He watched as Stacy crossed her arms in front of her chest in an attempt to appear annoyed at him for showing up at her place. But damn, did she look adorable. He wondered if she knew that she pouted.
“What are you doing here?” she countered.
He raised his eyebrow in question to her tone, and she lowered her eyes a moment but quickly recovered as she exhaled in annoyance and reached for one side of the power washer.
He quickly rushed to her side.
“Let me help you with that.”
They both grabbed a side, and he was surprised at how strong she was. Then he wondered if her anger was feeding that strength. They placed the machine down on the ground, and as Stacy bent, he got a nice view of her cleavage from the V-neck in her T-shirt. She apparently caught his eyes’ direction because she crossed her arms in front of her chest and took a few steps away.
“Thank you for the help, deputy. You can leave now.”
He chuckled at her tough attitude. The woman had a chip on her shoulder.
“Listen, I’m not trying to cause you any trouble. I just stopped by to help you get the power washer out of your truck.”
“Isn’t that above and beyond the call of duty, deputy?” she countered, staring at him as if she could read his mind or were trying to find a hidden meaning about coming to her aid.
“It’s the kind of man I am, ma’am, and I was trying to be neighborly.”
Man, this woman was proving the stereotype that redheads had fierce tempers.
She thought about his statement a moment, and she undid her arms, giving him a better view of her abundant breasts. Even though they were covered, he could tell she was built.
“I appreciate your help. Both in town and here, but I really just want to get things started on the cottage. As you can see, I have a lot of work to do.”
He walked closer to the cottage, following her to the front porch and the door leading to her home.
“Whatcha planning on fixing first?” he asked, leaning his hands on his holster and his belt.
She released another annoyed sigh, and he had to hide his grin. He found her irresistibly charming and unlike any other woman he’d ever met. Women basically threw themselves at Cantrell men, but this one wanted nothing to do with him or his brother. He liked that about her.
“I’m planning on power washing the house, then fixing some of the shingles and gutter before I repaint the whole place.”
He swung his head back at her in shock.
“Reshingling and fixing the gutters? You’re not planning on climbing up there on a ladder and doing this all by yourself?” He allowed his upset to show, which truly wasn’t like him, but damn, if he was going to stand by and let his woman take a chance like that.
“You could break your neck.”
“Only if I fall off the ladder,” she replied sarcastically. Only a second ago, she looked like she had daggers in her eyes when he questioned her capabilities of doing such work herself.
She stomped up the steps and opened the front screen door as she carried some of the bags inside.
He couldn’t believe she walked away from him like that. The woman showed no respect. Not even an ounce for the uniform at least. He blew out a long breath then decided to open himself up for more punishment. The sight of her ass wiggling up the steps as she carried items into the house was all the encouragement he needed.
He grabbed the box and two last bags then entered the house behind her.
“I don’t like the idea of you doing this work by yourself. Never mind climbing up on a ladder and prancing around the roof.”
She swung around, obviously surprised that he followed her into her house but also that he reprimanded her.
“Listen, deputy, I don’t really care what you think. This is above and beyond the ‘call of duty,’ and I’m a big girl and can handle it myself. So if you don’t mind, why don’t you go back out to your patrol truck and head back into town.” She glanced at her watch and added, “It’s probably just about time for a donut or something, isn’t it?”
He nearly lost his control at her statement but reined it in.
He took a slow step toward her, eyeing her from her cute little white sneakers, up her long, sexy thighs to her breasts, then her gorgeous green eyes.