Wrong for You (Before You #3)(11)

“Is that your way of warning me not to overindulge?”

“Hey, do what you want. It’s your stomach.”

“Did you pack anything else for us to eat?” he asked, patting her backpack lightly.

“Nope. Not a single thing. It’s only a three hour hike.”

“Well, I’ll have to take my chances because I skipped breakfast.”

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

“I hereby absolve you of all blame from any stomach problems I may or may not encounter as a result of overindulging. I haven’t had huckleberries since I was a kid so I can’t promise anything.”

Violet pointed up the hill on the side of the trail. “Here they are.”

Alec scanned the tangled bushes dotted with petite, almost black berries.

“Eat away,” she said as she stepped around him and climbed up the hill.

His eyes skated over her body as he followed her up the hill. Her long, toned legs sucked him in and he had a hard time concentrating on anything except what it’d feel like to slide his hands along their silky length. He groaned inwardly. He couldn’t spend any more time pining over her. They could never be together.

When they reached the top, they stopped at the same bush and he started popping the berries into his mouth one by one. They tasted similar to a blueberry, but a little sweeter. “I forgot how good these are.”

“These ones are perfect, not too red, not too bitter,” she said as she dropped a few into her mouth.

She closed her eyes, a faint smile on her lips as she savored each berry, rolling it around in her mouth before she swallowed. Watching her was more entertaining than eating, so he leaned back against a tall pine tree and folded his arms across his chest, his eyes devouring her. “It’s so quiet out here. I’m used to all the traffic and people in LA. It’s strange how the absence of noise almost has its own sound,” he said when she finally looked at him.

She nodded. “That’s why I hike here. I hardly ever run into anyone. It gives me time to think without any distractions.” She dumped a handful of berries into her mouth, letting out a soft moan as they exploded on her tongue. “Are you done already? I thought you were hungry,” she said as she wiped her mouth self-consciously with the back of her hand. “You’re making me feel uncomfortable stuffing my face.”

He laughed. “Just watching you and taking in the scenery.” She frowned slightly and then shook her head like he was a complex riddle she didn’t understand. That was fine because he didn’t understand himself most of the time, especially when he was around Violet. She was definitely getting under his skin, making him want more than he knew he should for too many reasons to name.

“Okay. I’d hate to let these berries go to waste. They’ll be gone next weekend.” She slid the straps of her backpack off her shoulders, set it on the ground and unzipped the front section.

“What are you looking for?” he asked sliding his back down the rough bark of tree to sit on the ground.

“I think I have a few plastic bags in here.” She pushed her sunglasses on top of her head.

“What do you need those for?”

“With one or two small bags, I could make huckleberry muffins for the kids at the Foundation and bring them in on Monday. I might even have enough for my personal favorite—huckleberries pancakes.”

“For the kids?”

“Muffins for the kids, pancakes for me.” She pulled out a bag and held it up for him to see. “I found one.”

“Save a few muffins for me,” he said, tilting his head toward the sky, letting the warm mountain sun soak into his skin.

“Catch,” she said, tossing one empty bag at him. “You fill that one and I’ll fill this one. The bushes are so full we’ll be done in twenty minutes.”

Reluctantly, he stood up and brushed the dirt off the back of his shorts. “Who said I wanted to help?” He didn’t mind helping. In fact, he wouldn’t mind helping her bake the muffins, but he kind of liked his view of her legs from where he sat. Without question, she had the most striking legs he had ever seen—long, not too skinny, and just the right amount of muscle that told him she hiked and exercised on a regular basis, but not so much that her legs had that over-muscled, trying too hard appearance. Then there was her hair. His fingers itched to get all tangled up in her pale silky strands. He loved the way her hair brushed the side of her face as it danced in the mountain breeze.

Pausing, she looked over at him. “You volunteered to help at the Foundation for a month and I need your help picking these berries, so get going. I have plans this afternoon so I can’t be out here all day.”

“I didn’t know volunteering meant you could boss me around for the entire month whether I’m at the Foundation or not.” He tossed a handful of berries into the bag, along with a couple shiny green leaves.

“Hey,” she said, dipping her hand into the bag and tossing the leaves onto the ground. “Just the berries, not the entire bush.”

“Sorry, Miss Emerson.” He flashed her a properly contrite smile. “What are these big afternoon plans that you’re so worried about?”

She didn’t look at him as she continued to pluck the berries from the bush. “Are you prying into my personal life?”