Instant Temptation (Wilder #3)(41)

Her heart tugged hard, but she tried to hide it behind a quip. “Aw, your dental floss and Fritos. How sweet.”

“Smart-ass.” He went to take the bag back, but she grabbed it and hugged it to her. Then she shifted close. “Thanks,” she whispered, letting him see that she meant it. Going up on tiptoes, she set her hands on his biceps and kissed his jaw.

At the contact, he closed his eyes, as if her touch meant something to him. His arms came around her hard, and he pressed his face into her hair. They stayed like that for a moment, frozen in time, and it wasn’t until she finally pulled away that his eyes locked with hers.

And she froze again, barely breathing as his hand came up and trailed his fingers across her temple, over her throat, down her arm, where he took her hand and squeezed. “You’re welcome,” he said just as softly, then kissed her, his mouth warm as he lingered for only a second before pulling away. He reached into the bag he’d given her and showed her the mace. “Shake hard to activate it if you have to use it. And trust me on this—stand upwind.”

“TJ—”

He handed her something else. “A stun gun. Although if you get close enough to a bear or a pissed-off pack of coyotes to need it, you’d better mean business.” He showed her how to use it, then looked at her for a long moment. “Harley—”

“I’m going to be fine.”

“Yeah, you will. That’s not what I was going to say.” He waited until she looked at him, until she could see the seriousness of his expression. “Don’t be timid. If you feel like you’re being watched, or your instincts start screaming about anything, have this in hand. Promise me.”

She paused, then nodded.

“Give me your cell.”

“Why?”

He just held out his hand.

Quandary. She had a feeling she knew what he wanted with it. He wanted to put his number in. Thing was, she already had it, and didn’t really want him to see.

“Harley.”

With a sigh, she caved and slapped the phone into his big palm.

He flicked it open. “I want you to call me if you have any problems.”

“There won’t be.” She watched him thumb through her contacts and began to panic. He was going to see…

“Humor me.” He narrowed his gaze on her screen. “You have Stone and Cam in here, but not me.”

She winced and tried to grab the phone back. Better he think that than find the truth. “I’ll add you.”

But instead of handing her the phone, he punched in his number himself, then went to save it, only as she knew it would, it came up as an existing number. “Um—” she started. “I…”

Too late. He was staring at the screen. “I am in here.”

Crap. She bit her lower lip. “Yeah.”

He cut his eyes to hers. “Under Sexy Jerk?”

She finally managed to snatch her phone back. “Should have seen it last month when you brought that leggy brunette chick into Moody’s for a game of pool,” she said with a defensive jerk of her shoulder.

TJ was looking at her, eyes unfocused as he tried to remember, because apparently he knew too many leggy brunettes. Then suddenly, he smiled. “She was a client.”

That hadn’t seemed to matter. What had mattered was that they’d clearly just been riding mountain bikes, and still in their gear, they’d been all hot and sweaty and laughing. “You were listed as Butthead, then.”

His lips twitched. “Good to know I’m moving up in your world.”

“I’ll change it again.”

He didn’t look excited about that. “Yes, but to what?”

Good question.





CHAPTER 14


TJ caught up with Stone and the rest of the Search and Rescue team at Red Rock. Stone handed TJ a bag of gear and TJ dropped his pack and crouched down to reload. “What’s the story?”

“Two teens.” Stone’s expression was grim. “Vanished at first light two days ago. They were camping with their parents and another family.”

TJ grunted in acknowledgement as he worked. “They take anything with them?”

“Daddy’s flask.”

Shit. “Okay, let’s get this the hell over with.” When he looked up from preparing his gear, he found Stone staring down at him. “What?”

“Get this the hell over with? You love this stuff. Plus you weren’t even on a job. What’s the matter, we pull you away from something good?”

Since Stone knew damn well what TJ had been doing, he didn’t bother to respond.

In spite of the seriousness of the situation, Stone crouched at TJ’s side and took a moment out to give his brother some shit. “Would it have anything to do with a certain research biologist we both know and love?”

When TJ didn’t answer that either, instead just continuing to switch his gear from one pack to the other, shoving things in without taking his usual care, Stone grinned. “Aw, man, look at you all flustered. You’re really in a hurry to get back.”

TJ surged to his feet and shouldered his pack. “Shut up.”

Stone barked out a low laugh. “No can do. Plan of action?”

“Securing your big, fat mouth.”