He shook his head, and she frowned. “No, I mean yes. I live there, but I’m not married. Heck, I don’t even have a girlfriend.”
She raised one eyebrow, then her gaze dipped, takingin his body. When she met his gaze, she looked doubtful. “Really. A guy like you without a girlfriend.”
He would be lying to say her looking didn’t stroke his ego. “The job has kept me busy.”
She nodded. “Updating the cabin kept me busy, also you have to look to find someone.”
“That surprises me. I’m shocked you don’t have the local men banging down your door.”
Laughter spilled from her lips. “Most of the locals who are single are that way for a reason. They don’t want a thinking woman, and I’ve never been able to keep my mouth shut when I have an independent thought.”
“I bet that’s fun.”
She stopped and put her hands on her hips. He turned to face her, thinking she looked cute and he wouldn’t mind finding out if she would be up for some fun.
“Are you being an ass?”
He shook his head. “No. I really meant that. I bet it’s fun. I would hate to date a doormat. I don’t want someone who just wants to nod at everything I say and never counters me.” He wiped his hand over his face. “I’m sorry. I know I’m intense, and I really didn’t mean any disrespect. I was being serious, not snarky.”
She blinked at him then smirked as she took off walking again. “So you weren’t being an ass then. I’ve got to say most guys can’t handle it. They don’t like to be corrected.”
“I’m in the Navy, I get corrected all the freaking time.”
“So I thought Navy guys always had to shave and keep the hair short.”
“We do if we’re regular Navy.”
“Oh.” She stopped and pointed at some bushes. “The berries. Just watch the thorns.”
Griz took a step closer to the bushes and saw something long and black slither away. He jumped back. “Shit.”
“Oh, and snakes. It’s not one of the venomous ones.” She picked up a stick and rattled the bushes. “That should drive them away.”
“I hate snakes. When we operate in jungles and rain forests, I hate it.”
“I don’t so much mind the snakes around here. I have to watch my woodpile, and I try to keep the leaves away from the house.”
He started picking berries, watching where he stepped. “I bet you see a lot of wildlife out here.”
“I do. You have to be careful when mountain lions are in the area.”
“Do you see many here?”
She shook her head. “Not often. Once every few months. There aren’t any who live close by. They roam, but not this far. The deer population is bigger north of here.”
“Yeah, they would need the bigger prey to survive.”
They picked berries in silence for twenty more minutes and he felt like he had enough. He turned to face her as she turned to him. Neither of them said anything as they stared at each other. A hawk circled above and cried out but neither of them broke eye contact.
He decided to ask the question that had been playing at the back of his mind. “Listen, you can say no and I won’t bring it up again, but I’m only here for the next ten days. And you aren’t committed to anyone and neither am I. I think it would be a huge, missed opportunity if I didn’t say I found you attractive and would love to spend a few nights over the next week exploring what we could do for each other. Like I could eat you out and then find out how my dick feels in your pussy.”
The look of shock on her face made him think maybe he’d mistaken the situation. His mouth should have stayed closed, and he should have just relied on his hand.
He shook his head. “Sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.”
Elowen reached out and put her hand on his arm. She hadn’t been able to keep her eyes off the man she’d just met. Sleeping with guests was something she didn’t do, but this guy would be worth it. It had been a while since she’d been with a man.
“Shh. Just give me a second.”
