Page 11 of Scoop Me Up (Love in Maplewood #7)

Sam

I waved at Gabe as he stepped out of the car, a shiny red sedan that looked brand-new, a forced smile on my face that I hoped looked genuine.

I didn’t mind having him stay with me, but the idea of having the hot single dad under my roof, the hot single dad I had an irrevocable crush on, that seemed like it was almost too much to handle.

I watched him haul a suitcase, a messenger bag, and a duffel bag out of the trunk of his car.

After pulling the messenger bag’s strap over his head and securing it on one side of his body, he looked at both of the pieces of luggage for a second before finally dipping down to pick up the duffel, in a valiant attempt to bring all of them inside at once.

Hurrying down the front steps, I called out to Gabe. “Here, let me help you.” I reached for the duffel on his shoulder.

“It’s okay. I’ve got it—” he protested, less than a second before the bag slid off his shoulder and down his arm, hitting the ground with a soft thump.

“It’s fine. I can help.” Before he could protest further, I scooped up the bag by the straps and hauled it to my own shoulder.

Gabe gave a defeated sigh. “Thanks. I appreciate it. All of it. Really.”

Leading the way into the house, I shook my head.

“No problem. Your room is right this way.” Once inside, we turned to the left, following the hall that led to the three bedrooms and the single bathroom.

The guest room was on one side, with what I’d turned into a home office, and my bedroom was on the opposite side of the hall, along with the bathroom.

I placed the duffel on the bed and stepped back. “Home sweet home.”

He rolled his suitcase next to the bed and took off his messenger bag. “I wish I knew how to thank you. Is there anything I can do?”

“You can help out around the house. Keep your things tidy. We can even take turns cooking dinner if you want.”

“Of course,” he said without hesitation. “Anything else?”

Eyebrows raised, I fixed him with a look. “If you’re serious…”

“I am.”

“We need a few parent volunteers for the end-of-camp read-and-math-a-thon.”

“I’m there.”

“Great,” I said. “I’ll hold you to that.” After a second, I gestured to his luggage. “How about I let you get settled in and we can discuss dinner when you’re done.”

He looked at his luggage and nodded. “That sounds like an awesome plan.”

I left Gabe to unpack, making my way to the living room and taking a seat on my favorite spot of the couch, an old, overstuffed denim-blue thing that was probably on its way out, but was still hanging on for now.

As I sat, my phone buzzed in my pocket, which I quickly discovered was because of an incoming text.

Cooper: You want to get a drink tonight? You deserve it after looking at real estate all day. I’ll rally the D&D crew.

I chuckled to myself and tapped out a reply.

Sam: Sure. Mind if I bring Gabe along?

I hadn’t spilled the news that Gabe was staying with me, and I smirked as I waited for his response.

Cooper: You’re bringing Gabe? What did I miss?

Sam: The inn was booked, apparently. He’s staying with me after all.

Cooper: Sucks for him, but lucky you. Maybe you’ll convince him to bat for your team while he’s living with you.

Sam: Please. He’s straight and we're just friends.

Cooper: Famous last words.

We agreed on a time to meet at The Striped Maple and I put my phone away. After a few quiet moments, footsteps echoed on the wood floors, signaling Gabe’s approach.

“All settled?”

“For now,” he said. “Almost everything is unpacked. I’ve got some work to catch up on. I was wondering if I could work at the kitchen table?”

“Yeah, of course. You can even use the office, if you need a little more privacy than my kitchen table has.”

Gabe shook his head. “That’s not necessary, but thank you.”

“Oh, hey. Cooper and I are going to The Striped Maple tonight with friends. Do you want to join?”

He hesitated for a moment. “Sure, yeah. That’d be great. Sounds like a—a plan.”

I decided it was too nice to stay indoors.

I went out to pull weeds in the flower beds for an hour or two while Gabe worked, enjoying the quiet peace of gardening.

It wasn’t my favorite pastime, but I liked seeing the results of my hard work when I looked at a well-kept flower garden.

Time passed quickly, the sun sinking in the sky as I worked.

When I was satisfied with the weeding I’d done, I headed back inside, covered in sweat and dirt and desperately needing a shower. I found Gabe still sitting at the kitchen table, focused on his laptop.

“How’s work?”

He looked up at me and gave me a genuine smile, his face lighting up. Butterflies fluttered in my stomach, heat flaring deep inside me. That damn smile . “Great. How’s whatever you were doing out there? Yard work?”

“Unfortunately. One of my least favorite chores, but it’s satisfying at least.” I looked down at my grime-covered hands. “But now I need a shower, immediately.”

His breath hitched and he shifted in his seat a little. “Have fun.” His voice was rough, and he turned his focus back to his laptop a second later.

Stop, I chastised myself. There was no reason to get all up in my imagination. Nothing is going to happen with the straight dad. It can’t.

With a sigh, I went to my bedroom and grabbed clean clothes before my shower.

I didn’t want to risk an accidental near-exposure like the one that had happened to Gabe when I’d had dinner with him and Ellie.

I took a quick shower, all business, just getting the important things done.

No lingering for me. I didn’t want to let my mind wander to things that would definitely be forbidden—water, nudity, and my hot new housemate.

As soon as I was out of the shower, I pulled on my jeans and a tank top—my standard non-work outfit for summertime, although I confess to picking a tighter tank top than strictly necessary.

Once I was dressed, I swung open the bathroom door and called out to Gabe. “You ready to hit the road?”

He stepped out of the guest room—his room—running a hand through his short, reddish hair.

He was wearing jeans and a fitted T-shirt, nothing remarkable, but somehow he looked even better than usual.

He stopped abruptly, frozen for a second, before clearing his throat.

“Yeah. Yes. I’m ready. You… you look good. ”

Heat flooded my cheeks, creeping down my neck and throat, and I looked at the floor briefly before my gaze met Gabe’s again. “Thanks. So do you.” Maybe he’s not as straight as he seems? I wondered as we watched each other.

He chuckled and nodded a little, a small, embarrassed smile on his face. “Thank you.”

We held each other’s gazes for another long moment, neither of us speaking, tension stretching between us in a way that made my chest ache and my hands itch to reach out and touch him. I forced myself to look away again, shaking my head a little and turning down the hall.

“Well, we should probably get going then.”

“I’m excited,” Gabe said as he slipped on his sneakers. “I haven’t had a chance to go to the pub yet. And I haven’t been out for drinks with friends in… I don’t know how long. Definitely over a year.”

I raised my eyebrows. “Really? Not since the divorce?”

He shook his head and rubbed the back of his neck. “Not since the divorce,” he confirmed. “After Jennifer and I split, I threw myself into work. Lots of late nights. And I had Ellie every other weekend, so that knocked out fifty percent of the free time I did let myself have.”

“Makes sense,” I said. We stepped outside into the warm summer evening and Gabe hit the unlock button on his key fob. Before he could get in, I stopped walking. “You want to just walk?”

“Is it that close?”

I laughed. “Just about everything in Maplewood is that close. Besides, if we walk and you decide to have a few drinks, you don’t have to worry about driving home.”

“Great point,” he said, locking his car again.

“And not that it matters now, but you don’t really need to lock your car here either. Nobody’s going to bother it.”

He looked at me skeptically. “You sure?”

I put a hand on Gabe’s upper arm before immediately recognizing I’d made a mistake and forcing myself not to yank my hand away like I’d been burned.

Heat roiled under my hand and I was dying for more.

“I’m sure,” I murmured, removing my hand from his arm as quickly as I could get away with.

I didn’t want to be suspicious, but he fixed me with a quizzical look anyway, his brows furrowing, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he swallowed.

Butterflies in my stomach fluttered hard.

Fuck . I had it bad for this guy.

We headed toward the pub, walking along the sidewalk quietly, the hum of summer insects and our shoes on the pavement the only sounds for a few blocks.

“So,” I said eventually.

“So?”

“Tell me something,” I said.

“Like what?”

I shrugged and held up my hands. “I don’t know. Anything. Tell me about yourself. We barely know each other and we’re going to be roommates for the next six weeks. What do I need to know about you?”

“There’s not much to know.” He was quiet for a moment before speaking again. “I'm a thirty-something divorced dad. I'm a business consultant. I… I'm boring.”

“Not possible.”

He glanced over at me. “What about you? Maybe I should be interrogating you, instead.”

“Is that what I'm doing?”

He laughed and shrugged. “Maybe.” A few seconds passed. “Okay, fine. I grew up in Burlington. Met Jennifer in grad school while I was getting my MBA.”

I held up my hand. “Okay, but you're just giving me the basics. I could've found most of this stuff out with a quick search online. What about you? ”

He nodded slowly. “How's this? I prefer cats to dogs. My favorite color is orange. I have a scar on my shoulder from a bad bike accident when I was ten.”

“Your shoulder?”

“I was in a sleeveless shirt. Fell and hit the ground pretty hard. Had to have the urgent care doctor pick gravel out of the wound. It left its mark.” He glanced my way again. “Your turn.”

“Alright. Cats, blue, no scars, but I do have a tattoo.”

Gabe’s eyebrows shot up. “A tattoo? Can I see?”

I shook my head. “That’s for privileged eyes only.”

That got another laugh from him. “No relationships of note, then?”

I shook my head and ran one hand through my hair. “Not so far. You know, a few here and there, but nothing that stuck. Nothing serious. Not like you and Jennifer.”

He started to speak but before he could get a word out, he looked past me, to the side. “Oh, I guess we’re here.”

My stomach ached for some reason I couldn’t quite identify. Don’t lie to yourself. You know why. Instead of letting myself think about that too hard, I nodded and tipped my head in the direction of the entrance. “We’re here.”