Читать книгу Male Call - HEATHER MACALLISTER, Heather Macallister - Страница 10

M. IS IN THE SKIRT. It was almost too easy. Of course, I shall tell her nothing of its special properties.

It had better find someone worthy of her. We’ll be going out later for a test spin.

ZACH DIDN’T KNOW why he chose that moment to go outside, but he was glad he did. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have noticed the pretty brunette on the balcony across the street.

Where had she come from? After three weeks on the site, Zach had learned the rhythm of the street and recognized most of the inhabitants, but he didn’t recognize her and even at this distance, she wasn’t the sort of woman a man forgot.

Speaking of forgetting, Zach couldn’t remember why he’d come outside. All he’d done was stare at her as she sat in a chair and looked up and down the street.

There wasn’t much going on and not too many people were out. Most were on their way home from work or having dinner.

Zach stood in the front doorway and watched her grab at her skirt, fighting with the wind. She was cold, because she kept rubbing her arms and he wasn’t sure, but he thought she might be barefoot.

Why didn’t she go inside if she was cold?

She stood and stomped around the balcony then walked over to the door and stared at it, rattled the handle, then looked around the balcony before picking up one of the prissy chairs.

As she took a step backward, a thought whispered through his mind. She’s going to break the glass.

“Wait! That glass might be original to the house!” He started running across the street. “Hey, wait!”

She heard him and set the chair down just as he squeezed through cars parked bumper to bumper along the curb and stopped beneath the balcony.

“You weren’t going to break the door, were you?” he called.

She came to the edge of the balcony. “That was the idea.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m locked out. Because I am very cold and I can’t climb down and jumping would be stupid, even if my feet are numb.” She spoke slowly, as though he had no brains, but since all he was doing was staring at her and watching her mouth move, she might be justified in that assumption.

He liked watching her mouth move. She had a great mouth, even if it was a little on the blue side.

Though he should probably help her get inside, there was just something about her that kept Zach staring at her. Her hair was blowing every which way, which clearly annoyed her, but every time she pushed a piece out of her face, her skirt blew around. That annoyed, her, too.

It didn’t annoy Zach, at all. He’d caught several glimpses of a fine set of legs that went with a fine set of everything else, as far as he could see.

She gave him an annoyed look and grabbed the chair again. “You might want to stand out of the way. I wouldn’t want you to get hit by flying glass or anything.”

Zach gave himself a mental shake. “Hang on and let me get a ladder.”

As he bounded back across the street, he had one goal and one goal only: to get closer to the woman on the balcony.

Talk about being hit hard. Five minutes ago, he’d been completely unaware of her existence. Now she was all he could think about. Making sure he had a small set of screwdrivers, Zach carried an aluminum extension ladder back across the street. Propping it against the balcony, he climbed toward the dark-haired woman.

Her arms were crossed in front of her and she shivered as he swung a leg over the balcony and tried to find a place to stand that wasn’t covered in plants.

“Here.” She pulled a pot out of the way and shivered again.

Zach immediately took off his denim jacket and draped it around her shoulders, his hands lingering a moment on her arms.

She looked startled before giving him a grateful smile. “It’s warm.” She hugged the jacket to her.

Zach didn’t notice the cold. It could have been snowing and he wouldn’t have noticed. An earthquake and he wouldn’t have noticed. He was having his own private earthquake, thank you very much. Who was she and why did he care so much?

He wanted to enfold her in his arms and hold her until she stopped shivering. And then he’d hold her some more. What was it about her that made him feel this way? He didn’t even know her.

“You’re staring at me.”

“I…was thinking that you looked good in the jacket.”

She looked down at herself. “Do I? Ha. I knew denim was a neutral.”

Zach had no idea what she meant and didn’t care. “What’s your name?”

“Marnie.”

He’d never known a Marnie, but it suited her. “I’m Zach Renfro.”

She raised her eyebrows. “Of Renfro Restoration?”

“Have you heard of us?”

She nodded to something behind him. “It’s the sign on your truck.”

“Oh.” He glanced over his shoulder at the Bronco. “Yeah.”

“Are you, like, the owner or something?”

“Yeah.”

“Oh. Well, Zach Renfro of Renfro Restoration, can you restore this lock to working order?”

“I’ll give it a try, Marnie.” Her name sat well on his tongue. He wondered how the rest of her would sit.

Zach forced himself to turn his attention to the lock, but even then, he was aware of Marnie’s exact location so that when he knelt and her skirt whipped across his upper thigh he felt a warm tingling.