Paradise (8 page)

Her cheeks flamed and she quickly turned. “Oh, of course, I’m sorry.” He chuckled and she detected the faint sound of a zipper. In her mind’s eye, she saw every movement and piece of equipment. She had no doubt that what was below the waist band of those shorts was just as delectable as what was above.

Wait a minute. He had his clothes off. Shouldn’t she make a move or something? How would he know she needed a Rebound Man if she didn’t do something? Do what? She’d never asked a man she’d just met to have sex with her. Usually there were lots of dates and dinners and…and she didn’t even know this guy.

She stopped herself short. Okay. Cleansing breath. Here we go.

“Say, Eddie --”

“Okay, your turn,” he interrupted.

“What?” Damn. Missed her chance.

“You don’t want to stay in those wet clothes all night do you? Besides, your backpack didn’t go swimming. You’ve got dry clothes. No sense in being miserable.”

For the second time in ten minutes, she stared open-mouthed at him, but for an entirely different reason. It was one thing for her to want him as a Rebound Man, but quite another to expect her to strip down in front of him. No way. She wasn’t some kind of slut who took her clothes off for strange men.

“You want me to…well, um…you expect me to…” she sputtered. “I…I don’t think so.”

“Wait.” Eddie held up a hand. “Stop right there. I have an idea what you’re thinking, and you couldn’t be more wrong.” He scrubbed his hand across his face. “Look, I’m guessing this is not the getaway you had in mind. I’m sorry Nick and Fran or JT couldn’t be your guides, but in the same token, when I volunteered, I thought I’d be guiding you and your boyfriend.”

He spread his hands in a conciliatory gesture. “This week can be as awkward or as comfortable as you make it. My only objective is to show you a good time so you’ll go back and rave about us on Channel Ten. I apologize for the package crack. I promise. It won’t happen again.”

She hung her head. The heat crept from her toes to her hair line. Of course he had no ulterior motives. He was just doing his job. She was the one with the vivid imagination and the ridiculous “Rebound Man” idea.

He was right, too. Her jeans gripped her legs like shrunken spandex, and her shirt clung to her back and arms, sending an icy chill to her bones. “I’m sorry,” she apologized. “I guess I let my thoughts run away. Would you mind if I get changed?”

“Not at all,” came the husky reply. “Can I watch?”

Chapter Four

Eddie held up his hands as Robbie’s jaw hit the floor. “Just kidding. I had to get one last rise out of you.” He laughed. “Close your mouth. It’s wide enough to drive a semi through. I’m done. I promise. Strictly business from here on out.”

Picking up the camp stove, he moved it away from the tent flap. He smirked, not believing he carried off that “strictly business” speech without being struck by lightning.

My God, didn’t she know how hot she looked in that wet shirt? It was all he could do not to gawk at her swollen breasts. That lacy white nothing of a bra only accented their rounded curves and provided the perfect frame for her hardened nipples. The thought of being alone with those delicious globes sent his libido into overdrive. What he could do in a double sleeping bag with her.

He turned his back and set about rolling out their sleeping bags. Opening the extra one intended for her boyfriend, he laid it beneath hers on one side of the tent. It took up needed space in the canoe, but he figured it would afford her some additional padding on the wooden platform.

He smiled to himself. She was an experienced camper? He’d bet his flat screen TV she’d never slept on the ground before. Maybe the extra bag would help her. He’d put his bedroll on the other side of the tent when she gave the all-clear. Thinking her boyfriend would be with them, Nick had packed a large four person tent so now there would be plenty of space.

From his vantage point in the rear of the canoe, he’d spent a good part of the day memorizing every inch of her back, from the graceful arch of that swan neck to the slope and dip of her rounded butt. Her tight designer jeans left little to the imagination, but his imagination grabbed it and ran wild.

Too bad she was a career-obsessed city girl with no appreciation for the world around her. Nothing he’d said all day seemed to interest her. All she did was talk on that damn cell phone. If the battery didn’t go or they didn’t find another blind spot soon, that thing was gator bait.

After her prissy response about changing clothes, he couldn’t resist a peek. Pretending to straighten out a sleeping bag, he snuck a glance over his shoulder. Her back was to him but that was quite all right. He had an excellent view of a luscious, naked ass. It certainly measured up to his earlier illusions.

A quick flash of that lovely butt straddled across his hips while he drove deep inside her warmed him better than a blazing fire. His hands caressing her thighs, roaming leisurely upward to cup those full breasts as her fingers massaged and teased their way gradually from his hips across his stomach to his chest…

Of course, it was only a pleasant little fantasy. He mentally shrugged. She was the client and not likely to be anything more. He wasn’t about to do anything to jeopardize the integrity of the business. He, Nick and Fran had worked too hard to build it up for him to toss it away on a romp with a customer, no matter how alluring that customer’s ass was.

“Can I hang these up?”

He catapulted back to the present. “Yeah, move whatever you need.” She tossed her jeans, shirt and a few scraps of silk over the line. At the sight of her bra and thong, coming so quickly after his lascivious thoughts, a rising erection pushed against the zipper of his jeans. Oh man, couldn’t be having any of that.

“You hungry?” he asked, busying himself with the cooler. “It’s after six already.” She now wore the fuzzy yellow sweat suit which did a superior job of stiffening his already growing hard-on. The urge to wrap his arms around her and cuddle her close seized him. He plunged his hands into the icy cooler.

“I wouldn’t mind having dinner now,” she said, rummaging through her pink backpack.

Gritting his teeth, he slowly withdrew his hands from the chilling water, his control once again intact.

“Unfortunately, it’s going to be sandwiches again. Unless, of course, you want to go outside and cook.”

Another crack of thunder sounded. Wrinkling her nose, she shook her head. “Sandwiches sound great”

* * * * *

Night came early, especially with a thunderstorm to darken the skies. Eddie lit a Coleman lantern and hung it from the crossbars. An occasional gust of wind whipped the tent, bringing with it the strong fresh scent of the wetlands. The soft glow of the lantern played on the orange fabric lending a cozy feel inside while the rain lashed the outside. Robbie sat cross legged in the middle of the tent while he lounged full length on his sleeping bag, eating and listening to the storm.

“Um, listen,” she said between delicate munches, “I want to apologize for being, well, you know, kind of a bitch today. Quite frankly, I get all the outdoors I need on the Discovery Channel. Being out here and seeing alligators and those other slimy creatures up close scares me to death. Except for maybe an alien spaceship, the last place I would ever choose to be is a swamp.”

He stared at her. “I don’t get it. If you didn’t want this trip, why didn’t you check the box?”

It was Robbie’s turn to look confused back at him. “Check what box?”

A small smile twitched, and he tried to suppress it. This was just too good. “The box that said ‘don’t enter me for this particular getaway package.’
 
You don’t think Channel Ten would force you to take a trip you didn’t want, do you? I mean, someone who always got seasick wouldn’t want to go on a cruise, right? Why, that would defeat the whole purpose of the promotion.”

The color drained from her face. For a second, he thought she might lose her dinner.

“You mean to tell me I didn’t have to accept?”

“Not exactly.” He laughed at her forlorn expression. “Once you won, you were committed, but you could have opted out when you filled in the entry form and not entered for this trip. Didn’t you read the fine print?”

She closed her eyes and winced. “Well, that clinches it. Not only am I an idiot, I’m an idiot who can’t follow directions.” She shook her head. “And to think, I could be home right now watching Seinfeld reruns. Makes me want to kick myself.”

Feigning a bullet wound to the chest, he fell back on his sleeping bag. “Ouch, you got me right in the ego.” He laughed. “It’s not that bad, is it? You know, in some circles, my company is preferred to Seinfeld reruns.”

“Under different circumstances, I’m sure you’re most entertain --”

“Shhh.” He leaned up on his elbows and cocked an ear. The thunder rumbled away, becoming fainter with each crash. “We’ve got company. Hear it?”

She turned, listening in the direction he indicated. “No,” she shook her head. “All I hear is rain and croaking frogs.”

“Shhh, listen carefully. Bump…bump…bump…Hear it?”

Thoughtfully, she nodded in time with the rhythmic thumping.

“I hear it now,” she whispered. “What is it?”

“Just one of the more daring residents checking out our canoe.”

“Resident?” she asked, eyes widening. “You mean like alligator? Oh, my gosh, it’s going to eat us.” She dropped her sandwich and scuttled onto his sleeping bag. Plopping down within inches of him, she hugged her knees to her chest.

He continued to lounge on his elbow with legs outstretched. “Calm down. We’re perfectly safe here on the platform. It’s too high for him to reach us. Despite what you see in cartoons, gators really can’t climb well. Besides, he doesn’t even know we’re up here. If he did, he’d be hightailing it away. Remember?
Georgia
pecan brains?”

“You’re not going to let anything happen to me, are you? I mean, your campers always return in one piece, right?” She swiveled her head as if listening for possible attackers.

She looked so vulnerable, so scared, not at all the big city career woman she purported to be. One reach and he could pull her into his arms and reassure her he would keep her safe. He could easily draw her onto his lap, smooth her hair and hold her so tightly all her fear and anxiety would melt away.

“…your hands and other body parts to yourself.” His brother’s warning scrapped his daydream, bringing him swiftly back to the present.

“Don’t worry.” He grinned, sitting up next to her. “I haven’t lost a camper yet. Although there was that one guy who returned without his leg.”

“What!”

“Kidding, just kidding. You’re completely safe as long as you listen to me, and don’t do anything stupid. Now, let’s clean up these wrappers and figure out what we’re going to do for the rest of the evening.”

He knew exactly what he wanted to do for the rest of the evening, the rest of the night and probably through the next day. Unfortunately, he doubted that his companion would be amenable to his suggestion.

“
Excuse me, Ms. Miller. What do you say we strip off our clothes and I join you in your sleeping bag? Better still, why don’t we forget about this camping trip, find a motel and do some real exploring?”

Somehow, he didn’t think this idea would be met with rousing approval. She’d probably smack him with a paddle and take her chances with the gators. Besides, he wasn’t interested in affairs anymore. He needed to find a wife.

“What do you usually do?” She interrupted his thoughts.

He exiled the image of a naked Robbie spread on the sleeping bag, inviting him between her legs.

“Well, usually we canoe out into the swamp to check out the night life.” Her disbelieving look of horror made him smirk. “But, I’m guessing you might not want to do that…what with the storm and everything.”