Life’s not perfect, okay? What do you want me to say? At least I tried. I mean, it wasn’t always easy, but honey attracts more flies, right?
“Who the fuck are you?” a deep voice growled, making me scream and jump, my hand clutching my chest when I twisted around and…
“Oh, God.” I gasped when I got a load of the hugest man I’d ever seen, his big body so wide and muscular, I saw muscles on his muscles since he was shirtless.
So sexy—
I shut that down hard and fast before I did or said something to embarrass myself and blew out a breath while I pinned on a friendly smile and looked up. Into the bluest eyes I had ever seen. Oh, Lord. I couldn’t work for this man. I knew it deep inside me where my inner hussy lived and when she giggled, it was made clear to me she’d already noticed.
Which was bad. It was really bad considering I’d been divorced for a while, hadn’t had sex in a long time, and this was the first time in ever that I’d actually laid eyes on a man that not only me but my wolf found attractive.
Keep it together, Ren. Don’t think about these things. You’re still healing emotionally and mentally—
Oh, give it a rest! It’s been a year already, Ren. You know you’re lonely. Doesn’t he look yummy? I bet he’d be good—
Just stop it, I groaned, my cheeks so hot they burned.
Clearing my throat, I forced myself to think clearly and promised myself a session with my vibrator. Later. And I wouldn’t fantasize about Caleb Chase. I wouldn’t. That would be weird, and I swore a few months ago I’d stop being weird.
“Mr. Chase?” I croaked, somehow collecting myself enough not to drool, sigh or, ya know, throw myself at him.
Recently divorced, Ren. Remember? You just got cleared for murder. Remember?
The man, Caleb…
I mentally slapped myself to clear out the remnants of my unclean thoughts and got myself to focus when he stepped further into the space and glared down at me. He was so handsome it was hard not to stare, but hell, at this point, I was calling it good because at least I wasn’t staring at his chest or attacking him like a maniac.
In my defense…heck, I have no defense other than to say he’s hot, and I like pretty things. There’s no harm in looking, though. Right? I mean, he wouldn’t be this cute if the Lord didn’t want me to look at him. Oh, brother! Get a grip, Ren.
“Who are you, and what the hell are you doing in here?” he repeated, his full mouth tightening when I smiled instead of backing down and held out my hand.
“I’m Ren Sheppard, your new housekeeper? Alpha Walker sent me out here to introduce myself and talk about your schedule.” I said brightly, my smile never wavering, even when he glanced at my hand but didn’t take it.
Okay. This one’s gonna take some work. That’s okay. Just move along, Ren. Don’t get stuck.
“Well, okay. I like it in here. Don’t worry though. I know artists don’t like people in their spaces, so I won’t come out here unless you ask me to.” I assured him, breezing by him with a bright ease I didn’t feel but wouldn’t let go of because he was struggling to keep up, and that was good.
I found it easier to just blow through objections with a sunny attitude, and it was no different now as I kept chattering and walked back to the porch and opened the front door.
“Oh, sweet Jesus.” I gasped when I walked in and got a load of the house, my chatter stopping dead because it was possibly the most…
I mean, filthy wasn’t fair, and it wasn’t nice to use that word when referring to people, but it was damn close. There were clothes strewn everywhere, dirty dishes, glasses, beer cans. I couldn’t see the couches properly either, and when I forced myself to walk into the living room, I purposely ignored the way my sneakers crunched against the hardwood.
“Well, this is great. Nice and big! I like your, er, TV. Really big. I bet the picture quality is just phenomenal. I still use one of the old sets, you know, the boxy, big kinds with the bunny ears? But it’s okay. I don’t watch much TV since the signal sucks this far out without cable or Wi-Fi.” I said, resuming a steady stream of chatter when I ducked out of the living room and walked down a short hall to the kitchen.
It wasworsein there. No problem though. I loved cleaning, and this meant I’d have a chance to prove myself.
“Nice. Those cabinets are great. I always wanted blue cabinets, but I’m a nightmare at DIY projects.” I mumbled, blowing by Caleb again and climbing the stairs.
Hold it together, Ren. Keep going. He can’t stop you if you keep moving.
But Lord, I wasn’t sure I wanted to when I breathed in.
I’m a shifter, I smelled things a lot more intensely than humans, and I had to swallow a little as I reached the landing and turned right towards a hallway. Ignoring the growl behind me and any chance the man had to object, I opened what I assumed to be the door to the master bedroom and skipped inside.
I wouldn’t say anything about it, but the word feral came to mind when I got a load of the huge bed, tangled sheets, and the utter chaos that was Caleb Chase’s bedroom.
Moving on!