Page 11 of Raul
She pulled his tent poles out of her pack. “I’ll give you a hand.”
As she unfolded the poles and connected them, he eyed the tent corners. “It looks like it’s color-coded.” He scowled. “Even a useless prince can figure that out.”
“Okay, it’s all yours.” She handed him the framework of poles.
Dario and Pascal gave her slight smiles of sympathy before they went to work on their own tents.
To give Raul credit, he had his tent almost fully set up by the time Erica had unrolled her pad and sleeping bag in hers. Hers didn’t have a full vestibule or large rain fly, so it wasn’t surprising that Raul’s had required more time. But it was clear he didn’t want to be coddled, so she left him alone to manage the rest.
“I’ll get some water for dinner,” she said, retrieving a collapsible water bucket from her pack.
“I’ll go with you,” Raul said as he straightened from clipping the last tent corner to its foot.
She glanced toward Dario and got a nod of permission. He and Pascal had scouted all around the site before they unpacked their gear.
She led the way through the trees to the creek, walking a little way upstream to a quiet pool above a small waterfall. As she threaded through the rocks along the stream’s edge, fish flashed away in the cold, clear water.
Raul came up beside her and held out his hand for the bucket. “Do you trust me to fill it with water correctly?” His tone held an edge.
“Of course,Señor,” she said, to remind him that she was just doing her job by taking care of him.
His jaw tightened, and his nostrils flared as he exhaled. “Erica, I would prefer that you not treat me like a prince for the duration of this expedition. I am just Raul. I will carry my full share of the equipment and the work.”
Just Raul with two dedicated bodyguards. She almost snorted.
“With all due respect,Raul”—she emphasized his name ever so slightly—“I am your guide, which means that I am responsible for your well-being. That includes making sure you enjoy the hiking and are comfortable while camping.”And survive the rock climbing, God help me.“I am treating you like any other person I might be hired to escort.”
“So that’s why I have the giant tent, cushy sleeping bag, and extra-thick sleeping pad, which required you to carry my tent poles?” Raul said.
“Yes.” She gave him a teasing smile. “To make you feel better, if it rains, we’ll stow all our belongings in your vestibule because it has the most room.”
He raked the fingers of one hand through his thick hair, leaving it temptingly rumpled. “This is supposed to be a vacation for me, time away from being the Prince of Caleva. If I am to relax, you need to stop giving me special privileges.”
“Oh.” Now she felt in the wrong. “I’ll do my best.” Within the bounds of safety.
“Don’t look so upset,” Raul said, the angle of his jaw softening into a half smile. “You’re doing a great job, but I would like you to relax a little too.”
“I don’t do relaxing,” she said. “Adrenaline junkie, remember?” And she was on duty.
“That’s fair.” He thought for a moment. “Perhaps I could ask you to be more relaxed with me.” There was that insanely compelling smile, and it was directed at her in a way that was oddly intimate.
A little zing of attraction sparkled over her skin. Perfectly understandable and normal. He was a really good-looking man.
“Bien, I’ll think of you asun tipo normal,” she said without any truth. How could the prince ever be just a regular guy? He looked like a movie star and held the second most powerful position in her country.
“Muchas gracias,”he said before shaking the bucket open and dipping it in the water.
The stretchy fabric of his shirt outlined the muscles of his back and shoulders as they flexed with his motions. Erica couldn’t tear her gaze away from the impressive display, and a wash of heat surged through her. Not a good reaction. He was way out of her league.
She managed to look away just as he turned from the stream with the dripping bucket. A chime sounded from his pocket. He handed the bucket to her before he pulled out his satellite phone, tapping at the screen with his thumb.
“It’s from Yvette,” he said, going still as he read the message.
Erica’s attention was drawn to the slashing angles of his face, the straight blade of his nose, the winged eyebrows, and the sharp jaw. He looked like a Dragón, for sure. However, Raul’s charisma was polished and warm, while His Majesty’s was more aloof and authoritative. That wasn’t surprising, given their different roles.
But when Raul wasn’t being the perfect prince, Erica caught something darker underneath the facade. Like he didn’t sleep well at night. She shook her head at the thought.
“It seems as though a fair number of people would know about my trip here because of the special permissions necessary to visit this area of the mountains right now,” Raul said. “The park service itself, of course. The local police, just in case. The search and rescue team.” His lip curled a little in self-mockery. “I guess they don’t trust my rock-climbing skills. Beyond that, theCentro de Investigación del Dragón de Caleva had to clear the expedition first. Evidently, if dragons had been nesting near the trail, we would have been required to take a different route. Nor has anyone official been camping there.”
