Shaking his head, he blinked, and when he looked again, it was gone. He must have imagined it. A thought occurred to him, and he leaned in slightly as he inhaled while trying not to show what he was doing.
Her fresh scent came to him, with no hint of fur or feathers. She wasn’t a shifter then. Yeah, he must have been imagining it. But now he had her scent in his nose—a blend of sunshine and wildflowers—and a growl ripped up his thr
oat.
He quickly swallowed it down, hoping she hadn’t heard it, but she looked to be lost in her thoughts. Something she seemed to do often.
He’d only just met her, but he already felt drawn to her. And it wasn’t just how captivating her looks were. She was a little odd, a little quirky, but he found himself liking it.
And wanting to know more about her. Everything about her, really.
Realizing it was his turn to speak, he shook himself out of his thoughts and focused on the conversation. “Is it a full reno? How big is the house?”
“Yes, it’s a full reno. The house is in pretty rough shape. It’s a big brick farmhouse, and it has five bedrooms and three bathrooms.”
Something niggled at his mind, and he cocked his head as he thought. “Is it the old Warren farmhouse? Out on Route 9, close to the lake?”
Her eyes narrowed as she studied him. Was that suspicion in her bright green gaze? “How did you know?”
The corner of his mouth turned up as he shrugged. “I’ve lived here my whole life. I’ve pretty much roamed over the entire area. Plus, I know everyone who lives here, but I don’t know you. And I also know that house sold earlier this year. I just put two and two together.”
Her shoulders relaxed as she nodded. “Yeah, that makes sense. It’s a small town.”
She had no idea just how small and tightknit it really was. “Yep. And yeah, that house needs a lot of work. I’m surprised you lived in it for so long in the condition it’s in.”
“Me too, honestly. I guess we just needed some time and space to ourselves first.”
We? Was she married? She was a beautiful woman, so he shouldn’t be surprised. But what really surprised him was the wave of displeasure that coursed through him. Why did he care so much? He’d met women he thought he could be interested in who were already taken, but he always shrugged it off and moved on.
But with Olivia, he found himself hating the idea that she was unavailable.
“We?” Shit, he hadn’t meant to let that slip out. But now that it had, he needed to know the answer. Now.
Hesitating, she bit down on her bottom lip before nodding. “Yeah, me, my sister, and some of our friends.”
The relief Cody felt nearly overwhelmed his instant curiosity over her living situation. He told himself not to press her for more details, but he couldn’t seem to keep his questions to himself.
“You and your friends just randomly picked a nothing little town in Montana to move to? That must have been an adventure.”
Her shoulders tensed slightly, but then she blew out a breath and relaxed a bit as she gave him a tiny smile. “Yeah. It has been. And I think we just really needed a place where we could start over, without the everyday stress we were under before.”
A million more questions popped up in his mind, but he locked them away. He’d already delved into her personal life far more than he ever did with customers. And he didn’t want her to think he was interrogating her.
Maybe, if she hired them, he could ease into asking her all the things he wanted to know.
“So, um, do you have time to fit in a full reno like that anytime soon?” she asked softly, gripping her purse tightly enough that her knuckles turned white.
Was she nervous that he wouldn’t have time—or that he would?
“Actually, my main crew just finished up our latest job yesterday. And our other will be done next week. I can come out and take a look at the house tomorrow morning and then work up an estimate. If you decide to hire us, the main crew will get started right away. I’ll put the other crew on the job when theirs is over too, but I’ll have to pull them off again in about two weeks.”
Pursing her lips, she nodded slowly, her eyes darting to the swinging doors behind him. “Your grandfather…” Trailing off, her eyes flicked back to him as she hesitated. Clearing her throat, she continued, her voice so low it was almost a whisper. “Don’t take this wrong, but he won’t be there, will he?”
A chuckle worked its way out of him as he shook his head. “No, he never goes to job sites anymore. When he’s here at the shop, he’s always working in the back. My little sister usually mans the front desk, but she couldn’t come today. Today was an unfortunate anomaly, and you were just the unlucky person who happened to walk in while I was running an errand.”
Her smile turned a little sad around the edges, and he could physically see her trying to resurrect it. The struggle tugged at his heart, and he shuffled his feet uncomfortably—something he never did.
What was it about her that pulled at him like this?