Wilde Side

by Jannine Gallant

  Devin stared at the roof of the tent. “Liam Kennedy, the journalist from Political Spotlight, his brother-in-law, and the youngest guide, Roman something-or-other. What is his name?” She snapped her fingers. “Ingalls? No, Engel.”

  “You sure.”

  “Yes.”

  “What do you know about the guide?”

  “He’s young, and he seems like a decent guy. A little down on his luck. I like him.”

  “And the reporter?”

  “Liam thinks he’s more important than he is, and the rapids totally freak him out. He’s tolerable and decent at his job. I think the piece they’re putting together is going to be great.”

  “Walton really is okay?”

  “Yes. No ill effects whatsoever.”

  “Maybe you should pull off the river.” A rush of breath whistled through the phone. “I don’t like this at all. Damn!”

  “Walton would never agree. It was just an accident, Syd.”

  “We’ll see.” His tone was ominous. “I’ll look into those two, Kennedy and Engel. By the time I finish, I’ll know if either the journalist or the guide has a hidden agenda. In the meantime, you keep an eagle-eye on our boss.”

  “I will. I’ll talk to you later.”

  “You damn well better call if anything else happens. You hear me?”

  She let out a sigh. “How could I not. Good night, Syd.”

  Devin had put her cell away and settled into her sleeping bag when the zipper on the tent slid down. A dark shape pushed through the opening.

  “Devin?”

  “I’m awake.”

  Sawyer kept his tone low. “The poker players called it a night. I wasn’t sure if you’d welcome me in here or not. You looked kind of pissed earlier.”

  She scooted over as he crawled deeper into the tent. “I wasn’t exactly thrilled with the way the evening turned out.”

  He yanked his sweatshirt over his head. “It doesn’t have to be over yet.”

  “No?” She pushed the button to illuminate her watch. “It’s almost midnight.”

  “What if I make it up to you?” Jerking off his jeans, he unzipped her sleeping bag, slipped inside, then gathered her into his arms.

  “Just like that? Seriously?”

  He pulled back. “Should I leave?”

  She sighed. “No, I was just disappointed, and then Syd called…”

  He ran his thumb across her cheek. “Who’s Syd?”

  “Walton’s campaign manager. It doesn’t matter.” She snuggled closer. “Did you say something about making it up to me?”

  “I’m sorry about the poker game. I’d rather have been doing this.” His lips covered hers as he kissed her senseless. Between them, his fingers worked nimbly to unbutton the flannel penguin pajama top before parting the material.

  Devin shivered as her bare breasts rubbed against his chest. She wrapped her arms around his neck as the last of her annoyance with him dissolved. When he finally pulled back a couple of inches, she spoke softly, “I missed you today.”

  “You sound surprised.” He stroked the hair away from her face.

  “Maybe a little. I didn’t expect to become so attached—emotionally. Not this soon, anyway.”

  “Well, I missed you, too, and not just because I can’t keep my hands off you.” His lips settled over hers in another long, drugging kiss that ended when she wriggled out of her pajama bottoms.

  Devin pressed closer, the full length of her body molding to his as her skin heated. “Doesn’t feel like you came in here to talk.”

  “Maybe not.”

  Eyes closed, she nuzzled her nose against his neck and breathed in the scent of cool night air and something woodsy and primal. Tingles started in her chest and spread downward, settling deep in her core. Maybe creating a deeper bond with this man was just asking for heartache since she fully intended to walk away at the end of the rafting trip, but she couldn’t seem to help herself. Not when he slid down to lick a damp trail across her breasts then continued lower.

  “Sawyer?” She drew in a harsh breath and gritted her teeth.

  “Hmm?” His tongue darted into her navel.

  “You’re killing me.”

  “Good.”

  “Can we…” Her body jerked as he crawled back up and pressed deep inside her.

  “We can. We definitely can.”

  Chapter 8

  “Back paddle. Back paddle!”

  The raft dipped and plunged as water shot high into the air. Devin tightened her grip on the paddle and followed Sawyer’s orders, straining her arm muscles against the fast current. Adrenaline raced through her as the raft swung then pitched between rocks in a crazy descent. The final bump rattled her teeth as the raft leveled out.

  “That’s the worst of it. You can all breathe now.” Sawyer’s laugh blended with the rush of the river as they cruised into calmer waters. “Great job. Haystack Rapid will definitely test your skills.”

  “I’ll say.” Charles pointed ahead with a hand that wasn’t quite steady. “Looks like Roman’s crew came through all right. How did Jon’s group fare?”

  Devin pushed dripping hair out of her eyes then turned to glance upstream and responded with a thumbs-up. “All good.” A grin formed. “Although based on Liam’s expression of pure terror, you’d think they just battled a monster instead of a river.”

  Yancy snorted. “This isn’t the first time I’ve worked with Kennedy. The guy’s afraid of his own shadow—until he’s cornered. Then he fights like a crazed maniac.”

  “Everyone should have a survivor instinct.” Sawyer shot a lazy smile in her direction. “Right, Devin?”

  Her insides quivered as her gaze locked with his. Visions of the previous night flashed through her mind, sending heat rising to her cheeks until she was certain they matched the color of her coral life vest. She cleared her throat and tried to remember what they’d been talking about. “Oh, uh, sure. Survival is always key.”

  More like self-preservation. Getting all wrapped up in Sawyer physically was one thing. Engaging her emotions was quite another. The line between the two grew blurrier with each passing day. Right now the knowing tilt to the corners of his mouth told her he was also thinking about the previous night. Probably remembering the way he’d run his tongue over the curve of her breast then all the way down to—

  “Watch out!”

  The raft smacked into a rock, toppling her forward seconds after Charles yelled the warning.

  Sawyer jerked upright then pushed against the boulder with his paddle to steer them back into the current. “Sorry about that.” His gaze met Devin’s as she crawled up from the bottom of the raft. “I got distracted for a minute there.”

  “I wonder why?” She straightened the life vest over her bathing suit.

  Sawyer pulled off his sunglasses to wipe them on his shirt. Green eyes gleamed with amusement. “I can’t imagine.”

  Devin settled in to enjoy the warm fall day as they floated deeper into a canyon and navigated a quick series of rapids. Rock cliffs towered high above beneath an azure sky. The stunning scenery stole her breath, but regret dispelled some of her pleasure. The following day would be their last on the river. The thought of saying goodbye to Sawyer made her chest ache. She straightened and pressed her lips together. Which was exactly why she wouldn’t think about it right now.

  Hours later, the heat of the day had set in as Sawyer guided the raft through yet another set of rapids then edged up to the shore. “Time for a break. From here, we’ll hike to Veil Falls to take a look at the pictographs in the cave behind them. They’re pretty interesting.”

  “Sounds fun.” Devin jumped over the side of the raft and dunked under the surface. Cool water flowed around her heated skin. Heaven. She came up smiling.

  The other two rafts docked beside them, and everyone splashed to shore.

  Sawyer crossed his arms over his chest and gazed up the hillside at the fa
lls, which cascaded in a thin stream from a high rock ledge. “The trail is fairly steep, but I don’t think any of you will have trouble with the hike.”

  “I’ll pass.” Dwight strolled over to a patch of sand and tossed his lifejacket on the ground. “I don’t need to see a bunch of stick drawings five-year-olds could have done.” Using the jacket as a pillow, the boy leaned back and closed his eyes.

  “Your loss.” Sawyer glanced away. “Anyone else staying here?”

  Devin tuned out the discussion that followed and unfastened her life vest. She dropped it in the raft, then retrieved her pink ball cap and added another layer of sunscreen to arms and shoulders tanned to a golden brown. By the time she’d exchanged her water sandals for the pair of hiking shoes she’d stowed in a waterproof bag, and grabbed a water bottle, most of the others had headed up the trail following Jon’s lead.

  “You coming?”

  She nodded and smiled at Sawyer. “I wanted to avoid the crowd.”

  “Smart. Can I keep you company?”

  “I was hoping you would.”

  They strolled slowly side-by-side, letting the excited voices of the others in the group fade in the distance. Their elbows bumped as the trail narrowed.

  “So, last night was…”

  Devin’s breath caught in her throat as she thought of words to describe the marathon lovemaking session. “Creative? A few of the moves we tried were surely worthy of a contortionist.”

  His laughter rang out in the still afternoon air. “You surprised me a couple of times with your extreme flexibility. Just imagine if we had a real bed instead of a sleeping bag to work with.” He twined his fingers through hers and squeezed. “But, the word I was thinking of was memorable.”

  Pressure built in her chest. “Something to keep you warm on those long, lonely winter nights on your ranch?”

  “I’d rather have the real thing than a memory.” His eyes were sober as he met her gaze. “Surely we can work out some sort of compromise to see each other.”

  “Do you want to move to Washington?”

  “No, but…” He kicked a loose rock off the trail. “You mentioned you might be looking for a career change. A new job could take you away from DC.”

  With her free hand, she rubbed her breastbone as the pressure increased. “What’s the nearest city to your family’s ranch, Sawyer?”

  “Cody isn’t too far.”

  “Any idea what the population might be?”

  He shrugged. “A little under ten thousand, I think.”

  She winced. “That’s not a city. That’s a town. Not a very big one, I might add. We discussed this before. Different life styles. Different goals for the future.”

  He kicked another rock, a larger one, and winced. “That future you envision obviously doesn’t include me.”

  “I’m trying to be realistic.”

  “Fair enough. You’re okay with walking away the day after tomorrow? Leaving me isn’t going to bother you, even a little.”

  Her grip on his hand tightened. “I didn’t say that. I didn’t say I wouldn’t miss you.” She let out a long breath. “I didn’t say this would be easy.”

  “I suppose that’s something.”

  “We’ve only known each other five days.” Her voice cracked a little. “Am I supposed to agree to a huge, life-altering change based on a relationship that hasn’t even lasted a week? I don’t notice you offering to uproot and move.”

  “No, but you mean a lot more to me than the vacation romances we talked about. I’m willing to fly to Washington to see you. I want a chance to spend more time together to find out if a few sacrifices would be worth making.” He ran a hand through his hair then let out a harsh breath. “Christ, Devin, I already care about you more than any woman I’ve met in a long time. I don’t want to simply give up on that. On us.”

  “Wouldn’t visiting each other for long weekends just prolong the inevitable? We both know that unless one of us is willing to make a major lifestyle adjustment, in the long run this won’t work. We won’t work.”

  “So, we go at it like a couple of horny rabbits for the next two nights and pretend everything is just terrific. Then you hop on Walton’s jet and never look back.” His grip on her hand let up, then tightened painfully. “Hey, maybe we’ll see each other at the wedding if Griff and Ainslee decide to tie the knot. We can pick up right where we left off—in bed.”

  “Or not.” With a hard yank, she pulled her hand out of his and stopped walking. “Why’re you being such a jerk? We both knew how this would turn out before we slept together.”

  “Because I’m falling for you, that’s why. Saying goodbye is going to hurt.” He fisted his hands on his hips. “Shit! I didn’t mean to get into this right now. I wanted to spend a fun afternoon checking out the pictographs.”

  “Well, then, let’s go do it.” Her fingers trembled as she shoved them into the pockets of her shorts. “Unless you’re going to continue to insult me. In which case, you can take a hike…by yourself.”

  “I’m sorry.” Turning, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her against his chest. “I didn’t expect this to tear me up the way it’s doing. I lost it a little, and I apologize for being a complete asshole.”

  Some of the stiffness leached out of her spine as she rested her face against his neck. “I’m not unfeeling. You aren’t the only one who’ll be lonely and miserable for a while.”

  “Then can we at least try to work something out? Even if it does prolong the pain?”

  She nodded. The raw emotion in Sawyer’s voice made any other answer impossible.

  “I hope you have lots of miles saved up on your credit card.”

  His arms tightened. “Even if I didn’t, I’d still come see you.”

  She tilted her head back, needing to lighten the mood before she did something stupid like letting the tears pressing against the back of her eyelids slip down her cheeks. She cleared her throat. “Shall we go take a look at those cave drawings? Primitive art fascinates me. Although I have a sneaking suspicion the men didn’t let their wives decorate the cave. The pictures are always of guys hunting something big and ferocious, flexing their muscles while the women stayed home and did all the dirty work.”

  “You’ve got that right. We have a few Native American drawings in the caves near our ranch. You’ll have to come check them out…even if they are chauvinistic in nature.”

  “Very cool.” She pulled away then headed up the trail. “We should get moving. The others are probably already up there by now.”

  They were quiet as they finished the hike to the falls. The silence wasn’t exactly awkward, but the easy companionship they’d shared up until now was missing. Devin sighed, wishing there was a way to change the reality of the situation, knowing nothing she could say would help. At this point, taking a step back wouldn’t do any good. Not when her emotions were fully engaged.

  Sawyer pointed. “Here comes Yancy. Guess he isn’t filming in the cave.”

  Devin pressed close to the rock wall as the videographer passed them. “That didn’t take long.”

  “I looked then left.” Yancy resettled his ball cap then popped his gum. “It’s too dark to get any decent footage.” With a quick smile, he continued down the trail.

  Devin followed behind Sawyer then paused as they rounded an outcropping. “Beautiful.”

  The falls poured over a rock ledge in a rushing torrent to splash in a pool below. Sunlight sparkled off the sheet of water, while behind the falls a black hole gaped.

  She raised her voice to be heard over the roar. “Something about the sound of a waterfall soothes my nerves.”

  He glanced back at her. “Maybe it drowns out negative thoughts. I wouldn’t mind spending a night here to soak up the atmosphere. Too bad Gregor already has camp set up a little farther down river.”

  As they neared the cave opening, Jon emerged with Alex following behind him.

  “Wha
t happened to you two? We thought you’d stayed behind with Dwight.”

  Sawyer shrugged in response to Jon’s question. “We weren’t in any rush to get here. You heading down now?”

  The older guide nodded. “The view from here is spectacular, but I’ve seen enough.”

  Alex moved up beside him. “The cave was really cool, but I’m hungry.”

  Jon turned away. “We’ll go see what’s left over from lunch to snack on.”

  The boy edged by Sawyer. “I hope Dwight didn’t eat it all.”

  With a warm palm on Devin’s back, Sawyer guided her inside the cave. “Check this place out. The pictographs were done by the Sheepeaters who lived in the area up until around 1870.”

  Primitive drawings decorated the cave walls, some faint and hard to make out. Others were still distinct, despite years of weathering. Squinting in the dim light, Devin laid a hand against the damp rock beneath what was surely a deer or moose.

  “I wonder what the artist was thinking when he painted this on the stone?”

  Sawyer stepped closer. “Probably, dinner.”

  She elbowed him in the ribs. “Funny, but I sense respect in the lines of the drawing.”

  Charles approached from farther back in the cavern. “This place has a mystical quality to it.” His voice held reverence. “You can almost feel the spirits.”

  “I agree.” Devin smiled up at him. “Where did Walton disappear to?”

  “He’s around somewhere. Maybe exploring below by the pool. I think most of the others left already.”

  Devin moved away to study some of the other drawings. A hulking bear, a man with a bow and arrow, more deer… She let out a long sigh.

  “What’s wrong?” Sawyer rubbed his thumb over the curve of her cheek.

  “I miss this.” She waved a hand. “The cave has the same sense of timelessness I felt when I was working at the museum. Beauty and history blended in a splendid array for us to enjoy.”

  “There’s plenty of history in Washington. All those monuments…”

  “Yes, and I visit the Smithsonian as often as I can, but I’m not immersed in art the way I used to be, if you know what I mean.”