Boo dropped her ears back and licked his face in an apology. Now, why couldn’t he get Serendipity Mitchell to be so contrite?
She had successfully avoided the flat of his hand by curbing her tongue for the last three months, but he could see that she was on the edge of facing his disapproval once again. She had called him “hircismus” just this morning and then promptly informed him that he was a couple of dilithium crystals short of a warp core. Now, he could handle being informed that his armpits smelled like a goat, if indeed they did. But using a Star Trek reference to insult his intelligence? Yes, she was becoming very creative in her insults. And not at all respectful. He knew the time was coming to reinforce his rules. Especially since the house was nearing completion with the help of a double work crew and perfect weather.
He and Drew had developed a close friendship over the last three months. Preston liked the man and had casually introduced him to Janie on one of his “hunches”. Sure enough, the two hit it off and Sara was as happy as a clam since she now had two men to make a fuss over her. Serena, however, seemed to grow more irritable and secluded. She threw herself into her work and refused all after-work invitations, unless Sara was present. He also found it interesting that Serena had yet to meet Janie, despite her cousin’s involvement. He was fairly sure that Serena was not avoiding Janie due to the ballroom project conflict. Janie was still uninformed of the young architect’s opinion of her work, and Serena did not know that it was his sister she had insulted.
Preston briefly considered the possibility that she was jealous. After all, she‘d had her cousin’s undivided attention for all these years. The only thing he could be certain of was that Serena was terrified. He had seen it with countless injured animals. Trapping them in a corner would stimulate the fight or flight response, and Preston did not want either reaction from the beautiful young woman who graced his property every morning. Like with a frightened animal, he would take his time to build trust. But not of him. She needed to trust herself.
He snuck behind the woman after taking a moment to admire the shapely bottom that nicely filled her khaki shorts. Serena lifted her nose, his delicious scent alerting her of his closeness. That man must be pure pheromones, she thought, suddenly turning to find him right behind her.
“Where’s your hard hat, Preston? This is a safety zone.”
“I just came over to see if you’d like to go for dinner tonight. Drew’s out with Janie and Sara, and I’m not in the mood to spend a Friday night by myself.”
“You have the dogs, and I have things to do.”
“No, you don’t. We are going to dinner tonight, and you will enjoy yourself. You’ve been working hard, and I want to reward your efforts.”
“You pay me well and on time. That’s my reward.”
“You stubborn little wench. That’s your pay. Your reward is spending time with me,” he grinned boyishly, pressing closer to her.
“You egotistical swine! Maybe I don’t want to spend time with you.”
“You wouldn’t dare lie to me, would you, little girl? Daddy doesn’t like it when his girls fib, does he, Boo?” he asked the ever-present Border collie. The dog wagged her tail, denying any part in the recent trash can raid.
“You two need to get out of here before she gets hurt,” Serena said, trying to pull away. Preston shook his head, grabbed her hand and dragged her towards the RV. “Let go of me. You’re hurting my hand.”
“Crybaby. I’m just getting out of the sun. Now, out with it. Why are you lying to me?”
“I haven’t lied about anything! How dare you accuse me—”
“Oh, stop the hissy fit. There is one thing about me you haven’t learned, and that is I’m very good at following my hunches. It’s my secret power. That’s what brought me to all this,” Preston said, pushing her into a
She had successfully avoided the flat of his hand by curbing her tongue for the last three months, but he could see that she was on the edge of facing his disapproval once again. She had called him “hircismus” just this morning and then promptly informed him that he was a couple of dilithium crystals short of a warp core. Now, he could handle being informed that his armpits smelled like a goat, if indeed they did. But using a Star Trek reference to insult his intelligence? Yes, she was becoming very creative in her insults. And not at all respectful. He knew the time was coming to reinforce his rules. Especially since the house was nearing completion with the help of a double work crew and perfect weather.
He and Drew had developed a close friendship over the last three months. Preston liked the man and had casually introduced him to Janie on one of his “hunches”. Sure enough, the two hit it off and Sara was as happy as a clam since she now had two men to make a fuss over her. Serena, however, seemed to grow more irritable and secluded. She threw herself into her work and refused all after-work invitations, unless Sara was present. He also found it interesting that Serena had yet to meet Janie, despite her cousin’s involvement. He was fairly sure that Serena was not avoiding Janie due to the ballroom project conflict. Janie was still uninformed of the young architect’s opinion of her work, and Serena did not know that it was his sister she had insulted.
Preston briefly considered the possibility that she was jealous. After all, she‘d had her cousin’s undivided attention for all these years. The only thing he could be certain of was that Serena was terrified. He had seen it with countless injured animals. Trapping them in a corner would stimulate the fight or flight response, and Preston did not want either reaction from the beautiful young woman who graced his property every morning. Like with a frightened animal, he would take his time to build trust. But not of him. She needed to trust herself.
He snuck behind the woman after taking a moment to admire the shapely bottom that nicely filled her khaki shorts. Serena lifted her nose, his delicious scent alerting her of his closeness. That man must be pure pheromones, she thought, suddenly turning to find him right behind her.
“Where’s your hard hat, Preston? This is a safety zone.”
“I just came over to see if you’d like to go for dinner tonight. Drew’s out with Janie and Sara, and I’m not in the mood to spend a Friday night by myself.”
“You have the dogs, and I have things to do.”
“No, you don’t. We are going to dinner tonight, and you will enjoy yourself. You’ve been working hard, and I want to reward your efforts.”
“You pay me well and on time. That’s my reward.”
“You stubborn little wench. That’s your pay. Your reward is spending time with me,” he grinned boyishly, pressing closer to her.
“You egotistical swine! Maybe I don’t want to spend time with you.”
“You wouldn’t dare lie to me, would you, little girl? Daddy doesn’t like it when his girls fib, does he, Boo?” he asked the ever-present Border collie. The dog wagged her tail, denying any part in the recent trash can raid.
“You two need to get out of here before she gets hurt,” Serena said, trying to pull away. Preston shook his head, grabbed her hand and dragged her towards the RV. “Let go of me. You’re hurting my hand.”
“Crybaby. I’m just getting out of the sun. Now, out with it. Why are you lying to me?”
“I haven’t lied about anything! How dare you accuse me—”
“Oh, stop the hissy fit. There is one thing about me you haven’t learned, and that is I’m very good at following my hunches. It’s my secret power. That’s what brought me to all this,” Preston said, pushing her into a
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