Page 200 of The Havenport Collection

“And I did a quick sweep while we waited for them to clear everything,” she continued. “The Millers across the street are in Florida—they are snowbirds—and Lucy and Doug on the corner are cool and keep to themselves.”

She held up her wine glass and paused, staring at me. “That leaves one loose end. You.”

“Me?” I sputtered. “Why would I tell anyone?”

She swirled the wine in her glass slowly before taking a deliberate sip. I watched her lick a drop off her plump bottom lip and wanted to bite it. Hard. This woman was doing things to me that I could not understand or control.

“Because you hate me, Luke, and you—”

“Let me stop you right there.” I stood up and walked over to where she sat. “I do not hate you, Nora. You make me absolutely fucking crazy. But what I feel for you is far from hate.”

I didn’t know what I was doing. But I wanted to be closer to her. I would keep her secret. Despite what her family might think, Nora was a force of nature, and I knew if anyone could knock that old house into shape it was her.

She pushed her chair back, standing to look up at me. Our bodies were inches apart, but we didn’t touch. She looked up into my eyes, and I braced for impact.

“You love to push my buttons,” she said softly. She wasn’t wrong. I loved that she was a worthy adversary. I admired her strong will. And I loved to make her uncomfortable. “Case in point.” She poked my chest. “The elf costume.”

Oh man. That elf costume occupied a special place in my brain. The image of Nora’s curves in that sexy little outfit haunted me. A stronger man would have pushed it out of his mind, but me? I savored that memory and revisited it frequently.

I took a step back, afraid of what this closeness was doing to my self-control. “The costumes were a hit. The kids loved them. And I was a great Santa.”

She poked me in the chest again. “I’m not talking about you, asshole. I’m talking about the porn elf you turned me into. When Erica roped me into volunteering I didn’t realize I’d be flashing my ass at the entire town.”

I shrugged. “What can I say? I give the people what they want. And you are the one who got stuck with me. I can’t help it that I wanted something nice to look at while handing out presents to kids for four hours.”

She placed her hands on her hips. “Nice to look at?”

“Don’t fish for compliments, Nora. It’s beneath you.”

She tilted her head. “I’m not. You’ve just never said anything nice about me before. In fact, you treat me like I’m man repellant.”

I patted the top of her head patronizingly, and she glared at me. “That’s just your personality. It repels every man in a two-mile radius. You should be studied.”

I took another step back, hoping she wouldn’t notice the erection straining my zipper. I wanted to throw her down on this table and have my way with her. She was so sexy and so infuriating.

I lowered my voice. “But your face? Your body? Fireball, they are the opposite of repellant. I’d say they are very inviting.”

“Fuck off.” She sneered.

“See? And then you speak. My balls just shriveled up.”

She smiled and tossed her hair over her shoulder. “Good to know I haven’t lost my touch.”

We returned to our seats and finished dinner. But she was under my skin. I wanted to verbally spar with her all night and get her naked in my bed.

“How long until the water is back on?” I asked.

“Probably a week. I can shower at the gym.”

“That’s insane. If you want to sleep in a freezing cold construction zone, that’s your business, though I have three guest rooms here. But at least come over and use the laundry and bathroom.”

She shook her head and grimaced, as if accepting my hospitality was somehow painful to her.

“I’ll even cook for you,” I said desperately.

“Stop. Don’t do that.”

“Why?”

“Because men who can cook are hot, and I can’t think about you that way. You are repulsive to me, and you need to stay that way.”

I smirked. “Oh baby, I love it when you talk sweet to me.” I gave her an exaggerated wink.

“You are funny.” She shook her head, as if it pained her to admit this. “And really generous. And my next-door neighbor. You better watch yourself or we’ll end up being friends.”

She pretended to gag.

“It’s not a big deal, Nora. I’ll give you a key. You can use my bathroom, kitchen, and laundry whenever you want.”

She eyed me warily.

“Plus,” I said, smiling broadly, “hanging around your nemesis for a week will only make you stronger. If you can manage not to kill me, you’ll be ready to take over the world.”

“I wouldn’t kill you, Luke. I don’t have time to hide a body.” She shrugged. “You see how busy I am. I’d probably stop at grievous bodily injury.”

I leaned in closer to her and heard her breath hitch. “We both know you don’t have that kind of self-control when it comes to me.”

She glared for a moment and then stood up straight and held out her hand. “Thank you. I would be happy to take you up on your offer until my plumbing is fixed. And please keep this arrangement between us.”

I took her outstretched hand and, instead of shaking it, brought it slowly to my lips and kissed it gently. “It will be my pleasure.”