by Cate Masters
“Your training’s pretty impressive.” A chuckle, and he rubbed his chin. “The first time I saw you, I thought Kenny must have made a mistake. A wisp of a girl doing extreme stunts?” He laughed at the idea.
“A wisp?” She had more muscle than most guys.
He released a long breath. “You proved me wrong. Your endurance, your strength, flexibility…”
The word hit a nerve, and sent warmth cascading up her neck and across her cheeks. He hadn’t said it in any suggestive sort of way, but whew, the visions invading her mind deepened her blush. She could show him flexibility. All night long.
He noticed her stare, probably the same look his dogs gave him when they got hungry. Her hunger had a different edge to it.
Maybe a contagious one. He held her gaze, casual yet intense, like he wanted to be nowhere else. “So many hours of mushing tends to make people complain, but not you. Aren’t you tired?”
Not in the way he meant. “No, in fact I feel great. The sauna before dinner helped loosen my muscles.”
“Right.” His voice had turned dreamy, then he snapped out of it. “I should let you get settled in your cabin. You know which one is yours, right?”
“Yes, the third one from the left. I was there earlier.”
“Oh. Good.” He backed away. “Good night, then.”
Dammit, don’t go. She hunched her shoulders. “It’s too early to sleep.”
He halted. “You should rest for tomorrow.”
Not wanting to push him, she edged closer. “Couldn’t we go on an aurora hunt? I’d love to get a better view of the lights.” With him. Alone.
He glanced at the lodge. “But your team—”
“No. I meant you and me. Off camera. Does the lodge have a snowmobile we could borrow?”
He blinked, and then brightened. “I’ll ask.”
She tried to hide the elation zinging through her as she stepped toward the barn. “I’ll wait with the dogs. If anyone asks, you haven’t seen me.” She held a finger to her smiling lips.
A nod, and he turned and strode to the main building while she headed for the pole barn. No sooner had she settled into the dogs’ midst than a Psst! came from the doorway.
Buck peered around it. “Come on.”
At his hoarse whisper, she leapt up with a laugh. “Coming.” Why she tiptoed, she had no idea except that it added to the playfulness. Fun. Wow, how long had it been since she had any real fun?
They rounded the barn to the back, where the snowmobile sat.
He put on his goggles, her a set, then climbed on and inserted the key into the ignition but paused. “It’s not top of the line. The noise might attract attention.”
“Then you better go fast.” Adjusting the goggles, she slid behind him.
“Okay.” He revved the engine. “Then you better hold on.”
Yes, the best invitation she’d had in a long time. His down parka puffing in her face, she managed to clasp her hands around his middle as the vehicle surged forward. On the turns, she let her body’s movements follow his. The glacial air cut into her cheeks, an excuse to burrow into his back. Such a wonderfully warm cocoon with her hat on and hood up.
“You okay?” he called over his shoulder.
She nodded against his coat and pressed her legs against his. Not especially smart to go out at night without ski pants, but so far so good. Very good.
The snowmobile slowed, engine more a purr than a roar.
“Looks like a good spot.” From within his parka, his voice rumbled in her ear.
Disorienting. She hadn’t gotten this close to anyone since… No. To ground herself, she opened her eyes. Glowing bands of pink, red, and purple filled her vision. “Oh my.”
He twisted toward her. “Nice display tonight.”
Buck’s sonorous baritone sounded even better when he spoke softly. It had an intimate quality.
Stop it. A reminder to release him. “Nice? It’s spectacular.” Colored light danced across the sky in shifting bands. “Amazing.”
“Yes, they are.”
Anyone else would’ve made fun of her, but he was all sincerity. “If I lived here, I’d be out every night to watch.”
“They don’t happen every night. But yeah, I get out as often as I can.”
“You’re so lucky.”
A grunt. When he heaved a long breath, she was afraid he’d announce their time was up, they had to leave. But he kept watching.
So wonderful to share it with someone and not feel the need to speak. Not to have to narrate for the camera. The show had given her an excuse to interact with people from across the world, and she’d always be grateful, but nothing could compare to moments like this.
He peered over his shoulder. “Warm enough?”
“A little chilly,” she admitted.
He patted her leg. “Get up a sec.”
Much as she hated to, she stood and hugged herself while he opened the container behind the seat.
“Aha.” He held up a blanket. With a flick, it fluttered open. He laid it around her shoulders.
“Aren’t you cold too?” She’d love to share, snuggle under the cover with him.
“No. Not really.”
Such a gentleman. “You must be. You don’t have ski pants on either. Here.” She sat sideways on the snowmobile and opened the blanket.
A moment’s hesitation and he huddled beside her.
“Much better, right?” She preferred his warmth over the blanket’s.
He sent her the briefest shy glance. “Right.”
Great, now she’d made him uncomfortable. “Sorry I dragged you out here.”
“No, you didn’t drag me.” He eased away to study her. “Why? Do you want to go back?”
Abandon this lovely peace? And him? “No. Do you?”
He shook his head. “I’m good.”
“Good.” Maybe she had pushed too much. Why did he have to be the pilot’s guy? He seemed too sweet for her. She huddled up but avoided touching him.
“You’re still cold.” He looped an arm around her and drew her to his side. “Better?”
If she could breathe. She seemed to have forgotten how, and how to talk, so she nodded.
With a quick grin, he turned his attention back to the sky.
The tightness in her chest unwound after a few minutes. Most would find it hard to be uptight in this peaceful setting, but she was. She did her best to avoid looking at him.
After a few moments, he said, “I don’t get it.”
“What?” Good, an excuse to study him, interpret his expression. Or try to, in this dim light.
His slitted eyes held mischief. “Why did you want to ditch your friends?”
“You mean Gina and the guys?” Were they her friends? Or merely coworkers?
Grin widening, he made a duh expression.
Good question. She’d never done anything like this before. “I needed to get away for awhile.”
He turned serious. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong.” Except for everything about her life.
Scrunching up his mouth, he shook his head. “You’re upset.”
“I…” I don’t know what I am. “Needed some quiet time.”
“I can tell you’re stressed out. Which is perfectly understandable. You have a demanding job.”
Funny, he seemed to be blabbering to keep the conversation going. “A bit.”
“You came to the right place. Nothing but quiet here.”
A low howl echoed from the woods.
He wrinkled his nose. “You know, except for the occasional rowdy wildlife.”
A chuckle burst out. Why she found that funny, she couldn’t explain. Once she started laughing, she couldn’t stop.
Another amused glance. “What?”
The way he said it, like they should know what the other was thinking, sobered her. So did the crinkle around his eyes, almost a smile.
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“Oh, my God. I can’t even remember the last time I laughed. I mean really laughed. Thank you.” A weight had lifted from her, and she might float away.
“For amusing you? You’re welcome.”
“For everything,” she clarified. “I’m sure we’re not the easiest people to lead through the wilderness.”
He chuckled. “I’ve had worse.”
“No way.”
He nodded. “A family of five. Manhattanites.” He said the word as if no further explanation was needed. “Three kids, nine and under. Spoiled brats, including the parents. They whined so much, they had the dogs joining in.” He tilted his head and howled softly in a long, mournful sound.
Something plucked insider her, like the strings of a harp playing a beautiful chord. With his lips puckered, the teasing expression… she found the combination irresistibly sexy. The kind of sexy Melanie preferred. A guy who could laugh at himself, and at others without being mean. A guy who didn’t take life so damn seriously. Like you do?
“Worse whiners than Hayden?” she teased.
“Way worse. Believe me, you’re a dream team.”
Hardly. “I appreciate your generosity.”
“I mean it. I’ll be sorry to see you go.” His smile faded as he met her gaze.
Raw emotion churned deep. She found it difficult to say, “Me too.”
In what seemed like slow motion, he leaned in and touched his lips to hers.
The physicality of the touch startled her. A connection that kept her in its hold, unable to move, caught in a swirl of emotions. When he eased away, everything in her reached for him again. Need and want ignited her blood. Clasping his head, she unleashed years’ worth of pent-up desire. Nothing else existed except the incredible sensation of his lips moving against hers. Itching to ditch her gloves and touch his skin, she pressed closer.
He leaned back and stared with wide, disbelieving eyes.
A different sort of shock held her in place. Oh, no. He didn’t want to. “Sorry. I’m so—” She scrambled up. The blanket fell to the snow and she lunged for it. “Can we go back?”
“Melanie.”
He sounded so apologetic. He thought her desperate and didn’t want to hurt her feelings. “I need to go back.” She couldn’t listen to it. Not the old you’re a nice girl but…speech. Not the it’s not you, it’s me.
“Mel—”
“Now. Please.” Why wouldn’t the damn blanket fold into the compact square it had been? After several attempts, she fumbled the cover into a semi-neat semblance and handed it to him. “Let’s go.”
A sharp inhale and he took the blanket, tossed it inside the container, and got on the snowmobile.
She waited until the engine roared to life before sheepishly sliding behind him. No part of her touching him. One hand gripping the back of the seat, the other held down her hood to keep the intense cold from freezing her face. No chance of that happening. During the entire journey back, embarrassment kept her cheeks plenty hot.
Such an idiot. Coming here was supposed to be about Pete. A last-ditch effort to reconnect, not attack the tour guide. The guy with the psycho girlfriend. Tonight taught her two things. One, Pete was irretrievably and permanently gone. Two, she needed to move on, in ways she hadn’t even realized until now.
Chapter 8
Coffee. The rich scent had lured Buck to the open dining area where he poured a cup, slammed the hot liquid back, and poured another. There might not be enough java in the hemisphere to keep him going until the end of the week, not if every night proved as sleepless as the last two. He leaned against the credenza to stay within range of the carafes, and to stay separate from the others.
Gathering for breakfast at dawn, nine AM, the others displayed as little energy as him, moving fork from plate to mouth in mechanical swipes, staring dully at nothing. Suited him fine. He wanted to stay far off their radar.
Out of Melanie’s line of sight, too. Other than one initial startled look that pierced his gut, she actively avoided him. All for the best. He intended to do the same, possibly more out of fear than anything. Her kiss had shocked him at first, then he’d fallen so deeply into it, he forgot where he was. That she was a client, not a date.
Man, if he didn’t know better, he’d think Towson had become a psychic. He sure called it before the trip started. And from now on, Buck had to, simply had to, start thinking with his rational brain rather than his little head, and stay far away from Melanie Michaels. And trouble.
As soon as he delivered the group to their return flight, he planned to head home, feed the dogs enough for a few days, and then crash. Sleep for twenty-four hours straight, get up to feed the dogs and take a piss, then go back to bed.
Good luck with that. Getting Melanie out of his head might require a tequila binge. Or a trip to the seedier side of Stockholm, possibly for months. Would that be enough to erase her from his brain?
Shit. Stupid stupid stupid. He’d known better than to kiss her. His practical self had screamed at him to stop but once he’d started, it was like the Titanic hitting the iceberg. No stopping it. Yeah, it left a huge gash, and now he was sinking fast. And all he could think about was latching on and not letting go.
Maybe it wasn’t too late to call Avery. A last-minute stand-in. If you had any brains, you’d have done it the instant she headed for the sauna. He knew he was a goner when he’d imagined her in the steam house. And himself in there with her. Unwrapping her towel like she was a Christmas present that arrived late, one he’d been dying to have.
Be serious. It started long before then. The second he met her, his thinking had strayed off course. As if the connections of his brain had gone haywire. He couldn’t focus, felt agitated, had trouble sleeping. He wouldn’t have wandered outside last night if he’d been able to sleep like he normally did, before he met her. Then he wouldn’t have run into her. Asked her asinine questions. Agreed to take her out on the snowmobile, just the two of them. And then kissed her.
Inexcusable. The only word for his behavior, which completely went against his motto. His personal code of doing his job, keeping his nose out of clients’ business, and getting rid of them as soon as possible. No wonder she’d looked at him as if he’d lost his mind.
Come on. It’s Day Four. Get through today and tomorrow and you’re golden. Until Kenny found out and fired him.
Buck startled when Hayden’s fork hit his plate with a clink.
The camera guy swiped a napkin across his mouth. “I vote to do something, anything else today.” His stare at Melanie, seated opposite from him at the table, came across like a challenge.
“It’s not up for a vote.” She spoke quietly and without hesitation. “We follow the schedule.”
Hayden gritted his teeth. “We’ve been driving these freaking dogsleds for days.”
Her look said oh stop whining. “Only a few days, Hay.”
The way she said it, so sad, nearly broke Buck’s heart. Damn, he wished they could start over, erase the fuck-ups.
Hayden glared at her. “How much usable footage do we have? Not enough for half an episode, I bet.”
Buck’s pulse raced. Should he suggest they extend their trip? Another week, or longer, time enough to get to know each other more slowly. No. No chance of that with her entourage constantly surrounding her.
“We haven’t finished the tour,” she reminded him with an indecipherable glance at Buck. “You’ll get plenty of shots today and tomorrow at the Icehotel.”
“Great. More snow. And wait, I forgot—ice. Fantastic.” He slammed back in his seat.
Buck seethed. How dare the asshole attack her? She showed incredible self-control, not reacting to him. He’d like to clean the shithead’s clock.
Hayden couldn’t take a hint, apparently. “How many viewers will watch a full hour of the same thing over and over? You haven’t done one stunt, Melanie. Not one.”
“I don’t have to kill myself in ever
y show.” She grew somber.
Kill herself? Buck’s blood turned cold. Did she seriously want to?
Hayden jabbed a finger toward her. “You’ve lost your edge.”
Her glare held equal parts ice and fire. “And you’ve lost your professionalism. I suggest you find it.”
“I’m all about the job. What about you?” Hayden jerked his head backward toward Buck.
“Enough.” She threw her napkin atop her plate.
“No, Melanie. It’s nowhere near enough. I need to hear you say you’re ready to move on. Because in a few days, this week will be nothing more than another episode of No Boundaries.”
Her jaw quivered. “I said stop.”
The cameraman leaned forward on his elbows. “And I’ll have to delete half of it because it’s so freaking boring.”
“Hayden, I swear.”
Eyes narrowed, he pressed his lips together hard. “Fine.”
She shivered and rubbed her arms.
Victor stared out the window. “This crazy lunar landscape is getting to us. Too much white, too much cold.”
With wide eyes, Gina nodded. “Too much darkness. I feel like a vampire.”
Buck forced a half-hearted chuckle. “Good thing you visited in February instead of November or December. Total darkness, all day.”
Vic whistled as he shuffled to the coffee setup. “How do you stand it?”
“Coffee. By the bucket load.” It used to be enough to keep him going. Along with taking care of his dogs. Now his life seemed too empty, like something was missing. Or someone. Being around Melanie filled the void and then some, but loneliness came back double when they were apart.
It’s the sleep deprivation talking. Not thinking straight.
Hardly thinking at all. How could he when she filled his head day and night? If anything could drive a man mad, it was a woman. A beautiful, intelligent, sexy-as-hell woman who said all the right things. Moved all the right ways. Like a freaking snake charmer, and he was the cobra, mesmerized under her spell. Snap the hell out of it.
Buck slammed the mug down on the credenza harder than he meant to. “We better get moving. Daylight’s short enough without wasting it with all this bickering.”
