Brenna bit back her own smirk because Colt had more or less described, not just Dane, but Colt’s relationship with Beth Ann to a tee. She turned to Rome as the two men exited and gave him a cheerful smile. “Guess you’re stuck with me for your first day.”
His blue eyes focused on her, and he blinked slowly. She noticed he had the longest lashes she’d ever seen on a man. Elise had to get that on camera. “Miss, can I ask you a question?” he said, his voice low and smooth.
“Shoot.”
“Is this job for real?”
She tilted her head, studying him. “Why wouldn’t it be?”
He glanced down at her clothing. “You’re not dressed, your boss doesn’t know anything about me, and neither do those two guys. You barely looked at my résumé, and you haven’t asked me anything about my work experience. Just seems a bit strange to me.”
“I’m a strange girl,” she said lightly. “And listen, we run a survival school. Dane and Colt run the classes, Grant rides everyone’s asses, and I basically file paperwork and take pictures. They’re opening a paintball course, so we can put you in charge of that. I don’t see what the big deal is. You want to work here, right?”
“I do,” he said solemnly. “I need the job.”
“Well, we need another employee,” she told him.
He nodded, but the suspicious look was still on his face.
“Would you feel better if I put on some pants?”
“Marginally, yes.”
“All right then, I’ll have to find some. Come on. I’m sure I have some in my cabin.” She paused, then added, “I think.”
They headed toward the row of cabins and Brenna waved a hand at them. “One of these will be yours, as soon as we figure out sleeping arrangements.”
“The cabin I slept in last night. It’s not empty?”
“No, that’s mine.”
He looked surprised. “You don’t have much stuff.”
“I don’t, do I?” she said, feeling more cheerful by the minute. That was nice to hear from someone. Relieving. She constantly worried that she’d somehow turned a blind eye to her possessions and she’d wake up surrounded by piles of overwhelming junk.
“You a minimalist?”
“Something like that,” Brenna said. “Though only with my own stuff.” She had no problem borrowing from other people, because other people tended to want their stuff back. As long as it was going home with someone else? She didn’t much care. “But once we reshuffle the cabins, you’ll have one for yourself. Do you need to make relocation arrangements?”
His fathomless blue eyes fixed on her face. “I’m relocated.”
“I don’t see a box of stuff?”
“I’m relocated,” he repeated.
“Well then,” she said, pushing the door to her cabin open. “I guess I’m not the only one who packs light.”
Once inside her cabin, she found her last pair of jeans and a T-shirt she’d borrowed from Beth Ann. She changed and grabbed her few possessions—toiletries, a paperback, and her spare bra—and headed back out to where Rome was patiently waiting.
“She’s move-in ready,” Brenna declared, and waved the handful of possessions. “Just let me dump this at Grant’s and we can start the grand tour.”
“Move-in ready?” He gestured at her cabin. “You mean this will be mine?”
She nodded. “I’m staying with Grant until his family leaves. After that, I’ll just sleep in the main lodge. I don’t really need a cabin.”
He gave her a dubious look. “I don’t want to push you out of your home.”
“Actually, I’d prefer not to have one.” It was one of her weird hang-ups, but she didn’t try to explain it. No one ever understood.
A smile slowly blossomed over Rome’s handsome face and, for a moment, he looked pretty enough to be a model. “Thanks.” He gave the cabin another proud look, and she recognized that expression instantly. It was the expression of a man who didn’t have much and appreciated what he got.
It made her like him all the more.
“Come on,” she told him. “Once I drop these off, we’ll get the ATVs and I’ll show you around.”
• • •
Only one of the ATVs was working that morning. Hoisted by her own petard, more or less. She dug out two helmets and had Rome ride behind her, and she drove around the wilderness camp for more than an hour. There were no classes, so she felt comfortable gunning through the woods at high speed, Rome’s hands clinging to her waist. She drove him past the creeks, pointed out Dane and Colt’s favorite camping spots, showed him the storage cabin that they kept emergency supplies in, and circled the area that the guys had designated to be the paintball course. It was toward the front of the property, so any paintball enthusiasts wouldn’t have to go traipsing into the deep woods just to get to the course.
Rome was quiet, absorbing it all in with quick nods.
By the time they circled back to the main lodge, Grant’s car was in the parking lot, and he and Elise were heading out the front door to greet them, likely drawn by the loud purr of the ATV. Brenna waved enthusiastically as they ripped past, and she could have sworn that Grant frowned at the two of them. With her luck, she was probably just in time for a lecture about keeping both hands on the handlebars while driving. She drove up to the ATV shed and let Rome get off before driving in to park, and then tossed the helmets into the shed instead of restoring them to their proper spot.
“Shouldn’t we put those away?” Rome asked.
“Probably.” But she didn’t turn around to fix it. She was curious what Grant was going to say and that was spurring her forward. She shoved her hands into her pockets and began to head back to the front of the main lodge. “So what do you think, Rome?”
He thought for a moment, and then answered. “Too much acreage, if you ask me.”
“What do you mean?” Brenna asked as Grant and Elise met them halfway. Grant had a definite scowl on his face, so she moved in and put her hand on his cheek, bringing him close for a kiss in greeting (that would also serve as a distraction). It worked rather well, too—Grant definitely had a distracted look on his face.
“You have too many acres set aside for the paintball,” Rome said slowly, as if unsure that he should be offering advice. “There’s no natural landmarks or coverage, just trees. To be really successful, you’d be best with setting up some sort of buildings for cover, like a fort or fake walls. You want people to set up as teams and strategize.”
“Won’t it be unsafe if we set up a lot of obstacles?” Grant rubbed his chin, thinking. “I want safety to be a consideration for our guests above all else.”
“Safety is one thing, but you’ll need to give them some sort of cover or scenario to work through. You could even set up different tracks—one for beginners, one for advanced players, and one for experts, and scale the courses accordingly.”
“So the new guys won’t be slaughtered by the experts,” Grant mused. “Not a bad idea.”
“Rome’s brilliant,” Brenna enthused. “That’s why we hired him.” And Grant was still frowning down at her, so she nibbled on his ear a little.
He shivered and jerked away when her tongue traced the shell of his ear. “Are you trying to distract me?”
“Yes,” she murmured, but then glanced back at Rome. “You want to change things, you need to talk to this man, here.” She patted Grant’s chest, and then copped a bit of a feel of his pectorals while she was at it. It was kind of fun to manhandle him.
Grant laid a hand over hers, stopping her exploration, but she noticed he didn’t pull her hand away. He considered Rome for a long moment. “We actually discussed hiring a carpenter to come in and build some obstacles for the paintball course.”
“No need,” Rome said, and his stance relaxed a little. “I can do that for you. I know a little carpentry.”<
br />
“That’s great,” Grant said, enthusiasm in his voice.
“You ever thought about running a paintball gear shop, too? Might be a good idea. People come in for paintball and buy stuff while they’re there.”
Grant seemed impressed by Rome’s business acumen. “That’s a good idea, too. And it’d give Pop something to do so Brenna doesn’t have to keep breaking things for him.” His hand slid around her waist and he gave her a light squeeze. “I’m getting tired of my Audi constantly being on the fritz. Sounds like you have a lot of paintball experience.”
For some reason, that made Rome a bit more guarded. As Brenna watched, he seemed to visibly withdraw. “I’ve got a little bit of everything under my belt.”
“And he’ll look hot for Elise’s photo shoot,” Brenna pointed out.
Grant’s brows drew together and he frowned down at her.
“I don’t recall agreeing to a photo shoot.”
“I’m pretty sure we discussed it at dinner with your parents.”
“Yeah, but discussing isn’t agreeing to.”
“Isn’t it?” Brenna said in a light voice. To distract him, she slid her hand into his back pocket and squeezed his ass. She looked over at Elise to fill in the picture. But for some reason, Grant’s sister had totally withdrawn into her shell again. She was staring at the ground, one shoe scuffing in the dirt. Her long, smooth hair had swung in front of her face, obscuring it from view, and she wasn’t saying anything or participating in the conversation. She looked as if she wanted to hide.
Well heck. Clearly she couldn’t count on Elise to step into the argument, so Brenna took the reins again. “Come on. It’ll help your sister out to get the spread. And think of the business you’ll get with some pictures of hot guys all muddy and woodsy.” She fluttered her lashes at him in an obvious way. “It’s great promo.”
“From a woman’s magazine?”
“Uh, yeah,” Brenna said. “If I want to take a survival class, I’m going where the trainers are ripped and studly. No-brainer.” She glanced over at Elise, but the shy woman’s face was bright red and she still wasn’t speaking up. “Anyhow, it’s decided. Right, boo?”
“Don’t call me ‘boo,’” Grant said. “But it’s not a bad idea. We’ll discuss it later with the guys.”
She gave his butt a pat. “Don’t think you’re getting out of the picture day. Four studs sells more magazines than three.”
He gave her a startled look. “I’m not a trainer.”
“So?” She scratched his stomach, pretending to draw lines across his washboard abs. “You’ve still got a hot body. Women everywhere will be wanting to sink their teeth into you, right, Elise?”
“He’s my brother,” Elise said, her whisper just barely audible.
“We’ll discuss it later,” Grant said again. “For now, we need to pick up my parents from the bed and breakfast so they can get the grand tour.”
We? She stifled a groan. She’d signed up to be his fake girlfriend, though. She supposed she’d have to deal with this sort of thing. “So what am I supposed to do with Rome? I can’t leave him unsupervised on his first day.”
“Where’s Pop?”
“I don’t know. I’m not his owner.” Brenna brightened, a devious idea coming to her mind. “I know. He can take Elise around and show her some of the nearby areas so she can get an idea for the photo shoot.”
Rome’s gaze went to Grant’s quiet sister, and she could have sworn that he’d warmed up a bit. Elise, however, looked utterly stricken, her eyes wide.
“I don’t think that’s wise,” Grant began.
As he spoke, Brenna watched Rome grow shuttered again, the cold look coming over his face. Wrong thing to say. She sighed. “Maybe some of us need to talk privately,” she told him, “and can’t do it with your family in the car. Or, you know, do other private things.” She fluttered her eyelashes up at him.
He turned bright red.
Just then, Colt pulled up in his jeep.
“Problem solved. We’ll send Colt with them,” Grant said, and then tugged at her waist. “Come on.”
Brenna frowned at Grant, and then gave Rome and Elise a helpless look. “We’ll be back soon.”
Rome nodded crisply, and Elise gave her a mutely pleading look that Brenna ignored. Rome was hotness personified—it’d do Elise well to spend some time with him, since it was clear that Rome was interested in her . . . if she’d ever make eye contact with him.
When she got into the Audi with Grant, she continued to wave cheerfully at the others until they pulled out of the parking lot. Then she reached over and thumped Grant on the arm.
“Ow! What the hell was that for?”
“You were mean to our new employee!”
Grant shook his head, staring out the windshield. “I hope to God that he had some incredible qualifications for you to hire a guy who looks like him that fast. I didn’t even see his résumé.”
“I’m sure his qualifications are fine,” Brenna told him. “And what do you mean, a guy who looks like him?”
“You’re sure his qualifications are fine? Jesus, Brenna! Did you even look at them?”
“Does it matter? So Colt will show him how to rub some sticks together and make some fire. So what.”
He stared at her as if she’d grown another head. “Are you kidding me? There are certifications and trainings that someone needs to have to qualify to teach classes. We were hiring someone who had those.”
She shrugged. “I liked Rome, and he needed the work.”
“He’s covered in tattoos. He looks like a hoodlum!”
“I’m covered in tattoos, too! You didn’t seem to have a problem with mine.”
“They’re not covering you up to your neck.”
“They can. Maybe I’ll go get a few more tomorrow.”
He shot her a dark look. “Very funny.”
She stared at him, astounded. “I can’t believe you don’t like him because of his tattoos.”
“I can’t say I don’t like him. I don’t know who he is. I don’t know anything about him, actually,” Grant bit out. His face was drawn into angry, grim lines. “That could be why I don’t want to leave my incredibly shy sister with a stranger. I can’t believe you went off into the woods alone with him.”
She rolled her eyes. “What was he going to do, feel me up while I was driving the four-wheeler?”
“Maybe. You never know.”
“Well, he’s moving into my cabin, so I’m sure there will be plenty of opportunities for him to continue his orgy of molestations.”
Grant screeched on the brakes. “You’re kidding, right?”
Brenna held on to the dashboard. “It’s not like I’m going to be in there.”
His face softened as he looked over at her, and there was a hint of a smile on his mouth. “Because you’re going to move in with me?”
Whoops. Someone honked at them, distracting her, and she glanced at the car behind them, since it was easier to focus on than Grant’s hopeful face. “Actually, I thought I’d just sleep on the couch in the lodge.”
His mouth hardened again. He started the car forward once more, glaring out the front windshield. Great, now he was all pissy again.
And she had a realization. “You’re jealous.”
“How can I be jealous? We’re just having crazy, no-strings-attached sex, remember?”
“Exactly! So why are you jealous?”
“I’m not. I just don’t understand why you’d rather have no home than to stay with me.”
Like she was going to admit the whys and hows of her hang-up to him? Brenna crossed her arms over her chest and slouched in the passenger seat. “Maybe because you’re being a dick?”
“It’s a good thing there’s no emotion involved in this relationship then, isn’t there?” His voic
e was caustic with anger. “Or else you’d probably be mad.”
She was mad, actually. She was furious at him and his high-handed ways. But she didn’t say anything, because if she did, she’d just prove him right. Irritated, Brenna glared out the window at the passing scenery, and neither of them spoke until they arrived in Bluebonnet.
Reggie and Justine were waiting for them in front of the Peppermint House. They seemed a little stymied by the foul moods of both Brenna and Grant.
“Don’t worry,” Brenna told them in an innocent voice. “This will just make the make-up sex all the sweeter.”
And she relished the withering look that Grant sent in her direction.
SIX
He couldn’t believe her.
Brenna would rather sleep on a couch than move in with him. It was ridiculous.
Seated at his work station in the main lodge, Grant clenched his teeth and stared at his computer screen. While his family was out getting a tour of the grounds, he figured he could get some work in. That was, if he could concentrate. Grant rubbed his jaw, determined not to look over at Brenna’s desk. If he did, then she’d know he was thinking about her. He could hear her humming an off-key little tune, as if nothing in the world was bothering her.
And that drove him even crazier.
It was like she honestly didn’t care about anything. She’d hired Rome with no qualifications other than the fact that he would look good with dirt rubbed on him. She slept with Grant—mindblowing, soul-destroying sex—and then was surprised that he wanted more than just a quick fuck.
The thing was, when she was ‘pretending’ to be his girlfriend, it felt so natural and easy that he immediately wanted that in his life on a permanent basis. Her playfulness, her sexuality, her inability to take things too seriously? It attracted him like food attracted a starving man. She reached for him so casually, her affection so seemingly sincere that he had a hard time adjusting when she pushed him away and demanded that things be casual. He wasn’t a casual kind of guy. He just wasn’t.
And ever since Brenna had climbed into his bed? He hadn’t thought about Heather once, not until he sat down at his desk, still fuming from his fight with Brenna, and opened his drawer to find the hidden picture of his dead ex-wife staring up at him.