He laughed. “You’re not the first person to tell me that.”

“Do you have siblings?”

“Yeah. Two older brothers. Why?”

She nodded her head. “I can see that.”

“What?”

“I bet your brothers picked on you. Threw you in the lake, wrestled with you, that sort of thing?”

“That’s what brothers do,” he said.

“You’re overcompensating.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means you think the more manly and macho you act, the bigger you appear to others. But, in fact, it makes you seem kind of like a horse’s ass sometimes.”

He let out a loud laugh, causing some of the vendors to turn and look. “I love that you tell it how you see it, Katie. It’s awesome.”

She groaned and started to stand up.

“Wait. Please.”

She sat back down. “What?”

"I actually am sorry. You're right. I've been kind of a jackass since we met. Sometimes I can't help myself. My mama always said I had a sharp sense of humor."

"Well, I wouldn't give up your day job to be a comedian or anything."

"That's probably a good idea. Besides, my day job pays pretty well."

"What is it that you do exactly?" she asked, unsure of why she cared. If he wasn't so handsome, she would've already run the other direction.

"I'm a contractor. I build anything and everything."

A lightbulb went off in her head. "A contractor, you say? Interesting. I might have some work for you, if you can behave yourself."

"I can always behave myself when it involves work. What do you have?"

"I need some structures built. I have an event venue where we are going to host weddings, so I'm going to need a portable dance floor, an extension on the gazebo and some other things. Do you think you're qualified?"

He smiled. "I can build anything you need. Would you like to see some of my work?"

"Yes. Do you have a binder or something?"

Cooper laughed. "No, I'm not that fancy. But I can drive you around town and show you some of the things that I've built."

"Drive me around town? So you expect me to get into the car with a virtual stranger and drive through the mountains?"

"We're not strangers, Katie! I caught you when you flew off the treadmill. That makes us close friends."

She had to laugh at that. "I'm never getting back on the treadmill again. It's evil."

"What do you say? I have some time right now. I can show you three or four things that I've built around here, and then you'll know whether you want to have me come out and give you an estimate or not."