Nick’s smirk.
Harley pulled into the driveway, turned off the engine, and hopped out. The early sun played with her shiny hair and fair skin as she stood there, hands on hips, eyes covered by dark sunglasses. She wore a pair of hip-hugging cargoes and a snug, long-sleeved Henley, both of which were normal clothes for that type of life, but nothing about his heart rate felt normal. He slapped his clipboard against Nick’s chest and headed for her.
Her glasses hid her from him but he knew by her stillness she was watching him. As usual, she wasn’t showing much, but he knew her, knew to look past the exterior. She wasn’t quite sure why she was there, and was even less sure if she wanted to be. “You came,” he said softly when he was near enough that no one could hear them.
A small, slightly embarrassed smile curved her mouth. “Twice now, actually.”
He let out a low laugh even as his brain bombarded him with the memory of how she’d looked when she let go for him, how she’d clutched him close, as if she needed to assure herself that he was right there. And he remembered her eyes when she burst, those usually sharp brown eyes losing focus, practically rolling up in her head as she’d come hard.
And great. Now he was hard. He needed another shower.
“So where’s Stone?” she asked, looking around.
“He already left.”
She blinked. “I thought he needed a co-guide.”
“That would be me.” He paused, studying her face. “I thought you knew.”
“No.”
“Still interested?”
She didn’t answer for the longest sixty seconds of his life.
“I guess it’s fitting,” she finally said. “After all, I do owe you.”
“I like the sound of that, but it’ll have to wait, since we have an audience.”
She both blushed and laughed, and then met his gaze. “I meant about the backpack. And thank you, by the way, it’s perfect.”
He reached for her hand, ran his thumb over her knuckles. “Glad you like it.”
“You knew I would, but it wasn’t necessary. You’ve already done so much-”
“No tab.”
“So you’ve said,” she murmured. “But…”
“But what?”
“But you’re the one who keeps giving. Your time, your expertise, your resources…”
“Anything. Anything you need.”
“Now, see, that,” she said softly. Looking confused and a little anxious to boot. “I don’t get it. Because in return, I don’t give you anything. I mean I drive you crazy, I’m sure, but that doesn’t count.”
He shook his head. Then let out a low laugh and nodded. “Okay, yeah, you drive me crazy,” he admitted. Hell, he’d told her as much. “But you also make me laugh. You make me feel good. And sometimes, Harley, when you think I’m not paying attention, you look at me like…”
“Like what?” she whispered.
“Like I’m worth something to you.”
“TJ.” She stared at him, her eyes two fathomless pools he could have drowned in. “You always have been.”
Simple words. Simple sentiment. Both went straight through him and warmed him in a way he hadn’t realized he needed warming. “And you wonder what you give me,” he murmured, reaching for her. But the front door on the lodge opened, and his clients came out to sit on the porch.
“Is that them?” Harley asked incredulously.
“Yeah.” They were trust-funders and sorority sisters. Ranging in age from nineteen to twenty-one, all some form of bottle blond, and in spite of his firm and absolute instructions to wear comfortable outdoor weather gear, they wore string bikinis, short shorts, and enough coconut oil to grease the entire WWE.
He’d read their files. They were skating through Cal Berkeley on their daddies’ dimes. They claimed that this trip was a “back to nature” trek, and that they were matching the price of Wilder Adventure’s fee toward a suitable “outdoor” charity to be named later.
He hoped that was true.
Annie was serving each of them a mimosa, per their request. She looked like she was battling either morning sickness or an aversion to their discussion, which was currently stuck on the party they’d all been to the night before last, where three out of the four of them had “scored.”
Jesus. He was getting old. He and Harley headed toward Nick, and the three of them moved to the porch together. TJ introduced Harley as his co-guide and photographer.
The girls-Shelly, Tandy, Lani, and no shit, Kitty-eyed Harley with varying degrees of disinterest.
“We’re not that much trouble, TJ,” Kitty murmured. “You could handle us on your own.”
Harley turned to TJ and gave him a look that he wasn’t sure he wanted to interpret. “How about it, TJ? Want to…‘handle’ them on your own?”
Shelly-or was it Tandy-smiled. “We’ll be good, very good.”
Harley was still looking at TJ as she deadpanned, “Yeah, TJ, they’ll be good.”
“Excuse us a moment,” he said to the girls. “While I confer with my co-guide.” He grabbed Harley’s wrist just as she started to back off the porch.
No way in hell was she getting away.
“Nick will get you loaded,” he said over his shoulder. “Harley and I need a quick meeting.” He tugged her into the lodge and shut the door.
“Aw, they’re sweet,” Harley said as he tugged her through the main reception area and down the hall, walking fast enough that she had to run to keep up with him. “You can save all that money you were going to pay me and-”
“I’ll be saving nothing. I need the bodyguard.”
Her eyes went to his body. “A bodyguard,” she said doubtfully.
“You have no idea. They tend to think the guide comes as part of the trip. It’s awkward to fight ’em off.”
“Yeah, right. Are we really having a meeting?”
“Yes.” Right past the kitchen was a small pantry/storage area.
He opened the door and pushed Harley in ahead of him.
Harley turned in the small closet area to face TJ. “You always have meetings in here?”
He shut them in, gripped her hips, and backed her up against the door, pressing his lower body to hers, hard.
Apparently he was done talking.
And she promptly lost her ability to think clearly. Hell, she’d given up thinking clearly when she’d first parked and saw him. His look was your basic Gorgeous Alpha Outdoor Guy. Sturdy boots, cargo pants that fit across his butt perfectly, lightweight tech jersey-which looked and fit like a standard tee but was a quick drying, thin, webbed material that clung to his broad-as-a-mountain shoulders-and dark shades. He’d shoved those to the top of his head, revealing a slight sunglasses tan line on his temples and sharp green eyes, which softened whenever he looked at her.
He was drop-dead sexy.
He made her lose control, every single time. She couldn’t even think about it without feeling a rush of heat to her very core. It shocked her, what he could do to her with a simple kiss or touch. If they ever actually got completely naked together, she’d probably go up in flames.
Hell, she might go up in flames right there, the way he had her up against the door. “I take it the meeting is called to order?”
“Yeah. Take notes.” He slid a hand down her back, her thighs, then back up again, pausing to squeeze her bottom with a rough groan before settling a hand at the small of her back to hold her close.
She wanted to wrap her legs around his waist.
“God, Harley. I’ve been on the edge for some time now, and nothing’s worked. Don’t ask me why or how, but being with you works.”
