Doris raised a hand to her hair. Seychelle could see it was trembling. She had a lot of pride. “If you’re certain they need to get rid of the lumber. I can’t pay them for it. It looks like it would be a lot.”
Seychelle felt herself slipping just a little more down that inevitable path toward Savage. She didn’t want to go there. She knew it was too dangerous, but the way he leveled his cool blue eyes at Doris and shrugged had her heart stuttering.
“You should see the stacks of lumber we have layin’ around the place, ma’am, not only at the clubhouse, but it’s spillin’ over to Player’s house now.”
“Savage.” Doris conceded with a nod. “May I get you some tea?”
Savage winced. “Don’t drink the stuff, Doris. Blythe tried to convince me it wasn’t poison, but so far, I think she’s full of . . .” He broke off. “Let’s just say no, thanks.” He beckoned to Seychelle, and she put down her teacup and moved closer to examine the boards that he’d uncovered beneath the stairs.
Savage waited until she sat on the porch before he dug at the exposed network of wood with the claw part of the hammer, pulling it apart easily. “It’s rotted. The lumber should have been treated and sealed. I’ll talk to Master and Player. They’re good with this kind of thing. You don’t want Doris or any of her guests falling through.”
He wrapped his hand around Seychelle’s ankle beneath the hem of her jeans, touching her bare skin, and the moment he did, a thrill shot through her, proving just how susceptible to him she really was.
“Doris, do you have another entrance you can use? One safer than this?” Savage’s hand moved up and down Seychelle’s calf while he questioned the older woman, instantly establishing a connection between them again.
“Through the kitchen. The back door leads to a porch.”
“After we measure, I’d like to check that porch as well, just to make certain it’s safe, if you don’t mind. Seychelle, you do have a paper and pen or pencils in here, right?” He scowled down into the toolbox as if it might bite him if he put his hand inside.
“You’re such a baby.” She pulled a pencil and notepad from an inner pocket.
He groaned. “Who knew they made pink pencils and notepads? And why aren’t you afraid of me the way everyone else is?” He shook his head and knelt to use the tape measure.
He had to repeat himself three times because she was fascinated with the way his muscles rippled when he was crawling around on the porch. The faintest hint of a smile lit his eyes, but he kept barking out measurements and then had Doris take them through her house to the back porch, which turned out to be in just as bad a shape as the front one. He measured that as well.
“We’ll be back tomorrow, Doris,” he promised, “but I’ve got a steak and some tofu marinating, so I need to get Seychelle home, if you don’t mind.”
“Not at all, Savage. It was wonderful to meet you. No need for you boys to worry about food—I can make something.”
“Alena will not be happy if you do that, other than make your cookies. She’s going to want to meet you, and she always brings food. Tons of it, but when I tell her about your amazing cookies, she’s definitely going to want to taste them,” Savage assured her. “She gets her feelings hurt if she isn’t the one bringing the food. I hope you don’t mind letting her cook.”
“No, of course not. I just need to do something when you’re helping me,” Doris said.
“You’re helping us. Czar’s going to be happy the lumber’s gone. It’s a fire hazard. And Alena gets to show off her cooking as well as meet you. You’re doing us a huge favor, whether it feels that way or not. Expect a big turnout. The club will use this as an excuse to have a barbecue together. Another reason to thank you.”
Doris looked so happy she might burst into tears. She nodded several times, her lips trembling, but she didn’t say anything.
“Thanks for looking after Seychelle for me. She’s a bit of a handful sometimes.” He carefully replaced the tools, took Seychelle’s hand and tugged until she went with him to her car.
“I’ll meet you at home, babe.”
Great. Now he was referring to her house as home right in front of Doris. She didn’t know how to feel about that. Correction, she knew how she felt, but she also knew how she should feel.
FIVE
“Are you going to ask me how I got in the house to marinate my steak and your tofu and put the baked potatoes in the oven, Seychelle?” Savage turned his steak on the grill and flicked a quick look at her. Her tofu was on a separate mini grill.