was hungry, so he ate his sandwich and grapes quickly. Allison hadn’t even finished half of her sandwich, and her eyes widened when she saw he was done.
“Do you need another one?” she asked, her lips wobbling slightly in what looked like suppressed amusement.
“I’m fine.” He figured she didn’t have a lot of money, so there was no need to eat her out of house and home.
She laughed softly and got up, heading to the counter, where the sandwich-making stuff was still out. He watched her as she made him another sandwich, his eyes running over her shapely legs and her firm ass in her shorts. She had on only a little tank top that clung to her skin, because she’d been sweating in the sun. He wasn’t even sure she wore a bra with it, since her tightened nipples were easily recognizable beneath the fabric. She was in great shape, but she had curves where he liked to see them. He felt his body reacting as he watched her.
