Page 92 of Take My Heart
‘I’m not working on the house,’ I mutter, feeling my anger rise.
‘Why not?’ Nick says. ‘You got nothing else going on. Nash said he left you some trim pieces. Start with that.’
‘I’ll work on it when I’m ready.’ I give Nick a look to shut up, but as my big brother, he never listens to me.
‘Hey.’ Jason nudges me. ‘I want to ask you something. Let’s go in the back.’
I get up and follow him through the bar. I know he’s going to yell at me about the house, but that’s better than staying at the table and having the whole family ask me about it.
‘Why aren’t you agreeing to this?’ Jason says, stopping next to the tasting table Sawyer set up in back for private events. He does them for birthdays and bachelor parties and actually makes a decent amount of money. It includes a tour, which is really just looking at the fermentation tanks while Sawyer explains how beer is made.
‘Agreeing to what?’ I ask.
‘Fixing up the house. You’re not doing anything else next week and your new tenant seems eager to help.’
‘Stop calling her that.’
‘Why? What’s going on with you and her? Are you really dating her?’
‘We’re not dating. We’re just .?.?.’ I pause, searching for the right word to describe us.
‘You’re sleeping with her?’ Jason shoves my shoulder. ‘What the hell is wrong with you?’
‘What? We both agreed to it. She wanted it as much as I did.’
‘She just broke off her engagement. She’s emotional. She’s not thinking straight. And you’re taking advantage of that.’
‘You don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about. Her relationship with her ex was over a long time ago. She wasn’t even living with the guy and they haven’t had sex in over a year. This isn’t some rebound thing to get over her ex.’
‘It’s still not a good idea. She’s going to fall for you, and then what? What happens when she leaves? Is she going to expect you guys to keep dating?’
‘We’re not dating. We both agreed that’s not what this is. She even told me tonight that she couldn’t see us as a couple. She said we’re too different, and it’s true. We are. We’re complete opposites.’
‘Sometimes opposites attract.’
‘And we do, in the bedroom, but that’s it. We’d never get along as a couple. She’s a neat freak. She’d drive me crazy if we dated.’
‘Are you saying you’re not getting along as roommates?’
‘We get along great, but we’re not dating.’
‘You’re living with her and having sex with her. And taking her out on Friday night to meet your family. That sounds like dating to me.’
‘I didn’t plan on her meeting the family. Are we done here? I’ve had enough family time. I want to go home.’
‘Before you go, let’s talk about the house. Why do you keep making excuses for why you can’t work on it?’
‘I’m not making excuses. I’m just not ready to do anything.’
‘Why? You have the time, and you have someone willing to help.’
‘I don’t want Kate helping. This is supposed to be her time off. I’m not making her work.’
‘She wants to. Didn’t you hear her out there? She’s practically begging you to let her help.’
‘And how could she help? She doesn’t know how to do construction.’
‘Neither do you. You can learn together. Start with replacing the trim. That’s easy. Nash already taught you how to do it and he gave you the supplies.’
