Her lashes fluttered once. “You’ll never know.”
“Can I at least put my shirt back on?”
“Nope.”
And that’s when she winked.
Winked.
And turned away, sauntering to grab one of the sleeping bags from the ground, hips swaying like this was all part of her master plan to turn me into a shell of a man who dreamed of campfire cuddling.
I stared after her, pulse thudding in my neck.
If she was kidding, she was evil.
And if she wasn’t?
I was insomuch trouble.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Fifi
If anyone asked, I was completely calm.
Totally in control.
Not at all spiraling about the fact thatClarabelle was deader than a possum on asphalt, and I had just stranded a paying guest in the woods.
Nope. Not even a little.
“Roasting stick acquired,” I announced, snapping a decent-sized branch and stripping the bark with the edge of the cooler lid. “Now we turn our gourmet meal into flame-kissed perfection.”
The fire pit was a circle of rocks and whatever dry twigs I could scavenge while pretending not to panic. But still. Itlookedlike a fire pit now, especially with the crackling orange flames dancing in the middle and Ben crouching near it like we knew what we were doing in the woods. The truth was that this would be right up Sienna’s alley, but I was not my sister. I preferredtaking advantage of Honey Leaf Lodge’s amenities like toilets and showers…stoves…heat.
He glanced over his shoulder, amused. “So this was all part of the plan?”
I grinned as I slid the cooler toward me and pulled out two hot dogs in plastic wrap. “Obviously. I always plan ahead for seduction-and-s’mores emergencies.”
He sat back on his heels, arms resting on his knees. “You keep saying that like I’m supposed to believe you didn’t plan this whole thing.”
“Oh, I planned this,” I said, stabbing a hot dog onto the stick with flair. “I planned to get my truck marooned in a place with no reception, a shirtless guest, and a backpack full of snacks and regret.”
Ben chuckled and took the stick I offered. “You forgot the part where you offer to spoon in the world’s tiniest truck bed.”
Heat shot straight to my cheeks. “I said itcouldbe done. I didn’t say I was ready for the logistics discussion.”
He smirked, lips twitching as he stuck his hot dog into the fire. “Seems like a design flaw.”
“You would notice that.”
We sat in the warm glow of the fire, our knees just brushing, the scent of burning pine and sizzling hot dogs making the moment feel absurdly… cozy.
And somehow, still wildly electric.
I stole a glance at him as he rotated his stick. His face was lit by the firelight, brow slightly furrowed, but his shoulders looser than I’d seen them in days. He looked relaxed and almost content.
And I wasn’t going to lie. It felt good knowing I might’ve had something to do with that.
