“Oh!” She took a step back. “Hey!”
“Hey again,” Caleb replied. He peered beyond either side of her, looking out at the front lawn. “Everything okay?”
“Oh, yes. Sure. I was…well…I was just wondering…” She handed him some kind of flyer. “I was wondering if you wanted to join me?” She grimaced. “Sorry about the creases.”
Caleb straightened out the wrinkled brochure. “What is this?”
“It’s called Camp Firefly Falls. It’s sort of a summer camp for adults, up in the Berkshire Mountains. I’m going there for the weekend.”
His brows rose. “And you want me to come with you?”
“Yes. There’s fishing and birdwatching and whatever else people do in the mountains.” She shrugged. “You seemed so upset about your cancelled fishing trip. This way you can still go fishing.”
“What about Mr. Lexus?” Caleb asked.
“Who?”
“You know, the guy in the silver Lexus with Awe$um on the license plate?” It was a struggle for Caleb to keep his expression neutral. He usually rolled his eyes just at the thought of that license plate and the asshole who sat behind the wheel. It had nothing to do with the fact that Caleb spent a fair amount of time lusting after the asshole’s girlfriend.
“Oh, you mean Derrick,” Leah said.
“Yeah. Him.”
Her lips thinned. “He can’t make it.”
Her tone went from warm to frigid in less than a second.
Damn. He didn’t know what Mr. Lexus had done to land himself in the doghouse, but that three-piece-suit-wearing jerk was definitely there. Caleb couldn’t say he felt bad for the guy, especially when whatever he’d done had led to Leah inviting him to join her up in the mountains.
He perused the brochure, his eyes growing wide at the pictures of the cabins and all the amenities listed. They may tout it as summer camp, but it was obvious that was only for nostalgia’s sake. This place looked fancier than the last hotel he’d stayed in.
“So, what’s the deal with this place?” Caleb asked, still browsing the brochure. “Were you heading up there for some sunrise yoga? Kayaking? Just to get away for the weekend?”
When she didn’t immediately answer, Caleb looked up. Her jaw was taut with anger.
“Actually, Derrick and I were supposed to attend a couple’s retreat,” she said. Her bottom lip trembled slightly. She quickly pulled it between her teeth.
Oh, shit.
If she started to cry he wouldn’t be able to stop himself from touching her. And if he touched her he wouldn’t be able to stop himself from wrapping his arms around her. Then maybe kissing her forehead. Then moving to her lips. Then getting kicked in the balls for taking his “comforting” too far.
“It’s okay if you don’t want to come along,” Leah continued. “I just thought I’d offer since Derrick’s portion is already paid for. But I understand. We hardly even know each other, why would you want—”
“Wait! I do!” Caleb said before she could take back her invitation. “I want to go. And we do know each other,” he said. “We’ve been next-door neighbors for a year now.”
The barest hint of a smile edged up the corners of her lips, sending a flood of relief rushing through him.
“Give me ten minutes to change out some of the things I packed.” He held up the wrinkled brochure. “I don’t think my fifteen-year-old jeans and faded T-shirts would fit in at this place.”
“I know it looks fancy, but this weekend is pretty casual,” Leah said.
“So the five-year-old jeans would work?”
Her laugh sent a burst of pleasure ricocheting against the walls of Caleb’s chest.
“Your five-year-old jeans will be perfect,” she said. “I’ll meet you at my car in ten minutes.”
“See you in ten,” Caleb said.
He could practically feel the blood pumping through his veins as he quickly dumped everything out of his duffle bag. He replaced his worn jeans with a brand new pair he’d bought just a few weeks ago, along with a couple pairs of cargo shorts. He also packed the khakis he’d bought for his sister’s fortieth birthday party, which he’d had to miss because of a break on the Peterfund case.
He wouldn’t miss out on this. The chance to spend the entire weekend up in the mountains with his sexy as hell neighbor?
Caleb searched his drawer for T-shirts without stains or tears or sweat rings around the armpits. Shit, he really needed to go shopping.
He went into the bathroom to grab his razor from the medicine cabinet, and his hand automatically reached for the box of condoms sitting alongside it. Caleb pulled his hand back and closed the cabinet door.
He stared at himself in the mirror.
What in the hell are you doing?
The fact that he’d even considered bringing condoms on a fishing trip showed him just where his head was at the moment. He wasn’t thinking about fishing. He was thinking about Leah, and what a weekend in the mountains with her meant.
But it didn’t mean anything. It couldn’t. She had a boyfriend.
Yeah, she may be pissed with Mr. Lexus right now, but that didn’t mean she was looking to jeopardize her relationship with reckless revenge sex.
Caleb held back a moan.
God, he wanted to have reckless revenge sex with her. But that wasn’t going to happen.
He ran a hand down his face, releasing an unsteady breath.
He couldn’t go through with this. He would go out there and tell her that Glenn had called to say that he and the rest of the guys would be able to make the fishing trip after all.
Yeah, she would believe that all three of his friends’ plans had fallen through in the last ten minutes.
“Idiot,” Caleb said underneath his breath.
Maybe he could tell her that he’d just gotten a call that his grandmother was sick. Leah didn’t know that both his grandmothers had been dead for over a decade.
Hell, why not just tell her the truth? That he’d suffered a bout of temporary insanity when he’d accepted her invitation to join her in the Berkshires.
Except a weekend away was exactly what he needed.
The original goal of his fishing trip was to rest, relax, and figure out his next steps. He had until Monday to come to a decision about what he wanted to do with the next five, ten, maybe even twenty years of his life. Giving himself room to think, in the way he used to do it when he was a kid—with a fishing pole in his hand and nothing but the peace and quiet of a gurgling creek—was the best way to help him clear his mind.
How was he supposed to clear his mind and relax while sharing space with Leah Cross? Hell, he’d been sporting a semi since the moment she came over to talk to him this morning. His body would be in a constant state of arousal the entire damn weekend.
He could not do this. No matter how much he needed it.
Wait. Why was he stressing himself over spending the weekend with Leah when she had never shown any kind of interest in him outside of being just a friendly neighbor?
Caleb could still remember that time months ago when he ran into her in downtown Manhattan. She hadn’t even recognized him. Granted, he’d been wearing a suit that day instead of his normal jeans and T-shirt, which had been his standard attire for the various undercover jobs he’d been working for the previous year, but the fact that Leah hadn’t even recognized him after living next to him for six months had told Caleb everything he needed to know. He wasn’t even on her radar.
Hell, he’d known that the minute Mr. Lexus started showing up in his sleek luxury sedan with all the bells and whistles. That’s when Caleb learned that not only wasn’t he her type, but he had no chance of becoming her type either. That car probably cost more than what he made in a year.
Not that he was a pauper. He made a good living. And thanks to his grandfather’s thrifty ways and generous heart, he’d been able to put down half the selling price as a down payment when he bought this house. But that didn’t mean he was at Leah
Cross’s level.
So why not take her up on her invitation?
He’d go up there to the Berkshires and let that cool mountain air rejuvenate him. He’d break in his new fishing rod while contemplating whether or not he was ready to go back out into the field.
“You can do this.”
Now that that decision had been made, Caleb finished packing his bag. Just as he was about to zip it up, he went back into the bathroom, pulled a sleeve of condoms from the box, and stuffed them in the duffle’s inside pocket.
Fuck it. He may be a fool, but at least he was an optimistic one.
He double-checked the stove, even though he hadn’t cooked anything on it today, and raised the temperature to 79 degrees on the thermostat before walking out the front door and locking it behind him.
When Caleb approached Leah’s open trunk, he found her bent over inside it.
Don’t get caught staring at her ass. Do not get caught staring at her ass.
“Are you ready?” She turned around before he could avert his eyes.
Great. He just got caught staring at her ass.
“Uh, yeah, I’m all set,” Caleb said, holding up his duffle bag.
She didn’t call him on the staring. Instead, she moved to the side and motioned for him to put his duffle in the trunk. Once he’d slipped it in beside her bag, they stood next to the open trunk for several awkward moments while neither of them said anything.
“Do you—”
“Are you—”
Leah gestured for him to go first.
“I just wondered if you wanted me to drive?” Caleb asked.
“No, that’s okay. I’ve got it.”
This time her smile seemed forced. She was probably trying to come up with a polite way to tell him that she’d changed her mind about this camping trip, but instead of doing the gentlemanly thing and letting her off the hook, Caleb returned her smile and went over to the driver’s side door to hold it open for her.
“Ready to hit the road?”
She nodded. “I’m ready.”
Thirty minutes into their drive up north, Caleb was ready to open the door and toss himself out the car. If he had to take one more minute of this strained, uncomfortable silence he would go insane.
Leah’s grip on the steering wheel was so tight Caleb wouldn’t be surprised if she left indention marks on it. It was more than obvious that she regretted asking him to join her, and was just too nice to take back her invitation.
As much as it pained him to do so, Caleb decided to let her off the hook. Regret sank into his chest over what he was about to say.
“Look, Leah, we can turn around if you’re having second thoughts about this. We’ve only been on the road for a half hour, so it wouldn’t put you too far behind.”
“What? What do you mean?”
“I get that your asking me to join you was a spur of the moment thing. It’s okay if you’ve changed your mind.”
“No.” She glanced over at him before focusing back on the road. “Really, I’m okay with you coming along.”
“Is that why you’re gripping that steering wheel as if it’s going to fall off if you let go of it?” Caleb asked, amusement tinting his voice.
She instantly relaxed her fingers.
“Okay, I’m a little nervous,” she admitted. This time when she looked over their eyes connected and held for several beats. “I know I shouldn’t be. It’s not as if we’re strangers or anything. We’ve lived next door to each other for, what, at least a year?”
“Fourteen months.”
“Really? It’s been that long?”
He should know. He’d spent the majority of that time imagining her as the star of every one of his fantasies. God, it seemed downright pathetic now that he thought about it. But fantasizing about Leah made it easier to decline the few second dates he could have gone on this year. He just wasn’t up for it, especially these last four months.
“You have nothing to be nervous about,” Caleb said. “We’re going there to relax, right?”
She released a relieved breath and smiled. “Right,” she said. “So no talk about turning around. This is a chance for us to get to know each other better.”
If only she wanted to get to know him in the same way he wanted to get to know her. But that wasn’t the case, and he’d do well to remember that. Otherwise he was just setting himself up for a fall.
Chapter Two
By the time they turned off the main highway and onto the winding road that led to Camp Firefly Falls, Leah was still questioning just what in the hell she’d been thinking to invite Caleb along for the weekend. She could count the things she knew about him on her fingers.
She knew that he worked in law enforcement. She had no idea in what capacity, but he’d mentioned the DCJ on a couple of occasions, which she discovered through Google stood for the Department of Criminal Justice. It also stood for Drum Corps Japan, but she’d taken a wild guess that it was the former and not the latter. Although she had no idea what he did at the DCJ, Leah could admit she’d felt safer ever since she learned that about him.
She knew he was single and didn’t seem to date all that much. She could recall seeing a total of two women at his place the entire time he’d lived next door. Of course, he could have a harem in another part of the city, but something told her that wasn’t the case.
She also knew he enjoyed working in his yard, listening to 90’s hardcore rap—which he occasionally blasted while doing said yard work—and that he liked to cook. He often opened his kitchen window when he cooked and the aromas that drifted out made her mouth water.
Another thing that made her mouth water? When her neighbor went shirtless.
And, because God was real and he loved her, she’d had the opportunity to see Caleb shirtless on a number of occasions. Back before she had to change her early morning jog to the afternoon, she would run into him on her normal route. It was yet another reason she was still salty about the finance company where she worked moving to a new office building in Midtown Manhattan. The extra forty minutes it added to her commute was bad enough, but missing the chance to see a sweaty, shirtless Caleb was just downright devastating.
At any rate, knowing that he was in law enforcement, had questionable taste in music and ripped abs didn’t constitute actually knowing him. Yet she’d invited him to join her for a weekend in the mountains?
Nice going, Leah. Was it any wonder why she’d spent all of last night and most of this morning second guessing every choice she’d made in regard to men?
They drove through the entrance and Leah parked at a rustic cabin marked Registration Building. As they were removing their bags from the trunk, they were greeted by a tall blonde with a welcoming smile.
“Hello there.” She extended her hand. “I’m Heather Tully.”
“Oh, hello,” Leah said, recognizing the co-owner’s name from information she’d read online. “I’m Leah Cross.”
“Nice to meet you, Leah. I hope the drive up was okay.”
“It was great.” She looked around at the mountain peaks reaching for the heavens. “It is absolutely beautiful here.”
“Thank you. I’m pretty proud of this place.” She turned to Caleb. “And you must be—” She looked at the electronic tablet she held in her hand. “Derrick. Welcome to Camp Firefly Falls.”
“Actually, it’s Caleb,” Caleb answered.
A frown marred the woman’s smooth skin. “Oh, I’m sorry. Someone must have inputted the wrong information. I’ll make sure to correct it.”
“No. Actually—” Leah started, but at the same moment a man came out of the building and down the steps. Heather introduced him as her husband, and fellow owner/director at Camp Firefly Falls, Michael.
“As you know, this weekend’s retreat will be conducted by two psychologists from the Johnson Institute. Michael and I will be on property, but the staff has been instructed to only contact us for emergencies. We’re taking a much needed vacation.”
“It says a lot about this place that you’re choosing to spend your vacation here,” Leah said.
“What can I say? It’s the best vacation spot around,” Heather said with a wink. “Leave your bags right here. They will be delivered to your cabin, which is…” She looked at the screen again. “Number fourteen in Moon Bug Estates. The orientation for the retreat is already underway, so you should make your way to the Pinecone Lodge as soon as possible. Here’s a map of the grounds.”
“Thanks,” Caleb said, taking the map.
“I hope you both have a fabulous weekend with Katherine and Geoff. I’ve heard that their retreat does wonders for your relationship, but to be honest, just being here at Camp Firefly Falls should be enough. This place has a knack for bringing couples together.” Heather gave her husband a slight bump with her hip as Michael picked up both Leah and Caleb’s bags.
“Pinecone Lodge is just up that walking path,” Michael said. “Enjoy yourselves this weekend.”
As they set out on the path, Leah looked over at Caleb. “So, you didn’t think to correct her?” she asked him.
“Correct her about what?”
“It’s obvious she thought we were a couple. It’s a couple’s retreat, remember? You could have said something when you corrected her about your name.”
“You could have said something too,” Caleb replied with a hint of amusement tingeing his voice. “Why does it matter anyway? She won’t be around this weekend.”
He had a point. Still, it seemed misleading to have Heather think she’d simply made a mistake inputting his name into their system.
Then again, did Leah really want to go into why she was here on a couple’s retreat with her neighbor instead of her fiancé?
No thank you.
They made their way to the Pinecone Lodge and were directed to a conference room. Nine couples sat in a semi-circle, all listening intently to the man and woman who stood in the front, speaking to the group. The woman, who Leah assumed was Katherine Mumford, nodded toward the two remaining empty seats.
Mr. Right Next Door (Camp Firefly Falls Book 6) Page 2
