“Exactly.”
“What do you have in mind?”
He held out a hand and stopped our walk around the bank. We were about twenty yards of weed and mud patches away until we reached our goal.
“First one to the swing on the dock wins something from the other person.”
I swallowed. “Wins what?”
A crooked grin began to form on his face, his eyes darting to my lips. No. It wasn’t a dart. I would know because heat burning on my face followed the trail. The luxurious journey began at my eyes, before venturing to the freckles scattered across my nose that came out every summer, until they finally reached my lips.
“Whatever you want,” he said, low and hot, before his gaze flitted back up to mine.
I begged my brain to stay with me. My heart was probably a lost cause, but I was toast without my head. “So, if I tell you to clean the men’s bathroom for a whole week, you have to do it?”
He smiled. “Yup. And one more thing.”
“What?”
“We live in the moment. We’re here now. No worrying about anything else. Just have fun.”
We locked gazes for a long moment while I felt myself being pulled in opposite directions. But he was right. I had said yes to this moment and I didn’t want to be anywhere else.
“Deal?”
“Yeah.” The words came out so soft, but they seemed to be enough for Duke.
My pounding heart went into overdrive as he leaned forward, into my space, my breath catching. A light breeze could have toppled me. He opened his mouth, and my eyes dropped to his lips.
“GO!” He took off like a rocket, leaving me in the dust.
Dang it, brain. You had ONE job!
I followed him, a mixture of panic and laughter, already paces behind and working my way through a mud patch. Ahead of me, Duke slipped in the mud, one knee hitting the ground for a few seconds, but it was enough for me to gain some decent traction. Just as I was about to pass him, his hand reached out, pulling my gigantic shirt backward.
“Cheater!” I yelled, fighting off his hands. Squealing, my foot skidded through the mud, and I began to flail. His hands were on me fast, holding me up so I didn’t fall. Then it was an all-out war, laughing and shouting as we each pulled each other’s shirts, trying to gain the advantage. He slipped again, and I broke free, running as fast as I dared, careful to make sure that I wouldn’t end up needing another emergency room visit today. After putting some necessary space between us, I glanced back to make sure he was okay in time to see him dive gracefully into the pond. I squealed, moving myself farther away from the bank to hopefully avoid the mud patches. It cost me some time, but it didn’t matter anyway. Before I reached the dock, Duke had pulled himself up onto it, with arms full of muscles and sexiness.
“It was a pleasure doing business with you,” Duke called cheerfully, watching me approach.
“I didn’t realize you were a big fat cheater,” I said, breathing heavily as I came to stand in front of him.
He laughed. “I guess next time you’ll have to establish all your rules up front.”
“What do you win?” I threw my hands on my hips as I regained control of my breathing.
His eyes trailed down my body, sending shivers leaping chaotically down my spine. “I’m still deciding. But I'll keep you posted.”
I stilled.
Okay.
One of us needed to take control here because right now, he seemed as far away from Boss Duke as I’d ever seen him before. My body was going to combust if he kept doing…whatever it was he was doing.
With a voice that sounded in more control than I felt, I said, “No unnecessary touching. And nothing we wouldn’t do at work.”
His lips curved into a smile. “You’re greatly underestimating the things I would do at work.”
Holy crap. “DUKE!”
