Page 5 of The Agent
Her laughter finally trailed off. She nodded, and he set her down. Her legs were still quite shaky after her brush with possible death, but her brain seemed to have forgotten about her roof gymnastics—it was too busy analyzing the beautiful man standing in front of her.
He had that chiseled kind of face you expected to see on a movie screen, lines and angles put together to create a rugged landscape, vivid eyes the color of the Pacific Ocean. A pair of faded jeans clung to his long legs and taut behind, while a navy-blue T-shirt emphasized a broad chest and delicious set of rippled abs.
No doubt about it, this was one ridiculously gorgeous man.
Her heart did a few somersaults. “Thanks for catching me,” she said.
“No problem.” He took a step backward, looking like he couldn’t wait to get out of here. “Be more careful next time, all right?” Another step. “I’ll see you around.”
“Wait, who did you say you were again?”
“I’m Caleb Ford.” His blue eyes flickering with weariness, he extended his hand. “I’m renting the house next door to yours.” As if to confirm it, he gestured to the redbrick side wall of the Strathorn house.
Since he was sticking his hand out at her, she had no choice but to shake it. The moment they touched, warmth suffused her palm, followed by a spark of awareness. Gosh, this guy was attractive. The messy black hair, the serious blue eyes, the drool-worthy bod. And his hand felt good on hers. Too good.
She quickly snatched it away, leery of the awareness sliding around in her body. Fine, so this guy was incredibly handsome, but he was also a total stranger. And the Strathorns hadn’t told her they were renting their place out for the summer. She knew they were in Europe—they’d asked her to pick up their mail. So why hadn’t they mentioned someone named Caleb Ford would be staying in their house?
“How do you know the Strathorns?”
Her voice held a note of suspicion, which she didn’t attempt to hide. Since her experience with Patrick, she was far more careful about handing out her trust to strangers.
“Through a mutual friend. I heard they were going to Europe for a few months, so my friend arranged for me to rent this place while they’re gone.”
“Oh, that’s convenient.” She casually pushed a strand of blond hair off her forehead. Her ponytail had pretty much come apart after her near fall, and unruly blond waves kept getting in her eyes. “Isn’t Stan and Debbie’s house terrific? They have a lot of antiques in there.”
Caleb arched one dark brow. “Stuand Debbie, you mean.”
“Right, Stu, I don’t know why I said Stan.” She felt a little flustered, especially when a knowing glint filled his eyes. He knew exactly what she’d tried to do, but hey, at least he’d passed the test. So why was he still all fidgety?
“When did you say you moved in?” she asked, watching him carefully.
“I didn’t. But it’s been a week.”
A week? And she hadn’t seen him even once? She tried to rein in her misgivings. Okay, so maybe he didn’t leave the house a lot. He could be one of those hermit types who liked being alone indoors.
“And you’re here for the summer?” she said, trying to sound casual.
“Yep.”
“On vacation?” she pressed.
“Work-related, actually.”
For Pete’s sake, getting answers from this man was like pulling teeth. She paused for a second, trying to concoct a way to draw some more details out of him, when a flash of red caught her eye. She glanced down, surprised to see an angry-looking scrape on her upper arm. She must have cut herself when she’d grabbed for the ledge, or maybe on her way down into Caleb’s arms.
“Shoot, I should get this cleaned up,” she said.
“Do you need any help?”
His voice was so full of reluctance she almost felt insulted. Jeez, was the thought of spending even a few more minutes with her that unappealing?
She frowned. “I’m a nurse, I can take care of it. But thanks.”
Caleb slung his hands in the pockets of his jeans, shifting awkwardly. “You better go in and get that taken care of. Are you sure you didn’t hurt yourself anywhere else?”
She examined her arms and legs, then flexed her back, wincing when a jolt of pain sliced up her left shoulder. “I think I pulled a muscle,” she answered, “but it’s nothing some yoga can’t fix this evening.”
Caleb coughed abruptly.
