From the corner of my eye, I see Ridge’s truck rolling beside me and hear his window rolling down. I don’t stop walking though, and I don’t turn to look at him either.
“Go away, Outlaw,” I say, taunting him—because who names their boatEastern Outlaw? I mean, for real.
Even if the name is pretty hot …
“Get in,” he calls, sounding much less than impressed.
I tap my chin thoughtfully. “Hmm … let me think about it. Nah, I’ll pass,” I say, cringing inwardly because I’m sure Victor would kill me if he found out that I rejected a ride from one of the key people I’m supposed to be getting close to for this land. I can’t help myself though. I already thought the man was a dick, and after last night, when he played me like a fucking piano … yeah, no way am I getting in the truck with this motherfucker.Hell no.
“Look, my mom is watching,” he practically growls. “So, if I drive off and leave your ass walking, she’ll show up at my house later and tear me a new asshole.”
I turn toward him, still keeping my legs moving as I trudge along the paved driveway and laugh. “You mean I get to turn you downandmake your mom mad at you?” I give him a little smirk. “Consider me sold.”
His eyes narrow, and there’s absolutely no humor on his face. “I’ll throw you over my shoulder and strap you in the front seat of my truck, Fireball,” he warns me with a narrowed gaze. “Do not tempt me.”
I look forward, knowing that if I can just get around the corner, his parents won’t be able to see any of what’s about to happen, and so I won’t look like a lunatic. I’m not getting in the truck with this man—especially not after he made me feel like a complete fool last night. Over my dead body will I allow myself to look like a fool again. Because that’s what Ridge Adams does—he makes me turn into a fucking idiot.
I walk a bit faster and crane my neck to see that the wharf is no longer in sight. When I glance at Ridge, he glares.
“Don’t even think about it,” he hisses, knowing exactly what I’m about to do.
I’m not going to let this man throw me over his shoulder when I could just walk the whopping half of a mile back to my rental house. Ridge is not the one I need to be focusing on to get this land. In fact, he’s the only one I know I will never get anywhere with when it comes to sealing this deal.
So, I do what any sane woman would do when an asshole of a man is driving alongside her—even if he is insanely good-looking.
I run.
I run really freaking fast and hope that if I cut through the woods, it’ll connect to the rental’s driveway, and I can get inside and lock my door, all before Ridge Adams catches up to me.
“What the fuck?!” he calls behind me.
The faint sound of a truck door opening and slamming shut has me picking up my pace. I don’t think he’d chase me, but then again, he just threatened to throw me over his shoulder, so who actually knows?
Seeing a small opening through the woods, I dart off the driveway and head into the trees. I hear his feet crunching right behind mine. My heart races so hard that my chest actually hurts, and my legs suddenly feel shaky from the anticipation. I can’t explain this feeling that’s filling my body, knowing he could catch me at any given second. It’s like fear …
And excitement.
I’ve had a lot of clients, but this love-to-hate shit we have going on? This is a first. And hopefully a last, too, because it’s extremely inappropriate.
I turn around for a split second to see he’s almost caught up to me, but when I look forward again, I see my own driveway is less than ten feet away.
I’m nearly there, just a little further and—
My thought is soon interrupted when my foot catches on a tree root, and my body begins to launch forward.
I brace for impact, though I’m pretty sure the embarrassment is going to hurt much more than my body hitting the ground. But as I’m about to smash into the cold earth, a set of rugged arms wraps around me, pulling me backward to a hard chest, covered in a thick sweatshirt.
Even once I’m back on my feet, Ridge’s arms remain around my waist. My chest is heaving, and I don’t even know if it’s from running, almost falling, or being this close to a man I truly can’t stand.
“Jesus Christ, you’re fast,” he murmurs, huffing out a breath against the back of my head.
I hate the way my skin tingles and how butterflies take flight in my stomach when he’s so close. I don’t even know this man; all I know is that he listens to his mother, he seems to enjoy being on his boat,andhe’s a douchebag. Other than that, we’re strangers, and yet, every single time we’re remotely close, my legs turn to limp noodles.
I step forward to pull out of his hold, but instead of releasing me, he spins me to face him and plants his hands on my upper arms.
He gazes down at me, his blue eyes cutting mine like a knife. My brain threatens to go foolish again, but I fight it off, knowing that he’s toying with me, just like he did the other night.
“Thank you so, so much for grabbing me like a damn stuffed animal, asshole,” I grumble, glaring up at him. “You do realize you’re, like, twice my size, right?”
