Page 24 of Solid as Steele
“Me too.” Owen was struggling this morning, but still wished he didn’t have to let her do the work.
She offered them both a victorious smile that shot an arrow right to Owen’s heart. This woman got to him in a big way, but Ryan didn’t seem affected by the smile at all, confirming his platonic interest in her.
“Did either of you get any sleep?” she asked.
“I did.” Ryan glanced at Owen. “But overachiever here took watch all night. Guess he didn’t trust us to stand watch.”
I guess I don’t.“Can never be too careful.”
Ryan held up a scrambled egg MRE. “It’s gonna take a bit for the coffee and water to be ready for breakfast if you want to make a quick sweep around the area. I know it’s barely light, but you might see something.”
“Better than sitting here shivering and my muscles getting stiffer.” Owen unfolded his legs to test the strength.
Mackenzie looked at him. “I’ll come with you.”
He marched across the open space to where the UTV had stopped last night. He bent to study the tracks, his back appreciating the stretch. “Are these tracks like the ones you trailed?”
“No. Closer together. Much smaller tires. Not as deep.”
“Not the vehicle that drove toward your rental, then.”
She shook her head. “You said they took your vehicle. I wonder if those tracks belonged to your vehicle.”
“Could be, though I don’t know what I was driving, if anything. Ryan said those tracks were from a truck.” He ran a frustrated hand through his hair.
“You seem like you might be a truck kind of guy.”
“I do, do I?” He grinned as he didn’t mind her thinking that way. He felt a kinship with pickups for some reason. Maybe he was exactly what she’d pegged him to be. “Why’s that?”
“You seem like Ryan. Kind of rugged. At home in the outdoors.”
“And what do you think about that?”
“Think about it?”
“Do you like guys who are rugged?”
“I like guys who like adventure. Often that can mean rugged, but I’ve had guy friends who like adventure and aren’t overly rugged,” She locked gazes with him. “I like you, if that’s what you’re really asking.”
He was unreasonably happy by her answer. “You’re very direct.”
“Not most of the time. I’m more the peacemaker in a group and can often be found lost in my thoughts and philosophizing.”
“But this called for a direct answer?”
“I just wanted you to know I like you.”
“And what if I’m a criminal?”
“You’re not,” she said with conviction. “You went out of your way last night to be sure I was safe behind that tree. Then let me sleep all night. Those actions show me you’re very much a gentleman, even if you are a man of few words. So there.” She laughed.
He laughed with her, the moment more refreshing than a night of sleep might’ve been. He wanted to slide his fingers into that thick mane and pull her close for a kiss. But he wouldn’t. Not before he knew who he was. She was a special woman and deserved a good man. He only hoped she was right and he was that man.
“Can you take pictures of the tracks?” he asked, getting them back to the business at hand.
“Sure.” She took her phone out and snapped several photos in succession, the clicks echoing into the quiet.
He turned toward the base of the outcropping and studied every inch of the area, trying to remember the things Ryan looked for in tracking.
