“Your cousins sound like assholes, Sylvia. No offense.” Humming absently, a frown tugged down the corners of my mouth as I trudged up the stairs to the attic. I wasn’t sure how we ended up talking about my cousins, but it wasn’t a topic I wanted to linger on.
“Yeah, I know. My aunt wasn’t the kind of woman to dislike anyone, though. Her ultimate display of disappointment was giving them her fortune. She must’ve realized they wouldn’t appreciate anything else she left them.” At the top of the stairs was a door with no landing, I grasped the brass knob with firm fingers. “I like this house, and so far, I like Alaska. Maybe she knew I’d take the time off work to come up here for myself instead of just forgetting about it.”
The attic was dank and a little dusty, but someone had to have come up here and kept everything from falling apart. Four months wasn’t long enough to do any lasting damage, particularly as it wasn’t winter yet. Shuffling to the side, I stared out among the numerous cardboard boxes and furniture covered in thick sheets.
A long, low whistle sounded from beside me, and I sighed heavily.
“Your aunt had some excellent taste. Is this all you managed the other night?” Ryan strode over to the embarrassingly small pile I’d managed to go through, and another hum floated from my mouth.
“Unfortunately. The furniture is too heavy- a lot of it is made from solid, dense wood. And most of the other boxes are pretty hefty too. There’s a lot of metal, but I’m not sure what’s in them. I didn’t want to rip the cardboard to find out.”
Pulling himself to his full, impressive height, Ryan peered over the attic with curious eyes. To say I was nervous having him here wasn’t the right choice of words, but I was still far from being calm. He was the only person I knew here. There was no one else I could ask, and then I would be stuck hiring people that might damage things or charge more than I had. Besides, he had kind of asked me if he could help out. How could I refuse?
Everything spent outside of this house was on my own dime.
“So, what? You just want to organize it a little?” Wandering towards him, I nodded once again as Ryan cast his gaze on me. It hit me how much taller and broader he was compared to when he was behind the bar. Crossing my arms over my chest, I pursed my lips together as he lifted his arm in my peripheral vision.
“Basically. I don’t plan on using anything up here, and I’ll probably put it in storage when there are renters, but I want to know what’s up here, at least.”
“Sure. I get it. Why don’t we start with the furniture? That way we can have more room for the boxes.” Ryan’s plan was logical, but I winced at the idea of having to move such heavyweight objects. I couldn’t even get one of the lighter looking pieces to budge. He must’ve picked one up, his strides solid and loud even though the floor didn’t creak.
The piece was a massive baker’s rack, taller and broader than any I’d ever seen in a department store. Boughs of thick, aged saplings made up the supports, the bark stripped away to reveal the dark, healthy wood underneath. Thick, heavy shelves were bolted in by nails that didn’t even look like they were from this century. The flat heads were sunk deep into the elegant wrap around where the supports and the shelves met.
“Wow… this is really, really old, Sylvia.” Mumbling as he ran his palm up one of the boughs, Ryan had an almost mystified expression on his face.
“Do you think she made this herself?”
Ryan spent a second examining the structure, and I gulped down the lump in my throat.
“I don’t know what kind of things she was into, but it’s possible. This is well made, but it’s not artisan quality.”
For a long moment, we were silent, just appreciating what was in front of us. The stripped branches that had grown out from the thin trunks had been woven into a beautiful swirling pattern. It might’ve not been ‘artisan quality’, but it was still awe-inspiring.
After that first piece was safe against the far wall where the boxes didn’t litter the floor, I clapped my hands together as Ryan dusted his on his jeans. Moving the baker’s rack hadn’t been nearly as hard as it was the day before, and I cast a sidelong glance at the man next to me. His muscles weren’t just for show, then.
The thought if all Ryan’s underlying strength heated my cheeks, and I tore my gaze away to take a breath.
“So, do you… work out? I mean- because… it was just so easy this time…” Stumbling over my words, my face burned hotter when Ryan’s eyes landed on me. That’s such an awkward thing to ask someone. Gee, good going, Sylvia. Way to not make it weird.
“Yes, I do. Don’t be shy, Sylvia. I’m an open book. You can ask me anything.” Nudging my side, Ryan’s grin flashed in my mind’s eye when I blinked, and his tease rang in my ears. I shook my head, banishing the image before slinking back towards the rest of the furniture. It was all clustered in the corner to the right of the door, so the journey wasn’t long.
Still, it put some distance between us.
“I bet your aunt spent her whole life collecting all the things in here. I guess a house isn’t the only thing you inherited, Sylvia. There’s history in here.” Sitting on a long, low couch whose fabric had been protected by a thick sheet, I leaned against the back with a deep sigh. It was uncomfortably hot up here, and I dared a glance at Ryan as he dropped down beside me. He’d taken off his shirt in the stifling heat, and for a second my eyes were glued to his tattoos. There was a tribal look to them, but I couldn’t place it. The dark marks were like jagged slashes along his chest, with sharp edges and a general feel of mild chaos.
“Do you have any tattoos?” The question made me start, and my eyes flew to Ryan’s as his brows came together. My cheeks flushed bright red, but there was no hiding the fact that he’d caught me checking him out. Licking my lips nervously, I dipped my head in a nod as sweat beaded the nape of my neck.
“Yeah, I have two. One on my hip and another on my foot.” I could feel Ryan’s questioning gaze on me, and I bent to unlace my shoe. “This one was my first. The artist was really cool about it because I had just turned 18.”
The ink sprawling along the top of my left foot hadn’t really faded over time, and I smiled as I took off my sock. Sometimes I could still feel my skin tingling the same way it did after I had left the parlor. Leaning down, Ryan’s intense stare made my toes curl and flex as he laid eyes on the teddy bear holding three colorful balloons.
“That’s cute. Did you get it for any particular reason?” Gently he took hold on my ankle, and a soft gasp flew from my mouth. My cheeks burned, and at that moment I was glad he wasn’t looking at my face.
“Uh- no. Like I said- it was my first. I didn’t want to get anything too crazy, you know? And I like teddy bears. I have one that looks like this, with the balloons, back in Maine.” Glancing up at the same time Ryan did, I feared my face would melt from how hot it was. He was so close, his body bunched up and his taut muscles shifting under his skin in my peripheral vision. For a moment we just stared, and I didn’t realize I was leaning into him until his free hand came up to hold my chin. The contact made my heart jump in my chest as the cavity tightened, and I pursed my lips together.
“...If I told you a secret, would you think differently of me?” Murmuring so softly, Ryan’s breath fanned down the bridge of my nose, and I instantly shook my head. My brows came together, curiosity leaking into my veins to help calm my blood as it pounded in my ears. His eyes flashed, so profound and dark they were almost black, and a shiver lodged between my shoulder blades.
Only a second passed as Ryan hesitated, but then he smiled and once again took the breath from my lungs. Even with his beard covering it, his smile was incredibly handsome. Or maybe it was because of his beard…
“I would like to spend more time with you, Sylvia.” My eyes widened at such brazen words. Ryan dragged his finger down the column of my throat and over the lump that had formed there. “You’re very beautiful, but beyond that, I want to know you. All of you.”
All the heat in my body, even in the room, traveled to my center, and I clenched my thighs together. Ryan still held my foot, but that reminder was fleeting as images filled my mind of us, together. Licking my lips, they dried almost instantly when I sucked in some air into my lungs as his gaze flickered down to them.
The only thing I could think to do was nod, my mind strangely absent of protest.