Page 74 of No One Wants That (Blitzen Bay)

BUTCH

“What are you doing in the hallway?”

She flings open the door—the panicked look on her face diminishing a little when she sees me.

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. I needed to get some things together for our sunrise hike and I forgot to take your key with me.”

“Our what?” she says, squinting at me. “What time is it?”

“Four,” I say, pushing myself off the wall. “And sunrise is in about an hour, so move your ass. We need to get to the peak by then.”

She rubs her eyes and looks up at me again. “What peak? Are you drunk?”

“You said last night that you wanted to go for a real hike with me sometime.” I push the boots into her chest. “Now is that time. Let’s go. Get dressed—in layers. It’s a little cold right now, but it’s supposed to get up to the eighties later today.”

“Go away.” She crawls back into bed and pulls the blanket over her head.

I whip it back down. “It’s much too late to make me go away.”

She sits up and looks at me with the pouty face again. “You’re insane. I’m not hiking this early.”

“That face is really sexy,” I say, leaning down to kiss her, “but no time for that right now. Get up. I’ve got coffee, food, water—everything we need. You just need to get dressed. These are Claire’s boots. She gave me two pair of socks in case they’re too big, but it looks like you should be good.”

When I grab her foot to measure the boot against it, she falls over backward into the pillows. She folds her arms over her chest and scowls at me. It’s so fucking sexy. It’s everything I can do not to dive on top of her.

“Kit,” I say, pointing at her. “You said last night you would behave. Get up. Now.”

“I only said that because I wanted you to keep sexing me.”

“Sexing you?” I say, chuckling as I pull her off the bed.

“Yes. I didn’t want to be denied,” she says, sliding her hands under my t-shirt, “well, all of this. And now, you’re trying to deny me again. Let’s get back into bed. We can exercise this way.”

“Hiking first,” I say, pulling her hands out. “Then this. Move it. Right now.”

“You’re still a tease,” she says, her scowl getting deeper. “And you’re way too eager for this hike. Are you trying to take me up into the mountains and kill me or something?”

“Yep,” I say, pushing her over to her suitcase. “You figured it out. Make sure you bring your pepper spray to defend against me.”

She looks from me to her suitcase and then back at me. “I didn’t pack hiking clothes. Please let me sleep.”

I pull out a pair of black, stretchy pants. “Do you have two pair of these? Wear both. And this sweater over a t-shirt. You can wear my fleece. I won’t need it. Maybe bring some shorts for later. Get dressed. We’re losing time.”

She grabs the clothes and hugs them to her chest. “Are you going to leave so I can get dressed?”

“Really? After what we did last night?” I plop down on the couch. “You just want me to leave, so you can lock me out. Nice try. There’s no way you’d open the door for me again and I don’t want to have to break it down. Get dressed in the bathroom if you’re suddenly feeling shy. Now, Kit. I’m not leaving without you.”

“You better have at least three cups of coffee for me,” she says as she stomps into the bathroom. She slams the door. “Three, Butch! Go get more if you don’t have it.”

“I have plenty. I even have cream and sugar if you can’t drink coffee like a man.”

“I’m a woman,” she yells. “You should have figured that out by now. And I don’t want to drink coffee like a man. Or do anything else like a man, especially if you’re my example.”

“You’d be lucky to do any little thing as well as I do it.”

I look up as she flings the door open. She’s halfway dressed and brushing her teeth. She snarls at me and then slams the door again.

“We really need to work on your morning attitude.”

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