Running Wild(Wild #3)(87)

“He did manage it. He called me, which is exactly what he should have done.” I’m not going to point out how panicked Reed sounded on the phone. “It’s what you would have had to do even if you’d been here.”

“Yeah, I guess. Still, I should’ve been there. He shouldn’t have had to do that alone.” He studies the small room we’re in. “I’m starting to feel guilty about him being by himself like this all summer. It can’t be good for him.”

“It’s only until you’re off for the season. And then you’ll be together for, what, seven months straight?” Minus the two weeks Tyler’s running the Iditarod. As I study the man’s handsome profile, I’m suddenly envious of a twenty-year-old boy.

“He’ll be sick of me by the end.” Tyler smirks. “I was thinking of hiring another handler. Give Reed a chance to make a friend or two. Maybe there’s an eager kid who wants to earn some extra cash.”

“I’ll keep an ear out for someone like that.” From the other side of the door, I hear a snuffling and then a soft whine.

“It’s Tank,” Tyler says. “He doesn’t like being away from Nala for too long. But he can stay out there. He’s already caused enough trouble.” Tyler watches the puppies for a moment before his head falls back against the barn wall, angling toward me. “Thank you.”

“Of course. It’s what I’m here for, right?” Under the dim lights, amplified by a glow from the heat lamp, Tyler’s features are somehow more alluring. I admire the shape of his lips and the cut of his jaw, the way his dark ash-brown hair rests in a slight wave.

He watches me studying him, and the sudden vulnerability in his expression brings me back to those stolen, intimate moments in my truck at the Ale House. Will that ever happen again? For a guy who doesn’t want to complicate his life, he has quite the track record of unintentional kissing.

And for a thirty-eight-year-old woman who doesn’t want to get hung up on false hope again, I seem to keep wading in deeper.

“What’s that look for?” he asks, his head tipped at just the perfect angle to lean in and kiss me.

I have to turn away before he reads my thoughts. Thoughts that don’t fit the label of friendship or business under any circumstance. “I should get going. I was supposed to be at Jed Carling’s place hours ago.”

“By the way, I’d say you’ve topped your first visit here with your entrance.”

I struggle to keep from smiling.

“Did you hesitate at all or just plow right through?” There’s a playfulness in his voice that confirms he’s not angry.

“I did stop.” I meet his gaze again, marveling at the golden flecks in his irises. We’re sitting shoulder to shoulder. He’s so close.

His left eyebrow arches with amusement. “You did?”

“Yeah. And then I reversed so I could take a good run at it.”

His chuckle is deep and contagious, and I feel it dance along my spine as I laugh alongside him. “I’m trying to picture that, and I can’t—no, wait. Actually, I can. You were probably biting the side of your bottom lip like you do when you’re determined to get your way.”

“I do not do that.”

His laughter only grows. “Yeah, okay.”

Despite my best efforts, my eyes drift to his mouth. “I didn’t have a choice. I didn’t know how bad it might be, and I couldn’t let something happen to her. I know how much that would hurt you.”

“So you raced over here and crashed through my gate to protect me—is that what you’re saying?”

And suddenly neither of us are laughing anymore as his words seem to pluck the humor from the air.

Tyler falters, then leans in to press his lips against mine. A shaky sigh escapes him, as if he’s been holding his breath until now.

There’s no excuse for it this time—no sleepy confusion, no ruse to avoid a confrontation. Tyler is kissing me because he’s chosen to, and realizing that drives me forward, leaning into him, teasing him with the tip of my tongue. He responds in kind, the taste of mint taunting my taste buds as we explore each other’s mouths, his cradling hand leaving Nala to curl around the back of my head, pulling my face in closer.

“Hey, Ty?”

Tyler breaks away with lightning speed.

Reed stands in the doorway. I didn’t hear the door creak. “You left the windows open in the truck.” He studies his boots. “The seat’s getting wet.”

A few beats pass before a curse slips out under Tyler’s breath. He fishes his keys out of his pocket. “I’ll go out and close it.” He pulls himself off the barn floor. “You have all your things, Marie?”

I tap the open black leather bag with my foot. “Almost.” I don’t trust my voice with more than that.

“Okay. I’ll meet you outside.” His gaze passes over mine, and the heat and playfulness I saw only moments ago is now shuttered. He ducks out, pulling the door shut behind him.

Leaving me reeling in a swirl of confusion and regret.

I shouldn’t have let that happen. Despite my resistance, we have become friends, and he’s already told me—twice—that it won’t go further than that.

And yet, he just kissed me.