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break through the no-nonsense attitude she has kept firmly in place all morning and begin to become friends outside of the job . “How about letting me buy you some lunch?”
    She was instantly on the defensive, starting to shake her head no before he even finished his invitation.
    “Thank you for the offer, but no. I have calls to make and Marjorie will have lunch waiting for me.”
    Pleasant but firm. It was obvious her intention was to maintain the employer-employee relationship between the two of them, first name basis notwithstanding. Well, that was fine for now. He’d have plenty of time to work on converting her to a less formal relationship in the coming weeks.
    “Okay, I can have these estimates, one for your space and one for the gallery, ready by the day after tomorrow. Should I drop them off here or at the B and B?”
    “Here will be good. I’ll be doing the primer on these walls.” She shuddered slightly at the bright colors she had to cover. “If I paint before we rip up this vinyl I won’t have to worry about getting any splatters on the hardwood.”
    He had to give her points for intending to do some of the reno work herself. More than one boss he’d worked for in the past stuck to the principle that the head honcho gave the orders and the worker bees confined their remarks to ‘yes, sir.’ Not that he would let her do anything he didn’t think she could handle. She was such a lightweight that strenuous work was out of the question. He wouldn’t want to see her put any more nicks on those lovely hands. Female bosses were fine, but there was only so much his upbringing would allow him to tolerate where heavy labor was involved.

Chapter 3
    Back at his studio, Jeff cleared a space on his workbench and began the process of converting his rough sketches into a detailed blueprint.
    He wanted this job. Needed this job. And he’d get it, no matter what it cost him. There would be no mark-up on materials and he’d damn near work for free if that was what it took to secure a place for Jen’s paintings when the gallery opened. Surely he could convince Zoe to display his sister’s paintings in the three months he expected the remodeling to take. Not that she’d know they were Bug’s. He’d sworn to keep his sister’s secret. Hopefully hard work and beautiful results would be enough to win Zoe over, but he wasn’t above using some wooing to achieve his goal. In fact, it would be difficult to keep his hands off her. Especially if her usual work attire was a skimpy tank top and skin-tight jeans.
    He had to admit his opinion of the luscious Ms. Silvercreek had gone up several notches since their first encounter. She hung in there like a trooper, helping him take measurements and not shying away from dirty corners or cob-webbed rafters.
    As the day warmed up a fine sheen developed on all that sun-kissed skin. She’d wound the beautiful skein of dark hair into a knot and secured it with a clip, but by noon tendrils of hair had escaped to curl damply against her neck. Watching her lithe body bend and stretch as the thin top clung to her curves had been its own reward. He shifted on the stool to adjust his own now slightly too-snug pants. Concentrate , he ordered himself. This is too important to waste any time exercising your libido.
    “How’d it go?”
    Jen’s question jerked him back to reality. Even though she needed a cane to get around, she could still move quietly enough to sneak up on him. He hadn’t heard the door to her room open, possibly because he was too engrossed in the mental picture of Zoe, a smudge of dirt on one cheek, smiling in triumph as they finished the last measurement.
    He swiveled around to find his sister perched on the stool in front of her own easel, one of his old T-shirts covering her to her knees, her undamaged profile reminding him how beautiful she’d been. He shouldn’t be surprised. This was usually the time when she painted, while he was out and about doing odd