She ignored how her body tingled and vibrated and got straight to the point. “Do you have a broom I could borrow by any chance?”

He cocked an eyebrow at her, and one corner of his mouth turned up in a lopsided grin. “A broom? Feeling a sudden urge to clean?”

Sophia blushed again then remembered who she was. A witch, a junior one maybe, but a witch nevertheless, so he, a mere human, shouldn’t mock her. She straightened her spine and tried to adopt a chilly tone and face, not an easy task with her rounded cheeks and full lips. “Yes, I need a broom, if you please.”

With a look that said ‘Whatever you say, crazy lady,’ he went back into the open garage bay, and she found herself watching the hypnotic and enticing view of his ass in tight jeans as he strode out of sight. Sigh. He really was a nice male specimen. Maybe she’d make a detour on the way back.

A few moments later, he brought out a monstrosity of a broom, its wooden handle and wide brush head covered in grease and dirt. He held it out to her, and Sophia wrinkled her nose, not making a move to touch the filthy thing. “You know the purpose of a broom for most people is to clean, not create a bigger mess.”

“This is a garage. We don’t care if it’s clean. We just use it push the crap out of the way.” His tone and expression held a note of impatience, a feeling she found imbuing her as well.

“Well I can’t use that, that thing. Dammit, are there any stores around here that sell clean brooms?”

“Sure,” he drawled. “ ’Course they’re all closed at this hour.”