Page 19 of Smoky Lake

“I’ll just use my imagination, thanks.” Good lord, were they flirting? It had been so long since she’d done such a thing that she wasn’t sure.

Back to their current situation.

“Where on earth would we go, all the way out here? I’m not one for wilderness camping. You don’t happen to know any ice castles in the sky with rooms available, do you?”

“Matter of fact, I might.”

And there was that dimple again.

9

Before they left, Gil went back to the garden and checked out the plant he’d noticed earlier. Sure enough, its soil had been disturbed, and when he cut to the chase and yanked it out, he found a thick leather binder buried underneath it.

He didn’t take the time to search through it. If Ani hadn’t shown up so unexpectedly, he would have already moved on from here.

But he was glad she had. True, her presence made it hard to focus on things like cryptic poems and Victor’s research. On the other hand, her husky voice and warm smiles outweighed all those drawbacks. He wanted her around, it was that simple.

Back inside the Institute, Ani was taking one last photo of the view from the living room. “Your phone isn’t connected, is it?”

“It’s in airplane mode.” She drew in a breath. “You think someone could track my phone?”

“I’m sure someone could. I don’t know if anyone wants to. I’m just being cautious.”

“Good. Be all the cautious you want. Caution saves lives. I’m all about caution. In fact, there’s a big part of me that doesn’t understand what I’m doing here. It’s busy scolding the rest of me.”

He smiled at that. “I appreciate both parts. I’m glad you’re here. But I’m also glad that you’re careful.”

She flushed, her skin turning a dusky rose-brown, and tucked her phone into her jacket pocket. “Lead the way to that castle in the sky.”

This time, he let her carry her tote bag while he grabbed his gear and the little cooler she’d brought.

She helped him load their bags into the boat. He held the boat steady so she could climb in. Would she mind if he gave her a little boost, say, a hand on her hip? Or her round ass, which was encased in tight black jeans tucked into mud boots?

He restrained himself, though the urge to touch her was strong. Fixing his gaze on the toes of his own mud boots sinking into the sediment, he waited with gritted teeth until she was entirely onboard. When was she going to stop having this effect on him? He’d never experienced anything quite like it, and it annoyed him.

When she was settled, he untied the boat and climbed onboard. He left the outboard disengaged for now. “I’m going to paddle along the shoreline. We’ll be less visible that way,” he told her.

“I can help,” she said instantly. “My upper body strength would shock you.”

“Fine,” he said, more gruffly than he’d intended. He handed her the second oar. She shifted to the opposite side of the boat, while he handled the close-to-shore navigation. After a few strokes, they were able to coordinate well enough, although a kayak or a canoe would have been easier to handle.

“Should we take a canoe instead?” she asked, obviously thinking along the same lines.

“I want the option of speed.”

“Fair enough. Can you imagine if we got involved in a high-speed boat chase, like in a James Bond movie?”

A rustling in the woods caught his attention. He put a finger to his lips, and back-paddled to stop the boat. About fifteen yards away from them, a bear ambled out of the shelter of the trees. A black bear, which, if you were going to run into a bear, was preferable to a brown bear. Most black bears were on the shy side, but out here in the wild, many had never encountered a human before. This one seemed more curious than anything else. He lifted his head, tracking them with ancient brown eyes as they glided across the water.

“Is this where that speed option comes in?” Ani whispered.

He glanced her way, checking to see if the sight of a bear would make her panic. But she appeared awestruck instead. Her lips were parted, her dark eyes trained on the wild creature crouched by the water.

“We’re safe out here on the water,” he murmured. “Black bears aren’t generally aggressive, and they have plenty of food on shore without coming after us.”

“We’re not food?”

“No. They like fish and blueberries. They’ll defend their young, but they aren’t out here looking for a fight.”

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