Page 48 of Extreme Romancing in Idaho

“He lives this close to you?” Lili asked at the same time. She drove past him and looped back to park across the street, in an inconspicuous location where we could continue our stake out.

We both ducked under the dash as he walked to his front door, spinning his keys in his hand.

“What do we do now?” Lili rested her hand on her oversized abdomen.

Remi disappeared inside his home. I had to get in there, search through his garbage, find any clue to indicate why he was here.

“We wait. When he leaves, we’ll sneak inside.”

“You’re an expert in breaking and entering, are you?” Lili shook her head. “I don’t know, Ang. Following him is one thing, but breaking into his house could get us thrown into jail. I could lose my medical license.”

“Only if we get caught. I promise. We won’t.” I toyed with the binoculars’ strap hanging around my neck. “And no one locks their doors here.”

“Whatever.” Lili leaned against her seat. “I’m in. But you owe me a dandelion crown. Plus, Blake has been annoyingly protective since I got knocked up.”

“I don’t blame him.” Blake’s protectiveness umbrellaed everyone he considered family, including me. “And deal.”

Lili drummed her fingers against the steering wheel. “You—” she hesitated. “You must like this guy to go through all this trouble.”

Like him? No, not even a little bit. A blush flushed up my neck, contradicting my thoughts. The fact was, I’d come to rely on him far too much in both my farm and personal life.

“BS.” Lili pointed to the house. “I mean, have you noticed the muscles on him? And the way he treats your parents? Tell me you haven’t fallen slightly in love with him.”

I hadn’t told Lili about seeing his text messages after the plane or about his admission to being a player. She didn’t know about our deal. In any arrangement, I hated to be on lower ground than my opponent, which led me here, sitting across the street from Remi’s house on a Friday night.

Something in his house would give me the edge in our arrangement. “I’m so far from in love with him I may as well be in Antarctica.”

Lili’s raised eyebrow, slight tilt to her head, and way she looked at me through her lowered lids told me she didn’t believe me.

I turned on the radio and kept quiet. What was the point in talking if she wouldn’t believe me. It didn’t matter anyway. A few minutes later, Remi and Myles left the house. I couldn’t help but appreciate his going-out look. He’d shoved his Stetson over his thick, dark hair. He wore fresh jeans and a tight blue shirt with the top buttons undone … Yeah. Fantasies I’d gotten lost in the prior week resurfaced. I caged them in the back of my mind.

Maybe Lili had been right in calling BS, but attraction wasn’t close to love.

They drove off in Myles’ little car. We waited another few minutes. “Okay. Let’s go.”

I led the way across the miniscule, manicured lawn, regulating my pace so my pregnant friend could keep up.

She huffed up next to me in the alcove of the front door. “Woo, these babies take a lot out of me. That lawn felt like it was a mile long.”

I kept a lookout around the corner in case they’d return for a forgotten item while Lili turned the knob.

“Crap dammit.” She jiggled the door handle. “It’s locked.”

What? My heartbeat picked up its already racing pace. Who would go through the trouble of locking their door in small-town Idaho? The answer came to me before my question fully formed. Someone who’d spent their whole life in Dallas. Someone who had something to hide.

“Let’s go around to the backyard and check for open windows.” Glad I’d instructed Lili to wear dark apparel, I led the way to the back patio.

Testing out the first few windows with no success, I clenched my hands against my side.

“This place is Fort Knox.” Lili stuck her hand in her pocket and pulled out a red Jolly Rancher. “I guess we can call it a night and head back home.” She unwrapped the candy and popped it into her mouth.

“No. There’s one more window.” I pointed to the small bathroom window above our heads. “Here. Give me a boost.”

“Why don’t you boost me up there?”

“Are you serious? You look like you swallowed two watermelons. You wouldn’t fit.”

Lili folded her arms. “And I’m not supposed to lift anything heavier than a thing of paper towels. You should have thought about having a pregnant woman as an accessory to your crime.”

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