Page 17 of Extreme Romancing in Idaho

Pausing mid-stride, she turned back to me and took a breath. “All right. I might need your help.” She said this like she’d swallowed vinegar. And then the dam broke. Words spilled out of her faster than I could catch them. “… I mean, this guy knows everything … even rappelled down Lincoln’s nose … extreme sports, and I kind of told him I did … big fat lie, and there’s only so much I can Google. Besides, I hate heights. I’m scared of pretty much anything that could result in my death. Honestly, I don’t know why more people aren’t terrified of these kinds of things. I mean, white water rafting. You could get sucked under the water and never come back up. Who would do that? And don’t get me started on BASE jumping—”

I grappled with the words lost in the jumble and tried to piece together a request. “You want me to take you BASE jumping?”

“That’s not just a no. That’s a H-E-double hockey sticks no.” Her teeth tugged at the nail on her middle finger. She dropped her hand away from her mouth. “I simply need you to make me sound more authentic. Teach me the lingo, what type of gear you use, that kind of stuff.”

“You want me to help you lie to him.”

“Kinda. Not really—Yes.” She stood and started pacing in front of the truck as she kept talking. “I want you to help me be more interesting to this guy. Like, keep his attention. You know?”

She—a woman who cared for her parents, ran a farm on her own, worked in the medical field saving lives, had a sense of humor, and on top of all that, had a face and body with curves that went on for miles—wantedmeto makehersound more interesting.

However, she did a horrible job presenting herself.

“Why do you want this guy so much? Why not break it off and try again?”

“I don’t know. I really like him. We connected.”

I’d trained for years to spot a lie, and Angie lit up like a red flashing light. “Liar. Try again. The truth this time.”

Pink rose in her cheeks. “Fine. I want to get married before Papa dies, and this guy shares my same goals.”

“You want to get married to this guy in a matter of months?”

“What’s wrong with that?”

“So many things, but let’s start with the obvious. Marriage.”

“Let me guess. You don’t believe in it.”

“Hell no. I believe in it. It just doesn’t work.” The majority of social structures in the animal kingdom were built on one male to many females. Forget penguins, swans, and the rest of the mating-for-lifers. “I’ll never get married.”

She flapped her lips together. “I doubt you’d ever convince anyone to marry you.”

“Oh. I could. You underestimate my powers of persuasion.”

“You’d have to use them to convince any woman to hitch themselves to …” She gestured with her hand palm up from the top of my head to my toes. “… all that.”

What? I was a gorgeous man. Women flocked to me. But I had to admit I was intrigued that Angie wasn’t one of them. What was it about me she found so repulsive? “And yet you’re asking for my help.”

“I’m only asking for your expertise. And maybe a smidgeon of that persuasion.”

Straightening my shoulders, I stretched my neck and kicked my legs out into a wider stance. I’d found my leverage. “Why would I help you? What’s in it for me?”

“My appreciation.”

“Nope. Not good enough.”

“A Christmas bonus? I’ll kill the fatted goose.” The silliness of her statement hardened in a sludge of sarcasm.

“Let the goose live.” I laughed. “I’ll help you, but I have some conditions …”

“I shouldn’t have even asked for your help,” she muttered under her breath.

I ignored her. “One: you have to stop trying to hurt me.”

“That’s a vague condition, princess. And besides, how am I supposed to stop a cow from kicking you in your jewels?”

Once again, I plowed on ahead without acknowledging her comment. “Two,” I paused to make sure I had her full attention, “you can’t fire me.”

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