Page 36 of Roughing It

The weight of his words crushes me. The kiss between us was a tiny taste, a nibble from a feast I long to gorge myself on. But something is holding him back. So, with a sharp laugh, I gift him the chance to back out of the emotional tangle this conversation is weaving. “Okay. So what? The kiss was to shut me up?”

I silently plead for him to pick up the small olive branch I’m offering.Spar with me, Bear. Push back.

The uncertainty and sadness disappear, replaced by the grumpy frown. “You were yammering on. Seemed like the quickest way to make you stop.”

Grinning at him, I say, “So I didn’t eat any breakfast, and my guide abandoned me without lunch. Any chance you’ve got dinner planned?”

When he stomps into the kitchen, I know we’ll be okay. I study the lines of his broad back, and the memory of our kiss sears me. I want more. But Hudson can have it his way.

No more kissing—for now.

CHAPTER NINE

hudson

I watch Blakely eat the dinner I made for us. She keeps stealing glances at me, but since I can’t stop staring at her, I catch her each time.

What the hell was going through my mind when I kissed her like that? And why do I want to throw all the dishes on the ground, lay her out on the table, and do it again?

I hadn’t expected her to follow me when I ran, but I should have. Something I’ve learned about Blakely Bradshaw? She’s not one to back down.

When she called me out, eyes ablaze, cheeks flushed, it was too much to resist. I wasn’t lying when I said it seemed like the best way to get her to shut up, but I would be if I said I wasn’t dying to taste her fire. I have no business getting involved with this pampered, spoiled, superficial, beautiful, fiery, clever, sharp-tongued woman. But for the first time in years, I wish that wasn’t the case.

It’s been six years since Paige left me, and my engagement ring, high and dry for the glitz and glamor of a town with more than two stoplights. Her parting shots—how I’ll never be morethan a small-town mountain man—play in my head like a broken record.

But then the song changes, and all memories of Paige drift away like smoke. I’m left with Blakely’s real laugh, her bright, toothy smile, the glossy shine of her hair. The way her eyes trailed over my body when she pulled back the shower curtain. The way she bit her lip, as if she needed a physical barrier to keep from putting her mouth on me. The press of lips to mine, her soft moan in my ear, the crush of her lush body against my firm one.

Fuck.

How the hell am I supposed to stay away from her? She’s everything I shouldn’t want—a city girl more at home in shops and fancy restaurants than in the forest—but I can’t ignore the pull between us.

And she feels it, too. The kiss we shared said more than words ever could.

“Earth to Hudson!” Blakely waves her hand in front of my face.

I grunt and shake my head. “Huh?”

“Eloquent as always. I complimented you on dinner and asked what we have on the docket for tomorrow.”

“Need to make up for today. Get those last baseline assessments done.”

Her snort makes me smile in spite of myself. “Please. I’m the lowest of the low in all the things.”

“You did pretty good with the BB gun.”

“I showed those paper men who’s boss, didn’t I?”

When she flexes her thin arm, I fight a chuckle. “Do you have a lot of practice with guns? I can’t imagine there are many places to shoot a BB gun in the city.”

She frowns. “No, there aren’t.”

I wait for her to say more, but she doesn’t. Instead, she getsup from the table and dumps her leftover food into the trash and her dish into the sink.

“I’m going to sit on the porch for a bit and reply to comments. Have to keep the BBs happy.” She smiles, but there’s a tightness to it.

Whether it’s because of the turn our conversation took or because she thinks I’ll judge her for the social media shit, I can’t say. I’d ask, but she’s already gone.

I last twenty minutes.

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