Page 10 of Landing Love

God, this was torturous.

He took a bite. The cake had a hint of lemon in it that perfectly complemented the filling of strawberries and cream. It tasted like summer on a fork. “You’re absolutely right. I think this is the best cake I’ve ever had.”

They ate in silence for several minutes with him surreptitiously peeking at her expression, which did not disappoint. When he came to fix her roof, he would have to bring her strawberry cake and watch her eat it, because that was the most he could ever reasonably ask of her. Speaking of which, how was he going to get her to agree to let him fix her roof?

“So this leaky roof of yours,” he said after finishing the last crumb of his slice of cake. “You’ve gotten estimates for the work?”

Her face fell. “The lowest I got was eight hundred dollars. That’s more than I can make in a year as a teacher.”

He whistled at the figure. “No wonder you’re looking for help from charity. I redid the roof on my sister’s place with my brother-in-law, and it cost us eighty dollars or so to buy the materials.”

“That’s all?” Her eyes went wide.

“Most of what you pay for is labor. A contractor brings a team of men and gets it done in one day. If you’d let me help you, I could do it in a couple of weeks for the cost of the materials.”

Now wariness crept into her gaze. Disappointing, but not unexpected.

“What would you expect in return?”

Ah. This. So many women were wary, and unfortunately, with good reason. There were all too many cads in the world. He should know. He was one of them once upon a time.

“Nothing. I like to help. It’s good for the soul.” He did his best impression of a church choir boy.

“Because I won’t…” She stopped and tried again. “I know widows have a certain reputation, and we must seem like easy prey. I assure you I am quite capable of fending off unwanted advances.”

He sighed. It was always tricky convincing women he truly didn’t want more than to do their home repairs. Especially in this case, because the truth was that deep down, he did want more. But he certainly wasn’t going to burden Mrs. Prince with his inconvenient desires. He needed to convince her that all he wanted was a chance to see her again. Because he absolutely had to see her again. She laughed at his jokes, but something about the way she looked at him made him think she saw beyond his jolly façade.

“What if I bring my sister with me? Would that make you feel better about it?” Mary would agree. He was sure of it. “If you hired contractors, you’d have a whole team of strange men to contend with. I’m much safer than they are. If you don’t believe me, ask my sister. She knows all my secrets.”

And she did. Mary was the only one he confessed his sins to. He needed to unburden himself to someone, and she’d always been his best friend. She knew better than anyone that for all his bluster, he was a romantic at heart.

“That does make me feel somewhat better, but I’m still concerned about what you might expect.”

Of course. But it still pained him, and he wanted to do anything he could to reassure her. “Sandwiches. I will work for sandwiches. Not just any sandwiches either. I expect big, hearty sandwiches with plenty of meat and cheese and a bit of lettuce and tomato. Lemonade too. Roofing is thirsty work. A man needs plenty of lemonade to get him through.”

She laughed, and it lit up his world. She was a burst of sunshine in this dim ballroom. “All right, you’ve worn me down. You can come visit with your sister and try to fix my roof.”

“Excellent news,” he said, trying to tamp down his excitement. “Can I get you more cake?”

She laughed again. It was the best sound in the world. By his count, this was the fourth time he’d made her laugh. “More cake?”

“Absolutely. I want more. Don’t you?” He was only torturing himself, but God, he wanted to see that look on her face again.

“Do I dare?” She looked longingly at the table with all the cake slices.

“Who’s to stop us?” he asked with a conspiratorial wink as he got up to retrieve more cake. Returning moments later with two slices, he asked, “Is there anything else your heart desires, my lady?”

“Oh hush. I’m just plain Mrs. Prince.”

“And tonight, I am your humble servant, my lady.” He knelt on the floor like a knight before his liege.

“Well, perhaps…”

“Yes?” He leaned in.

“Some tea would be excellent to wash down all this cake.”

He smiled as he rose. “And how do you take your tea, my lady?”