“She’ll know something’s wrong. She can read me, even halfway across the world.”
“Ellie,” Tyler said, holding my body against his. “You can’t duck this forever. You’re going to have to talk to her sometime.”
I sent the message, and then turned off my phone, sitting up. My muscles ached as I stretched, complaining from the strange position we’d slept in all night, trying to fit on a twin-sized bed.
“I got an invitation in the mail the other day. My brother is getting married again.”
“Again? He’s already divorced?”
“No, they eloped, so they’re making it formal so the family can attend. It’s going to be in St. Thomas mid-March next year.”
I sighed. “I love St. Thomas, but that’s not enough time for me to save.”
He touched my lower back with the tips of his fingers. “I’ve got it. Wanna go? With me?”
I looked over my bare shoulder at Tyler. “Like … as your date?”
He shrugged, stretching his arm above his head. “You can call it whatever you want. I just want you there.”
I looked forward, pulling the blanket up over my chest. “I don’t need a passport for St. Thomas.” I sighed. “I hate this. I feel like this,” I said, gesturing between us, “is paying for whatever.”
He chuckled. “It’s not. I had already planned to ask you to go.”
I offered him a small, regretful smile. “We can’t do this again.”
His sleepy grin was infectious. “You keep saying that. Why don’t you just admit it?”
“Admit what?”
He waited.
“Fine,” I said. “We have a … thing.”
“That wasn’t so hard, was it?” he said, but the grin was wiped from his face when I stood, taking the blanket with me to the bathroom and grabbing my bath bag and robe from the knob of the armoire on the way.
“Shower?” Tyler called.
“Yeah.”
“Want company?”
“Nope.”
I hung the robe on a hook that was nailed into the divider between showers and let the down quilt fall to the floor, reaching behind the plastic curtain to twist the knob. The water sprayed from the head, instantly steaming. I stepped under, letting the water run over my head and down my face.
My mascara burned my eyes, and I reached for the soap, quickly scrubbing it away. Tyler had kissed me all the way to the bed and undressed me, and neither of us had left that spot the rest of the night. His tongue had tasted almost every inch of my body, making me come over and over until my legs twitched with exhaustion.
Once it was over, though, and I was lying in his arms, I could feel his relief. He practically radiated how at home he felt against me, and all I could think about was that it was getting harder to pretend what we had was just sex. Underneath his thick armor, Tyler cared about me, and I wasn’t sure I deserved that—at least, not yet.
I stepped out of the shower, fully intending to talk to Tyler about where he saw our benefriends relationship going, but a stranger was standing in the doorway, stunned but not at all trying to shield his eyes from my bare skin.
“Does this outfit have sheilas, or are the Alpines allowin’ conjugal visits?” he said.
I pulled my robe from the hook and wrapped it around me. “I’m the photographer. Who the fuck are you?”
He laughed, delighted with my answer. “I’m Liam. This wog is Jack.” Liam was at least six feet two inches, but Jack was taller, and very blond.
“What the hell is a wog?” I asked.
“Ow ya goin’?” Jack said. “We’re just in from Oz.”
“Great,” I said, knotting the robe belt and pulling it tight.
Tyler padded in, glowering at the two men. I’d never seen his expression so severe.
Liam held out his hand to Tyler. His bicep was as big around as my head, and I wondered how he carried all that muscle mass on a hike to a fire.
Tyler stared at Liam’s hand until he took it back, but the Australian didn’t seem fazed.
“There’s an undressed woman in your midst, gentlemen. I suggest you excuse yourself to another room until she’s otherwise.”
Jack slapped Liam on the shoulder. “They’re a bit uptight about nudity. Let’s not piss off the crew on our first day.”
Liam didn’t take his gaze from Tyler’s, but he wasn’t challenging him. With his unrelenting stare and amused grin, Liam was letting Tyler know he was far from intimidated, which only pissed off Tyler more.
The Aussies left, and Tyler joined me at the sink. “You okay?”
“Yeah,” I said, waving my hand dismissively. “You’re no longer the only Alpine hotshot crewmember who’s seen me naked.”
Tyler clenched his teeth. “We should have just had them go straight to Colorado Springs.”
“Then we wouldn’t have had last night.”
He smiled, gently pinching a few strands of my hair. “It’s a political fire. They need all hands on deck. Maybe you should stay.”
I frowned. “And what the hell am I going to do here? Take pictures of flowers? The barracks? Jojo will be pissed if I don’t go.”
“There’s a different TAC team. It’s not just Chief making the decisions. They might not let you up there.”
“I have a press badge. I can go wherever I want.”
Tyler breathed out a laugh. “That’s not exactly accurate.”