Stars Over Alaska (Wild River #4) - Jennifer Snow Page 0,117

toasty warm, heated by a small woodstove, and the dim lighting from the 12-volt interior spotlights in the ceiling created a warm glow. Two comfy club folding chairs sat side by side in the center of the intimate space, two lock-down hole covers in the floor in front of them. Behind were two cots made up with plaid bedding and a down comforter, and along the wall was additional bench seating with storage boxes underneath.

The hut door closed and Mike cleared his throat. “Take whichever cot you prefer—I’m cool with either.”

She scanned the options. One was visibly bigger than the other and probably the better choice for him considering his height and build. “I’ll take that one,” she said, pointing to it, leaving him with the smaller one.

The only sign of annoyance was the way he pursed his lips. “No problem.” He handed over her duffel bag from the wood sled box and she carried it to her cot. She could do this. She wouldn’t argue with him. She’d ignore him and fish.

“You brought your own pole?” he asked behind her.

She turned to see him examining her Fenwick Elite Tech Ice Spinning Rod. “I don’t go anywhere without my own pole,” she said.

She couldn’t tell if he was impressed or in disbelief as he slowly handed it to her.

“Well, it’s a good one. We supply everything you need, but this pole will definitely be the best one out here this weekend, if the pole has anything to do with the catch.”

She raised her chin. “It all comes down to skill.”

“And you’ve got skills?”

“I guess you’ll see,” she said.

His smirk actually softened his features just a little. “Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s get you started.” He unlocked her portal on the floor, revealing the hole already drilled in the thick ice, and handed her the tackle box. “There’s plastic ice fishing lures in there as well if you’d rather not touch the live bait.”

Was that a note of challenge in his voice?

He obviously thought she and Jade were the same person. Her sister would definitely opt for the nonliving bait, but she wasn’t going to catch anything big that way. “I’ll take the live minnows, please.”

Again, the slight look of surprise. But he simply cleared his throat as he handed her the bait. “Good choice.”

Painfully aware of his gaze on her, she baited the large hook at the end of her line. Watching to see if she was bluffing?

Maybe other women pretended to like these kinds of things to impress a guy, but that wasn’t her game. She had no game. She was who she was—take it or leave it. All the men she’d dated so far had chosen to leave it.

Her dating profile consisted of about a dozen guys over the last ten years. All of whom had claimed to want a down-to-earth, outdoorsy type of partner, but ultimately they hadn’t expected her to keep up with them or outdo them when it came to the great outdoors. Fragile egos weren’t something she found attractive.

“So, what made you sign up for this? What was appealing about meeting someone this way?” Mike asked.

“I’m a vegetarian,” she said.

He frowned.

“You know...bars are meat markets...” She waited. Nope, right over his head. “You know what, never mind.” This was another reason she was still single. No one got her jokes.

But Mike’s delayed chuckle made her chest twist. It sounded genuine and sincere. And it was the first indication that he wasn’t completely hating this entire experience so far. As much as he tried to appear upbeat, it was obvious he wasn’t thrilled about being the one to lead this tour. His enthusiasm had seemed forced since they’d boarded the SnowTrek Tours van and she suspected he’d rather fight off a bear than coordinate a speed dating event.

“Do you mind?” he asked, gesturing toward the other fishing hole.

She shrugged. “I guess not.” The guy may have pissed off her sister but she wasn’t cruel enough to deny anyone this experience.

Removing his coat, he sat in the chair next to hers and opened his own portal. Then he rolled up the sleeves of his flannel plaid shirt and set up his own line.

Her gaze fell to a long scar extending from the base of his thumb to his wrist. Ouch, that would have been a nasty injury...and relatively new judging by the pale pinkness of the flesh. Her eyes traveled upward and grew even wider at the tattoo sleeve disappearing under the fabric of