Page 11 of Shielding Maya

"Of course not."

She smiled at him and he felt the heat climb up his body like a fire licking his toes.

8

Maya finished the last of her coffee and stopped short. She turned toward the large fire pit in the center of the clearing and dropped her empty cup in there for burning later. She turned and saw Jasiah walking toward her, a sexy grin on his face.

Her brows rose into her hairline. "Is that okay?"

He chuckled. "Yes. That's fine."

She let out a breath, grateful she hadn't done another thing to insult him. Turning toward the garden April had seen the senator in, she slowly stepped toward it. Her eyes scanned the area all around the garden. She circled the perimeter, a couple of times dropping to her hands and knees where the grass or vegetation was long to feel the ground for anything that might be there. She hoped a phone or some other communication device would be found. Tires on the road grew louder and she looked across the garden to see Myles' truck park next to her Jeep. She stood and swiped her hands on her thighs.

Moving toward Myles' truck, she noted Jasiah making his way toward them as well. Myles stepped from his truck and moved toward her. "Anything?"

"Not yet. I'm searching the ground around the garden. One of the residents saw the senator stealing food. She said he'd drop to the ground when he heard something, so I'm hoping he dropped a cell or something."

Jasiah's footsteps stopped next to her. She turned her head toward him and saw him grinning at her. "What?" She tried ignoring those butterflies swirling around in her tummy. It was silly, really.

He shook his head. "Nothing. My coffee's kicking in I guess."

She laughed. "It'll do that for sure."

Pointing to Myles, she made introductions. "Jasiah Weston, this is my brother, Myles Sager. Myles, this is Jasiah Weston. You didn't meet formally yesterday."

She stared as the two men shook hands. They were similar in many ways. Myles' skin was a deeper olive color and Jasiah was definitely lighter skinned. But, both had dark hair and dark eyes. They were of similar build, though Jasiah stood maybe an inch taller than Myles. Jasiah was rugged. Creases around his eyes from years of working outside. His hands were calloused, and strong. Years of wielding an axe would do that. His shoulders were broad, his thighs looked solid. He was an outdoor man in all aspects. Her nipples pebbled thinking about all the ways he was rugged. She inhaled a deep breath and dropped her head to stare at the ground between their feet instead of where she wanted to look. Thinking about Jasiah like that would get her nowhere. They were from different worlds.

Myles started the conversation with Jasiah. "So, I'm instructed to comb the woods and look for anything the senator may have dropped. Can you spare a couple of men who know the woods to help me? We're happy to pay for the services."

Jasiah nodded his head. "I have a couple men here who know the woods better than they know the cabins up here. No payment is necessary. As long as our peace treaty is in place and everyone is abiding by the terms of it, we're happy to help you out."

"Thanks."

She glanced up to see Myles grinning. "You going back to crawling on the ground over there?"

"Yeah. After that I have to search along the road, and then I'll come and help you."

"Sounds good."

Jasiah nodded towards her, then turned to Myles. "Let me go get the men to help you. I'll meet you right here in about fifteen minutes."

He strode away and she had to fight herself not to watch him retreat. Myles grinned at her, she braced herself for a snide remark, but nothing came.

"Want some help while I'm waiting for Jasiah and his men?"

"Sure." She swiveled on her heels and headed in the direction of the garden. Walking around to the outside of it, she pointed to the ground. "I was searching here. April, the woman who lives in that house right there..." She lifted her arm and pointed to April's house. She saw April's face staring out the window at them. She smiled and waved and April disappeared. "Anyway, April said she saw the senator eating food from this garden and when he'd hear something he'd drop to the ground. I'm hoping to find something in the grass or in the garden itself."

"Okay."

Myles dropped to his knees and began searching just as she'd been doing prior. They worked in unison for a few minutes when Jasiah and his men sauntered to the edge of the garden. Myles stood up, "Gotta go."

She waved as he joined them on the other side. She watched them shake hands and discuss what had to be done. Jasiah's eyes met hers more than once. A lot more. Which meant he likely noticed the same about her.

The heat crawled up her body and she blew out a breath which also blew her bangs away from her forehead. She heard his footsteps approach. They were steady and strong in their approach and her throat dried as he neared. He stopped and she glanced up at him.

"Do you need help?"

"If you don't have anything else to do. If you do have something to do, I can manage this. It's the easier of many things I'm usually doing."

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