She had no idea how long they lay there before he stirred.
Moving slowly, he propped himself on his forearms to gaze at her. “Wow.”
She considered making a smart remark to lighten the mood, but he truly did look blown away. “Wow is right.”
He smiled. “This was better than the stool.”
“Think of what we could accomplish on an actual bed.”
“Boggles the mind, doesn’t it? I don’t know, though. Being up in this tree house gives the whole experience a certain something.”
“It’s not boring.”
“No.” He dipped his head and kissed her softly. He added more kisses to her cheeks, her eyes and her nose. “But I have trouble imagining anything being boring with you.”
“Coming from a man who treasures variety, that’s quite a compliment.”
He looked into her eyes again. “I meant it to be. That’s probably what brought me out here yesterday. I couldn’t imagine how a woman who studies eagles from a platform twenty feet in the air could be boring.”
“Thank goodness I didn’t disappoint you.” But she got a glimpse of how his restless nature might feel confined in a typical relationship. He really wasn’t suited for a cottage surrounded by a white picket fence.
“You couldn’t if you tried. But I don’t want you disappointing that professor who hired you, either. You need to get to work.”
“I do.”
“And if it’s okay, I want to help. I love being your spotter.”
“Then you’re hired. How much do you charge?”
He laughed. “I’ve already been paid in full. This has been a great afternoon. Possibly the best of my life. Now let’s get moving.”
As they dressed and settled in to observe the eagle nest, she kept thinking about that comment. This had been a great afternoon for her, too. Possibly the best afternoon of her life. But she was reluctant to say so because she didn’t want him to think she was getting attached.
He was free to say it, though, because he’d already declared his independence. He could rave about their time together, knowing that she wouldn’t expect him to stay. It was a lopsided situation.
Somehow she’d set the record straight without being too obvious about it. She had to let him know in no uncertain terms that she didn’t want him to stay. Then she could relax and make any appreciative remarks she cared to. She simply had to find the right moment.
LUKE HADN’T BEEN kidding. Today had been outstanding, an afternoon he wasn’t likely to forget. He had high hopes for tonight, too. Sex in a tent could be a lot of fun. They’d also sleep in that tent, though. Both of them had to work the next day, and all he needed was for Emmett or Jack to catch him dragging around tomorrow.
As the sun started its descent, Luke announced his plan to cook dinner, and Naomi seemed grateful for that. He’d tucked two frozen steaks in his saddlebags, and they would be about ready to put on the grill now. He left her to finish up her work on the platform and walked back to the campsite.
Once there, he gathered firewood and soon had a nice little blaze going in the rock fire pit that he found near the tent. He took a couple of foil-wrapped potatoes and tossed them into the flames. The corncobs, still in their husks, would go on top of the grill once the flames died down a bit.
Next he fed Smudge oats, and because Luke still had a little time, he unrolled his sleeping bag in the tent. Hers was pushed over to one side. It might be the way she normally arranged it, but he’d pretend she’d done that to make room for him in case he showed up. He liked to think she’d hoped for that.
As he smoothed out the sleeping bag and tucked a couple of condoms under it, he found himself whistling. Good sex certainly could make a guy feel like a million bucks. And it wasn’t only the good sex. Being with Naomi was a real kick.
He’d already started estimating how often he could make it out here. He wouldn’t have another afternoon off for several days, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t spend some of his nights with her, if she didn’t mind sharing her tent.
Normally when he became sexually involved with a woman, they got together only a couple of times a week. That had been plenty. He realized that his thinking was different this time, but he explained it away by the novelty of the situation.
His former girlfriends had lived in apartments, so they’d either spent time at his place or hers, or at a hotel for variety’s sake. For some reason he’d never thought to take any of them camping. The professional women he’d dated hadn’t seemed like the camping type. Maybe he hadn’t given them enough credit, but he couldn’t imagine any of them going without makeup and taking a quick bath in a mountain stream.
Today he’d learned something valuable about himself. He loved having outdoor sex during the day. He was amazed that he’d never tried it before, but now that he had, he was a real fan. Not every woman would agree with him on that, but he’d been lucky enough to hook up with a woman who was willing to go along.
Having a platform high in a tree helped, too. They weren’t as likely to be caught in the act. Actually, if they were going to continue with those episodes, they’d be wise to bring the ladder up. That way they really couldn’t be caught in the act. He’d see what Naomi thought about that suggestion.
Before he left the tent, he took off his hat and laid it brim-side up on what he now considered his side. A hat only got in the way when there was a beautiful woman around, so why wear it? He wanted to be free to kiss her any old time he had a chance.
He had the corn and the steak cooking by the time she walked into camp. Even with her clothes and her hiking boots on, she still looked like a wood nymph. She matched the environment, and he liked that about her.
She sniffed appreciatively. “Smells wonderful, Luke. I haven’t had steak in ages. You’re hired as the camp cook, too.”
“I’m happy to accept the job.” He crouched down and turned the steak with the long-handled fork he’d brought with him. “I like to make myself useful.”
He glanced over his shoulder and caught her eyeing his butt.
“You’re very useful.” She ogled him openly now, hamming it up. “There’s something really sexy about a guy slaving over a hot campfire, especially when he can fill out a pair of jeans.”
“Watch out.” He grinned at her. “I’m liable to start feeling like a sex object.”
“I know how you would hate that—having me pester you constantly to strip down so I can worship your body.”
“Yeah, that sounds awful. When does the pestering start?”
“If that steak didn’t smell like heaven, it would start right away. But I don’t want to interfere with this promising meal preparation.”
“Tactical mistake on my part.” He stood. “I should have waited to put on the steak until after you’d come back to camp, in case you wanted an appetizer.”
“I’ll settle for a kiss.”
He laid the fork on a rock and walked toward her. “Think we can stop with a kiss?”
“With that steak sizzling on the grill? You bet. Every cowboy and cowgirl knows it’s a crime to burn a good steak.”
He cupped her face in both hands. “I’ll keep that in mind.” Then he tilted her head back and