Groaning, I fluff Farah’s curls and make my way to the other end of the ramp where Derek’s taking his cat nap. He needs to be awake for the safety briefing, but first I should take the high road and try to find some common ground with him before I start thinking this trip is going to be miserable. I’m not going to let my disdain for this perfect man ruin one of my favorite canyons, so we need to build a bridge. Or at least call a truce.
Hunter steps in my way when I get too close, a frown on his face as he glances back at Derek. “I hoped setup would take longer,” he says, his voice low.
I keep my voice at the same volume. “Why’s he so tired? Too busy entertaining late night visitors?”
Hunter scoffs. “Never.”
Huh. I didn’t expect him to answer my question, let alone like that. “Never? Really?”
Shrugging, the bodyguard shakes his head. “Not his style.”
Sleeping around isn’t the Hollywood hunk’s style? I find that hard to believe, but I’m not here to argue with Hunter. “Well, it’s about time for us to shove off.”
“Sure you can’t let him sleep a little longer?”
“Not unless you want to be setting up your tent in the dark tonight.”
Hunter’s expression can only be described as horrified, and I wonder if he ever truly processed the concept of river camping. He’s a beast of a man and has a rugged look about him, but I’m going to guess he’s never slept in a tent in his life. A lot of people haven’t before coming here. Grunting, he nods once, then leads me over to his boss. He crouches down, and in the softest, most tender wake-up I’ve ever seen between two men, he gently puts his hand on Derek’s shoulder and mutters something I don’t catch.
Derek jolts awake, staring at Hunter for a second. Then his gaze finds me, full of vulnerability that he wouldn’t have let me see if he wasn’t still half asleep.
I bite my lip. “Sorry.”
He blinks, looking around disorientedly as he runs a hand down his face and sits up. While Hunter gives us some unexpected space after Derek nods, Derek’s eyes keep jumping to the other guests. I’m guessing the NDA everyone signed is the only reason he felt safe enough to fall asleep in the first place.
I had to sign one too, and according to paragraph 5a, no one is allowed to take any pictures of Derek under penalty of being sued for a whole lot of dough. I don’t think anyone here could afford a lawyer to fight that, so I haven’t seen a single phone out since we got here, even though the morning is gorgeous as the sun glints off the greenish brown river.
Kind of a buzzkill, Derek Riley.
“I didn’t think you knew that word,” he says finally, breaking into a yawn partway through.
Though I fight the urge, I yawn right back, then scowl at the nonchalant way he scratches the dark scruff on his cheek and quirks one corner of his mouth up. “Rude.”
His response is lightning quick. “The yawn contagion or my comment?”
“Both.”
He shrugs. “What are you sorry for? Waking me up or judging me without knowing me?”
He’s different from how he was before. The other day, I felt like I had the upper hand for most of our interaction, and earlier this morning he was grumpy and slow to react. But now he’s a step ahead of me and seems to know it. I don’t like it. “Well now I’m thinking I might take it back, so does it matter?”
Chuckling, he grabs a branch overhead and uses it to pull himself up, and then he starts stretching, leaning his head from side to side before lifting his arms over his head. His sweatshirt rises with the movement, revealing a few inches of those tantalizing abs of his.
Someone near the boats sighs, echoing the part of me that has to admit Derek Riley is a beautiful man.
He ignores his admirer and keeps stretching as he speaks, eyes closed. “You don’t like me. You’re not happy I’m here. The last thing you want to do is teach me to row.”
I tilt my head. “All true. So?”
“So I’m dying to know what you thought you should apologize for if not for any of those things.” He looks at me again, blue eyes bright and full of amusement.
Note to self: make sure Derek gets a nap every day. He’s much more pleasant now, even if he’s keeping me on my toes.
I pull my hair over my shoulder and start braiding, speaking through the distraction the movement offers. “I may have been a bit…short with you this morning.”
“A bit?”
A chuckle right behind me tells me Hunter is closer than I realized, but I try to ignore him, just like I’m ignoring the twenty pairs of eyes watching us from the ramp. “That’s all I’ll admit to, Riley. I wasa bitshort with you, and it was uncalled for.”
