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his money. Well, to be honest, she was. At least what he was going to pay her for this job. And as far as Annawas concerned, Sam Hale was an overbearing, arrogant boob—except he apparently had unexpected depths.
    With those thoughts ringing loudly in her head, she took a breath and shifted the subject to safer ground. “So, what exactly did you have in mind for your mural?”
    â€œBusiness it is, then,” he said, still studying her. “For now.”
    He walked to the small office area, separated from the garage by a half wall. There was a desk, two chairs, a single filing cabinet and a half-dead fern in a blue pot inside. The walls were white and blank. There was a skylight overhead, providing plenty of natural light, but there were no windows, which struck Anna as odd.
    â€œI don’t have a lot of windows in here,” he said as if he knew exactly what she was thinking. “When I’m working on the cars, I like to keep the area as clean as possible. Don’t want dust and dirt blowing in, but it gets claustrophobic in here after awhile.”
    â€œI can see why,” she said, already studying the pristine white wall, letting her imagination kick in. “Can’t you put in windows that don’t open?”
    He shook his head. “Dust can still get in with a loose seal or whatever. The skylights are double-sealed. Until I get down to serious work I can open the garage bay doors for air. But once the detail work starts, I’ll be keeping the place shut up tight.”
    â€œOkay, do you want anything in particular?”
    Another slow smile curved his mouth. “I can think of a couple of things.”
    â€œI’ll bet,” she said, taking a step back from him just for good measure. “But I was talking about the mural.”
    He shook his head. “I’ll leave that to you. I just want to be able to look at something that makes me feel less closed in. Can you do it?”
    â€œI can.” She walked to her supplies and pulled out pencils, a yardstick and blue painter’s tape.
    â€œDo you need anything from me?”
    â€œJust for you to go away,” she said, knowing she’d never be able to concentrate if he was in the room watching her.
    â€œYou got it.” He started out of the office. “I’ll be working in the garage. If you need anything, let me know.”
    â€œYou’re working here? ”
    He smiled again and Anna felt that rush of something hot and wicked sweep through her one more time. She hadn’t counted on having him underfoot all day. She’d expected him to leave her alone. The claustrophobic feel of the massive garage instantly notched up a level or two.
    â€œI can run my company from here with a laptop and a phone,” he was saying. “So until you’re finished, I’ll be right here. Every minute.”
    â€œGreat.”
    He grinned and she knew he was enjoying her discomfort. Deliberately, she turned her back on him and went to work. If she could keep busy enough, she told herself firmly, she’d forget he was near.
    Sadly, even Anna didn’t believe that.
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    She sang when she worked.
    Sam groaned and banged his head on the uplifted hood when he straightened abruptly. Rubbing the aching spot on his skull, he shot a glare toward the woman taking up far too many of his thoughts. He’d thought having her here would be a good idea. He could watch her. Find out who she really was.
    Sam had thought about calling his brother to let himknow that Anna actually did have a price. But he decided against it. He knew Garret was over her, but Sam didn’t want hard feelings between him and his brother. If Garret brought up her name again, Sam was simply going to point out to his younger brother that Anna had said flat-out that even though she hated him personally, she was going to take his money.
    Wouldn’t that prove once and for all that the gorgeous Anna was as mercenary as