Page 12 of The Hang Up
“I was being glib,” she said, tossing her hair and making note of the eagerness in his expression. “Whatever it is, I’m guessing it’s outside my comfort zone.”
“Exactly why you should do it.” He grinned again. “Spelunking is cave exploration. I have all the gear, and there’s a really amazing cave I know of just a couple hours away. Come on, it’ll be fun.”
“I think you and I have very different definitions offun.”
“I doubt that,” he said. His voice was low and molten, or maybe that’s just how Miriam heard it. Either way, it sent a shiver down her spine.
She shook her head, trying to keep her cool. “I really don’t think cave exploration is necessary. Or any other adventure, really. I can serve Urban Trax just fine from the comfort of my desk chair.”
“I disagree,” he said. “I think it’s very necessary. And as your client and the CEO of the second-largest outdoor retailer in the country, I require it.”
Miriam rolled her eyes, annoyed to realize how turned on she was by the whole alpha-male mountain-man thing. “You remember that thing I said about not needing to swing your dick around?”
“That’s the second time in ten minutes you’ve mentioned my dick,” he said. “If I didn’t know better, I’d accuse you of being obsessed with it.”
“Fine,” Miriam said, pretty sure this was the least professional conversation she’d ever had with a client. She knew she needed to call a halt to it, but his teasing had left her tingling from the nape of her neck all the way down to her toes. “I’ll go spelunking with you. But I won’t agree to like it.”
“That’s the spirit.”
“Now can we talk business for just a minute?”
“Fire away.”
As Miriam launched into a discussion of marketing plans and ad campaigns, the back of her brain stayed hung up on the simmering attraction she felt for this burly, ridiculously sexy lumberjack lookalike beside her.
The whole thing was stupid. Considering what happened with her dad, she kept her distance from guys who fed on adrenaline like it was oxygen. She’d sworn six ways to Sunday she’d never get involved with a guy like Jason Sanders.
So what the hell was she doing?
And why did she kinda wish spelunking was a sex act?
CHAPTER3
Jason rapped on his sister’s front door and reflected on the fact that it was also sort ofhisdoor. He’d purchased the duplex when he moved them all to the city two weeks ago, and though he lived three feet away in the adjacent home, he liked to think there was enough separation between the two dwellings to give them each a bit of privacy.
That was especially handy when his five-year-old nephew, Henry, practiced his drumming skills with a collection of his mother’s pots and pans. Though the sound didn’t carry through the walls when Jason was safely in his space, he could hear it now as Ellie threw the door open to reveal a gleefully percussive little boy and one frazzled-looking mom.
“What?” barked the frazzled-looking mom, who also happened to be Jason’s baby sister.
He felt a rush of fondness for Ellie, mingled with the absolute certainty he was put here on this earth to care for these two remaining members of his family.
But he was a big brother, of course, so he opted to show his fondness by tousling her hair.
“Good morning to you, too, sunshine,” Jason said as she ducked out from under his hand and smacked it away. “I take it he found the drumsticks?”
“No, he’s using my wooden spoons again.”
“I thought you hid those.”
“I did. Apparently his desire to be Alex Van Halen outweighs his fear of climbing up on the counter to reach the top of the fridge.”
“Climbing’s in his genes,” Jason said with a twinge of pride. “Maybe I’ll buy him a harness and a set of crampons for his sixth birthday.”
“And maybe I’ll be attending my big brother’s funeral after I murder you in your sleep.”
Jason laughed and glanced at Henry. “How’d he sleep?”
“Really well. Hopefully that means the new meds agree with him.” Ellie turned to look back at her son, who had reached a musical crescendo and was using a pair of stainless steel lids as cymbals. “Maybe that’s the problem,” Ellie said. “He’s well-rested and feeling good and ready to take on the world.”
