Harlequin Special Edition October 2015, Box Set 1 of 2 (48 page)

“No, no, I'm good.”

Savannah said goodbye to the salesmen, and they filed out of the room, talking as they left about the new customer assignments. They seemed excited, which Mac took as a good sign. Savannah clearly had handled the meeting well, and done a great job tidying up after he'd left to go back to the books. He liked the way she'd tweaked his idea for realigning the territories. She had a good way of reading people—maybe there was something to her building-personal-relationships theory, after all—and she intuitively knew what would work for them. Those skills had helped her create a stronger territory strategy than he'd suggested, a step above the scattered way her father had done it.

Savannah stacked the papers before her and tapped them into a neat pile. “Did you need something from me?” she asked Mac. Her voice was all business, her posture as severe as the pantsuit. This wasn't the Savannah who'd had him climbing across the roof a couple hours before, teaching him how to install a solar panel.

His gaze lingered on her lips. Why hadn't he kissed her again today back at the beach house? They'd been alone, no one in the world but them. He'd been trying to keep things from getting too personal, but right now that seemed like a moronic idea. Because every time he saw Savannah Hillstrand, he wanted, no,
craved
, personal.

“Mac?” she prompted again.

Oh, yeah. He was supposed to have had a reason for coming in here. A reason other than
I was staring at you and couldn't concentrate on my work.
“I, uh, saw that they're predicting rain for early tomorrow. I was wondering when you were going to finish up that porch roof.”

“After work today, I hope. I'll only have a couple hours, but I can get a good start on it in that period of time. Though I won't be able to finish it without a crew and—” Then she waved a hand, cutting off her thoughts. “Unless there's something else we should be working on for Hillstrand Solar tonight?”

“No, no, we're good. I did have some more ideas for turning things around that I wanted to run past you, though.” Okay, so he had no such ideas. He'd barely accomplished anything this morning. All he knew was that he didn't want to go back to work yet, and he wanted a reason to keep on talking to Savannah.

“Sure, sure.” She gestured toward the chair at the head of the conference table, then pulled out one for herself.

It was all very businesslike and distant, which was how Mac usually liked everything in his life. But after that incredible kiss the other day and the tender moment on the roof this morning, businesslike left him feeling...deflated. As if he'd missed something really incredible. He wanted to get back to those moments when Savannah was laughing and happy. Relaxed.

“Let's not talk here,” he said.

“Okay. We can get coffee—”

“Let's get away from the office entirely.” As the words left his mouth he had to wonder who was saying them, because that sure as hell couldn't be Mac Barlow suggesting they play hooky. “And get that roof on before it rains. I figure if we start now, we can be done before dusk.”

“Are you saying you want to take the day off?” She arched a brow. “Are you feeling sick or something?”

He laughed. Yes, he was sick, but only with longing for more of what they'd had this morning and last night. He wanted to sit on the roof with her again and watch the boats drift by and the seagulls dive for their lunch. He wanted to watch the sun dance across Savannah's features, and wanted to hear her laugh again. “Just tired of being cooped up,” he said, instead of the truth.

“That roof is a pretty big job, even for two people,” she said. “We can start on it, but to do it right, and do it in one day, we really need a crew. I don't think I can get any of the subcontractors I've worked with in the past out on such short notice.”

“Don't worry about that. Let me make a couple phone calls, and I'm sure I can get you all the help you need.”

And that was how Mac ended up on the beach an hour later with his brothers and Savannah. At the time he'd called Jack and Luke, he'd thought it was a good idea. Until his brothers acted like brothers and made him wonder what kind of insanity had caused him to bring his family together with the woman he kept trying to convince himself he was most definitely not interested in.

Chapter Nine

S
avannah liked the other Barlow brothers from the very first second she
met them. Jack was the more studious of the two, with his military bearing and
his detail-oriented nature. He took charge of the roof after consulting with
Savannah, and had laid out a step-by-step plan for getting it done in the time
allotted. Luke was the most relaxed of the three, a true devil-may-care,
come-as-you-are kind of guy. It was clear they loved Mac, and loved teasing him
mercilessly, which left the usually serious Mac in a state of perpetual
discomfort.

That was the part of the afternoon Savannah liked best. Seeing
Mac a bit off his game.

“So, big brother, Jack and I are taking bets on what made you
do this today. Jack thinks you just found out you have two weeks to live. I
think you're in love.” Luke sent a wink in Savannah's direction.

She blushed and turned back to the chop saw, where she was
cutting the lumber for the roof framing. But she held off turning on the noisy
machine until Mac answered. Not because she was curious. At all.

Mac scowled. “Why would you think either of those things?”

“Because you're outdoors. In the middle of the day. Instead of
at work. You're either dying, insane or crazy head over—”

“I'm just helping Savannah. Nothing more.” Mac nodded toward
the other cut pieces of wood at his feet. “Now make yourself useful and grab
those so we can get this roof on before you two idiots talk the day away about
complete nonsense.”

Luke smiled at Savannah as he walked by, heading for the porch.
“Don't let Mac's bark fool you. He's a big softy at heart.”

From his place on the porch, Jack scoffed. “Mac's about as soft
as concrete.”

“Exactly,” Mac said. “So quit teasing me about my impending
death.”

“Or impending leap over the
love
cliff.” Luke drew out
the word and patted his heart. “It happens to the best of us, Mac.”

Savannah fired up the saw and chopped the wood, rather than
listening to the rest of the brothers' teasing. There was no way Mac was falling
for her. Heck, they barely knew each other. And they were work colleagues. That
was all. He was merely here to help her finish a project that needed to get done
before the rain. That kiss... That had been an aberration. As had all the other
touches since then. His refusal to even entertain the idea of falling for her
made that clear.

She carried the cut wood over to where the three men were
working, each armed with a hammer and a handful of nails. Jack, the most
experienced of the three, directed the placement of each timber. “Here's the
next set,” she said.

Luke stepped away from where he was standing beside Mac. “Why
don't you work on the installation for a while with this big idiot here, and
I'll go cut,” he said to Savannah. “Mac's all thumbs and needs someone to make
sure he doesn't accidentally hammer his finger or something.”

Mac scowled. “I'm fine. I don't need you to—”

“Sometimes, big brother—” Luke clapped Mac on the shoulder
“—you do need me and Jack to tell you what to do.” Then he glanced at Savannah
with a devilish smile on his face. “Good luck with him. He can be a pain in the
ass sometimes.”

“Oh, I know that already.” Savannah grinned at Mac.

“Gee, thanks.” But a smile toyed with the edges of his
mouth.

“Anytime. I'm here all week.” But secretly, she was glad to
change places with Luke. She'd been watching Mac work all afternoon, his dress
shirt draped over the fence, leaving him in just a white T-shirt. His biceps
strained at the edges of the fabric, and a fine sheen of sweat had plastered the
material to his chest, outlining every inch of his amazing chest. Quite frankly,
she was surprised she remembered to breathe every time she got near him.

One of the brothers pulled a portable speaker out of Jack's
truck, and they turned on some pop music while they worked. The four of them
developed a quick system, with Luke cutting the lumber while Jack, Savannah and
Mac hammered the pieces together. When the roof was framed, Jack and Mac climbed
on top and installed a few pieces of plywood that would serve as the basis for
the new shingles. It went by too fast, Savannah thought, far too fast.

“That looks great, guys.” Savannah stepped back and surveyed
the finished frame. Straight, sturdy and done with a minimum of waste. They'd
gotten a lot done in a short period of time. “You made a tough job much
easier.”

“If you want, we can get the roofing paper and shingles on
tonight, too,” Jack said. He glanced at his watch. “We have a couple hours of
daylight left.”

“But first, we're starving,” Luke said. “Mac, why don't you
take Savannah into town and grab us some pizzas?”

Mac gave his brother a glare. “I can do that, but Savannah
doesn't need to—”

“Oh, for God's sake, someone tells you to go spend thirty
minutes in a vehicle with a pretty girl, and you're going to argue?” Luke waved
toward Savannah's truck. “Go on, you two, fetch us food. The conscripted labor
is going to stay here and take a nap.”

Mac muttered something about bossy conscripted labor as they
headed to Savannah's truck. She climbed in the driver's side, then turned to
Mac. “You don't have to go. I can pick up the pizzas if you want.”

“Nah, it'll be nice to get away from my brothers for a
while.”

She noticed he didn't say it would be nice to spend thirty
minutes with her. She tried not to let that sting. “They mean well, I'm
sure.”

“They do.” He chuckled. “And that's the problem.”

Savannah put the vehicle in gear and pulled out of the
driveway. In the rearview mirror she saw Jack and Luke sending Mac a thumbs-up.
She liked Mac's brothers, a lot. “I was an only child, so I would have loved
some well-meaning siblings.”

“And I have one too many.”

She knew he was thinking about his newly discovered half
brother. Savannah was still surprised he'd opened up about that with her. Had he
done it because it was easier to share that information with a near stranger? Or
because they really were building some kind of relationship here? “You never
know. He could be as great as Jack and Luke, and your family could be better for
bringing him into it.”

“I don't see how that's going to happen,” Mac said.

“You never know. Your brothers put up with you, after all.” She
flashed him a grin.

He turned to her in the seat. “Are you agreeing that I'm a pain
in the ass?”

“If the description fits...” She grinned again, then turned
right on to the street that led to the pizza parlor.

He chuckled. “The same could be said for you.”

“How exactly am I a pain?” Savannah parked the truck in the
pizza place's lot, then turned off the ignition and looked at Mac.

He grinned. “As we have already established, you're
stubborn.”

“Some would call that tenacious.”

“Strong willed.”

“I call that determined.”

“Bossy.”

She laughed. “That's the pot calling the kettle black, if you
ask me.”

“I'm not bossy.” He considered that a moment, then gave her a
conciliatory grin. “Okay, maybe I am used to telling people what to do and
having them do it. But that's not quite the same thing.”

She arched a brow.

“You're also...” He shifted closer, and the air in the car
stilled. “Beautiful.”

Her breath caught and her heart stuttered. “That's...that's not
a criticism.”

“I know that.” Mac captured her chin with his hand, then
trailed his thumb over her bottom lip. Unbidden, her mouth dropped open,
waiting, hoping, wanting. “But I couldn't find any other criticisms.”

“You're just buttering me up.”

“Maybe...” He traced her lip again and she fought the urge to
moan. To lean in to him, to give into the constant temptation to be with the
last man on earth she should want. “Maybe not,” he finished.

The tension in the truck was more intense than that evening on
the beach when he'd kissed her. How she craved another kiss, but she knew it
would only complicate things. “We...we should get the pizzas.”

Mac's eyes clouded, and he dropped his hand and drew back.
“Yeah, we should.”

The moment had been broken, and Savannah told herself that was
a good thing. But as they walked into the pizza parlor, as remote as two
strangers, she had to wonder if maybe she was fooling herself.

* * *

Three large pepperoni pizzas and a double serving of
cheesy breadsticks turned out to be exactly enough food to feed three hungry
Barlows and one hard-working Hillstrand. The pizzas and breadsticks were
devoured in a few minutes, with the four of them taking up spaces along the
front porch to enjoy the cool early-evening air.

Savannah had sat on the top step, just as she had the other
night when it had just been the two of them. Mac considered joining her, then
figured the rebuff he'd gotten in the car was a clear message. One he should
have taken a long time ago—not to mix business with personal.

But as he watched her eat and listened to her joking with his
brothers, a steady wave of longing washed over him. He wanted Savannah to be
laughing with him, talking to him instead of Jack and Luke. What was wrong with
him? He shouldn't be this attracted to Savannah. Yet, despite what his common
sense told him, she lingered in his mind, dancing at the fringes of his every
thought.

It wasn't just that she was beautiful. It was because of all
the things she'd considered criticisms—because she was headstrong and stubborn
and determined and smart. Because she was in over her head, but refusing to just
give up and drown. He respected that, admired it, even.

But she'd made it clear she wasn't interested in him. Not that
he could blame her. He was, after all, the enemy. The one intent on buying her
father's company and selling off the pieces to the highest bidder. Yet, at the
same time, he was caught in this weird paradox of helping her salvage the
company so he couldn't buy it.

Clearly, he defined the words
glutton for
punishment.

After they ate, Mac worked alongside his brothers and Savannah
as they fastened the shingles to the new roof. Luke and Jack did their best to
tease Mac out of his quiet, pensive mood, but eventually they gave up and talked
mostly to Savannah. An hour later the roof was on, and the four of them had
cleaned up the debris on the lawn. Throughout the work the other three carried
on an easy conversation. Savannah fit right in with his brothers, as if she'd
always been part of his family. Something that felt a lot like jealousy kept
tickling Mac whenever Savannah laughed at something Jack said or shot Luke a
smile.

Insane. She was a colleague, nothing more. He shouldn't care
who she talked to or who made her laugh.

Still his gaze kept straying to her long, toned legs, to the
intoxicating smile that filled her face. He thought about kissing her, touching
her. He wanted her. Half of him wanted to haul her into the house and up the
stairs to one of the bedrooms. The other half was exercising restraint and
throwing up a big yellow caution flag. Then his gaze traveled along those
endless lean legs again, and coherent thoughts disappeared.

Jack clasped Mac on the shoulder as the four of them walked
over to Jack's truck. “One new roof installed, and three large pizzas consumed.
A good day overall, I think.”

“Yeah, a good day,” Mac said. For a brief moment he debated
telling his brothers about Colton—because it was clear their father hadn't—but
in the end decided to take Savannah's advice. Colton was Bobby's mess. Let his
father do the cleanup. And it had been a good day, Mac realized. One he didn't
want to tarnish with the
guess what, we have a half-brother
news.

“Thanks a lot, guys,” Savannah said. “I really appreciate the
helping hands.”

“No problem. Looks like we finished just in time,” Jack said.
“A storm's about ready to roll in.”

The sky had darkened in the past few minutes, the fluffy white
clouds turning gray and threatening. The humidity had risen to sticky level, and
there was a heaviness to the air that spelled a good old-fashioned
thunderstorm.

“It wasn't supposed to rain until tomorrow,” Mac said. Not that
most days he cared what the weather was like. But a part of him had been looking
forward to sitting on the porch with Savannah and watching the sun set.

“And all weathermen are supposed to be right,” Luke said to
Mac. “Even the great and powerful Mac Barlow can't control the weather.”

He scowled. “I hate when you call me that.”

“Then I'll call you the weak and ineffectual Mac Barlow
instead.” Luke grinned. “In fact, that might suit you even better. Considering
you have two brothers who make great—” Luke patted his chest “—and powerful—”
Jack flexed a biceps “—look good.”

Mac rolled his eyes. “They have drugs for these kinds of
delusions, you know.”

Jack gave Luke a gentle slug in the arm. “Come on,
troublemaker. Let's get out of here and leave Mac alone before he has a stroke.
He's been gone awhile. He's not used to us ganging up on him.”

“That's true.” Luke turned to Mac. “Just imagine how bad we'd
be if Mama and Dad had another son. One more Barlow, and we'd be a small gang.
You'd never stand a chance, big brother.”

Jack and Luke said their goodbyes, then hopped in Jack's truck
and pulled out of the driveway, still laughing as they left. Mac watched them
go, then kicked at a stray stone in the driveway. The comment about another
brother had stung more than his brothers could have imagined. “Damn it. I should
have told them about Colton.”