journal got interesting quick.”
She glanced at the page and glimpsed a doodled happy heart face in the margins. “Not really,” she blurted, tilting the open journal against her chest to hide it. “It’s all boring stuff, details of the trip, my attempts at writing the story.”
“Aren’t you required to state the facts?”
“I’m required to protect the privacy of my sources.”
“So none of the good stuff is going to make it into the final draft?”
“Sorry, big guy.” She wrinkled her nose. “Some things stay between you and me.”
A wicked gleam lit his eyes, dulling her sudden nervousness by rousing her sleepy inner seductress. She wondered why one night and one morning hadn’t been enough. She wondered why it hurt a little to look at him, the way it hurt to stare at the sun.
“I assume, since you’re filling a backpack,” she said, dropping her gaze to his gear, “that we’re going for a hike today?”
“We are.” His bright enthusiasm wasn’t dimmed by her quick dodge into business. “This campsite is the head of the first portage.”
“Really?” She looked around and saw the same scenery as every other campsite where they’d chosen to pitch a tent. “Why here?”
“Pops said that Owl’s Head Rock was in plain sight from the portage head.” He threw a thumb over his shoulder toward where the canoe was pulled up on the bank. “I don’t know how much more visible that landmark could be from right where we stood last night.”
“But doesn’t that seem like an odd coincidence?” She clicked her pen and tried to focus. “It’s hard to believe we’d just stumble onto the right place.”
“Luck is the result of good planning.”
She wasn’t so sure about that. She hadn’t planned to have sweaty sex in the wilderness…and yet here she was.
“Look around you.” He turned this way and that, showing off the long, strong column of the throat where she’d wanted to sink in her teeth. “This area is a clear break in the woods with a sloping bank into the river, perfectly designed to drag up a couple of canoes.”
“Or it’s just a watering hole trampled over the centuries by wildlife.”
“Maybe it’s both.” He leaned toward her. “Woodsmen would be drawn to these natural gaps in the shore when they first mapped out a trail. They’d use them as launching points for cross-land portages.”
Intelligence. Always so sexy. Right now, it draped his muscled perfection with a glow. Damn, she couldn’t put that in the article, either. “So you’ve figured this all out, Daniel Boone?”
“Yes, but the challenge,” he said, returning to the job of packing up, “is to find the path beyond this campsite.”
“Okay.”
“I’ve reconnoitered a little, but haven’t found any markings nearby. Pops said there were marks on the trees and whiskey jugs left at critical points to guide the smugglers.” He zipped up the pack. “I’m betting that we’ll stumble on a few of them out there.”
“So today we reconnoiter.”
“Put on your hiking boots, babe.”
The languor in her limbs made her more inclined to want to lounge around and have sex in the river…and for a moment, she contemplated seducing him again. She glanced around. He’d already cleaned everything up while she was sitting here doodling hearts in her notebook. The breakfast dishes were drying, the canoe was secured, and their tent was zipped up tight. He’d even given her an extra rest after their gymnastic antics in the zipped-together sleeping bags. He beamed with excitement, clearly eager to get moving. Maybe it was better to keep moving. Her arms could use the break from paddling.
Other parts of her body needed to recover, too.
“No matter what we find,” he said, “we’ll return to this campsite before sunset.” He hauled himself to his feet, shifting the framed pack onto his back as if it didn’t weigh, like, sixty pounds. “I’m leaving the tent up for now. Ready to do some exploring?”
“I’m ready.” She shoved the notebook and pen back into her pack and rose to her feet. “My pack is pretty empty, though. Should I add—”
“Nope. I’ve got everything we need. We’ll be walking a lot. I need you in top condition, Casey Michaels.”
She couldn’t help it, she winked. “You haven’t worn me out yet.”
“I’ll have to try harder, then.”
He came around the fire, all those muscles moving under his skin, her heart throbbing harder with each step he took closer. He smelled of wood smoke and river water and eager, pulsing man. Her whole body tingled alive.
He slipped a hank of hair behind