Grace snorted. “What virginity?”
“The one I regrew after two years of celibacy.”
“A good sex toy should take care of that.”
“I don’t want to talk about it,” Merry groaned. “I’m pitiful.”
“No, you’re not. You’re safe and picky which is exactly how I want you to be.”
“I’m not picky. I’m just not on the radar. Anyone’s radar. I’m the government’s top-secret stealth snatch project.”
Grace burst into an uncharacteristically hearty laugh. Merry just stuck her tongue out and flounced out of the bathroom.
“I’m serious about Shane,” Grace said, following her to the living room. She pulled on a pair of black boots that would have looked clunky and mannish on Merry, but somehow looked both tough and adorable on Grace. “Watch out for him. He can be charming.” She drew the word out like it was a smear. “And take off that eyeliner. You look too cute.”
“You can scrub this liner off my cold, dead body. Actually that won’t be necessary, because it’ll melt off within the hour.”
“Use that primer I gave you.”
“Sure,” Merry said, instead of telling her friend that she’d tried the primer and somehow she couldn’t get it blended right and ended up looking like she was wearing sparkly white goggles.
“Don’t get charmed,” Grace warned, pointing a finger at Merry’s chest. “I’m serious. I don’t want to have to murder my boyfriend’s best friend. Okay?”
A knock interrupted their conversation. Merry went out to say hello to Cole, but for a moment he was overwhelmingly distracted by Grace’s hair.
“Hi, Merry,” he said, his gaze locked on his girlfriend with an intensity no man had ever had for Merry.
“Hi, Cole. Grace’s hair looks great, huh?”
“Hell, yeah, it does.” Grace kicked him, and for a moment his gaze only got more intense. Then he blinked and visibly shook it off. His easy smile appeared and he turned to Merry. “How’s the ghost town, darlin’?” he asked, leaning in to kiss her cheek. “I still don’t like you out there on your own.”
“I studied all the wildlife guides you gave me. If a rattlesnake comes near, I can identify it in less than two seconds, I swear.”
He winked. “Good.”
“You know, you two are actually worse than having parents. My mom was never this overprotective.”
Cole patted her arm. “I’ve never had a little sister.”
“I’m not your sister! Jeez. Now go show your girlfriend how much you like the new red hair. I’ll see you later.”
Cole dragged his woman out the door, but Grace leaned back in for one last warning. “Watch out for that guy.”
“I promise it won’t be a problem!” she huffed.
It never was. Men were always disappointingly respectful of her. She locked the door behind Grace and then wandered back to the bathroom to put on some lip gloss and brush out her hair. Thanks to Grace’s professional skills with the eye makeup, Merry looked almost nice. And the Oscar the Grouch T-shirt really set off her complexion.
Just as she was thinking of changing, there was another knock on the door, which helpfully saved her from the decision of which Darth Vader T-shirt she was going to choose.
She opened the door with a wide smile that she felt freeze on her face when she saw Shane Harcourt.
He’d definitely taken that shower. The thick stubble that had shadowed his face had been shaved off to reveal his hard jaw, and his dark hair was still pressed to his nape in damp strands.
“Hi, Merry,” he said, and she had the distinct feeling he was proving that he remembered her name this time. Not very flattering. When she’d visited Jackson last fall, they’d spent three hours together at Grace’s birthday party. Not enough time to make an impression on him, apparently.
“You look like you’re feeling a lot better,” she said, waving him in.
“I am, thanks. And sorry about earlier.” He flashed that charming smile she’d heard about. “I was dead on my feet.”
“Yeah, you looked like a cattle rustler who’d been on the run for weeks.”
His smile wavered. She had a way of doing that to men. “So where’s the bookshelf?”
“Ha. There is no bookshelf.”
“What?” He turned in a slow circle, looking over the apartment. “You said you wanted help with a bookshelf.”
She let her eyes wander down to his ass while he wasn’t looking. Cowboys were so sweet, the way they never wore those awful baggy jeans. And Shane was especially sweet, generously showing off his tight, muscular ass in a dark pair of Levi’s.
She cleared her throat. “No, you said I wanted help with a bookshelf.”
“All right. So what’s going on?” He sounded suspicious, probably worried she was going to try to make a move. It was so uncomfortable when you had to fight off the girl next door.
“Why don’t we sit down?”
Still looking wary, he took a seat on the couch. He’d look even warier if he knew he was sitting on her bed. Merry smothered a grin as she sat next to him. “I need a carpenter for a bigger job than a few shelves.”
“Yeah? You might want to rethink any remodeling. I doubt Rayleen would approve. She’s a pretty strict landlord.”
“I wouldn’t dare cross Rayleen,” Merry answered, shuddering a little at the idea of pissing off Grace’s crazy great-aunt. “I actually do need you to remodel something, but it’s not an apartment. It’s a ghost town.”
“A ghost town?” Shane sat straight and blinked several times. “Excuse me?”
She couldn’t help but laugh at the disbelief on his face. “I know it sounds crazy. But it really is a ghost town. It’s called Providence. Have you heard of it?”
“I…I think so.”
“It’s north of the Gros Ventre. I was hired to get it ready to be a public exhibit.”
“You?”
Was the whole town conspiring to destroy her confidence? “Yes, me. Listen, it’s going to be spectacular! Really. It may sound strange to say a ghost town is exciting, but I’m so excited!”
“Yeah, I see that.”
Merry realized she’d clasped her hands together and leaned closer to him. “It’s an amazing place. Truly. The most beautiful place you’ve ever seen. If you take the job, you’ll see—”
“Take what job?”
“I want to hire you to start the restoration.”
Shane sat back. He stared at her for a long moment before he let his head fall to rest on the couch. His gaze bore into the ceiling. “You want to hire me.”
“Well, I don’t know a lot of carpenters in Jackson.” Or anywhere else. “And!” She rushed on, not wanting to offend him, “You’re Cole’s best friend, so that’s all the recommendation I need.”
“Merry…” His eyes squeezed shut for a moment, and she wondered if he was still too tired to think. “I’m sorry, but I’m a little lost here. What exactly are you doing here and why are you working in Providence?”
“Oh! Right. You missed the first few weeks of