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She flattened her hand against his heart, raised her head, and parted her lips.
Busted.
The victory was short-lived because his body responded, and damn if he didn’t want to wrap her in his arms and kiss that smart mouth of hers. Why on earth was he touching her?
Bad idea.
She exploded his senses, and she could deny the attraction all she wanted, but the pulse throbbing in her wrist? Not his imagination.
The last thing he needed to do was almost kiss her asecondtime.
Dumbass.
Let her think whatever she wanted. Talk about delusional, she owned the word. He tapped into his military training andflipped off all the breakers. Mission make-her-admit-it aborted. If she refused to accept his apology, he wouldn’t beg. Guilt gone. He’d tried.
Taking a big step back, he let go of her hand.
Chapter Eleven
Crystal pushed off Zach’s chest. Good God, she’d been leaning on him, almost begging to be kissed.
A second time.
Her cheeks stung, and she lowered her head. She didn’t know what to make of her reaction. He’d proved his point. All he had to do was touch her, and she melted.
She had to keep her distance from him. “I’m done with your games. Leave me alone and don’t follow me.”
With hot tears burning her eyes, she took off running again. Every footstep freed her and annoyed her at the same time. She shouldn’t have to deal with his antics. He’d apologized for almost kissing her and then tried to do it again. He toyed with her emotions and played her for a fool, having no idea about her past. She didn’t have the experience or energy to deal with him.
Of course, she’d had her share of tabloid boyfriends for celebrity shots, but they’d meant nothing. The guys had no interest in getting to know her. Her only worth was a possible boost in their social media status. She’d never even had sex. It wasn’t like she was saving herself, she’d just never wanted it. Her mother’s revolving door of druggie boyfriends who had alwaystried to grope Crystal had turned her off. She’d put a deadbolt lock on her bedroom door and worn earbuds to drown out the sick, guttural noises coming from the next room.
She picked up her pace, pumped her arms, and burned the memories to bits. Somehow, she had to get through the next two months with Grizzly.
Sure, she’d been attracted to a few guys in the past. That was nothing compared to this crazy chemistry or whatever the hell she had for Zach.
She glanced back. He’d followed her out of the woods at a distance, and now sat on his stupid UTV.
Asshat better not make one move in her direction. Maybe he realized she was safely out of the dreaded forest and would leave her alone. Her parched throat begged for water, but she’d refused a ride from him. She’d rather deal with the heat and thirst. The crazy roller coaster of emotions he drew out of her, not so much.
She ran until a cramp formed in her side, forcing her to slow down. Finding a stump under the shade of a tree, she sat and tried to catch her breath. Too bad Jenna was off the grid. Crystal could use a friend to talk through everything. She plucked some leaves from a vine and tossed them as she waited for the cramp to subside.
After a few minutes, she felt better. She jogged the rest of the way to the park at a slower pace.
When she reached camp, she grabbed her canteen from the cement slab, where she’d moved some of her equipment, and sucked down the lukewarm water. Ugh, how she missed ice.
She fanned her face and frowned at the two tents pitched at the neighboring pad with an SUV parked in front. Someone had arrived and set up while she’d been gone. No one in sight, but they sure had a lot of stuff. Bikes, a canoe, life vests, pots, pans, bags of charcoal, and other junk littered the area. It looked likeOutdoor World had puked next door. Who hauled around all that stuff and called camping a vacation?
“Murphy, stop!” A girl’s voice rang out, and Crystal glanced down the hill.
She gasped as a fox ran out of her tent, chased by a big, yellow lab, that bounded past a teenager calling to him.
The fox dashed into the adjacent woods, and the dog followed at a dead run.
Her pulse jumped. She sprinted down the slope.
Good God. What chaos.
She opened the flap of her tent and gasped again. Muddy paw prints covered her sleeping bag and blanket. A candy bar wrapper, torn to pieces, littered the floor. Her head throbbed. All this over chocolate? She’d just gotten the place cleaned up from the flood, and now it was trashed again.
