Page 13 of High Side
“I did.” Brittany sank down to where her chin was just barely above the water. “Now this is the ticket for sore muscles.”
“Yeah, you worked it hard today.” Kylie’s chin dipped. “You know your stuff.”
Okay, that felt damn good to hear. Brittany puffed up some, but she’d been told more than once she was a little cocky, so she just let it go at, “Thanks.”
“What do you think of Joshua?”
Oh, shit. That was a loaded question. Brittany had worked with Joshua today on the river, and she had opinions… He was a returning guide, though apparently he’d only been on for like a month last year. But she didn’t want to misstep. “I think he has some stuff to learn.”
“Yeah? Like what?” Kylie’s tone was casual, but it felt…intentional.
“Um. Well, he showboats a little. When he was running the raft today, he hit the rapids from an angle that would make a big splash and a huge buck, but we had two little kids in the raft. He should have backed it off, taken the middle road.”
“Sounds reasonable. That’s solid advice.” Kylie gave her a nod. “When kids are involved, you have to be careful.”
“Totally. I was trying to get a sixteen-man craft into position for the picture one time, you know? School group. I hit the bend in the river too fast, and it was like bowling pins flying out of the raft. I got fired, sprained my wrist, and damn near drowned a bunch of ten-year-olds. I’ll never forget that lesson.” Never. She’d been horrified by her own stupidity.
“Damn. That’s a hell of a wreck.”
“What’s your worst stupid moment?”
“I was on a float trip in Utah. Super still pool. This kid was annoying us all because he was bored, so I bumped him out of the raft.”
Brittany had seen it happen. They all did it if it was safe enough, just to break the tension and let the kids swim for a moment.
“So why was that dumb?”
“His vest wasn’t zipped all the way. He popped right out of it, sank like a stone, drank a lungful of river water. Almost killed him.” Kylie shook her head, her smile wry. “I got fired too. Came slinking back to Colorado with my tail between my legs.”
“Oh, dude!” That was hard. “So are you a local?”
“Yeah, sort of. I grew up in Gunnison.”
“Ah. Right. That’s where I went to school. No wonder you went to Mesa.”
“To get out of town? Yeah. Though I go back every so often for half and half salad.”
“Oh my God, Mario’s. We hung out there so much.” Brittany loved the lunch specials at that little Italian place in Gunnison, up by the Blue Mesa.
“So you think you’ll like summering here?” Kylie leaned back, the water pouring off her breasts, the nipples hard in the cool air.
“Uh.” She lost the plot there for a minute. “It has potential.”
“It’s a good spot. Really. Has a lot of stuff to do, some good food places, but not too much rat race. Super small town atmosphere.”
“I can see me getting along fine.”
“I can too.” Kylie eased back down under the water, teasing her.
She licked her lips, floating a little closer. “Yeah? That’s good to hear.”
“You seem like you…have the right interests, hmm?”
“I think so.” Brittany grinned. “I’m definitely interested.”
“Now, that’s good to hear.” Kylie pushed over to be right next to her. “So am I.”
Okay, tingles shot up her spine, then headed back down to her belly. She reached for Kylie, her fingers landing on Kylie’s arm, tracing a line down that tanned skin.
