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Instead of answering, he exited the Jeep and walked around to open her door for her with a smile.
Chapter Seven
Hannah was forcedto follow Conner, who still refused to answer her questions, down a dirt path that led to a wooden dock. Five steps confirmed the dock was elevated several feet over muddy, murky marshland. The wooden path looked endless as it ran into an island of trees. She knew they were close to the Potomac River but had no idea what was located in the wooded island.
“Is this where you get your revenge on my brother and feed me to gators?”
“There aren’t any gators this far north. Too cold,” Conner said over his shoulder.
“I’ll carry the cake for you,” she said, jogging to keep up.
“No chance.”
Soon they were submerged into the island forest, and the temperature fell several degrees cooler. The only sounds were of their sandals on the wooden slats and insects. It was peaceful and beautiful.
“How have I never been here before?”
Suddenly, the sound of steady thumping came up from behind her. She gasped and stopped in her tracks. A woman with earbuds jogged by them, not paying them any mind, then disappeared up ahead in the windy path.
Conner’s striking face covered in his bushy beard was softened by his silly grin as he stood waiting for her.
“I’m fine,” she said, swatting at him to keep walking.
“A little jumpy this morning, but you are fine,” he said over his shoulder as he moved ahead.
She had a spectacular view of his athletic legs, firm butt in khaki shorts, and shoulder muscles visible under a casual white T-shirt. The man was the definition of eye candy. Although she was surprised to find him at her door that morning, she didn’t mind at all. Even though she knew she should. It had taken all her willpower not to answer his first three calls, and by the fourth, she’d lost her ability to ignore him for another minute.
“Where are we going?” she called, feeling more frustrated about wanting to be with him than the mysterious walk he was taking her on. “Can we at least slow the pace?”
Stopping abruptly, he transferred his bag to his right arm while waiting for her to catch up.
“I’m sorry. I was just worried I’d have to hog-tie you to get you to walk with me. I didn’t realize the promise of this cake would be enough to get you to follow me into the woods.”
He slid his arm around her shoulders, pulling her into his body heat. His warm hand moved along her bare arm, pushing a shiver along her skin. He smelled delicious, like a man dipped in a creamsicle. Her own version of kryptonite.
“It’s cooler in the trees. I’ll warm you up.” He kept his arm around her in the intimate hold, forcing the right side of her body to press along his.
It was soothing and tempting. Forcing her to imagine how it might feel to press her entire body against his, her softness against his hard muscles.
“Why do we need towels if we’re not going swimming?” she asked, well aware that her voice quivered.
“So inquisitive. These are all great questions. You should have been a detective instead of a paramedic.”
His eyes glinted with mischief, and instead of pushing him away, she allowed his arm to remain wrapped around her. Here in this forest, no one could see her enjoying his company. His pace had slowed to match hers, and she would pay a large sum to know what he was thinking, but she was too terrified to ask. Instead, she stayed quiet.
Finally, there was a clearing, and the trees opened up to a wider path, revealing the river out ahead of them. A few more steps led to a large observation deck area and more stairs down to another dock. Dozens of one-man sailboats, paddle boards, kayaks, and pedal boats were scattered in the water as far as her eyes could see.
“We’re going on a boat ride?”
“Sort of. We’re testing out the pedal boats to see if we think they would make a good addition to the movie night. The owner said he’d donate the use of the boats as part of the fundraiser and even deliver the boats to the fishing port dock on the night of the event.”
“When did you manage to work all that out?”
“Don’t act so surprised. I made some calls. I want these fundraisers to be successful too. The kids deserve a new community center, and testing out the boats gives me time to convince you to be my date for movie night.”
Unable to fight the bubble of laughter at his charming smile and nonchalant approach, she elbowed him and moved down the dock. There was a group of pedal boats tied together; each boat was in the shape of a different animal: swan, duck, frog, turtle.
“I vote for the swan,” she said.
