by Marina Adair
“You sure? Because the look you’ve been sending me all night tells me I should cover my nuts, because something’s changed.”
“I owe her a crown, and then I’m finished helping her check things off.”
“Uh-huh.” Harris believed Ty almost as much as Ty did. “Well, it looks like I’m up then.” Harris pulled two frosty mugs out of the freezer and set them on the counter. “Did you see how she held on to Widow Maker? Imagine her on my bike.” He held up a mug. “Something nonalcoholic for the lady and a beer for her friend?”
Ty looked over his shoulder at Avery, who was looking back with a smile that wouldn’t quit. As if she was happy to spend her night right there in that dark booth with him, sipping ginger ale and talking about paper crowns—and his family. And not a single cell in his body was itching to leave.
Which was why he needed to end this now, before this chemistry grew legs and took them down the wrong path.
“Make mine a Flaming Pig’s Ass.”
Harris laughed. “I’ll make it a double.”
CHAPTER 10
A gentle spring breeze clung to the late-morning chill, awakening the flowers and melting the frost into drops of dew that sparkled in the sun. Taking in a fortifying breath, Avery shut the office window and settled back at her desk.
She had spent the first part of the week identifying tasks that needed to be accomplished before the inspection, and that morning dividing the tasks into three separate lists. One list covered the food and lodging details for the event, one covered equipment and supply status with details of numbers needed and who to order from if they came up short, and the final focused on the individual classes and staging locations.
The call with Cal-SAR, the California search and rescue organization, had gone great. Ty had convinced Lance that the lodge was more than capable of handling all of the needs for their yearly training, and he even managed to get a day for the second inspection on the calendar. Seven days from today.
Normally with that kind of timeline, she’d tell herself not to sweat the little details, but this event relied on executing all of the little details to perfection, so she was sweating.
She was also yawning. A side effect from spending her days lusting over Ty and her nights wondering when they were going to kiss again.
She was ready. He’d seemed game. They’d spent Sunday night talking and laughing, the connection growing until her heart was racing and the bar was clearing out. All of the signs had been there. The wandering eyes. The casual brushing of bodies. Even the not-so-casual touching of hands. So when he offered to walk her to her car, Avery had heard, “Let’s go someplace private.”
Only he’d walked her to her car, where they had more privacy than a grizzly during winter, and he’d leaned in slowly, her toes curling in anticipation, and he kissed her—on the cheek.
The cheek.
After three hours of verbal foreplay, the only heavy petting she’d received was a goodnight peck and him buckling her safety belt in place.
Sitting in her office chair, she stifled another yawn and reached for her cup, only to realize it was empty. She stuck her finger down to the bottom to get the last bit of hot cocoa and was licking it off when she felt a shift in the room.
“It helps if you actually put coffee in there,” a gruff voice, thick with sleep, said from the doorway.
Avery looked up to find Ty, leaning against the doorjamb in a pair of loose cargo pants, a half-zipper pullover, and enough bed head to make her feel not so alone in the sleepless nights arena. He was also holding a paper bag and a steaming coffeepot—which was filled with hot cocoa.
“Who needs caffeine when there’s chocolate and sugar,” she said, holding out her cup for a refill. “You should try it. It might do something for the scowl you have going on.”
“This isn’t a scowl. This is what it looks like when Dad disappears to go work on boats at three in the morning and doesn’t bother to tell my mom where he’s going.”
Avery could only imagine how scared Irene would have been—waking up to an empty bed and Dale gone. She could also imagine how hard that must have been on Ty. She wasn’t sure how much Irene had told him about Dale, but Ty had been home long enough to be putting together the pieces and realizing things were worse than they were letting on.
Irene could only hide Dale’s condition for so long, so it was good that Ty had come home when he had. Irene needed help and support, but right now it looked as if Ty needed some support of his own.
“Sit,” she said, taking the pot and disappearing into the break room. She poured two steaming mugs of hot cocoa, one topped off with whipped cream and a cinnamon stir stick. When she came back, Ty was still holding up the wall.
“You’re cute when you’re grumpy,” she said, opening his hand to slip the mug between his fingers. “Take a sip and I promise everything will look different. You might even smile.”
When he didn’t move to sip it, she took a sip of her own and then made a big deal over how good it was. He didn’t laugh like she’d hoped, no smile either, but he finally took a tentative sip.
“Well?” she asked, holding her hand out for him to sit in her seat.
“Not bad,” he said, setting the paper bag on the edge of the desk and taking a seat.
He went in for another sip, and Avery’s focus went to the bag, which was big enough to hold a dozen mysteries. A few came to mind: doughnuts, cookies, muffins from the bakery down the street. Oh, a slice of Irene’s pie. Maybe even a silver compass to celebrate her officially making it as an adventure guide?
Ty caught her staring at the bag, and she saw his eyes twinkle over the rim. When he pulled back he had a dot of whipped cream on his upper lip. His eyes never left her as he licked it off and then smiled. Something heated and real simmered between them.
“Told you it had smiling powers.”
“Yeah, pretty powerful stuff,” he said, all gruff and full of male appreciation. A tingling started in her belly and dipped straight to her toes.
“It’s even better snuggled under the covers watching the sun come up.” She held up her hands as if swearing on the Bible. “True story.”
He looked at her as if he’d like to be a part of that story, his gaze touching every inch of her mouth before returning to her eyes. “Maybe I’ll try it.”
“The morning cocoa or the view from my bed?” she asked coyly.
“I’d like to say both, but the second would end bad.”
“Everything ends—that doesn’t mean it will end badly,” she said.
He laughed. “Angel, you dig in and sink your teeth into everyone and everything that comes within your reach. I would bet you’d never let go of a single thing you didn’t want to in your life.”
“You’d be surprised,” she said and let that settle. Only, the silence allowed for a hollow feeling to build in her chest. She hated that feeling. It was cold and achy and, if given time, had roots, so she pushed it back where it belonged—behind the gratefulness of being alive.
“I’m not all that big on surprises, angel. And I don’t want to complicate everything,” he said quietly, then looked at the stack of files on her desk. He opened the first file and scanned the map she’d stapled to the flap. “What’s this?”
Jarred by the quick shift in topic, she sat back to collect her thoughts. She could give in and let him have this one, or she could ask him what she’d been dying to know for the past few days. “Is that why you didn’t kiss me the other night?”
He laughed. “You don’t do subtle, do you?”
“Waste of time, and I would rather know where I stand than sit around wondering and second-guessing.”
He thought about that for a moment then nodded. “Do you still want to be trained?”
“More than anything.” It was how she was going to make it to the top of Sierra Point when the weather changed.
“Then that’s your answer, because I don’t sleep with my trainees. Ever. It clouds judgments and makes
what should be easy decisions complicated. Complicated doesn’t work from two thousand feet up.”
“Things can only get as complicated as you allow them to get,” she said. “And complicated doesn’t scare me—it’s what makes living so exciting.”
He laughed. “Training you is enough excitement for any one man.” He lowered his voice. “And lady, that one chance kiss spun my world right off the map.”
There were several ways to take that comment, but Avery decided to focus on the positive. She’d never spun a man before, and knowing she’d spun someone as unflappable as Ty made her giddy. “Thank you.”
He shook his head, but he was grinning. “Who do I have on my schedule today?”
“That’s why I texted you to come in,” she said, grabbing an extra chair and sliding it next to Ty. “Gary came in today, said he cut his trip short because everything was slush.”
“More like Gary blew his slush fund on a game of craps and is broke.”
“He didn’t say that.”
“Didn’t have to. Guy lives his life fast and loose and lives to snowboard. If he’s back it’s because he’s broke. So it was either the tables or a woman.”
Avery stared at Ty. “Huh, he seemed so nice.”
Ty narrowed his eyes. “How nice?”
“Nice enough to bring me something from the Bear Claw Bakery. He brought me one of those sticky buns that are as big as your face and coated with a vat of icing. I was still licking my fingers when you came in. Said he’d bring me an apple fritter tomorrow.”
“Yeah, well, don’t get too attached to your morning fix. He’s a temporary solution and will be gone before you know it.”
“Like you?” she asked.
“Like me,” he said. “But I’m happy he’s here today. Harris offered to help me scout a place for the choppers to land for the hoist training, and today is his only day off.”
“It also frees up your schedule to meet with Brian. He called yesterday when I was closing up and said . . . um, it’s on a Post-it, right there on the monitor.” She reached across the desk to get the note, but they were seated so close her upper body brushed his upper body, and all kinds of sparks ignited.
A burst of heat rushed through her, and Ty plucked the note off the monitor and handed it to her, all business.
“Right. Thanks.” She took the note, noticing her hands were shaking. “He said the parts for the Coast Guard Delta were ordered and won’t be here for the inspection, but he promised it would be ready to go for SAREX.”
“That’s great.”
“He also said he was starting to check out the rest of the boats and should have a report for you tomorrow on exactly what is working and what it will take to get the rest in running order. And when he gets you the list of what needs to be ordered, you can add it to the spreadsheet I made. You want to see it?”
“Yeah.”
“It’s on my computer, so I need to—”
Ty leaned back. He didn’t move or switch seats, merely leaned back and gave her zero space to work the keyboard.
“Okay.” She reached across to move the mouse to awaken her monitor, and she awakened something much more dangerous. The only way to reach the mouse was to reach across his body, which made for some tight quarters. “I made a spreadsheet that allows everyone to track what needs to be ordered, what has been ordered, and what projects are completed. I broke it up by terrain, then class, then how many anticipated participants. This way nothing slips through the cracks and we don’t fall short.”
She scrolled down to find the rappelling gear section. “You went through the harnesses and emergency equipment, right?”
“Yeah, I have everything right here.” He lifted up his hips to pull a notebook out of his pocket, and when he settled back their thighs pressed together, and all of the oxygen in the room seemed to evaporate.
He flipped to a page in the middle and handed her his notebook. “This is the column to track rock rappelling harnesses, and this one tracks the air rappelling harnesses.” She filled in the spaces with the information, and it gave them an immediate tally of what was still needed.
“Wow, it even tells me who to call to order that particular item,” Ty said.
“I also included a few names of the first responders who are free to play a lost hiker for the K-9 teams. See? There aren’t many due to the short notice, but I’m getting creative to bump up the list total.” She flipped to the next spreadsheet. “Here is who I have so far. They are separated by department and availability.”
“Impressive. Beyond impressive,” he said, and when Avery turned to look at him she found their lips a breath away. “You are impressive.”
She felt herself blush. She’d received compliments before from her bosses, knew she was good at her job, but this was personal. He was commenting on her—as a person. She felt it. “Thank you.”
His eyes dropped to her lips, and he held up the paper bag he’d brought in and gave it a shake. “Do you want to know what’s in the bag?”
“Yes,” she whispered, and maybe it was the way his eyes twinkled with challenge under the brim of his ball cap. Or the way his battered jeans and black tee clung to his body in that real men get dirty kind of way that fried her brain. But one look at him, sitting there with that easy smile, and all she could think about was kissing him. And the bulge in his pants told him she wasn’t in this alone.
So she leaned even closer and said, “But I want you to kiss me more.”
“Tempting.”
“Like one of those sticky buns covered in icing tempting?”
“Even better,” he said, and then his mouth was on hers—soft and inviting and so damn confident she felt her toes curl up right in her pink hiking boots.
“Complicated is hot,” he whispered, upping the pressure. Avery had to agree—complicated had never tasted so good.
Kissing Ty was like chasing fire in a blizzard. One kiss and chills went down her spine while her body went up in flames. He tasted like chocolate, whipping cream, and the exciting start to a new chapter.
He somehow transported her back to what it was like before the diagnosis, before she knew life had limits and the world could fall apart in a heartbeat, before she knew how hard she’d have to fight for her happiness.
Only, right now she was beaming with happiness. Radiating it. She felt free and alive, like she wasn’t an adventurer trapped inside a broken box. And then she felt his hand slip down her back to cup her butt, and suddenly she was being lifted off her chair and onto his lap.
His hand slid through her hair, angling her head so he could deepen the kiss, take what he wanted. And she wanted him to take, to kiss her like she wouldn’t break in his arms. Like she was tough enough to withstand everything life could throw at her.
And more.
His hands were tugging at her shirt, and hers were pulling his hair, and it got her thinking—if this was his idea of complicated, she was ready to buy a ticket and jump on board. For as long as that train would take them.
Only just when his hands were getting some traction the phone rang. There was a brief pause, followed by more kissing, and more of that more she was dreaming about. She’d never considered herself greedy, and she knew she’d already had a sticky bun, but she wanted a cookie too.
A big warm cookie delivered by her back-to-nature Mountain Man. But the phone wouldn’t stop ringing, and it wasn’t the normal ring. In fact, three lines lit up all at the same time.
“I should get that,” she said breathlessly. “It could be a guest.”
“It could be a wrong number,” he said, taking her lips yet again.
Another line lit up, and with a frustrated groan Ty leaned back in the chair. “You should get that,” he said, but he didn’t sound happy about the interruption. Which made her smile.
“Sequoia Lake Lodge, this is Avery. How can I help you?”
“Hi, hon, this is Sheila down at the Bear Claw. I was delivering some pastries earlier at Sips and Splatt
ers for Grace’s morning watercolor class when I saw the ad you placed in the Gazette. It says you’re looking for volunteers for SAREX this year. Is that true?”
“The ad ran? Today?” Avery asked, doing her best to appear calm and collected.
“What ad?” Ty whispered.
She shushed him and turned around to stand, which meant she had to leave the safe bubble of Ty’s lap. Now that she was there she wanted more time. More kissing. More Ty.
But once again life interrupted her going after a life. And she didn’t think he’d want to pick up where they left off after he heard about the ad. Which was a great idea, one she’d planned on running past him before the ad ran. Only he’d been avoiding her, and she’d thought it was going to run in next week’s edition.
“It’s all the talk around town,” Sheila said, her voice so loud Avery pressed the handset to her ear to help contain the information from bouncing off the walls—and into Ty’s ears. “Anyway, some of the girls were wondering—not me, seeing as I’ve been happily married for forty-two years this July—if when they were rescued their big, strong heroes would be wearing those harness things that show off their butts?”
She turned to look at Ty, and before she could ask he said, “No, we do not. And no, we are not taking volunteers.”
“What was that, hon?” Shelia asked.
“Hand me the phone,” Ty said, holding out his hand.
Avery stepped away so he couldn’t grab it, then turned around so she didn’t have to see him glaring. It didn’t help she could feel his eyes boring into her back. “Hey, Sheila, let me put you on hold.”
Avery pushed the mute button but didn’t give up the handset.
“This is a great solution, Ty,” she explained. “Finding the few firemen and forest rangers who were off duty and open to playing victim was hard. Which is why I said I was getting creative. First responders cost money that we need for the new supplies and parts. Volunteers are, well, free. And available.”
“It is a great idea, and if you had asked me earlier I could have told you it’s more time than it’s worth,” Ty said. “Volunteers take a lot of planning. There are release forms, insurance in case someone gets hurt, and extensive preparations to make sure that all the extra bodies don’t stumble into places they aren’t supposed to be. They might come free, but it’s a logistical nightmare, trust me.”