Not Really the Outdoor Type

by Paige Tyler

  She gulped her coffee. “Nothing.”

  “It’s obviously not nothing if you’re this upset about it.”

  “I’m not upset.”

  Gabby lifted a brow.

  Kendall got up and dumped what was left of her coffee in the sink, then rinsed out the mug. “Forget it. I shouldn’t have said anything.”

  “But you did, and now I’m curious.” Gabby came over to lean against the counter. “I’m going to keep bugging you until you tell me what it is, you know that.”

  Kendall groaned inwardly. She knew it. Her friend was like a dog after a damn bone sometimes.

  She put the mug in the drying rack with a thud. “He spanked me, okay? Jason spanked me.”

  Gabby stared at her for what must have been a full minute before she burst out laughing. “Spanked you?”

  Kendall glared at her. “Yes. And it’s not funny!”

  Gabby immediately made a straight face. “It’s not. You’re right. It’s just that I can’t believe he spanked you right there in front of everyone.” Her brow furrowed. “I can’t believe it’s not all over town already, either.”

  Kendall leaned back against the counter and folded her arms. “He didn’t do it in front of everyone. The store was already closed. We were the only two there.”

  “Oh. Well, that doesn’t make it quite as bad.”

  Kendall fixed her with a hard look.

  Gabby had the grace to look chagrined. “Okay, it’s still pretty bad. But from the sounds of it, you probably deserved it.”

  Kendall stared at her incredulously. “What?”

  Her friend shrugged. “Sometimes that LA attitude of yours can be pretty hard to take. It’s no surprise that Jason doesn’t have the patience for it.”

  “I don’t have an attitude.”

  “Yes, you do. You were halfway to becoming a snob back in high school, and it’s only gotten worse since you moved to LA.”

  “Thanks a lot.” Kendall walked to the table and picked up Gabby’s half full mug, dumping her coffee in the sink. “God, Gabby, I thought you were supposed to be my friend.”

  “I am your friend. Which is why I didn’t say anything to you.” She frowned at the empty mug. “I wasn’t done with that.”

  Kendall ignored her. “I have to get ready for work. I’m sure you can find your way out.”

  But Gabby followed her down the hallway and into the bedroom. “I thought you were going to quit.”

  “I am, but I can’t very well give Jason my resignation in my bathrobe, now can I?”

  Gabby didn’t answer. Instead, she leaned against the doorjamb, looking thoughtful.

  Kendall frowned as she pulled on her jeans and buttoned them. “Do you really think I’m a snob?”

  “Sometimes,” her friend admitted. “Like when you look down on Copper Canyon because we don’t drive fifty-thousand-dollar cars and live in multi-million-dollar mansions like people in LA.”

  Kendall grabbed a navy blue T-shirt from the drawer, scowling when she realized it was from Outdoor Outfitters after she put it on. “Not everyone in LA drives ridiculously expensive cars and lives in a mansion. And I don’t look down on Copper Canyon.” She started to pull off the shirt, then hesitated. “Do I?”

  Gabby nodded.

  Kendall flushed. “I don’t mean to. But even so, that doesn’t give Jason Maxwell the right to spank me whenever he wants. He even had the nerve to accuse me of deliberately doing all of that stuff—coming up short on the cash drawer and knocking over the rack of fishing stuff—because I was trying to get back at him for something he did in high school.”

  “Were you?”

  Kendall picked up a pair of hoop earrings from the dresser. “Of course not. What would I want to get back at him for?”

  Gabby shrugged. “For never asking you out, maybe?”

  “That’s not only ridiculous. It’s petty.”

  “That doesn’t mean you weren’t subconsciously doing it.”

  Kendall put on one earring, then the other. “High school was a long time ago. And even if I did still have a thing for Jason, I certainly wouldn’t go out with him after he spanked me.”

  Wouldn’t she? She wasn’t so sure. He might be a brute, but he was still an attractive brute. God, maybe she needed a therapist more than she thought.

  Or maybe she needed to stop being such a drama queen. Jason shouldn’t have spanked her, but she should have done her job better. Since they were both at fault, it might be easier to just forget about who did what and start fresh. Besides, if she quit, he’d only think she was a wimp who was too embarrassed to look him in the eye. Well, she was no wimp. Never had been, and never would be.

  She brushed her hair, put on some lip gloss, then gave her reflection a silent stamp of approval before grabbing her purse.

  Gabby frowned. “If you’re going to quit, shouldn’t you wear something else? Jason might want those shirts back.”

  “I’m not quitting.”

  “You’re not?”

  “No.” She led the way to the cabin’s main room and scooped up her keys from the kitchen counter. “As long as Jason doesn’t spank me again, it’s all good.”

  “Don’t you mean as long as you don’t give him reason to spank you again?” Gabby asked as she followed her outside.

  “That, too,” Kendall agreed.

  And really, hard could that be?

  * * * * *

  She wasn’t sure what to expect when she got to Outdoor Outfitters. An apology from Jason would have been nice, but he acted as if the spanking had never happened. While she wouldn’t have minded him begging her forgiveness, part of her was relieved he hadn’t mentioned it. Unfortunately, forgetting about it was easier said than done, especially when all she could seem to think about every time she looked at him was that strong hand of his smacking her ass. In retrospect, the spanking hadn’t hurt all that much. In fact, the sting had all but disappeared by the time she’d left last night. The embarrassment, on the other hand, wasn’t as easily forgotten.

  On the way over, she’d tried to convince herself that what she said to Gabby about not being interested in Jason was true, but that didn’t stop her from giving him sidelong glances when he wasn’t looking. Even now, sitting on the floor unpacking a box of camping equipment, her gaze strayed in his direction.

  He was talking with a customer about fly-fishing, and though she was only half paying attention to their conversation, his deep voice made her pulse beat a little faster. She thumped a water canteen down on the shelf with a groan. A discussion about fly-fishing was about as far from erotic as you could get, and all she could think about was how much she wanted to jump his bones. How the heck could she still be having those thoughts after what Jason had done? The man had spanked her, for heaven’s sake. She shouldn’t want to go out with him, much less sleep with him. Just because she’d decided to forget about the spanking he’d given her didn’t mean she’d forgive him for doing it.

  Determined to put thoughts of Jason from her mind once and for all, Kendall spent the rest of the day concentrating on her job. Other than having to bite her tongue when a pair of hunters came in asking for Buck Lure, the day was blissfully uneventful.

  Thankfully, so was the rest of the week. Not only did she do her job well, but she succeeded in ignoring Jason. Most of the time, anyway. However, there were times— like when he flashed her that devastating grin of his—that ignoring him was almost a monumental task. It didn’t help that all the other employees asked to get off work early on Saturday to go to some big party, leaving her alone with Jason for the rest of the day. It was damn difficult to avoid him when they were the only ones there. Closing time couldn’t come fast enough for her.

  Kendall was tempted to leave without saying goodnight to Jason, but her purse was in the back, and since she had to pass his office to pick it up, she couldn’t very well not say anything to him. She worked for him, after all. Besides, it would be rude.

  Telling herself that was
the only reason she stopped by his office, she knocked softly on the open door. Jason was sitting at his desk, and he looked up when she entered.

  “I just wanted to let you know I’m leaving,” she said quietly.

  He regarded her in silence for a moment, then nodded. “Thanks.”

  She didn’t know why, but for some reason she waited for him to say more. But he went back to what he’d been doing before she had interrupted him, Sighing, she turned and walked down the hallway.

  “Kendall!”

  Jason’s voice stopped her just before she got to the front door. She turned around to see him jogging after her. Crap, what had she done now?

  “I…um…” He ran his hand through his hair. “I was wondering if you’d like to go out dinner tonight.”

  She blinked. “Dinner?”

  He shrugged. “Yeah. I mean, I have to eat, and you have to eat. I thought we could grab something together.”

  “Oh.” She willed her traitorous pulse to stop fluttering, but it didn’t listen. Maybe she was closer to forgiving him for that spanking than she’d thought. “Sure. I’d like that.”

  The words were out before Kendall realized it, and once they were, she couldn’t take them back. At least not without looking like a complete idiot. Besides, this wasn’t a date. It was just two friends grabbing a bite.

  “Great. I need to finish up some stuff here. How about I pick you up at your place in about an hour?”

  “Sounds good.”

  “I’ll see you then.”

  He flashed her a grin and her pulse did that annoying flutter thing again. This wasn’t a date, she reminded herself. Just two friends having dinner together.

  Right.

  * * * * *

  Jason was grinning like an idiot as he walked back to his office. He wasn’t sure Kendall would come back to work after the spanking he’d given her. When she’d walked into the store the next day he fully expected her to have the sheriff with her so he could arrest him for sexual harassment. But Kendall had acted like it’d never happened, so he had, too.

  Pretending not to notice her had been a hell of a lot more difficult. He hadn’t thought about Kendall in years, but now that she was back, it was like she’d never left. When he was around her, he was that same lovesick senior he’d been in high school, only with a lot more physical urges. Considering he’d been full of raging hormones back then, that was saying something.

  Even so, asking her to dinner had been a spur of the moment thing. He sure as hell never thought she’d agree to go out with him. Apparently, that spanking he’d given her hadn’t done as much damage as he’d feared. Not that he regretted giving her the spanking, because she’d definitely deserved it. Maybe he was simply justifying his actions, but warming her bottom had done her some good. She’d certainly kept her mind on her work since he’d given her cute, little ass those few well-aimed smacks.

  That didn’t mean he’d spank her again, no matter how badly she screwed up. While she might have forgiven him for spanking her this time, he doubted she’d be so understanding if he put her over his knee a second time.

  * * * * *

  If this wasn’t a date, why was she still standing in front of the mirror wondering if the silky camisole top she’d combined with a pair of low-waisted pair of jeans, platform sandals and dangling earrings was sexy enough?

  Jason knocked on the door before she could answer that question. Giving herself one more look in the mirror, she ran her suddenly damp hands down the front of her pants and hurried to answer the door.

  Dressed in jeans and a dark blue button-up shirt, Jason looked like he’d just stepped off the pages of some fashion magazine. The kind where all the men were raggedly handsome and built like Adonis.

  He looked her up and down, his gaze lingering on her breasts. “Damn. You look great.”

  She laughed, way more pleased than she should have been by the compliment. “Thanks. So do you.”

  “Thanks.” He grinned. “You ready to go?”

  “Let me just grab my purse.”

  Like a lot of other people in Copper Canyon, Jason owned a four-wheel-drive SUV. As they drove, Kendall tried to picture her ex-boyfriend Keith trading in his sleek, imported sports car for one, and couldn’t.

  Jason took her to a small, family-owned restaurant that was popular with locals and tourists alike. She hadn’t been there since she was a kid, but she remembered that the food had been really good.

  With so many tourists in town, the restaurant was crowded, but surprisingly, the hostess showed them to a table right away. As Kendall took the menu, she glanced around the dining room and saw that it hadn’t changed at all since she’d left. With its exposed beams and unpainted furniture, the place had a rustic kind of charm that made it cozy and inviting.

  After the waitress took their order, Jason leaned his forearms on the table and gazed at Kendall across the table. “You never did tell me what brought you back to Copper Canyon.”

  She sipped her wine. “The advertising agency where I worked decided they needed to downsize.” She considered mentioning her break-up with Keith, but decided against it. Bringing up an ex-boyfriend was never a good idea, even if this wasn’t a date. “I thought about looking for another job, but I needed to get away from LA for a while.”

  “A while?” Jason frowned. “Does that mean you’re planning on going back to California?”

  “Not right away, but someday, yes.”

  The waitress came by with their dinner, and Kendall used the interruption as an opportunity to change the subject.

  “What about you?” She glanced at Jason as she picked up her fork. “Did you stay in Copper Canyon after graduation?”

  “I went to the University of Idaho. Got my degree in business.” His mouth quirked. “You don’t have to look so surprised.”

  She flushed. “I’m not. It’s just that I thought you would have majored in something more outdoorsy.”

  “I minored in wildlife management. Does that count?”

  She took a bite of her fish. “So you combined your two passions and opened Outdoor Outfitters.”

  “I heard that old man Cartwright was selling his place, so I bought it. Luckily, I had a lot of money saved up so I was able to renovate the building and do some expansion.”

  She frowned at him over her wine glass. In all the years she’d lived in Copper Canyon, she’d never been in Cartwright’s Supply Store. She vaguely recalled the place, though. “You used to work there after school, didn’t you?”

  His mouth quirked. “I thought you said you didn’t remember me from high school.”

  Her face colored again, though whether it was because she was embarrassed by what she’d said or the fact that she’d said it right before he’d spanked her, she wasn’t sure.

  Kendall looked down at her plate “I might not have been entirely honest when I said that.”

  When he didn’t say anything, she lifted her head to find him regarding her thoughtfully. “I always had a thing for you back in high school, you know.”

  She blinked, not sure she heard him right. “You did? Why didn’t you ever ask me out?”

  He gave her a sheepish grin. “Because I wasn’t sure you’d say yes. It was high school. Rejection was a fate worse than death.”

  Kendall shook her head. All that time she’d spent giving him covert glances in class, wishing he’d notice her. She almost laughed. “Well, you should have, because I would most definitely have said yes.” She looked at him from beneath her lashes. “I had the biggest crush on you, too.”

  It was Jason’s turn to look surprised. “Really? Wow. I had no idea. You always seemed so wrapped up in your schoolwork and stuff. I didn’t know you even knew I existed.”

  She laughed. “Oh, I definitely knew you existed. Believe me. I was just too damn chicken to say anything.”

  Jason reached across the table to cover her hand with his. The feel of it sent little ripples of pleasure running through her.

&
nbsp; “We’re not in high school anymore, Kendall,” Jason said, rubbing his thumb back and forth over her hand. “Now that we’re adults, we don’t have to worry about playing those stupid games.”

  Kendall said nothing, mesmerized by those incredible blue eyes of his. “Good,” she finally managed. “Because I don’t like them.”

  It was true. Unlike her friends back in LA, she never liked playing games when it came to men or relationships.

  Relationship?

  The word made her frown. She wasn’t looking for a relationship with Jason, or any other man. Not while she was on the rebound from Keith. Simple no-strings-attached sex, sure, but not a relationship. As she gazed across the table at Jason, she wasn’t so sure of that. It would be ridiculously easy to get serious with Jason.

  Luckily the waitress put a halt to any further discussion about it by interrupting to ask if they wanted dessert. Kendall didn’t, but chose the chocolate cake just so she could rave about how good it tasted instead of fantasizing about Jason. Although, in retrospect, that might not have been such, because every time she took a bite, Jason forgot about his piece of cake and let his gaze linger on her mouth. And that only made her think about kissing him. She let out a little moan around her fork. Across from her, Jason’s eyes glinted at the soft, throaty sound.

  When the waitress finally brought the check, Kendall didn’t know whether to be relieved or not. While part of her wouldn’t mind if she and Jason ended up in bed, there was another part that wanted more than no-strings attached sex with him. Problem was, she wasn’t sure if she would have the willpower to resist.

  Jason didn’t say much as they drove back to her place, which made it difficult to gauge what he was thinking. On the other hand, it gave her a lot of time to consider asking him to come in for coffee…or whatever.

  By the time they got to the cabin, she still hadn’t decided. Keys in hand, Kendall nervously tucked her hair behind her ear and looked up at up. “I had a really nice time tonight.”

  He grinned. “Me, too. Maybe we can do it again.”

  “I’d like that.”

  Kendall ran her tongue over her lips, torn between waiting for him to kiss her and grabbing him by the back of the head and planting one on him herself.