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Too busy ogling the man wearing fitted Levi’s and a long-sleeved blue Henley, I nearly miss my brother’s question.
“Have you heard from Tate?”
“Eric,” I hiss as a warning. He swore to never bring up his name unless I brought him up first.
The sound of a throat clearing emanates through the speaker. “He’s been calling, Evie. He’s just worried. He also mentioned something ab
out mail he needs to get to you.”
I rub my forehead and sigh. “When I’m ready, I’ll get you a forwarding address. A PO Box. You can give that to him.”
“Okay,” he responds in a sympathetic tone.
Rhett stands beside my window with a thermos clutched to his chest. I hold up my index finger to him, and he nods.
“I have to go. I just wanted to check in. I’m doing okay, and things are looking up for me.”
A silence pulses across the line.
“You’d tell me, right? If you weren’t okay, you’d tell me? Because you have to know I’d want to help.”
A vise compresses my heart. “You took care of me from the time I was fourteen until I could stand on my own two feet. I know I can count on you for anything. But you have to know I need to figure out some things on my own.”
His coarse chuckle warms me. “It’s going to be hard on me, but I’ll try. We’ll talk soon, yeah? Love you.”
“Love you too. Send my love to Caiti.”
I stab the button on the dash harder than necessary to disconnect the call and swipe a rogue strand of hair off my forehead. A knock on my window jolts me into remembering Rhett’s waiting outside. For a second, I got lost in absorbing what my brother said, but I shake off the guilt. Rhett’s here to take me someplace fun.
We shared meals every night this week, and when he learned I didn’t have to work Friday, he promised to take me on my first official Arrow Creek outing. I’m both nervous and excited to explore the area I’m quickly developing a fondness for.
I step out and tip my face to the warm sunshine. Rhett controls the reins on this outing, but I hope we remain outside. It’s a perfect day to explore. Nights spent eating beneath the stars and sleeping in my car have instilled a new appreciation for the outdoors.
Rhett rakes his gaze over my body like a physical caress while inspecting my attire. For practicality purposes or his own interest, I can’t be sure.
“Do you have a tee under your sweater? It might get hot in a few hours.”
The rumble of his deep voice sends a thrill through me that I shake off. We’re just friends. If we don’t think about that night I let him bring me to a mind-numbing orgasm, that is. But even friends cross lines at some point or another, right? We just have to walk ourselves back to our respective sides.
I look down at my brown hiking boots, stylish but comfortable for walking. Taking in my black athletic leggings on the way up, I pinch my purple and gray flannel tunic away from my body. “I have something under this.”
He nods. “Grab what you need for Ghost for the day. We’ll take my Jeep.”
I slip a silk hair tie over the top of my haphazard messy bun and do as he says, eager as ever for the day to commence.
Ghost gets to ride in the back. As I slide into the passenger seat, memories of what happened the last time I sat here pummels me. A peek from the corner of my eye reveals Rhett’s oblivious to my thoughts as he busies himself with firing up the vehicle. Hopefully, that means he doesn’t notice my tiny squirm. A move I cover by buckling my seat belt.
“Don’t think I forgot what happened the last time you were in my car.”
My skin flames red. “That’s not a way to treat a freaking lady,” I snap. Half the ire stems from the instant sexual tension his words ignite.
The admonishment barely leaves my lips before he’s crowding into my space. He catches me beneath the chin and glides his hand to rest in a ring around my throat.
“I haven’t even come close to showing you just how well I know how to treat a lady.” He punctuates the words with a squeeze that steals my breath. Before he releases me, he drops a solid, singular kiss on my lips.
As quickly as it happened, he’s returned to his seat and pulls out of the space as if he didn’t just leave me reeling.
Twenty minutes later, we arrive at a designated parking lot at the base of a trail. Three wooden markers are visible from Rhett’s Jeep. Curiosity instantly piques at the empty lot before me. We appear to have the outdoors to ourselves.
