Renie’s toes curled when Jace smiled at her.
It took them an hour to drive from McCoy to Glenwood Springs. While the guests had a morning orientation with the rafting company, followed by their first trip down the river, Jace and Renie picked up the ranch supplies they were asked to bring back with them.
When they were done with their errands, Jace talked Renie into going to the hot springs. “Gotta take advantage of it while we can. Don’t know about you, but my muscles could use a good, long soak in some hot mineral water.”
Nothing sounded better, except she hadn’t brought a swimsuit with her.
“They sell ’em at the hot springs,” Jace told her. She wondered how many other female wranglers he’d brought here that hadn’t remembered their suit.
“What was that?” he asked her.
“What?”
“Sometimes your face gets this little pinch in it, as though you bit into somethin’ sour.”
“It does?”
He tweaked her nose. “Yeah, it does. So what were you thinkin’ about just then?”
“How this body hasn’t been in a bathing suit since last summer.”
Jace opened his mouth to say something, but didn’t.
“What?”
“I don’t think you’re gonna like what I have to say, so I think it would be best if I kept my mouth shut.”
“What? You can’t do that. God, are you agreeing with me?”
“Huh? What’re you talkin’ about now?”
“You don’t want to see me in a bathing suit?”
Instead of answering, Jace put his hand on the back of her neck and kissed her, hard on the mouth.
His lips left hers, but his hand still cupped her neck, keeping her close. “Now that I’ve kissed you, I can’t stop, Irene. For two weeks I’ve been thinkin’ about kissin’ you. Two long weeks. I’m done waitin’.”
Oh. She hadn’t expected this. Well she had, but not right now. And wow, he was a good kisser.
“I can’t help it.”
“Don’t.”
“What does that mean?”
“You are, um, a good kisser.”
He laughed again. “You are too, Irene.” He ran his fingers down the side of her face. “Such a formal name for such an informal girl. Where’d you get it? Are you named after somebody?”
“My grandmother, on my father’s side.”
“Got a nickname? Somethin’ people call you when they don’t want to be so formal?”
“Nope. I’m not a nickname kind of girl.”
“Tell me more about your family. I know your mom is married to my cousin. Are your parents divorced?”
“Nope. My father died before I was born.”