An afternoon on the river with the best looking, most genuine guy she’d ever met sounded like the path to finding a whole different kind of zone. She cocked an eyebrow and smirked. “Fishing? Me? I wouldn’t know where to begin.”
“I’m a pretty good guide. You could start with me.”
Oh, she’d like to start with him. Maybe his lips, that fascinating scar over his eyebrow, the scruffy chin, the broad shoulders, narrow waist, and long, blunt ended fingers. She’d start and never stop. She shook her head and tried to calm her racing heart. “I’ll give it some thought.”
As if she needed an excuse to think of him.
He still didn’t make any attempt to leave, but held her captive with his eyes. Her heart raced, her breath came out in short bursts, and she felt her insides turn to liquid. “Ty?” she breathed, her voice a shaky whisper.
“Jill?” he mimicked.
She stood up on legs she willed to stop trembling, her fingers splayed on the desktop for purchase in case her legs gave out under his stare. “I’m not exactly schooled in this whole thing,” she waved her hand between them, “but I get the feeling you’re hitting on me.”
He grinned and she wouldn’t have been surprised if a canary yellow feather popped out of his mouth. “You’re pretty perceptive.”
“Okay…why?”
“Excuse me?”
“I mean, you could have anyone here. Anyone anywhere. I saw your girlfriend. She was petite and blonde and gorgeous. Pretty much the exact opposite of me. I know you know Olivia. She’d run naked through the streets to get your attention, not that she’d need to do that to get a man’s attention, but…” She lifted her shoulders and let them drop as he flashed a mischievous grin.
“Do you own a mirror?” he asked.
“Yes,” she stated unequivocally. “I do, which is why I’m asking, quite poorly, why me?”
He stepped around the desk. She turned, afraid to break contact with his stare, and the back of her legs ended up pushed against the desk. “For the very reason you’re asking and about a hundred more.”
He lifted a hand and ran the backs of his fingers down her cheek. The zing it produced felt like lightning coursing through her blood. She felt the electric zap as it whipped through her body, setting fire to every single nerve ending. It was a wonder she didn’t burst into flames with just that one touch.
He lightly gripped her chin, lifting her lips to angle perfectly over his. He touched his lips ever so gently to the corner of her mouth. Her hands found their way to his t-shirt and she had just enough firing synapses to register the wall of solid muscle beneath her touch. Then it all went dark as he breezed those lips over hers again and again, whisper soft, never quite making full contact. He cradled her head in his hands until she was practically panting with want. His teasing brushes were the most tantalizing torture she’d ever experienced.
“Jill, I forgot—”
Jill spun around and stared in horror at Tommy’s stony expression. He sighed heavily once and slumped against the doorframe. “Seriously?”
Chapter 16
“My fault,” Ty said. He placed a hand on Jill’s shoulder, felt her muscles tense at his touch, and squeezed. “She was working and I interrupted.”
“Hell of an interruption,” Tommy muttered. He rubbed the back of his neck with a hand and swung his gaze between Ty and Jill. “I didn’t realize I’d need to reiterate my no fraternization policy.”
“I think we’re both familiar with the rule,” Ty said. “I hope it’s not a deal breaker. If that’s a problem for you, I understand and I’ll have my stuff out of here by the end of the day.”
Jill whipped her head around and stared at him, her eyes wide. “Ty, what are you doing?”
He shrugged at Tommy and met Jill’s stare with his own. “Making myself clear, to both of you.”
Tommy rubbed his face with both hands. “I so don’t need this right now.” He dropped his hands and crossed his arms over his chest. “Are you saying you’d quit if I asked you two not to see each other?”
“We’re both adults, Tommy, and neither one of us works for you in the same capacity. If this is a terminable offense, then terminate me, but I’m not going to stop seeing her.”
“Look, what you two do on your own time is your business. I don’t want to see this kind of thing,” he waved his hand between the two of them, “on the job ever again. Are we clear?”
“Yes,” Jill said. “Crystal clear, and I’m sorry.”
Tommy looked at Ty. “The policy stands and I mean to enforce it. If everyone sees the two of you making kissy faces at each other all day long, it’s going to turn into one big love fest around here and I can’t afford to have my employees distracted by their hormones. Distracted employees are dangerous on the water. If I look the other way here, I’m going to need a promise from you that you’ll keep this under wraps.”
“Absolutely,” Jill said.
“Not a problem,” Ty concurred. “No one will know.”
Tommy looked at Jill. “You’d better tell Olivia to keep her big mouth shut, or she’s going to ruin it for everyone.”
“I will. She won’t say a word.”
“I’ll believe that when I see it.” He let out a big breath. “Listen, I’ve got a delivery coming in this afternoon for the restaurant and I’m not going to be back in time. Can you stay and double-check the invoice when the delivery comes? Last time they shorted us on chicken.”
“No problem,” she said.
Tommy looked at his watch and up at Ty. “You’ve got a wade in ten.”
“I’m ready. They’ll have the time of their life.”
“They’d better,” Tommy murmured. He looked between the two of them again, shook his head, and turned on his heel to leave. He left the door ajar on purpose.
Ty turned Jill to face him and noted the pink hue that crawled up her neck. “Are you okay?”
She nodded. “What the heck were you thinking? He could have fired you.”
“He could have fired us both. I wanted him to know it didn’t matter, at least not to me.”
“How can you afford to be so flippant about your job?”
“It’s just a job. I could go fifteen miles up the road and get another one this afternoon.”
“You’d do that? Just to prove a point?”
“I’d do that, Jill, because I’m not walking away from you.” He snaked his hand up her neck and let his thumb rub behind her ear. Her lids became heavy under his stare. “Not for Tommy, or this job, or anything else.”
“Ty…”
He leaned in and kissed her forehead, drugging himself on her scent before pulling back. “You’ve got my number. Use it.”
***
Tommy pulled into the parking lot and saw Tyler’s truck backed up to the storage building where he was obviously storing his boat after his afternoon float trip. He’d had some time to sit with what he saw the other morning and hoped he could get back to his friendship with Ty without feeling like he’d been manipulated.
“Hey, Ty,” Tommy called. “You got a minute?”
Ty stuck his head out of the shed and held up a finger. “Almost done here,” he said and disappeared inside. Tommy snagged a Coke from Ty’s cooler in the bed of his truck and savored the ice-cold taste after a long day of meetings with the valley’s most vocal opponents to the ski village development.
Ty closed and locked the shed before grabbing a drink of his own. They both plopped onto the back of Ty’s truck bed and let their feet dangle from the tailgate, sipping from their cans of soda. “So,” Tommy began. “You and Jill?” Ty turned his head and met Tommy’s stare head on. “She’s a great girl,” Tommy admitted. “Smart as a whip, easy on the eyes, and anyone who can put up with my sister is a damn saint.”
“You don’t have a problem with us being together?” Ty asked.
“No,” Tommy said. “Other than the fact that you both work for me.”
“Details,” Ty shrugged.<
br />
“Were you really going to quit?”
“Were you going to make me?”
“Shit, man. When the hell did this happen, because I didn’t see this coming.”
“Last year.”
Tommy’s brows shot to his hairline. “Last year. You were with Dana last year. Are you telling me you were with both of them?”
Ty’s gaze narrowed and Tommy had his answer. “I don’t play that way.”
“Yeah,” Tommy said. “I didn’t think you did.” He took a long swallow and watched a couple of campers go into the restaurant. “So, I’m guessing Jill’s the reason you’re back?”
Ty nodded. “Mostly. Well…she’s the whole reason, but I like you, so it wasn’t exactly a hardship.”
Tommy laughed. “Did you hide it really well or am I just so busy I can’t see what’s in front of my face?”
“A little bit of both.” Tommy watched Ty nervously pick at the button of his fishing shirt. “She’s skittish. I think if she knew she’s the reason I’m back, she’d freak, so I’m not telling her yet. I’m taking it one day at a time. You just happened to walk in on my first real move.”
It took only a second for Tommy to realize the feeling in his gut was envy. Not for Jill, but for the prospect of having someone to care for. “Looked like a good one.”
“It was.” Ty slapped Tommy on the back. “I appreciate you looking the other way about this.”
Tommy hopped off the tailgate and tossed his empty can back into the cooler. “I’ve been thinking about that and I believe I’ve come up with a solution.”
“You firing me after all?” Ty asked.
Tommy jerked his head toward The Tap. “I’m going to see if Jill wants to run the restaurant this summer. Take over everything. She’s done wonders for the office in just a couple of days. She’s freakishly organized and extremely detail oriented. If I could pass that off on her, it’d free up a lot of my time.”
“And this solves things how?”
“If she’s only running the restaurant, she won’t be overseeing the fly and raft shop, thereby eliminating the conflict of interest.”
“You’d do that for us?”
“No, I’d do that for me. I’ve never really enjoyed the restaurant.”
“Then why’d you buy it?”
“It’s a good business. It makes money. I just don’t like running the day to day.”
“Sounds like you’ve got it all figured out,” Ty said. “Leave it to you to turn things around in your favor.”
“Hey, I’m that good. Plus, I didn’t want to fire you.”
When Ty laughed, Tommy felt some of the weight slip off his shoulders.
“I’d have just gotten a job at your competitor,” Ty deadpanned.
“Don’t I know it.” Tommy flipped his keys around his finger as he and Ty walked toward the raft shop. “Do me a favor? Let me talk to Jill about this and get her okay before you do any more PDA.”
“Sure,” Ty said. “It’s kinda fun sneaking around like we’re a couple of teenagers.”
Tommy looked at Ty and shook his head. The kid was twenty-four and spending the summer as a fly guide chasing after a girl. For all intents and purposes, he was a teenager. “Enjoy your youth while it lasts, my friend. Sometimes being a grownup really sucks.”
Chapter 17
Jill sank onto the couch in her apartment and blew a lock of hair out of her face. She couldn’t believe how tired she was after a full day at work. She’d started at the office, done her regular lunch shift, and finished back in the office adding to Tommy’s job performance standards requirements for her new position as restaurant manager.
She hadn’t been this tired after training twice and working in between, but she knew the exhaustion came from using her brain all day. She’d missed feeling useful and was very excited about the challenge Tommy had presented to her the day before. Not only did he trust her with a huge part of his business, but he also gave her and Ty a path around his fraternization policy.
A path they’d yet to explore.
When her phone beeped, signaling a text, she fished it out of her purse and smiled. She hadn’t seen much of Ty for the past few days, except for a few steamy glances at The Tap, but that hadn’t stopped him from texting her. The man was seriously sexy with the phone.
I think Tommy is punishing me by keeping me on the river morning until night so I can’t see you. Don’t be shocked if when we meet, I’ve grown scales.
Jill couldn’t wipe the grin off her face. You’d make scales look good. Are you still on the water?
She let her head drift back into the cushion while awaiting his reply. Olivia bound into the room and dropped her bulging book bag onto the coffee table, knocking the TV remote control to the floor. “I’m so over school! Why did I sign up for classes this summer?”
“So you can graduate and get out of school,” Jill answered.
Olivia threw herself onto the floor and lay face up, spread eagle on the carpet. “My brain hurts.”
“I know the feeling.”
Olivia popped her head up and gave Jill a questioning stare. “Your brain hurts? Since when?”
“Since your brother made me manager of The Tap.”
Olivia sat up on her elbows. “Seriously?”
“Seriously. I start tomorrow.”
“Wow. I never thought he’d relinquish control of any part of the business.” She wiggled her eyebrows. “You must have totally impressed him with your giant brain.”
“I don’t know about that,” Jill muttered as her phone beeped.
Heading home now, Ty texted. You want to come up?
Did she ever, but she promised herself she’d run every day. I’ve got to run. Raincheck?
“Who are you texting?”
Jill’s head whipped up and she tried to make her face as normal as possible. “No one.”
“No one, huh? I don’t think that’s actually possible, not with that stupid grin on your face.”
She shot to her feet and made a grab for the phone. Jill held it over her head while Olivia attacked. “Can I have just a little bit of privacy, please?” Jill begged.
“No,” Olivia said. “Not when you’re acting like a doofus right in front of my face. Who is it?”
Jill kneed Olivia and bounced off the couch, the phone safely gripped in her palm. “It’s Ty.”
“Oh, really? And what does he want?”
Me, she wanted to say, but thought better of crowing to Olivia. “He wants me to come over.”
“Wait a minute.” Olivia got slowly to her feet and planted her hands on her hips. “We seemed to have skipped a few steps. What haven’t you told me?”
Jill dropped her gaze and walked into the kitchen for a glass of water. Olivia followed closely on her heels. “He’s interested.”
“So we’d already concluded. What happened, Jill? Don’t make me string this out of you.”
“He came into the office a couple of days ago and one thing led to another and he kissed me.”
“A couple of days ago?” Olivia drew one sharp breath through her nose. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Tommy caught us and asked us not to say anything to anyone. He thought it might encourage his other employees to consider workplace romance a good idea.”
“So you didn’t tell me?”
“I wanted to, but I knew you’d have a hard time keeping it to yourself and I didn’t want to put you in a bad spot with your brother.”
“How very considerate.” Olivia ripped open the refrigerator and pulled out a soda. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me.”
“I’m telling you now,” she offered.
Olivia stuck her chin in the air and looked away. “I really want to be pissed at you right now, but I’m too curious. How was it?”
“It?”
“The kiss!”
“It was...” she closed her eyes and the memory of his lips on hers ignited a small fire in her chest, “fantastic. He’
s incredibly skilled.”
“I’ll just bet,” Olivia smirked. “So what are you still doing here? Go, make out with the fantastic kisser. One of us should get lucky.”
“I can’t. I’ve got to run.”
Jill’s phone beeped.
Want some company? he asked.
Hummm. She knew he was in shape, but she couldn’t imagine running with him beside her. She really wanted to see him, and yet she wanted to say no. But saying no might make him stop asking, so—
“Are you going to stand there all day scowling at your phone or are you going to answer him?” Olivia asked.
“He wants to run with me.”
“Is that code for something illicit?”
Jill wrinkled her nose at Olivia. “No, gutterbrain. Run means run.”
“So what’s the big deal? I bet he looks great in a pair of running shorts. Maybe he’ll run shirtless.”
“I’ve never run with anyone I’m attracted to.” An image of Lyle in college running a few steps ahead of her flashed through her mind. He’d motivated her to increase her pace, lengthen her stride, and nearly pull a hamstring. “It seems like a bad idea.”
“Why? You insist on running every day, God knows why, and Ty wants to spend time with you. So go run, get all sweaty, and then maybe share a shower after?”
“This is why I didn’t tell you.”
Olivia laughed. “You know I’m just kidding.” She nodded with her head at the phone in Jill’s hand. “What are you going to do?”
“I guess it wouldn’t hurt to try.”
Olivia swung an arm around Jill’s shoulder. “That’s my girl.”
***
Ty pulled over at the small grocery store in the heart of the Lower Fork, stalling. He could use some more cereal, but he didn’t want to get too far up the mountain if Jill took him up on his offer of a run.
He reached for his phone as he put the truck into park.
I’m game if you are, she texted. Meet me here in 20?
Bingo. He rifled through the clothes he kept in the back seat, found a pair of basketball shorts and his running shoes, and figured changing in the grocery’s restroom was the best plan. He’d just reached for the door handle when his phone rang.
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