There was no way I was leaving. He’d sleep in the yard if he had to. I was used to sleeping out in the desert. A night under the Oregon sky would be fine. I’d be close to Olivia, and suddenly that was the only thing that mattered to me.

I shook my head while I rummaged through the back of the Wrangler. Elliot was a son of a bitch for sending me out here. He had begged me for his help, when the whole time he was just playing matchmaker.

“Well played, brother,” I mumbled.

Although, I didn’t know what my friend would think if he knew the filthy thoughts I couldn’t push away and how I wasn’t leaving Oregon until Olivia was mine.

I grabbed the toolbox and slammed the door. Projects would be good. Working with my hands would keep my mind off putting them all over her. I needed to give her time.

I knocked on the door, holding my tool box in one hand.

“You don’t have to knock,” she said, opening the door wide enough for me to walk in the house.

“Where do you want me?”

“Uh..I-I…” Her cheeks flushed.

“What’s first on your list? The leak? The railing?” I could spend weeks here fixing all the things that were wrong with the house. I hadn’t even ventured into the barn yet.

“How about the railing? I know better than to lean on it, but you’re right. If someone leans on it they could fall right off the edge of the cliff.”

“All right. I’ll start there.” I turned for the porch. “Do you have any supplies in the barn? I’m going to need some two by fours.”

She shrugged. “I have no idea. I never go in there.”

I placed his toolbox on the porch. “I’ll go check it out.”

I walked across the yard and driveway. The barn was set back from the house. The doors were jammed shut. I pried until they finally gave under pressure.

It was dark, but my eyes adjusted quickly. I pulled the string hanging from the ceiling, lighting a small area of the barn. There were more tools here than I could have imagined. Elliot had a small workshop. I smiled, glancing over the collection of table saws.

There wasn’t anything here that would help me with the porch railing though. I needed to make a supply run. I walked back over to the house.

“It looks like I need to buy a few things if I’m going to put the railing back together.”

“There’s a supply store about thirty minutes from here,” Olivia offered.

“Ok. Why don’t you give me the address and I’ll find it?”

Olivia reached for the hook next to the door, grabbing a jacket. “Why don’t I ride with you? It will be easier.”

I grinned. “Even better. Come on.”

I held the door and watched her ass as she climbed in my Jeep.

“Which way?” I asked.

Olivia pointed once they rolled past the mailbox. “Turn here and then in another mile make a right.”

I nodded. “Got it.”

I reached for the radio, turning the volume up slightly.

“So, you’re a Ranger and a handyman?”

I tried to remember the last time I had fixed something that wasn’t related to a mission. I had been in Kiawai for two years. Two weeks back on US soil wasn’t enough to make me feel like a normal guy. Just driving the Jeep felt foreign.

“Natural knack with my hands.” I smiled at her.

“Hmm.” She crossed her arms and stared out of the window.

The rain had let up to a drizzle.

“Why do you live all the way out here by yourself?” I asked. I knew I hadn’t seen another house since we pulled out of the driveway.

“I don’t. I’m just getting it ready to sell.” She paused. “It was a family summer home. Elliot and I inherited it. But now that he’s gone, I know it’s too much for me to keep on my own. You’ve seen the place.”

“But do you want to sell it?” I turned when Olivia pointed to the next street.

“No. I love it. But it’s too much house. And the barn. And I’m…” She trailed off.

“You’re what?”

“Single.” She huffed. “At least with Elliot he could help, but he’s been wherever you’ve been for two years. And now he’s not coming back.” She fidgeted with the seatbelt. “I kept thinking he’d come back and fix everything.”

There were a hundred things running through my head. I wanted to tell her I could put the house back together for her. She could keep it with my help. She wouldn’t have to worry anymore. But I realized how fucking absurd it sounded.

“It’s right over there.” She directed me to a hardware store on the side of the road.

“This place?” It looked like a warehouse.

“Yep. Lumber. Pipes. And I think they have vegetables in the back.” She laughed, jumping from the Jeep. “Come on.”

I couldn’t take my eyes off her. I never noticed a woman fitting into a pair of jeans like that before. Her hips were round and her thighs were poured into that denim like nothing I’d ever seen. I bit my lip, and followed her into the hardware store.