Total pages in book: 72
Estimated words: 67981 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 340(@200wpm)___ 272(@250wpm)___ 227(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 67981 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 340(@200wpm)___ 272(@250wpm)___ 227(@300wpm)
Sanchez Construction had started out as a family business, and though they were now big enough to require hiring outside the bloodline, his father, mother, sister, and three brothers were still the heartbeat of the company. Being raised on construction sites had made each of them a jack-of-all-trades, but they definitely had individual strong suits. Emilio was the youngest of the bunch at twenty-two, and the only licensed electrician. He figured that’d always be his specialty, even after he took the general contractor exam the following year. But that didn’t mean he wasn’t a damn fine carpenter as well.
“Nah, I don’t mind.” Emilio pushed the front of his thick black hair back and settled his gaze on his brother. “My side work is all dried up right now, and I checked on the other job sites this morning.”
It was a true statement, but he knew he could find another project in a heartbeat if he let his buddies know he had free time. Since the day he finished high school, Emilio had worked for the family business during the day, which usually started at six in the morning and ended at two in the afternoon, and then taken on small side jobs after hours. At first he’d done favors for friends or relatives who needed assistance with home improvements. But over the years, Emilio found he liked the diversity in the work—commercial projects for the family company during the day, fixing residential messes made by weekend warriors gone bad during the evening—plus he appreciated the extra money it put in his pocket.
A couple hours later, Raul said, “Hey, hermanito, we already went long today, so we’re wrapping up now. It’s Friday, so we’re going to head over to Joe’s Pub for a couple of beers.”
Emilio finished shooting a few more nails into the support beam he had put up and then climbed down the ladder. He stepped outside the partially framed space and glanced up at the sexy professor’s window for what had to be the hundredth time that day. It looked dark. Though he had concentrated on his work, something he learned early in life was important when handling power tools, Emilio had kept watch for the guy he’d been hoping to meet but hadn’t caught sight of him. That meant Emilio wasn’t as observant as he thought… or the guy had left in a different direction. Either way, his plan for the night was thwarted.
“I’ll skip it tonight,” he said with a sigh, unable to keep the disappointment out of his voice. He’d been half-hard a good portion of the day imagining what he could do to the professor once he got him alone. Not being able to realize those fantasies left him frustrated.
“You gotta come, Emilio,” Bruce Simms, one of their newer employees said as he walked over to where Emilio was packing up his tools.
Bruce was a nice guy and a hard worker, so Emilio found a smile for him as he finished loading up his gear. “Thanks, man, but I don’t think I’ll be very good company tonight.” He stood and hefted up his tool chest. “Maybe next time, yeah?”
“No!” Bruce practically shouted. “It’s gotta be tonight.”
That was an odd reaction. Emilio raised both eyebrows in surprise and said, “Uh, you got something you want to tell me?”
“No. Yes.” Bruce sighed and scratched at his cheek. “Fuck,” he groaned. “Okay, here’s the deal. My wife’s sister saw you when you dropped me off at the house last week. You know, when my truck was in the shop?”
Bruce paused and looked at Emilio meaningfully, so he nodded and said, “Yeah?”
“Well she wants to meet you, so my wife told her I’d set it up without it looking like a setup. She’s gonna happen to be at the bar today and then she’ll see me walk in and come say hello and then I’m supposed to introduce you and….” Bruce sighed deeply and scratched his temple, the conversation seemingly making him itchy with discomfort. “Fuck, man, you get the idea.”
Yeah, he got the idea, which was why he now wanted to go to the bar even less. Making polite conversation with some guys from work seemed like too much right then. Fending off advances from a coworker’s sister-in-law was just too much.
“Like I said, thanks for the offer, man, but I’m not up for it tonight.”
He gave Bruce a friendly punch to the shoulder started walking away.
“Wait, Emilio, I have a picture of her on my phone.” Bruce clasped Emilio’s shoulder, trying to halt his escape. “Don’t you at least want to see what she looks like before you say no?”
“You do understand how weird this is, right?” Emilio asked as he turned back around to look at Bruce.
“Oh, yeah, I get it. But she’s my wife’s sister, and if I do this, I’ll be getting lucky for weeks. Plus, I think you two will really hit it off. I think she’s exactly your type.”