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“You were pretty lost in thought,” he said quietly.

Mar stared at him. She was terrified to tell him the truth. Yet what if he didn’t want to leave her, if he truly did care for her like she cared for him? If there was any chance of that, she had to give him the chance to understand where she was coming from, no matter the risk to her battered heart. Then again, if she shared her fears, it might make him feel obligated not to leave her. She didn’t want to put that kind of pressure on him. They didn’t have a relationship, except in her head. How could she tread carefully?

“I need to apologize,” she said in a rush.

Luke tilted his head but didn’t say anything, obviously agreeing that she did need to apologize.

Mar wished she could just hide from this, but she tried to think of how to phrase it. “That was completely unfair of me to claim you’re a player because you’ve dated a lot and somehow I’m exempt from that.”

“Thank you,” was all he said.

Mar took a gulp of fresh, clean mountain air and licked her lips. “I’d like to … date you.” His eyes widened, but he didn’t look averse to the idea, so she continued. “Really date you, not just one date and you move on, like you’re kind of known for—not that I’m accusing you of being a player again, but just … what I observed from online.”

He inclined his head, showing he was listening but not interjecting anything yet.

“The truth is, I’m scared that you don’t feel the same.” She needed to clarify. “That you don’t feel the same about, you know, us dating.” It wasn’t the complete truth, but she thought it was enough. She couldn’t tell him what a lonely loser she was, and how she’d failed at every relationship she’d tried.

He stared at her for a beat and then said, “So you claimed I was a player because you were scared, but the truth is I’m irresistible to you and you want to date me?”

She nodded, knowing she should laugh and tease with him, but this was pretty serious to her. “I would love to date you. Do you think you and I could not be a one-and-done?”

“I think we could.” He gripped the railing and studied her; his gaze was so warm that if there hadn’t been a twenty-foot drop, she would’ve launched herself to his balcony and kissed him then and there. “What does this dating include?”

“Well …” Her stomach swirled with heat and anticipation, ready to tease a little bit now that they’d gotten past the hurdle that she’d feared so much. “Doing fun things together like bike rides, hikes, visiting sites, going to dinner, maybe a concert or a movie.” She bit at her lip and gave him an opening.

“I like all those things. Are you interested in …” His eyes trailed over her face, lingering on her lips, and the heat in her stomach radiated outward to suffuse her entire body. “Water sports?”

Mar felt a dart of disappointment, but maybe he was teasing. “I do like water sports,” she said. “Like surfing and boogie boarding?”

“Those are fun. I also appreciate wakeboarding and surfing behind a boat.”

“I could take a stab at those. Is there anything else you might like this dating to include?”

He tilted his head, and his gaze made her heart race. Those blue eyes were dangerous. If he induced a heart attack, she hoped he knew CPR. That had her thinking about kissing even more.

“How about …” He paused, and she gave him what she hoped was an alluring smile. “Winter sports? How do you feel about those?”

Mar felt another shot of disappointment that he hadn’t gone to kissing, even though she suspected he was simply teasing her. Yet something about snow made her irrationally happy. If he wanted to still be dating her when the snow flew in … When did snow come to the Rockies or Tetons or wherever they were? Thanksgiving? Christmas? Earlier? If he wanted to date her through the next two seasons that was wonderful news. Definitely not a one-and-done kind of date. “I’ve never tried many winter sports, but I do like ice skating.”

“How about skiing, snowmobiling, and snowboarding?”

“Can you teach me?”

“I can.”

She smiled. “I like adventures. As long as no coyotes attack.”

“I’ll protect you from the coyotes, and we’ll go on lots of adventures.”

“Perfect.” She studied him and asked, “Is there anything else our dating might include?”

“I can’t think of anything. Can you?”

Mar rolled her eyes and pushed out a huffy breath. “You aren’t even going to kiss me?” she flung at him in exasperation.

Luke laughed, low and throaty. He pursed his lips. “I hadn’t even thought of that.”

Mar narrowed her eyes and shook her head. She was playing right into his hands. “Goodness. Never mind, then. See you in the morning.” She started to head back into her room, letting him know he’d missed out on the opportunity for another fabulous kiss.


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