“I like standing close to you.”

More frustrated with myself than him for how my body seems to be reacting to his proximity, I growl under my breath and push him back an inch before I move around him. I don’t even look to make sure he’s following me—not that I need to. I can feel his eyes boring into my back as we head out of the building to the lot.

When we get outside, I pull in a lungful of air, wishing it were cooler out, since the humid air makes me feel stifled rather than refreshed. That’s one thing I miss about Montana; the summers are perfect. Most days are warm enough to wear shorts but cool enough to wear a sweater if you feel like it.

“Shit,” I mutter when we reach the Jeep. The way it’s parked on two big boulders looks cool, but the bottom of the driver side door is at least three feet off the ground, and since I’m only five one, I don’t know how the hell I’m going to get in. With a few curse words to whatever idiot parked it here, I walk around to the passenger side. It’s better, but I’m still going to have issues getting in. Resting my hands on my hips, I look at the man next to me and watch him cross his arms over his chest as he turns his head my way.

“You want me to help you up there?”

My nose scrunches. “Just because I’m a woman doesn’t mean I can’t get up there on my own.”

“All right.” He shrugs one shoulder.

More determined now than I was before, I hand him my purse. “Please hold this.”

“Sure.” He takes it, and I climb up onto the smaller boulder on the passenger side, thankful I wore a pair of flats today instead of my usual heels. Once I’m up on the rock, I turn to give him a smug smile, and when he smiles back, my heart flutters and my stomach dances. With a deep breath, I turn toward the door and carefully open it, but when I look at the driver seat, my stomach drops. I know logically that the Jeep is not going to tip over when I climb in, but still the angle is harsh, and if I’m honest, I’m a chicken. I can’t even jump off the diving board into the pool because it seems like too much of a risk. “You okay, Mia?”

“I’m fine, totally fine,” I call, forcing myself not to sound like I’m freaking out. With a deep breath, I hold onto the safety bar above the glove box and pull myself up then gasp when the Jeep rocks. “Oh God.” I squeeze my eyes shut while falling into the seat as I hold on for dear life.

A hand rests on my thigh, and my eyes spring open. “I’m learning a lot about you today, Mia.” Talon sighs, standing on the boulder outside the door. “Come on. Get out, and I’ll back the Jeep off the rock.”

“I don’t need you to do that. I can climb over and move it myself, and Ken likes us to take each client out then hand over the keys after we’ve shown them how the car can drive.”

“You can take over once I get it down.”

I try. I really try to let it go, but honestly, I can’t. It’s like my hands have attached themselves to the bar.

“Come on.” He rests his hand over mine and slowly pries my fingers away one by one, and then he places my free hand on his shoulder. Once he has my other hand free, he wraps an arm around my waist and helps me out then down off the boulder. I feel like an idiot as he hands me my purse. “Can I get the keys?”

I take them off my wrist and hand them over, then back up to watch him easily maneuver himself into the Jeep like some kind of ninja. Once he has all four wheels on solid ground, he parks with the driver side door next to me. He gets out and holds it open for me to get in, and I roll my eyes at the look of male pride on his face.

“Thanks,” I mutter, trying to look as graceful as him as I climb up behind the wheel, but I know I look like a baby deer who’s just learning to walk, because the Jeep is jacked up and still way too high off the ground for me to easily get into. Once I’m behind the wheel, I don’t look at him as he shuts my door or when he gets in on the passenger side. As I put the engine in drive, I tell him, “I’m going to take us out of town. There’s a couple back roads we can go down where you can test out some of the off-road features.” I flip on my turn signal and switch lanes. “Then you can drive us back to town, so you can experience how it feels on the highway.”

“Are you going to be okay if I test out some of the off-roading features?”

“Do you think you’ll be okay if I shove you out the door going seventy on the highway?” I chirp while entering the highway and speeding up.

“It’s just a question.” He laughs, and the sound vibrates against my skin, making me warm. “Have you ever gone off-roading?”

“I dated a guy who had a Jeep. Every weekend, him and a group of his friends would get together, and they’d take their Jeeps or trucks up into the mountains to go off-roading, and when I started seeing him, I went with him a few times. I can’t say I loved getting stuck in the mud and having to wade out through the muck while his Jeep was towed, but it was fun.”

“You’re not dating him anymore?” he asks, his tone sounding odd, but since I can’t look at him, I can’t read his expression.

“No, when I told him that I was coming here to help out my sister, he told me he couldn’t handle a long-distance relationship and broke up with me.”

“Where are you from?”

“Montana. I grew up there.”

“I’ve been to Montana a couple times. It’s a beautiful state.”

“It’s beautiful here too.”

I see him shift in his chair out the corner of my eye. “So is your plan to stay in Tennessee?”

“Yeah, or I think so anyway,” I reply, wanting to say more, but it feels weird to have a conversation about my plans for the future with a complete stranger especially when I haven’t spoken to my sister or parents about officially making Tennessee my home.

“You said you’re helping out your sister. Is she okay?”

“She’s good,” I say while getting off the highway and stopping at a red light behind a long row of cars.

“You’re really an open book,” he jokes, and I look at him.

“This isn’t a date. We’re not getting to know each other. This is me doing my job.”

“Fair enough. How about I take you on a date?”

“I’m not interested,” I lie. I doubt there’s a woman alive who wouldn’t be interested in him. That said, I don’t need the distraction of a man right now.

Holding my gaze, he tips his head to the side with a look of determination in his eyes. “Light’s green.”

I take my eyes off his and press on the gas, wondering why I feel like I just waved a red flag in front of a bull.

CHAPTER 4

Talon

AS I WALK toward Mia’s office, I spot her at her desk, the guy across from her leaning forward like he’s trying to get as close as possible, even with the desk between them. As I get closer, I hear him ask her out, and when she shakes her head, he places his hands together like he’s praying, making her laugh. Jealousy makes my hands ball into fists, and even if I have no rights to her, I step into the room.

“Hey, babe,” I greet, and her eyes widen as she looks up at me, but I don’t spare her another glance. I look down at the man, swearing he looks familiar. “How’s it going, man?”