A Very Grumpy Thanksgiving (Wolf Valley: A Very Grumpy Holiday #3)

Chapter 4

FOUR

Nolan

She said yes.

Even now, I still can’t believe that she agreed to my crazy plan.

She must really need help with the house, I think as I head over to her place, my toolbox in one hand and water bottle in the other. I gingerly walk up the creaky front porch steps and knock on the door. Saffron’s car is still parked out front, so I know that she’s home.

She opens the door a minute later and I open my mouth, but no words come out.

I’ve been lying to myself all morning, telling myself that this arrangement is just mutually beneficial, that it’s just a business deal, a transaction, but that’s not true, and as I stare at Saffron, I can’t deny the truth any longer.

I want her. I want her more than anything and I’m hoping that maybe she’ll start to develop feelings for me too over the next few days. Maybe if I’m a good fake boyfriend, she’ll want to make this thing real.

“Morning, I was just about to head out to work, so perfect timing,” she says softly, opening the door wider and ushering me in.

I follow her into the old, rundown kitchen and set my things down on the counter as I look around. The house really does need a lot of work, and I start to make a mental list as I take it in. My eyebrows raise when I see the hammer sticking out of the wall in the kitchen, and she blushes.

“I, uh, I tried to do some repairs myself. It didn’t exactly go as planned,” she mumbles.

I bite back a smile and nod as I turn to survey the rest of the kitchen.

“Are you sure that you can handle all of this?” Saffron asks me quietly, looking skeptical, and I nod.

“Yeah.”

She doesn’t look convinced, so I elaborate.

“My dad owns a construction company, and I grew up working for him. I can handle all of this,” I promise her.

She nods, looking relieved, and then passes me a paper. I look at it and see that she’s made a list of things that need to be fixed.

“I don’t have a ton of supplies here right now, but if you give me a list of what you need, I can go to the hardware store or lumber yard and pick it up today.”

“Okay. I’ll do a walk-through and see what I can start on now and what we’ll need.”

She nods, and we stand there for a moment, staring at each other. Saffron’s face starts to turn pink and I would give everything that I have to know what she’s thinking about right now.

Before I can ask her, though, she blinks and turns away from me.

“I should get to work, but you have my number. Let me know if you need anything.”

I nod, and she nods back and then heads for the door. I watch her leave and then turn back to her place and take a deep breath. Her sweet strawberry scent lingers here. I breathe deeply, enjoying myself as I start to walk through the house room by room.

I make a list as I go, writing down tasks and supplies needed for it. I have enough materials to get started on some of the smaller tasks, so I spend my morning removing most of the small half-bath downstairs. The toilet and vanity are all outdated and need to be replaced, but we need to fix the floor boards first.

“Whoa, you got quite a bit done, huh?” Saffron asks as she comes up behind me in the bathroom.

She seems impressed as she studies the now demolished bathroom.

“A bit. You’ll need to pick out new furniture and all that, but I need to replace some of the flooring first, so you have some time.”

She nods, taking a tentative step closer as she looks around the small space.

“I should paint too,” she murmurs, and I nod.

“I can do that.”

“ I can do that. You’re already doing so much for me.”

“I don’t mind. It’s part of the deal,” I remind her, and she nods slowly.

She seems almost disappointed at the reminder of our deal and I wonder if that’s a good sign or not.

“I brought lunch,” she says, holding up the brown paper bag in her hand.

“You didn’t have to do that.”

“I wanted to,” she says simply, and I smile as I follow her into the kitchen.

“Do you always come home for lunch?” I ask her as she starts to take the sandwiches out of the bag.

“No, not really. I have Ginger watching the store for me right now though. I wanted to see if you had that list of supplies for me, and I was going to run to the hardware store and wherever else.”

“Yep.”

I pass her the list I made earlier, and her eyebrows raise when she sees how long it is. She seems shocked at the length, and then I see it—worry. I know that she said she couldn’t afford to hire someone, and I wonder briefly about her finances.

“I can call around and use some of my family's contacts to get you some good deals. If we buy it in bulk for all of the projects, then that will be cheaper, too.”

She nods, looking a little relieved, and I feel like a hero for helping to lighten her load.

“Why aren’t you working for your dad and his company?” she asks me as she passes me a sandwich.

“It just wasn’t for me. I wanted to make my own way, so I left when I was eighteen and joined the military. The Air Force. Ironically, I was put into structures.”

She blinks, looking confused, and I rush to clarify.

“Structures is a career field. They do repairs on the buildings and build stuff.”

“So, you left and ended up doing the same thing,” she says, and I nod.

“Yeah, and for less money.”

“Do you regret it?” she asks, and I shake my head.

“No, it got me out of my small town. I got to see the world, make some friends, and spread my wings a bit.”

“And then you got out,” she guesses, and I nod.

“Yeah, I was deployed, and one night, there was an air strike. A bomb ended up landing on my building, and I was hurt pretty badly. I was airlifted to the base in Germany, and then a few weeks later, I was discharged and sent back home.”

“And you came to Wolf Valley?”

“It seemed like a good place to settle down,” I tell her, and she nods.

“What about you? What brought you to this small town?”

“My sisters,” she says with a small smile. “My parents passed away, and it just got to be too hard to stay in our childhood home with all of the memories. Olive wanted a fresh start and it seemed like a good idea, so we all followed her here.”

“Olive is the oldest?”

“Yeah, then Maple, then me, and then Ginger.”

“You guys are close.”

“Yeah, they’re all my best friends. Do you have siblings?”

I nod, and she takes a big bite of her sandwich.

“Two younger sisters and a younger brother.”

“Do they all look up to you?” she asks.

“I doubt it.”

I take a bite of food, and she frowns.

“You’re not close to them?”

“Not especially. I talk to them like once a month, see them on holidays, but that’s it. They all are married with kids and are busy.”

She nods, and we eat in silence for a minute.

“Do you want that?” she asks quietly, and I swallow.

“Want what?”

“A wife and kids. A real one,” she stresses, and I smile slightly.

“Sure. With the right person.”

Our eyes lock, and we stare at each other for a beat.

“What about you?” I ask her, and she looks away, gathering up the wrapper from her sandwich and the napkins.

“Yeah, I want that,” she whispers.

I can hear the longing in her voice, and I vow right then and there to give her anything that she needs. I’ll be whatever she needs, whatever she wants. I just need her to be mine.

“Let’s go get your supplies,” I say, my voice rough, and she nods.

I follow her to my truck, and a plan starts to form in my mind for making Saffron more than just my fake girlfriend.