I blew a strand of hair out of my face. If there was a ponytail holder that could keep my hair out of my eyes all day, I hadn’t found it. “We had some good discussion yesterday,” I said vaguely.
“Good discussion. Riveting stuff, Rachel.”
I scoffed. “What do you want me to say? We don’t know each other, are coming at the topic from opposite sides, and we’re under a tight deadline. The fact that we haven’t killed each other is a minor miracle.”
“Murderous rage is just a hair off from uncontrolled lust, you know,” she said, straightening a stack of flyers on the counter.
I cocked an eyebrow.
She rolled her eyes. “Okay, maybe notmurderous. But passionate disagreements, push and pull. It can turn in a very sexy direction in a flash.”
“I’m sure it can in all those romance novels you read. In the real world, forced proximity doesn’t always lead to a happily ever after.”
Joy leaned on the counter, her big earrings swinging as she moved. “Well, not directly. There are steps in between. One of which involves very hot sex.” She pumped her eyebrows, suggestively.
I grabbed the key off the counter. “Thank you for your insight, delusional woman. If you need me, I’ll be in the meeting roomnothaving hot sex with Brody.”
“Does Brody get a say in this?” His rich voice hit me, and my back straightened.
Dammit.
I mouthedI hate youat Joy just as I turned and met Brody’s eye. I’d seen his eyes fiery in argument and bored in meetings, but this was the first time I’d seen them dance with amusement.
I fought a blush.
“Different Brody,” I blurted. “Anyway, shall we?” I led him toward the meeting room, throwing a glare over my shoulder at Joy.
She let out a cackle that the wicked witch would be enviousof as I hustled away.
My shoulder bumped Brody’s as we climbed the stairs to the second floor. The heat of his body seeped into mine. I could smell his skin from how close we were walking. Pine, with a hint of something else. Something with some spice to it.
Was he wearing cologne?
No. Why would he? He spent his days climbing trees. Besides, he hated me. No need to try to impress the enemy. Although if that had been his plan, he had succeeded, no fancy scents required. His brain was a fascinating place to get to know.
Mercifully, he didn’t bring up what he’d overheard between Joy and me, and we set up in the meeting room to get started.
A half-hour later, we were at an impasse. I pinched the bridge of my nose. “Of course the data isn’t perfect. No one does a study on Springwood specifically. They’re all at least regional, if not provincial. We have to draw conclusions from the larger data sets.”
“This is a Springwood event,” he said. “What some egghead has to say about Vancouver doesn’t apply. They’re basically a rainforest; we get minus forty-degree winters.”
“Well, I don’t have time to conduct a full health assessment of the local forest before Saturday, so—”
He stood. “No one said anything about a full health study. We can just go outside. You know, touch grass, like the kids say.”
“You want to just wander around the woods and what? Ask the trees how things are going?”
He dug into the pocket of his jeans for his keys, and I let my eyes roam over him for just a moment—definitely not trying to determine the size of his bulge through the well-worn denim.
“We can get pictures,” he said. “A cut block that was clear-cut versus a site that was selectively logged. Real-life, close-to-home examples of how things are actually done around here.”
I huffed. “That…isn’t the worst idea.”
He flashed me a close-lipped smile. “Then get in the truck. I’m driving.”
Chapter Three
Brody
