Sultry with a Twist by Macy Beckett Read Free Book Online Page A

was just a freakishly upbeat man, because he’d been following June around to “help” while singing bad reggae, telling lame jokes, and offering compliments like, “ Giiiiirl , your body’s like an hourglass that went Bam! ” then smacking his hands together to mimic an atomic blast. June knew her hips were too wide, and she didn’t appreciate Karl-the-Kook pointing it out. She’d finally stopped trying to squeeze into ill-fitting jeans a couple years ago and started buying a size too big and having the waist taken in.
    June picked up another cracked shingle and tossed it in her black trash bag. Before Luke had left to work on a house he was flipping in the next county, he’d assigned her to cleanup detail. Shingles tossed off the roof, tar paper, old nails, paper cups—the brown lawn was littered with junk, and cleaning it up was boring as a sermon. And painful. She winced and massaged her lower back, stiff from hours of bending. She’d volunteered to clean the gutters—at least she’d get away from Karl that way—but Luke had expressly forbidden her from using the forty-foot ladder.
    “Hey, mamacita .” Karl had turned on the garden hose and stuck it down the front of his pants. “Best way to cool off. Wanna try?”
    Oh, sweet mercy. “No thanks, I’m going to clean the gutters. Give me a hand with the ladder, will you?”
    Karl pulled the hose out and waddled over with his jeans soaked and clinging to his chunky thighs. He looked like a stoned, bowlegged cowboy taking ten paces before a showdown at high noon. Between the two of them, they extended the heavy aluminum ladder and pushed it into position against the chipped siding near the roof.
    The metal rungs burned her palms as she climbed, and she stopped halfway up to give a little bounce and make sure they’d secured the adjustable lock. When June reached the roof, she peeked at the ground, her hands automatically tightening against the top rung. Holy sugar, it was a lot higher than she’d thought. Best not to look down. She focused on watching Trey nail a sheet of new, jet black shingles in place. A battered cowboy hat shaded his face, but his bare back glistened with sweat and had started to turn pink near the shoulders.
    “Hey,” she called, continuing to grip the ladder instead of waving.
    Trey glanced up and smiled, then hammered one last nail in place before joining her. “Fancy meeting you here.” He knelt on the exposed wood and grinned, revealing a pair of deep dimples. “How’s it goin’?”
    June kept one hand on the sturdy aluminum and used the other to scoop dried leaves from the gutter. “Karl’s driving me to drink, but there’s no alcohol in Sultry County.”
    “Sounds like a regular day, then.” The tan skin around his bright blue eyes crinkled when he smiled, and June felt relaxed. Calm. Not all knotted up and squirmy like when she met Luke’s intense gaze. It was kind of nice for a change.
    “You can help, you know,” she said.
    Trey glanced at the gutter and reached out to curl his fingers around it.
    “No, not with that.” June tipped back her straw hat. “You can help preserve my sanity. I can’t leave the county to visit that bar, but if you bring back supplies, I can mix up my favorite drink recipes for you. Maybe at your place?”
    A flicker of excitement sparked behind those cerulean eyes, but it was gone in an instant. He chewed his bottom lip and concentrated on pulling clumps of dark debris from the gutter. “Uh, that’s a mighty tempting offer, but I’m gonna have to pass. I’m seeing someone.”
    What? He wasn’t seeing someone last night when he’d asked her out for drinks. There was no way she’d misinterpreted his signals—all those flirty looks and the way he’d practically tripped over himself to act like a gentleman. She must’ve done something since then to change his opinion. Did she have tar on her face? Food between her teeth?
    “Oh, sure.” She reached in to scoop another