He led her through the parts of the house he’d finished, avoiding the bedroom for the moment. She asked questions that showed him she was truly interested and not just entertaining him.

That she found something he’d loved doing so much so beautiful turned him inside out. Exposed.

“I love it. The attention to the detail and design really takes it to a whole different level.” She walked around, looking closely. “Did you study design at school?”

“Thank you” seemed sort of small for the way her praise made him feel. So he smiled at her and nodded. “Thank you. I think so, and I’m pretty glad you do too. No, I didn’t study it, but I’m wildly flattered you’d think so. I just love carpentry and building. I like working with my hands.”

“You’re very gifted.” She bent and peered closely, sliding her fingertips over the curve at the base. “Did you do this banister yourself?”

He had to swallow hard at the sight, at the graceful way she caressed something he’d made, the way it was so obvious she appreciated the beauty of it.

“Yeah. Though I’m still working on the other side. You like?”

She turned to him, her attention focused on his face as intently as she’d focused on his work. “I’m astonished, Andrew. This is”—she shook her head—“this is incredible. I can’t believe you did all this. I had no idea how talented you are.”

Warmth hung in his belly, in his chest.

“Thanks.” He ducked his head again, the heat of a blush on his cheeks. “How about that hot chocolate?”

“Coming right up.”

She made it, seemingly at ease in his kitchen, which only made him want her more.

“I like this house a lot.” She stood, stirring the saucepan of hot chocolate as he rustled up plates and mugs.

“I do too. It’s been a long time, but I feel really good about where I’m going with it.”

“I can’t believe I had no idea you were doing this.” She filled the mugs, and he hummed his pleasure at the rising scent of cinnamon.

“Well, it’s just a little project.” He shrugged. “The living room is still sort of a mess. I’m mainly in the bedroom, where I’ve got a couch and the television. And a fireplace. Interested?”

She nodded, and they carried their loot upstairs, and he led her through the big French doors.

“Holy crap.” She halted, looking around the space. “This is, well, wow, Cope, this is magnificent. I keep saying ‘wow,’ which is more about me just being totally overwhelmed by how much you’ve done and how beautiful this all is. I’m very impressed.”

He indicated she put the mugs down on the table near the couch before he turned and bent to build the fire. It felt strange, her seeing such an intimate part of him and appreciating it. Good. He realized he’d half expected her to not get it or to wave away how much work he’d done. Shyness, something he hadn’t felt in a very long time, settled into his system as he built the fire.

He came back and settled with her on the overstuffed couch. The fire began to crackle and pop. He’d gone with natural gas fireplaces downstairs, but he wanted the real thing in his bedroom. Seeing the way the color of the flames lit her skin, he knew he’d made the right choice.

He’d never had anyone up in his room. Not since he had the furniture moved in. It seemed fitting it would be her, then, to be the one sitting there with him, filling his senses with a thousand different zings of chemistry.

“Thank you, again. Really.”

She sipped her cocoa and looked at him over the rim of the mug. “You should be really proud of yourself. This is a major undertaking. Lots of skill here. And time, I imagine. How do you get it all done around your day job and training friends how to fight off attackers and flirting with women at the pub?” The smile she quirked up allayed any ideas of her jealousy.

“I like to work here on weekends and at nights. At first it was a big job, so all I could see was how I had to do X, Y, Z before I could move on. After a time I realized part of living here was making the physical changes to make this house truly my home. I do what I can when I can, and I don’t resent it when I have other things to finish up.” He shrugged.

“That’s a very good way to look at it. It’s quite an accomplishment to have done all this. What does your family think?”

“Oh well, they don’t really; we don’t talk about it much.”

She leaned forward, putting her mug down and turned to him more fully. He liked the way she firmly gave him her full attention. It was rare to see in most people who generally only half listened while they texted or thought about television or whatever.

“Why is that? I’d imagine Ben would be over here helping you with stuff all the time.”

“He’s got a baby on the way. They’ve all got stuff going on. It’s just a house. Erin, Ben and Todd did a huge remodel not so long ago.”

She wore a sour look for a moment. “Erin hired people to do the renovation. Which is great, but not what you’re doing at all.” She motioned around the room. “This is all you.”

She pushed every single button he had. Disoriented, he shoved a hand through his hair, moving it back from his face. He was Cope, the easygoing lady-killer, and here he was, sniffing after a woman who already had immense power to pull emotions from him in the most unexpected ways. Mainly because she saw he was more than Cope, the easygoing lady-killer.