Naked (32 page)

From this moment on, she couldn’t let anything get in the way of proving her mother, and all the rest of the doubters, wrong.

Which meant she’d have to reevaluate her feelings for Noah.

There was no question her feelings had deepened over the last few weeks. So much so that she’d reasoned herself into believing that they could have a relationship while still working together. But after his revelation—the fact that the house was for his mother—she knew work was going to be the force that drove them apart.

So she had to be realistic.

She was a smart, resourceful woman. She could do anything, including survive without Noah in her life if need be.

And find a dress for this damn gala.

“Now…” Violet took a deep, calming breath. She looked into her mother’s eyes, guilt and sadness staring back at her. Her face was pale, her red lips even more noticeable.

But she pushed that moment of sympathy aside. They were done with this conversation…for now. And Violet was done being vulnerable.

“I need you to forget we ever had this conversation and help me find a damn dress.”

“But Violet, I—”

“Please. Let’s just do this.”

Her mother nodded, and with her head lowered toward the ground, she slipped past the curtain.

With a heavy sigh, Violet searched through the pile of dresses one more time. This wasn’t the last of the discussion about her scars. No doubt her mother would tell her father and then she’d really have some explaining to do. But she’d deal with that when the time came.

“We’re going to need something with sleeves and a high neck.” She heard her mother talking to the saleswoman. “I understand it’s not season appropriate, but we have no choice.”

Violet shook her head. She had no idea when her mother’s character had gone AWOL, but she only had time to focus on her own transformation. There was no way she was going to buckle under the pressure.

Next week she was going to update the board on the residential project, and possibly put the last nail in the coffin of Noah’s dream for his mother. He would understand. She couldn’t make a business decision based on her feelings for him. He was an employee, and not only wasn’t in it long-term for a relationship, but also with her company. His contract was done as soon as the current build was complete.

She should break it off. She had to break it off tonight. That would be the smart thing to do.

But spending so much time with Noah had forced her to realize that “smart” might not be her greatest character trait.

Chapter 26

Noah hadn’t heard from Violet all day. Or the night before.

They had had plans to set fire to the bedsheets, but she never came home.

So when the afternoon rolled around and he still hadn’t heard from her, he’d gotten the sinking feeling that she was avoiding him.

Not that he was sitting around and counting down the minutes until she arrived, or anything.

But then he noticed her car in her driveway, and still no phone call.

So he did what any man second-guessing his sexual prowess would do…

He knocked twice on her front door before opening it. Violet had gotten into the habit of not locking her door since they’d hooked up. Unsafe, but on a day like today, he was thankful for a way in.

“Violet?” he called out after closing and locking the door behind him.

The main floor was silent. Not even the television was on, but he heard muffled sounds coming from the top of the stairs.

Finally, she answered, “I’m up here.”

He took the stairs, two at a time, following the sound of her cursing. As soon as he’d reached the top of the landing, a sharp “fuck” sounded straight ahead.

But he stilled. This was the first time he was seeing the second floor of her home. Just like his, this house had never been renovated.

He walked by the main bedroom. The double bed wasn’t made, its red duvet crumpled toward the bottom. There was no headboard or footboard, just a mattress on a metal frame. A wood dresser sat in the corner of the room to the left and a chair with wooden arms and legs, with red and pink flowers on its fabric, sat in the opposite corner, a pair of jeans flung over the back.

The clink of ceramic caught his attention and he continued past the two other bedrooms to the end of the hall toward the bathroom.

What he encountered was a disaster.

“What have you done?”

Towels were thrown across the floor, soaking up water. The toilet lid was in the corner, the bulb sitting on the seat. The shower head had been removed and now rested on the vanity. And there was a constant
drip, drip, drip
that echoed in the small space. But that wasn’t the most interesting thing about the room. What struck him was the perfectly rectangle outline on the wall above the sink. The outline where the large mirror
used
to be. In its place was an oval mirror, so small that it barely reflected his entire face.

“Everything leaks. Everything!” She kicked a sopping-wet towel. “The toilet. The shower.”

Violet’s face was flushed, her cheeks a sexy shade of pink. The same pink that broke out across her skin when she was turned on.

He shook his head. Not the time for thinking about sex.

She looked utterly defeated.

“What crossed your mind when you thought it would be a good idea to take the shower and toilet apart?”

She shrugged and brought her thumb up to her lips, biting her nail. “I Googled it.”

This was also a new look for her. She was never dressed so casually in yoga pants and a long-sleeved T-shirt. And it didn’t go unnoticed that she’d pulled up the neck of her shirt as soon as he’d walked in.

Is she ever going to trust you?

But it was more than just her clothing. He’d never seen Violet like this before. There was something different about her demeanor. She was distant. Cold. Maybe because she was focused on her do-it-yourself renovation project.

She nudged one of the soaked towels on the floor with her Converse shoe. “God, I feel so helpless.” He resisted the urge to duck when she waved her hands around in excitement, one of them holding a very large, heavy wrench. “I can oversee the erection of a seventy-story building, but I can’t fix my toilet.”

“You’re not helpless.” He stepped forward to comfort her, but she took a step back. His chest tightened at her retreat. “They’re just skills not many people, especially women, learn.”

She thrust her hands on her hips in defiance. “Are you saying I can’t learn how to do this?”

“No…that’s not what I said. I said most women aren’t given the opportunity to learn these things.”

Were they going to start arguing feminist theory?

But that didn’t concern him. What concerned him was the fact that she’d backed away. She hadn’t done that since their very first date.

She was wound tighter than a coil. Her body practically vibrated with tension. He wanted to know what had happened to cause her so much stress. Was she having a hard time adjusting to work? Had someone made her life difficult? He knew her worst fear was not being taken seriously. Maybe one of those board-of-director douches made a comment.

Whatever it was, he needed to defuse this situation before she snapped.

“Let me help you.”

Her hands fisted at her sides and hers shoulders lifted, practically touching her ears. “I don’t—”

“You don’t
need
my help, I know.” He held out his hands and took caution when he stepped forward. “But I’m offering because I am a kind, caring person who doesn’t want to see you start a flood.” He winked. “You don’t want to mess with mold.”

For the first time since he’d arrived,
his
Violet made an appearance. The soft, yet strong woman who’d shed her inhibitions and let go had returned. Her shoulders softened, and so did her face. In fact, the worry that had darkened it not one minute ago had disappeared. When those tiny flecks of gold in her eyes made an appearance, he knew he had broken through the barrier she had temporarily erected between them.

“You’re relentless.”

“What’s relentless is water when you give it free rein.” It probably wasn’t the response she was expecting, but there was no time to waste. She’d made a mess, and he was going to help her clean it up.

“Lesson number one.” He grabbed her biceps and gently moved her away from the sink. “You have to shut off the water when you decide to work with plumbing.” He opened the cupboard of the vanity, reaching under the sink to turn off the water. Next he leaned down beside the toilet and turned off the water supply.

“It might have mentioned something about that on Google.”

“You’d be wise to heed Google’s instructions.” He smiled and stepped closer. This time she didn’t back away. This time she let him touch her cheek with one finger. She leaned into his touch, tilting her head so she could rub against him.

That’s my girl.

He resisted the urge to kiss her, even though she licked her lips. She knew how much that turned him on. Did him in. But he looked away.

“Lesson number two.” He cleared his throat, erasing the urge to jump her bones. “Sometimes the problem is so simple, it’s hard to believe.”

He made a point to let his body rub against hers when he walked over to the toilet.

“Like this.” He held up the bulb. “The constant running could just be because the chain is too long.”

He handed it over. “Put this back in place.”

She stepped closer to the toilet and peered inside the tank. She fiddled with it for a minute or two, but he let her figure it out on her own. When it was in place, he showed her how to attach the chain, making sure to leave only enough room for the plug to release.

He gestured for her to turn back on the water supply to the toilet and they let the tank fill.

When it stopped on its own, and then went silent, she clapped her hands and jumped up. “You fixed it.”

“
You
fixed it.”

She squealed and launched herself at him, practically tackling him into the bathtub. He caught his balance on the wall and kept them upright. She wrapped her arms around him the way she always did. With everything she had.

They hadn’t been apart for very long, but it felt like a lifetime. And when he’d shown up and she’d given him the cold shoulder, he’d feared the worst. But with a little coaxing, he’d managed to get his Violet back.

She kissed his cheek and his nose, squeezing him tight. Finally, she released the stranglehold she had on him, and they set to work returning the shower head to its rightful place. It just needed to be tightened.

When they’d started to clean up, she said, “This was pretty simple. Why have I never thought about learning how to do this?” She squeezed out some of the water from the towel into the sink. “I guess I was too busy buying dresses and getting an education, and wor—”

She stopped, and turned. Her body slumped forward and she rested her ass on the vanity.

He’d picked up his own handful of towels and threw them into the bathtub. “I see the wheels turning. What’s going on in that brilliant mind?”

“Something brilliant.” Her face turned sad, and a frown curled down the side of her lips. “But it’s not feasible.”

“Why not?” He’d do anything to help her follow through, because he believed she could do anything.

“I was just thinking about something for the gala.” She pushed off the vanity and threw her towels in the tub.

“That stuffy ladies’ event?”

She nodded. “But…it’s already set in motion.”

He tugged her closer, the wetness from her pants now transferring to his own clothing. “Let me know if there’s anything I can do to help.”

She looked up at him, her eyes sparkling. He loved that sparkle. It meant she was happy. And he wanted nothing more than for Violet to find happiness. He wanted his own happiness, too. Which was why he’d discussed his future career plans with Lewis.

Her hand came up and brushed the side of his face. “You’ve gone a few days without shaving.” Her eyes darted from one side of his face to the next.

He hadn’t shaved in four days to be exact, and he often wondered if it bothered her. Hurt her when they were…

“I want to feel that stubble on my thighs,” she murmured.

He gulped. His doubts had just been squashed.

“So you want my mouth on you?”

She nodded, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth. “I want your mouth everywhere.”

His hands pressed against her bottom and squeezed. With surprising force, she jumped up, wrapping her legs around his waist. She rubbed her pussy against him. No doubt the thin fabric of her pants was conducive to getting off.

But instead of taking them to the bed, he would make use of their current surroundings. He lowered himself to the toilet, and settled her on top of him.

“Oh, my.” She brought his head down to her breasts and held him there. “We’re going to have sex on a toilet?”

“Educational purposes,” he mumbled. She released his head and he captured her face in his hands. “I’ll show you how to tighten the seat when we’re done.”

He’d fix this whole damn house. Every unit in her condo building, too, if it meant he got to stay in her life just a little bit longer.

Chapter 27

Violet walked into the boardroom with a pit in her stomach.

Today she was giving an update to the board on the progress of the land purchase in Stillbride.

Or Brian was going to be giving the update. There were no updates on her side. She only had one house to buy, and she couldn’t make contact. Now that she knew the real reason behind Noah renovating, how the hell could she betray him like that?

She had tried to avoid him, tried her best to stay away until she could figure out a plan. She’d left dress shopping with her mother with a renewed sense of determination. Her first order of business had been to make the leaky bathroom surrender.

Right. Like fixing a toilet is going to prove you can run Walker Industries.

Instead, Noah had shown up and rocked her world, reminding her just how deep her feelings for him had grown. And he’d taught her to fix her bathroom after she’d torn it apart. However, things between them were only going to get more complicated. The longer she waited to ask him about selling the house, the longer she was lying to him.