ALWAYS (A Wolfe Brothers Novel) (7 page)

One corner of his mouth lifted in a
small smile. He handed her hairspray back. “Break’s over. Let’s
go.”

“
Got something to
eat?”

“
I have some energy bars.
Chocolate and oatmeal, raisin and cinnamon, or peanut butter and
oats?”

“
Chocolate and
oatmeal.”

From a pocket in his backpack, he
grabbed the snack and gave it to her.

A mixture of caramel, chocolate chips
and granola dissolved in her mouth. She moaned. “This is great. How
many calories are in this?”

“
How the hell should I
know?”

“
Well, what brand is it?
I’ll look it up when I get home.”

“
I made it.” He strapped
his backpack on. “Eat and walk.”

“
You made
this?”

“
Yup.” He slipped his
backpack on. “Let’s go.”

# # #

Maggie had lost cellphone reception so
she had no clue what time it was. Judging by the ache in her
muscles, she’d guess they’d been hiking for two days, but since it
wasn’t dark yet, common sense told her they’d only been walking for
a few hours.

They approached a body of water about a
hundred feet wide. He bent over, untied and removed his boots.
“We’ll take a break soon. First we need to cross this
stream.”

“
But the trail doesn’t
lead—.”

“
I didn’t think you’d slow
us down as much as you have. I know a shortcut to get us to the
spot where I want to camp tonight. If we don’t take it, we’ll never
make it before dark.”

He tucked his socks into his boots and
slid Maggie’s sack from her back. Holding his boots and their
backpacks over his head, he sloshed into the stream and waded until
the water was waist deep. Glancing back, he said, “What are you
waiting for?” He tossed his boots and the backpacks to shore on the
other side and dunked under the water.

He surfaced and glared at her. “This
will be the only chance we have to clean up. You do
bathe?”

Her hands went to her hips. “Of course.
I just prefer to bask under a swivel shower head set to pulse. The
sensation on my breasts is borderline euphoric.”

He groaned. “I don’t want to know about
your lady bits.”

Maggie covered her mouth and laughed.
“Lady bits?”

“
Get the fuck in the water
before I throw you over my shoulder and carry you in.”

“
Just trying to keep
things light. Geesh, you got a short fuse.”

“
Woman, you have no
idea.”

Just as Cam had, she tucked her socks
in her boots and held them high. She stepped into the water. Mud
squeezed between her toes. A slimy substance greased the bottom of
her foot. Shrieking, she jumped back. “I’ll just sponge bathe with
some of the water I packed.”

The water rippled as he strode toward
her. “That’s to drink, not bathe in.” He stretched his arm toward
her. “Take my hand.”

Maggie shook her head.

Cam bolted out of the
water.
How could something so big move so
fast?

“
I don’t have the patience
for your shit.” He slung her over his shoulder—like a bartender
would a dishrag—and waded into the stream.

Maggie punched at his back. “Bastard!
Put me down.”

He grabbed the boots from her hand.
“Relax. You won’t have to touch the bottom.” He tossed her boots to
shore and cradled her in front of him. Gently, he lowered her into
the water. With a hand under her back, he balanced her on the
surface.

The gold ring that draped from a chain
necklace around his neck glimmered in the fading sunlight. Dark
stubble shadowed his chin and strong jaw line. His high forehead,
olive skin and dark, mysterious eyes melted her resolve to keep him
at a distance.

Sure she wanted to screw him, but she
had vowed long ago never to let herself get close to a man.
Friends-with-benefits was truly all she wanted, nothing emotional,
no drama.

But when he twirled a lock of her hair
around his fingers, she involuntarily sighed. She pictured his
large hands palming her breasts, his body over hers, his
cock—.

As if he knew her thoughts, he smiled
down at her and asked, “You a natural red head?”

“
Kiss me.”

He gave her a devilish grin, the same
as he had the day she met him. “If you tell me your secret.” He
sprinkled water on her nose.

She frowned. “I don’t have any
secrets.”

“
The day we met, Jags said
you were seeking something. What was he talking about?”

She had no clue and even if she had,
she would never trust him or anybody else.

With a tenderness someone of his size
should not possess, he ran the back of his hand down the side of
her face. “Your skin’s so soft.” Those dark eyes pierced hers. He
snapped his hand away, as if he had just been burned. “Time to
go.”

Like a switch, the tenderness vanished
and he was back to his grumpy self. With her cradled in his arms,
he sloshed onto shore and set her on her bare feet.

She blew wet strands from her face and
twisted her long locks, wringing water from her hair.

Men were simple creatures. Sports,
friends, hobbies were all great, but all they really needed were
sex and food, a theory that had helped her manipulate every man
she’d dated since damn near puberty.

Not a man existed she couldn’t
seduce.

Until now.

He was obviously attracted to her, but
still resisted her. Perhaps he trusted women about as much as she
trusted men.

Cam was complex and
mysterious, unlike the transparent men she’d typically dated. Any
sane woman would run from a man who’d threatened to squash her like
a bug.
With a squeeze of his hand, he
could break her neck, silencing the sounds of her own screams,
screams that haunted her waking and sleeping
consciousness.

But his threats and size hadn’t
frightened her. She wanted to trust him and that petrified her
almost as much as the memories of that terrible night so long
ago.

Chapter Eight

The sun was setting and the temperature
had dropped. They approached a tree that had fallen across the
trail. He climbed on the trunk and offered her his hand. Maggie
braced a foot and hoisted herself up. Cam jumped down and took
Maggie with him.

They walked deeper into the woods,
following a well-worn path. Cam often took advantage of this spot,
like many other hikers. With any luck, it would be empty of any
squatters.

They came upon a clearing where the
tall grass had been packed flat. Rocks enclosed a circular patch of
scorched ground.

“
You shouldn’t make a
fire,” he said. “Try to leave nature the way you found it, as
undisturbed as possible.”

Maggie slid her backpack off.
“Somebody’s obviously made a fire here.”

“
Yup. So if we make a
fire, we won’t be disturbing nature.” He untied the casing to his
gray tent and shrugged it off. “Not as much as we would if a fire
hadn’t already burned here.” He finished pitching his tent and
reached for her backpack.

“
Could I sleep in your
tent? I hate sleeping alone.”

When Cam tore the pack from her, Maggie
dropped to the ground and crossed her legs.

As he anchored the last stake, he
asked, “Want some popcorn for the show?”

Maggie shrugged.

Cam headed toward the woods. He
returned shortly carrying a stack of large branches. He made a fire
and they sat on the ground and watched the flames dance.

Maggie tried to spark conversation, but
he never a spoke a word, just poked at the fire until darkness
surrounded them.

“
Goodnight.” She stood and
looked down at him, probably waiting for him to protest her
departure. Not going to happen.

“
Whatever,” she muttered
and disappeared into her tent.

When the second whiz of a zipper
sounded, the tension in Cam’s muscles faded. He just had to get
through this weekend then he could concentrate on opening his
restaurant. He’d never have to see or speak to her
again.

One problem. He wanted her, wanted her
bad.

Maggie was bold,
adventurous, and silly, not to mention, stunning. She was cute and
at the same time sexy. Her fair skin clashed brilliantly with her
cherry red hair and green eyes. And her perfume! He had to find out
the brand. Like an addict, he could use it to diminish the
cravings, spraying his curtains, sofa, and bedding. Cam squeezed
his head between his hands.
You’re a
monster! Let her go.

# # #

An animal shrieked. Cam’s
lids flipped open. He lifted his head from the tent floor and
propped his weight on his forearms. An owl? Another shriek. Nope.
Not an owl. He jerked to a sitting position.
Maggie!

The three-quarter moon illuminated
Maggie’s shaking tent. He whipped her flap open to find her jumping
up and down and slapping at her arms. Grimacing, he snatched her
wrist and yanked her from the tent.

“
Calm down,” he
growled.

“
They’re biting me!
They’re everywhere!”

Cam willed his temper to cool as he
tried to still her movements. “I can’t get them off, if you don’t
stop jumping.” He slapped at the ants crawling up his arm. “Take
off your clothes!”

Still jumping and screaming, Maggie
struggled with the bottom of her princess shirt. Cam swatted her
hands away, yanked her shirt over her head and tugged her shorts
down her legs.

Maggie stood in her fire engine red
undies and matching lace bra. He swiped his hands down her arms and
legs, turned her and did the same down her back, stopping
periodically to wipe the little fuckers from his own
limbs.

She bounced on one foot and clawed at
the other. “My feet are so itchy.”

In a tone as calm as he could muster,
he said, “I can’t help you if you don’t stop jumping around like a
kindergartner at recess.”

Maggie put her foot down, raised her
other and gave it the same clawing treatment. “Why are my feet so
itchy?”

“
It’s your body reacting
to the venom.” Cam framed her face with his hands. “Your lips are
swollen. Are you allergic to ant venom?”

“
I don’t think
so.”

He dragged her toward his tent, but she
jerked from his grasp.

“
What if they’re in your
tent too?” she asked.

“
Unlike you, I’m not dumb
enough to leave food in my tent.”

“
I did not leave food in
my tent,” she said with conviction.

He gave her a sidelong
look.”

“
Fine.” She huffed. “Maybe
a little bit of that energy bar.”

He laughed. “If it’ll make you feel
better, I’ll move my tent away from yours. Okay?”

Maggie’s jaw dropped. “They have
legs.”

“
Would you go to a
restaurant you knew had no food?”

Cam yanked the tent stakes up and
dragged his tent away from hers then escorted her around the tent.
Using a flashlight, he showed her there were no ants and ushered
her inside and did the same inspection. Maggie looked barely
convinced but conceded since her only other option was to stand
under the moonlight in nothing but bra and panties.

She sat in the center of the tent and
clawed at her feet. Cam threw her one of his T-shirts and retrieved
an EpiPen from his backpack. He waited for her to put on his shirt
then crooked his finger.

Tilting her head, she gestured to the
item in his hand. “What’s that?”

“
EpiPen. I always have one
with me. I’m allergic to bees.”

Maggie scurried to the corner. “I don’t
do needles.”

Smiling, he crawled toward her. “Not my
problem.”

“
I’ll kill you if you put
that thing in me.”

He cocked his head and gave her a
sultry smile. “Isn’t that what you’ve wanted from the start? Me to
stick it in you?”

Her brows furrowed. “Now you
flirt?”

Seizing both her wrists in one hand, he
jerked her close. She wiggled and kicked but he handled her as if
she were an inanimate object. “I hate you!”

With an arm barred across her chest, he
raised the needle over her thigh. “Can’t have you dying on me. I’m
too lazy to carry your dead weight the rest of way.”

“
That’s so
sweet.”

She looked so damn sexy when she was
mad. “Are you ready?” He delayed intentionally, loving every minute
of her torture.

“
Wait. My feet aren’t
itchy any more. They feel much better. Yes. Yes. I’m
good.”

Cam’s smile widened.

She reached but he lifted his arm.
“What if you get stung by a bee?”

“
Unlike you, my reaction
would be severe. This wouldn’t help me. I’d be dead in
minutes.”