“You’re right. I apologize. It wasn’t my place to do that,” Liam said, sounding as contrite as he could muster in spite of the adrenaline still pumping through him.
Mollified, Kate relaxed a little, and he was pleased to see a small grin creep up the corner of her mouth.
“If I’m honest, he probably deserved it. There aren’t exactly any other men around in my life to step in like that anyway,” she remarked, picking up the mug she’d left on the railing and taking a long sip of her coffee. “How exactly did you do that, though?”
Liam tried to think of a proper response, but he was too distracted by her words.
So there wasn’t a man in her life. She wasn’t mated. Or was her mate just absent, away at war or something?
No. He had to trust his instincts. If his dragon had called her mate, then there must be a reason.
Just then, a series of loud barks boomed from inside the house, followed by the half-open front door flying open as a large, black dog burst outside, tail wagging as he ran circles around the deck.
“Tank, how did you get out?” Kate exclaimed, trying to get the overexcited dog to sit as it licked everything in sight and jumped for joy.
“Tank, sit,” Liam commanded, stepping forward and addressing the happy-go-lucky Labrador.
Immediately, Tank turned to Liam and sat, his tongue hanging as he panted, but his eyes remained locked on Liam’s gaze.
Good boy, Tank.
“Wow, that’s pretty impressive. Whenever a stranger’s over, he gets so excited I have to put him away or he’ll knock people over,” Kate said.
“Dogs respond to authority. It’s how they work in the wild,” Liam said.
“I’d love to hear more, but…” Kate said, trailing off as she pulled out her phone and checked the time. Her expression immediately turned from curiosity to worry. “Crap, the time. Could you keep an eye on him for a moment? I actually have a list inside that I’ll give you. Will that work?”
“That will be fine,” Liam said as Kate disappeared inside with her coffee.
Tank just sat there, looking up at Liam eagerly.
Liam would fix this house for Kate.
Hell, he’d build her ten houses if it was what she wanted.
He’d finally found his mate.
4
Kate wasn’t expecting much when she got home from work that day. From what she’d learned about contractors, they usually did the bare minimum promised and then showed up the next day only when bugged.
And that was still better than asking her ex to do anything around the house when all he wanted to do was sit on the couch and watch football.
So it was with huge shock that she pulled up in front of her house and into the driveway, almost feeling she’d come to the wrong address or something.
She got out of the car, shut the door, and stared at the nearly fully cleared yard, nicely groomed dirt, and the fixed, straight drain pipes on the side of the house.
She heard a bark, and her heart sank. Had Tank been out here all day, getting in the mud and in Liam’s way?
She heard a male laugh, and Liam appeared, walking around the side of her house and patting his leg for Tank to trot obediently alongside him, tongue hanging out, looking as if Liam were the most amazing human he’d ever seen in his life.
And she’d never seen Tank respect a human before. He liked her, but he didn’t make a huge effort to be obedient, and no amount of treats or discipline seemed to help that.
Liam looked up and gave her a calm smile, appearing proud of what he’d done.
She would never get used to how gorgeous he was, his work shirt clinging to his body, his muscles bulging and damp, his tall figure flushed and lightly tanned from a day of hard work.
She walked into the center of her yard, which had previously looked something like a mini junkyard. There was no way one person could have done this in a work day. All she’d done was move a little closer on a few sales deals.
He wiped his forehead and leaned on a shovel. His dark hair was swept back and pointing all directions. So thick. His teal eyes sparkled in the evening light.
He looked… genuinely happy to see her.
She felt slightly ashamed for going off on him earlier about the neighbor. She wasn’t used to people standing up for her, and she’d realized right after moving in that there was no point arguing with Buck or the others.
But after driving all the way to work with a deep blush on her face, she realized she was still reacting to the thought of a big, handsome man getting that angry for her.
But he was just a contractor. She needed to keep it professional, right? She smoothed her suit coat down and straightened her skirt and strode over to him, trying not to let her heels sink too far into the dirt as she straightened to look up at him.
“How do you like it?” he asked, cocking his head with a playful glint in his eyes. No, not playful. Hungry. Eager.
She was hallucinating. No way a man like that would be thinking of her as anything but a client.
“It’s amazing,” she said, looking around the yard. She reached a hand out toward Tank, and after Liam nodded, Tank stepped forward for her to pet him. “And you’ve tamed my dog in the meantime.”
“We’re friends,” Liam said. “Dogs like it when someone is in charge.”
She sighed, folding her arms as Tank panted up at her with big brown eyes. “I’ve tried to be in charge, but I guess I haven’t done so well, have I, big guy?”
Tank’s tail wagged as she scratched him behind the ears.
“So you’re happy?” he asked.
“Yes,” she said. “Are you sure you didn’t ship in a crew when I wasn’t looking?”
“No,” he said. “We dragons can be very motivated when we’re working for the right cause.”
She giggled. “Dragons, right.”
He just shrugged and slung the shovel across his shoulders. “I’m still finishing some stuff in the backyard. Talk to you after?” She could see the list she’d given him tucked in the breast pocket of his work shirt. His tight, sweaty work shirt.
She swallowed, feeling sweaty as well. “Sure,” she said. “I’ll be inside. Just ring the doorbell when you’re done.”
He nodded and started for the backyard.
“Don’t work too long,” she said, looking at the horizon. “It’s getting dark.”
He nodded and disappeared behind the house, and she took a deep breath to calm herself. Hot didn’t begin to describe him. Especially after a day of working on her property. She walked into the kitchen and took a peek out the back window as he dug a ditch along the back of the hill on the edge of her property. Such a hard worker.
He wiped sweat as Tank took a seat above him on the hill to watch patiently. She had to grin at Tank finding such a friend. Her ex had never gotten along with Tank, and she’d seen him growl at him more than once or hide under the table, tail tucked.
Not that she’d have allowed her ex to hurt her dog. She’d have left him long before if that had happened.