Apparently, there had been a lot of mutual checking out going on earlier.
“We had a rule in the military,” Trent said with a laugh. “Whenever we had a unit barbecue, we always put the big guy on the grill. Because if anybody knew and appreciated a good steak or burger, it was the big boys. So how can we trust a slender dessert chef?”
I grinned, patting my mostly flat belly. “This is from lots of hard work and good DNA. So don’t judge the desserts by my waistline. The things I make are as good as my grandmother’s secret recipes, and guaranteed to make you smile.”
With all three guys looking at me, enjoying our light conversation in a setting that I had to admit, in spite of myself, was truly stunning, a fresh wave of attraction hit me. I hadn’t dressed to be looked at, just to be comfortable on the long drive to the mountain, but my jeans and tank-top had certainly attracted some attention. The guys seemed to like what they saw, and the feeling was mutual. Whether it was Ivan’s powerful muscles, Roman’s calm commanding presence, or Trent’s aristocratic perfection, all of them were different kinds of sex on a stick.
Seriously, any of them would give me plenty of things to think about late at night when I was falling asleep with the help of my friendly vibrator.
I couldn’t decide which guy was sexiest. Maybe I wouldn’t have to.
“I told you what I do. Now you tell me.”
“I turned my skills from my service into being an independent fabricator and welder,” Ivan said. “Wrought iron mostly, but also… well, here.”
He reached to his hip, pulling out what looked like a folded pocket knife. I took it from him, admiring the work. I knew about knives because I’d worked with them since I was big enough to hold one. And while my experience was totally with kitchen and chef’s knives, I could tell as soon as I held the blade in my hand that this was a good one.
“It’s a beauty,” I said, wrapping my hand around the textured grip. “You make these?”
He nodded. “I guess you could say it’s my form of meditation,” he added. “I already had a lot of the basic equipment in my workshop, and the rest… well, there’s something peaceful and focused when you’re crafting a blade.”
“Ivan shouldn’t be so humble,” Roman said, patting the sheath on his own hip where I saw another knife hanging.
Trent held his up too, and I realized that all three men were carrying knives made by Ivan.
“After all, he’s the reason we found this campground,” Roman said.
“Really? How’s that?”
“I was nearby for an outdoor show,” Ivan said. “One of the guys there told me about this campground. So next time Roman and Trent wanted to get out of town, we came up here.”
“And it’s been part of our camping rotation ever since,” Roman said. He walked over to their SUV and opened the back, taking out a fishing pole and tackle box. “This place has great trout fishing.”
“And that’s our cue to take a hike,” Trent said with a grin, getting to his feet. He paused, and looked at me. “Would you like to join us? Believe me, it'll be a lot better time than hanging out with Roman while he fishes.”
“Hmmm,” I said, stalling for time.
While the idea of hanging out with Trent and Ivan had its appeal, the thought of watching Roman do his thing was appealing too.
“You’re going hiking? I mean, I don’t really do nature. It’s pretty shocking that I’m here at all. Seriously, if half my friends could see me, they’d double over laughing.”
But the truth was, either way, I couldn’t lose. I was surrounded by hot guys no matter which activity I chose.
* * *