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“Obviously not the park’s Christmas events,” he said drily.
As she shouldered on her jacket, he reached to pull the fabric up and over her shoulders. The gentlemanly gesture shouldn’t have affected her, but just as it had yesterday it rattled her. Having him touch her, even in such an impersonal way, made her acutely aware of his tall, hard body and the utterly masculine scent surrounding him.
“I didn’t miss the important issues,” she said, as she zipped up the front of the hunter green jacket. “Besides, this won’t be my first Christmas at the park.”
“It’s a relief to know you’re on top of things.”
She darted a glance up at him, then wanted to groan at the tempting little grin on his lips.
“You look like you’re perfectly capable of walking without me leading you.”
Chuckling under his breath, he nudged her toward the exit. “Ouch! You’re a regular little cocklebur this morning. Did you have enough coffee at breakfast?”
Actually, she’d tossed and turned for hours last night. Then, sometime after she’d fallen into a fitful sleep, the electricity had apparently blinked on and off to cause the alarm clock to miss the five o’clock buzzer. She’d overslept and barely had time to shower and dress, much less drink a cup of coffee. But she wasn’t going to admit as much to this man. He’d probably remind her that she should’ve made sure to have fresh batteries in the clock for a backup system.
“Not exactly. But I’ll be fine.”
Outside, as the two of them walked to their vehicle, a cool north wind was whipping across the parking lot, while a bank of gray clouds in the western sky suggested there might be rain in store for them. But a tease was most likely all that would come from the clouds. Rain was a rare commodity in this part of the state, and snowfall even more extraordinary. The chance of seeing snowflakes was as far-fetched as the idea of her having another baby. It wasn’t going to happen.
Trying to shove that dismal thought from her head, Vivian jerked a black scarf from the pocket of her jacket and tied it around her neck.
“Have you ever seen a white Christmas, Sawyer?”
“No. Have you?”
“The only time I’ve ever seen snow was during a trip to the San Juan Mountains in Colorado,” she said.
She opened the driver’s door to the SUV and slid behind the steering wheel. Sawyer quickly settled himself in the passenger seat and she started the engine.
As he buckled his seat belt, he said, “I saw snow once. On a trip to Flagstaff. It was melting the moment it hit the ground. So I’ve never seen a pile of the stuff before. Can’t say that I want to.”
She backed out of the parking spot, then pulled onto the asphalt road leading away from headquarters. “I couldn’t live in a northern state. I don’t like to be cold or housed in.”
“I heard once that Onida was in North Dakota.”
Surprised by his out-of-the-blue comment, she glanced at him. “That’s your mother?”
He grimaced. “Onida is the woman who gave birth to me. I wouldn’t categorize her as a mother, though.”
Vivian could understand his reasoning. If her mother had walked away from her and never returned, she’d probably be thinking in those same terms. “Did you try to search for her?”
He shook his head. “Why would I want to find her?”
“Oh, I don’t know. Maybe to show her what she’s missed. To show her the fine young man you’ve grown to be. Even without her help.”
From the corner of her eye Vivian could see him shrug one shoulder, as though the woman’s opinion didn’t matter to him. The idea was a sad one. Nearly as sad as the thought that she’d never have the big family she’d always dreamed about.
“She’s dead, Vivian.”
Her gaze left the road long enough to look in his direction, but all she could see was the back of his head as he stared out the passenger window.
“You mean, literally?”
He looked at her, his expression as bland as if they’d been discussing the weather. Either he held no emotion for the woman, or he was an expert at hiding his true feelings, Vivian decided.
“Years ago, Grandmother was told by a mutual friend that she died in a car accident. But we never bothered to search for her whereabouts. Either way, she’s dead to me.”
Deciding it would be best to let the subject drop, Vivian remained silent as she steered the vehicle into the first campground on their work schedule.
The first three sites were quiet, prompting Sawyer to say, “Everyone must be sleeping late this morning.”
“Not everyone,” Vivian replied as she spotted a young woman with a blond ponytail wearing a pair of short shorts hurrying to the side of the road. Behind her, a small girl was struggling to control a leashed black-and-white dog.
When the woman began waving her arms at them, Sawyer said, “Looks like she wants us to stop.”
Vivian parked in a safe spot out of the way of traffic, but before either of them could depart the vehicle, the woman raced up to Sawyer’s window.
He lowered the glass and she gave him a wide smile.
“Are you two rangers?” she asked.
“That’s right,” Sawyer said. “I’m Ranger Whitehorse and she’s Ranger Hollister. Can we help you with something?”
Even from her vantage point, Vivian could see the young woman was ogling Sawyer as though she’d just stumbled onto the most beautiful thing she’d ever laid eyes on.
“Uh—yes. Maybe you can. We wanted to go on the doggie hike or puppy walk or whatever it’s called. Is it somewhere around here?”
Sawyer looked to Vivian for help. “Sorry,” he said. “I haven’t had a chance to go through all the park projects yet.”
Leaning up in the seat, Vivian said to the woman, “Yes, it’s about a quarter mile north of here. Just follow the road until you see the signs to the hiking trailhead. But you’d better hurry.” She glanced at her wristwatch. “The ranger leading the group will be leaving in fifteen minutes and he’s always prompt.”
“Oh. Okay.” She shot Sawyer another engaging smile. “I don’t suppose you could give us a lift, could you?”
“No. Afraid not,” he said.
“Aww, guess we’ll have to hurry, then. I just hope the other ranger looks like you.”
Resisting the urge to roll her eyes, Vivian started the SUV and taking the hint, the young woman stepped out of the way.
Once she’d eased into gear and started down the road, Sawyer cleared his throat and turned an amused glance on Vivian.
“Park guests will ask a ranger anything,” he reasoned.
She let out a heavy breath. “I know. Over the years I’ve heard all sorts of things. Some of which I would never repeat.”
“She was a bit ditzy, but pretty,” he commented.
“You ought to be ashamed. She’s probably not a day past twenty.”
“What’s wrong with being young?”
“Nothing.” Except that Vivian had never felt more like an old biddy and she hated the feeling. And she especially hated this self-pity party she’d been having for herself ever since she’d learned Blake and Kat were having a baby.
“Is something wrong with you, Vivian?”
Unwittingly, her foot eased off the gas pedal. “Wrong? What do you mean?”
She glanced over at him and tried to ignore the way her pulse leaped at the sight of his dark profile.
“I’ve only known you for one day. But you’re different from yesterday. A little sad, I think. Am I making you sad, Vivian?”
His words weren’t necessarily intimate or provocative, and yet the way he said them made it feel as though he’d whispered them in her ear. The sensation caused goose bumps to erupt on her arms and she was thankful the long sleeves of her shirt hid them from his sight.
Swallowing, she said, “No. You aren’t making me sad. Or mad. I’m just a little thoughtful this morning. That’s all.”
“Your eyes are dull. Yesterday they were snapping with life. They were much prettier that way.”
Dear God, how did this man see so much about her? Garth had been her husband for two years, but he’d never noticed such little nuances about her eyes or mood or anything else. To know that Sawyer was observing her so closely was unsettling, to say the least.
“Sorry if I seem glum today, Sawyer. It has nothing to do with you.”
Not exactly, she silently corrected. But she could hardly tell him that his young, handsome face and lean sexy body had jolted awake her slumbering senses. No more than she could admit that spending time in his company had reminded her of the many things she’d been missing these past years since her divorce.
“Good,” he said. “I didn’t come here to Lake Pleasant to cause you problems.”
No doubt he’d caused many a woman problems. Most all of them heart related. The very kind of problems she didn’t need.
“I’m going to make sure that you don’t,” she said primly.
He laughed and the sound relieved the tension that had been building ever since they’d left headquarters.
“I told my grandmother that you’re a good woman. So far you’re definitely not making a liar out of me.”
The urge to pull the SUV over to the side of the road and stare at him was so strong, she had to force her hands to remain steady on the steering wheel.
“I suppose you meant that as a compliment,” she stated in a voice that was meant to be casual, but even she could hear a quaver in her words.
“Nothing else.”
She let out a small breath as she steered the vehicle onto a graveled drive that circled an open pavilion. “I can’t believe you mentioned me to her.”
“Why not? You’re my new partner.”
“Yes, but...”
“But what? You don’t like me saying something nice about you?”
“You don’t know that I’m a good woman. You only met me yesterday. That’s not enough time for you to know what kind of person I really am.”
“Mort likes you. That’s good enough for me. Besides, my grandmother has a gift for seeing right into people. I think I inherited some of her gift.”
She arched a brow at him, but said nothing until she parked at the end of the pavilion and looked over at him. “Okay. I shouldn’t ask this, but what are you seeing right now—looking at me?”
“I see a woman who’s sad about something in her life. She’s also annoyed with herself.”
Dear Lord, the man was right on both counts. Which made her wonder what else he could see about her. Not wanting to delve into his first observation, she asked, “Tell me, Mr. Mystic, why am I annoyed with myself?”
A lopsided grin lifted a corner of his lips and in spite of Vivian’s brain commanding her to look away, her gaze went straight to his tempting mouth.
“Because you don’t want to like me, but in spite of yourself, you do. You’ve also been telling yourself you don’t want to kiss me, but we both know that isn’t true.”
Yesterday, his bold remarks would’ve shocked her. But today she was only mildly surprised that he’d voiced such opinions about her. He was a flirt. A very confident one at that. And she needed to always remember that no matter what outrageous words came out of his mouth, he wasn’t serious.
Forcing a playful smile on her face, she said, “I can’t believe you’ve pegged me so perfectly. You really must have your grandmother’s gift.”
He laughed and after a brief moment, the happy sound had her laughing along with him. But when the laughter finally trailed away, she had to fight the urge to drop her face in her hands and weep.
“It’s nice to hear you laugh, Viv.”
With any luck, he wouldn’t notice the soft sigh that escaped her lips. “I’m sorry for being a crab, Sawyer. Truth is, I slept very little last night.”
“I hope you weren’t lying awake worried about working with me,” he said. “We’re going to be great together.”
She smiled at him. “Is that prediction coming from your soothsaying abilities?”
“No. I’m not a soothsayer or anything close to it. My prediction is coming from firsthand experience.”
With women, no doubt, Vivian thought wryly. Then, before she could stop herself, she blurted, “To be honest, Sawyer, you were right. I am a little sad. And I really have no reason to be. Except that last night at the dinner table, my oldest brother and his wife announced that they’re having a baby.”
There. She’d said it. She’d gotten it out, but rather than feeling relieved, she realized she sounded like a petulant child. Or worse. What the heck was wrong with her, anyway?
“And that made you sad? Why?” he asked curiously. “Is he unworthy of being a father?”
She shook her head. “Blake is already an excellent father. He’s a strong, tender and loving man. I can’t think of anyone who deserves to have children more than him.”
His gaze made a thoughtful survey of her face, and Vivian felt as though his brown eyes were kissing her cheeks and lips. The erotic sensation was like nothing she’d ever felt before and she wondered if she was suffering some sort of hormonal imbalance. This wasn’t normal! Nothing about the way she was reacting to Sawyer was remotely close to normal.
“Then the sister-in-law is not of your liking,” he replied. “Is that what worries you?”
“No. Kat is like a sister to me. She’s a wonderful mother and human being. I love her and I’m very happy for the both of them.”
He shook his head as though she’d lost him somewhere along the trail.
“So you’re happy and sad at the same time. That’s what you’re trying to say?”
“Crazy, isn’t it?” she said with a self-deprecating laugh. “I should be all smiles. Instead, I want to burst into tears. Believe me, Sawyer, I don’t normally behave like an emotional female. And starting right now, I’m going to put this all behind me. So let’s get out and look the pavilion over. This is where Mort has scheduled the Christmas bingo party and we need to decide how many tables and chairs we can set up without crowding everyone.”
“We’ll get to work in a minute,” he agreed. “Right now, I want to ask you something.”
