“I could go for some,” she replied. She thought of her green chili burger from the night before, and her stomach grumbled, betraying her hunger.
“Are you thinking about Sandy’s burgers?” he asked with a chuckle.
“How did you know?” she asked. She didn’t think her stomach was that loud.
“Your face got all far away and dreamlike,” he replied. He smiled at her. “Most people get that way when they think of Sandy’s burgers.”
“You got me.” She shrugged and smiled. “They’re just so good.”
He nodded in agreement, and she turned to exit the small pool shed. She pushed open the wooden door of the shed and stopped short. She stood in awe, caught full blast in the beauty of the mountains in front of her.
She stood in the doorway taking them in. The green of the pine trees, the perfect blue of the sky, the brown and purple of the mountains with just the tips of white. Standing there, she finally understood the “America the Beautiful” lyric of “purple mountain majesty.”
“They’re beautiful, aren’t they?” Dylan’s voice was soft behind her shoulder. He was close enough to touch her if he wanted and she found herself wanting him to do so.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to trap you in there,” she said quickly, stepping out and turning to the side to let him out. But he didn’t move. He stood there, looking at her.
He was so handsome in the late afternoon sunlight. It accented the strength of his jaw and the line of his nose while softening his dark eyes with warmth. Droplets of water from their squirt gun fight glimmered in his dark hair and dripped down the back of his neck.
His eyes met hers, and she swore her heart stopped. Deep pools of rich brown enveloped her and warmth spread through her entire body. He moved toward her, tipping his chin and angling his body into hers. She forgot how to breathe as she realized he was going to kiss her.
Oh good lord did she want him to kiss her. She took a step forward, her hands trembling in anticipation. If this were a movie, there would be swelling romantic music right now.
But, then he paused, catching himself before he touched her. He cleared his throat and looked away as if he had thought better of what he was doing. He stepped back into the shed, shadows falling across his face and hiding his eyes.
“I need to change before dinner,” he said quickly. “I’ll meet you at your place.
“Um, sure,” she stammered, unsure of what was happening. Had she misread him? Her arms wrapped around her middle. She put on a smile she knew didn’t reach her eyes. “See you in a few minutes.”
Stupidity and embarrassment flowed through her in hot, heavy strokes. She shook her head as she hurried to her cabin. Why would he want to kiss her? He was gorgeous. And a billionaire.
She was a woman on the run with messy hair.
She turned before she could make a bigger fool of herself and saw a teenager staring at them. He was probably around sixteen. She recognized him as one of the younger camp counselors. He often worked with Elena, and she knew the two of them were close. He walked over to her.
“I found this.” He held out a squirt gun from the earlier fight. “I thought I’d put it away.”
“Thanks.”
“No problem.” The teen smiled at her and turned to leave. She felt like an idiot. No wonder Dylan didn’t kiss her. They had an audience.
She took the squirt gun back to the shed and handed it to Dylan. He took it without a word.
“See you in a little bit,” she said lamely, and she quickly turned to walk to her cabin. The moment was gone.
She walked quickly. She wanted that kiss, but she knew it wasn’t happening. She just had terrible luck. She told herself it was probably for the best.
Sure, they had fun together. He certainly made her laugh, and he was funny and smart. They’d had a great time at dinner the night before. However, she was on the run. If the police called, if a strange car showed up, if she saw something odd, she would have to run. It was better not to get attached, no matter how good looking he was.
She opened the door to her cabin and went inside to change, muttering to herself that she needed to get a grip.
She rinsed off in the bathroom and quickly changed into jeans and a cute t-shirt. It was a good thing there wasn’t a dress code at the camp or at Sandy’s because she had nothing else to wear. Since the fire burned most of her clothing, she’d been living out of a suitcase. She’d packed a few things, but she’d never intended to only have three outfits. The suitcase was supposed to be a temporary thing, not her long-term wardrobe.
She wished she had something to put on that wasn’t jeans and a t-shirt. She wished she could look cute tonight. It would certainly help her mood.
She ran a brush through her hair and decided she would pick out some new clothes online. She was finally someplace she could stay long enough to deal with shipping. A few new shirts and maybe a skirt or dress would make her feel prettier.
She sighed and headed out to meet him. She still felt like an idiot, but she was hungry, and they were getting dinner. He was still the closest thing she had to a friend here. She didn’t want to be alone just because she was on the run. It was just her luck she’s meet a great guy when she had to hide from the mob.