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“You’re kidding.”
“Nope.”
“You’re a supervisor here.”
He tilted his head. “Not really. My parents thought it better if I worked on our ranch than the mine.”
“Is Austin your brother, too? I got a note from him saying a supervisor would be giving me a tour.”
“He’s the oldest of us five. While our dads are off, he’s the one in charge.”
Dads? Did they have different fathers? “Fine. Then I should do as he instructed. I would rather get my tour from a knowledgeable supervisor. Where is one?”
“Woman, you sure have a mouth on you. Sexy, too. God, your lips are so tempting.”
“Phoenix, focus. A supervisor, please.”
“Sweetheart, it’s me or no one.”
“Fine. Do you know your way around the mine?”
“Since I was five. Let’s get you outfitted.”
* * * *
Standing in one of the wide crosscut tunnels in the mine, Jessica nodded to herself. Wilde Mine produced tons of silver and other semiprecious metals every year, and still its safety standards exceeded the required minimums by a long shot. In fact, she wouldn’t be surprised if it had been the safest mine in North America, minus the recent accidents. Something just doesn’t add up.
“Well, you’ve seen the whole shooting match.” Instead of a cowboy hat, Phoenix wore a yellow hard hat, just like she was wearing. He looked damn sexy in it, too. “Any thoughts, Jessie?”
“I’ve got a lot more to look over before I can say.” She heard footsteps, echoing off the walls of the tunnel. Someone was headed their way. The tour had calmed her down. Work was always like that for her. Whenever her personal life went haywire, she’d drown herself in her job.
“I’m sure you’ll find the mine isn’t at fault in any of the accidents.”
The approaching person was getting closer.
“Trying to put a bug in my ear for the company line? Don’t even think about it.” The footsteps ended. She looked up and spotted the last person she wanted to see today. “Stop.”
Jackson shook his head. “Jessie, please. We can’t leave it this way.”
“That’s exactly how we will leave it. I may have had poor judgment last night and this morning with you. I promise that won’t happen again.” She turned back to Phoenix. “I’m ready to go to the surface.”
The ground vibrated as a conveyor vehicle headed into the tunnel. She stepped back to the wall, when suddenly the operator slumped onto the wheel. The giant machine jerked straight for her. Jackson leapt to her, and slammed her to the ground out of the way. Her head and back banged against the floor, sending sharp pain up and down her spine.
“Fuck!” Jackson yelled.
She saw that his leg had been lacerated by a piece of the vehicle’s metal. “Jackson, don’t move.”
Phoenix rushed to them, his eyes wide. “Lil’ bro, you okay?”
“Yes. Jessie, are you hurt?”
“No. I’m fine.”
Jackson rolled off of her. “Check on the driver.”
Phoenix nodded, and moved to the unconscious man. She watched Phoenix put his fingers to the driver’s neck. “He’s got a pulse.”
“Thank God.” Jessica turned to Jackson. His leg was bleeding. “Where’s the closest emergency kit?”
