There was a long silence as Carl stared down at his shoes, his hands fisted on his hips. Then he lifted his head, and took another deep breath. “Have sex with him.”
Kinsley wasn’t sure what he was going to say, but that definitely hadn’t been one of the options she’d anticipated. Her eyes widened on surprise. “What?”
Carl nodded sharply. “I want you to have sex with your boss.”
She pulled back, feeling as if she was the one who had just been slapped now. “That’s not going to happen, Carl! He’s my boss! We don’t have a sexual relationship.”
His lip curled upward into a sneer. “Don’t insult my intelligence, Kinsley. I was there! I could feel the tension crackling between you!”
“That’s not true!” she called back, hurt and…was he right?
“I can see the truth in your eyes! You want him! So do it! Get him out of your system!” His tone softened and he looked defeated. “Just do it, Kinsley. Have sex with your boss. And when you’re finished,” he paused, swallowing hard as he closed his eyes. “When you’re finished, when he dumps you, then come back to me.” He sighed. “I love you, Kinsley. I’ll take you back. That’s what a real relationship is about. That’s real love.” He opened his eyes. “I’ll forgive you. I won’t deny that this hurts and I’m angry, but this is a real relationship. We’ll figure this out. Together.”
And without another word, he walked out of her apartment. He didn’t even slam the door.
Kinsley felt her knees give out and she sank down onto the sofa. What had she just done? She’d broken up with a good man because…
Because she didn’t love him enough. Because she didn’t desire him…at all. She wanted to add “enough” onto the end of that sentence, but the reality was, she didn’t have any desire for Carl.
Which was probably why they had never had sex. They’d been dating for too long for them not to have…Oh good grief! They’d never even talked about sex! Not really. At the beginning of their relationship, they’d had a conversation about their future, about how they both wanted to wait for sex until they were married. And it had never come up again after that. She’d never even been frustrated at the lack of sex in their relationship. She hadn’t even noticed.
And wasn’t that the most telling clue? Not that she madly desired Lincoln. But that she didn’t desire Carl at all?
Looking around through a haze of tears, she noticed the remnants of their meal still on the table. They hadn’t even gotten through dinner before she’d devastated their lives.
Standing up, she picked up their plates and dumped everything into a plastic container. She’d have that for dinner tomorrow night, she thought. She dumped out the wine, having not even tasted it. When the kitchen was cleaned up and the food put away into lunch sized containers, she walked into her bedroom, washed her face, brushed her teeth, and…she didn’t have the energy to change into her nightgown. Instead, she simply kicked off her shoes and curled up on her bed, pulling the blanket over herself.
Chapter 12
Showing up for work on Monday morning took more courage than she thought she had. But Kinsley refused to cower. Moments before she left her apartment to drive over to the warehouse, her cell phone rang. Looking at the number, she felt her heart flip with excitement.
“Hello? Is anything wrong?”
Lincoln’s strong, steady voice came right back to her. “Not at all. I just…”
“I was about to leave for work. I can be there in….”
“Don’t leave yet. You need to pack a bag.”
She hesitated for a long moment, his words not really making much sense. “A bag?”
“Yes. That was the deal on Saturday. You let me teach you how to ride a motorcycle, then you get to choose the place where I figure out the plan for the next several months. So, where are we going?”
She swallowed, shocked at his offer. “Um…? Where do you work best?”
He chuckled and she felt another thrill whip through her whole body. “Anywhere that isn’t here. I get too distracted around the house and the work area. So I just…go someplace. Usually, I just get in my truck and drive somewhere.”
The idea sounded…wonderful! Biting her lip, she looked out the window at her car, contemplating the wonder of just getting into a car and driving away without any destination in mind. Just driving and seeing what was ahead. “Why don’t you do that, then?”
“Because we made a deal, Kinsley. You choose.”
“But this is your time.”
“It is, but you’re coming with me. So choose.”
She laughed, and it felt really good after the past two days to laugh. To feel good. For a brief moment, the guilt over what she’d put Carl through dissipated and she reveled in Lincoln’s relaxed tone.
“Do I need to get my pilot on the phone? How about Paris? Or London?”
She gasped at the idea. “No way!”
“Why not? You don’t want to visit Paris?”
“I’d love to, but…Linc, do you really think that they would be conducive to helping you think?”
He laughed softly. “I don’t know.”
“Where did you go the last time you did this?”
“Camping in Montana.”
She cringed. Camping? With bugs and snakes and no flushing toilets or hot showers?! Seriously? “Okay, well, why don’t you do that again this time?”
“Deal. I’ll pick you up in twenty minutes. Pack jeans and sweatshirts.”
Then he ended the call. Kinsley stared at her phone, not sure she’d heard him correctly. He was coming by to pick her up? To go camping?
No. That really wasn’t going to work for her! She didn’t camp. Camping? With tents and bugs and snakes and bears and…wilderness?
Did he mean in a campground? She might be able to do that. Yes, with a campground, there were those cute little cabins. And showers. And toilets, sinks, running water. And weren’t they usually close to a town where they could grab groceries and eat at restaurants?
Yeah, she might actually enjoy that. But full out camping? Nope. Just no.
But she turned around and headed back into her bedroom. She didn’t really have a good camping suitcase. Of course, she had a suitcase, but it still had the tags on it. She’d bought it for her honeymoon. Tugging it out from the back of her closet, she dusted it off and smiled. Then her smile disappeared. She’d told Carl that she wanted to go to St. Martin for their honeymoon. It was a beautiful island with warm waters and soft sandy beaches. And it was a foreign country where she could get a stamp in her passport. The passport she’d gotten six months ago, in anticipation of getting married and going on her honeymoon. A honeymoon that she wasn’t going to take because she wasn’t getting married.
Sighing, she accepted that her travels wouldn’t be happening. Not for a while. Yes, she was going on a “camping trip” with Lincoln. But that would probably be here in Washington somewhere. There were so many beautiful places to camp here. One could choose mountains or beaches or rugged terrain, plains, or…whatever one wanted or needed to escape.
But it was still here in Washington.
Kinsley started pulling jeans and sweatshirts out of her drawers and dumping them into the suitcase. Unfortunately, she didn’t own many pairs of jeans. She packed the leggings that she preferred because they were more comfortable than jeans, and all of the sweatshirts that she owned. Should she pack sweaters? But all of her sweaters were expensive. She wore those to work. She had a few of those cute tops and leggings that she’d bought to work out in. Most of them still had the tags on them though because she hated working out. She didn’t like sweating and she definitely didn’t like being dirty.
“Oh boy,” she grumbled.
The doorbell rang before she could finish packing. Going over to the door, she pulled it open and, her breath caught in her throat when she took in Lincoln’s tall form in her doorway.
“Good morning,” he said, stepping into her apartment. “Are you all packed?”
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“Not really,” she told him, stepping back because, once again, she had the insane urge to throw herself into his arms and press herself against him. She wanted so desperately to feel his arms close around her, just as he’d done in the past. His arms were perfect for holding her close. And his body…good grief, she’d had the most erotic dream about his body and his hands. She’d watched him tinker for weeks now. And she kept wondering what his hands would feel like on her skin.
After she’d had those thoughts, Kinsley had felt an overwhelming sense of guilt since she’d just broken up with her long term, almost-fiancé and was already thinking about making love with Lincoln. With her boss! She was sure that he didn’t feel the same way about her. And even if he did, Lincoln was too honorable to act on those feelings.
Damn it!
“You okay?” he asked, jerking her out of memories of that dream.
Feeling her cheeks heat up, she turned away, trying to hide her face from his too-knowing eyes. “I’m fine,” she fibbed.
“Are you packed? Ready to go?”
“Um…sort of. I guess. I’ve never been camping before, so I’m not sure what to take.”
“Just jeans and sweatshirts will be fine.”
“But…what about…?”
“No makeup.”
Kinsley’s mouth fell open. “No makeup? But…!” She couldn’t go without makeup! And especially not if she was going to be around Lincoln during this adventure!
“Just pack soap, shampoo, and conditioner. Leave everything else.”
Kinsley laughed, shaking her head. “Not gonna happen,” she told him.
He straightened, crossing his arms over his chest and her gaze automatically moved to his arms, admiring the bulges of his muscles under the material. Yum!
“Are you disobeying a direct order from your supervisor?”
She laughed again, her eyes sparkling. “Yep! I’ll be right back. Give me five minutes and I’ll be packed.”
Lincoln watched Kinsley walk back to her bedroom, admiring the gentle sway of her hips. Something was different about her. And it wasn’t the gaunt look to her cheeks, as if she’d barely eaten over the weekend. No, there was something about her shoulders or maybe her eyes.
He couldn’t quite put his finger on it, but he could tell something had changed. Was it because of Saturday? Had she been thinking about that moment all weekend too? He’d imagined her throwing herself into his arms, kissing him. Then he’d shift, changing so that he was in charge of the kiss. In his mind, the kiss would never end. It would have morphed into making love. And if he’d had the chance to do it right there on the grass beside his garage, then he damn well would have!
Camping was going to be interesting, he thought. When he’d suggested it, he hadn’t really thought it through. Hell, when he’d called her to tell her that they would be traveling, he’d fully anticipated showing her around Paris. He’d like that. He’d love to take her to all of the beautiful sites and museums, see her eyes light up in wonder. And then he’d take her back to their suite and he would make love to her…that’s where his idea stopped because he had to remind himself that Kinsley was engaged. He would never violate the trust between a man and a woman. He doubted that Kinsley would ever do so either. She was just too honest of a person to betray the man she loved.
And that was the hell of this whole thing. Kinsley loved another man. He’d have to keep reminding himself of that to keep his lust in check.
She came out of her bedroom, lugging a heavy suitcase behind her. It rolled, so he wasn’t sure why she was carrying it, but he moved forward and took it from her.
“Don’t make it look so easy,” she grumbled, releasing it and rubbing her fingers.
“Okay, grab your keys and let’s go!”
“Fine. But where are we going? Do you have a plan?”
He shrugged and waited while she pulled the door closed, locked it, and tugged at it to make sure it was locked. “Sort of,” he replied, just to see the look of horror in her eyes.
He wasn’t disappointed. Turning, she looked up at him with her mouth hanging open in shock. “Sort of? What does that mean?”
He shrugged, putting a hand to the small of her back to lead her down the stairs. He’d parked his truck along the back of the parking lot, knowing that his truck and trailer took up too much space. “Well, let’s just say that I have an end goal in mind, but I don’t care if we make it that far.”
She paused and looked up at him. “Wait a minute. Have you mapped this out? Did you make reservations? Do we have a place to stay?”
He pointed to his truck where a gleaming silver trailer was attached. “Have hotel, will travel.”
She stared at the camper. “We’re traveling in that?” she asked, her voice about the same level as a whisper.
“Well, sure. Why not?”
He opened the door and stored her suitcase, then closed and relocked the door.
“Because…I thought that we’d be staying in one of those cute, sort-of-rustic-but-not-really-rustic cabins that some camp grounds build for the people who didn’t really know how to camp.”
He chuckled as he led her to the passenger door of his truck. “I like the jeans, by the way,” he commented, then closed the door when she was safely seated in the passenger seat.
When he pulled himself into the driver’s seat, she turned to look at him, her eyes wary. “Linc, where are we going? I don’t know if I’m comfortable with just driving off into the sunset.”
He started the truck, then checked the side view mirrors as he strapped on his seatbelt. “Well, since we’re heading east, we won’t be driving into the sunset. Does that make you feel better?’
“Not even a little! I used the term loosely and you know it.”
He chuckled, then leaned back as he turned out of her apartment complex, heading for the highway. “I think you need to relax and let someone else take charge for a while.”
She huffed, but settled back into her seat. “I’m fine with someone else taking control, Linc. But I don’t think that you’re in control. From what you’re saying, fate is in control here.”
“Exactly. Let’s just drive to wherever the road takes us.”
“That doesn’t sound very…efficient.”
“Nothing efficient about it,” he agreed as he merged onto the highway. It was easy enough to do since most of the traffic was heading into Seattle, not away from it. The early morning traffic heading into the city was already bumper to bumper.
Lincoln leaned back, shifting in his seat. The further they drove, the more relaxed he became. As far as he was concerned, life was pretty damn good right about now. He had Kinsley next to him for an indeterminate period of time and the road ahead was wide open with opportunities. What more could a man want? Right now, he felt as if he were in heaven.
Chapter 13
Lincoln now understood what hell was. Because he was in it!
Standing down by the water’s edge, he braced himself. Any moment now, Kinsley was going to step through the door of the camper and smile. Or scream. Or do any number of things that would make him smile.
The first night, he’d pulled onto a relatively flat area about five miles off the highway. It was quiet, with trees all around them. He’d checked the GPS to ensure that he wasn’t on private property, then started setting up the site. She’d been adorably helpful, almost excited to take on any task he gave her.
Until she’d spotted a spider.
The damn thing had been maybe the size of a penny, but she’d freaked out, stomping and screaming, running towards him like a serial killer was after her. When he’d finally calmed her down and discovered what had scared her so badly, he’d laughed until his sides ached. Yes, he’d killed the spider for her. At least, he’d killed the spider she’d seen. He didn’t mention that there were probably fifty more spiders lurking around, not to mention perhaps a few snakes, and a whole host of other creatures. And he definitely didn’t point out the bats flying
over the campfire. He’d just continued to heat up their dinner that night, insisting she tell him stories.
The second day, they’d crossed over the state line into Idaho. She’d literally bounced with excitement. The whole rest of the day, she’d looked up interesting facts about the state of Idaho on her phone. When she’d announced that one third of the potato crop for the entire United States was grown in Idaho, he’d pulled into a diner and ordered a plate of fries. When she’d announced that Wallace, Idaho was the “center of the universe,” he’d changed directions and headed towards the tiny town, just so that she could see the manhole cover. He’d laughed at her excitement, then rolled his eyes when she’d taken a picture.
And since they were so close to Hells Canyon by that point, a spot that is deeper than the Grand Canyon, he’d driven that way too, stopping for the night beside the river with high mountains on each side of their campsite.
He’d tried to convince her to fish in the river, but she’d squinched up her nose and put her foot down on that one. But when he’d brought back a fish for dinner and fried it up over the campfire, she’d eaten the fish as if she’d been starved for the previous week.
For the first four days, she’d religiously put on makeup and even brushed her hair, pulling it up into a neat, tidy ponytail. But over the past few days, she’d slowly stopped with that effort and…damn, she looked fresh and beautiful! Her hair was a mess, her lips looked a bit raw from a lack of moisturizer. But her cheeks had bloomed with color and she looked…fresh and alive!
Hence why he was standing by the bank of the river, waiting for her to emerge. He slept in the back of the camper in the main bed, even though he’d tried to convince her to take that space. But she’d resisted and slept in the pull out bed in the living area. Thankfully, because his camper was custom built, there was a second door in the back for emergencies so he didn’t have to climb over her when he came out before her in the morning. Still, they shared a tiny bathroom and he had to smell her shampoo after she showered. He saw her sleeping when he peeked out of the bedroom in the morning. And even worse, he had to see her smiles of amazement as he showed her new things each day.
One More Kiss (Forsaken Sons Book 1) Page 11
