“I resented my father, but I never hated you.”
Her expression brightened. “How ‘bout we listen to classic rock?”
“Sure.”
After fiddling with her phone, Freddie Mercury belted out the time-tested lyrics of “Somebody to Love”.
Zander didn’t reflect on his childhood. But as they drove toward the mountains, he appreciated that he could share a piece of the past with someone who’d lived it right along with him.
Ten minutes later, they arrived at Sandia Peak Tramway. Like the pack mule he’d become, he grabbed her equipment, and they headed toward the station at the bottom of the mountain. After Savannah purchased tickets, they boarded the tram. The door closed, and they began their ascent.
The car was packed with people and Zander edged closer to his stepsister to accommodate others. Her outdoorsy scent wafted in his direction and he breathed her in.
“This is breathtaking,” she murmured as they climbed the mountain.
While the scenery was magnificent, he couldn’t focus on anything but her. All he had to do was lower his head and kiss her shoulder or run his fingers along the top of her bare back and caress her skin. He could snake his arm around her waist and hold her against him, letting her supple curves meld with his hard ones.
She peeked up at him through her lashes. The air crackled with turbulent energy while he wrestled with his demons. He wanted to tell rational reasoning to go to hell and disregard the rule they’d set. He needed her in his bed, beneath him.
The tram locked into place, snapping him out of his salacious thoughts. After the attendant opened the door and the others scrambled out, Savannah heaved in a deep breath and exited the tram. Though he should have been relieved she’d put distance between them, he missed having her wedged up against him. She veered toward a vacant spot near the guardrail. As her dutiful assistant, he followed.
Five thousand feet below, the city of Albuquerque filled the landscape, the afternoon sun dipping towards the horizon. Temporarily freed from the daily grind, he gazed at the magnificent vista stretched out before them. And he took his first deep, cleansing breath in years. Grateful for this newfound sense of calm, he fixed his gaze on the one reason he was there.
Savannah.
She peered at the world through her camera. As he studied her profile, he wondered where life had taken her all these years. Other than what his father had willed them, and her profound love of nature, he knew close to nothing about her.
After taking several test shots, she lowered the camera and studied him. Her beauty and tranquility soothed his restless soul.She should be in front of the camera, not behind it.
“Beautiful view, don’t you think?”
“It’s perfect,” she replied.
The spark in her eyes burned brightly. Her lips lifted on the corners, that sexy hint of a smile pulling him toward her. He wanted to get her alone, kiss her senseless, and tear off her clothes. Sex served his needs, but all he wanted to do was servehers. Could she feel that constant tug? Her lips parted and she sucked in a harsh breath.
Yes, she could.For a man who followed every damn rule, he never imagined he’d willingly and adamantly want to veer from “right” toward “wrong”.
But he did.
“Savannah.” His voice strained against the desire he could no longer conceal.
She pushed up on her toes, pressed her lips against his ear. Heat streaked through him. “Let’s go check out that hang glider.”
With a smirk, she sauntered away, leaving him with a burgeoning boner and a host of fun, sexy ideas for how he could continue playing the role of dutiful assistant.
A guy strapped to a glider was perched on a large boulder, preparing for takeoff. When the glider launched, Zander’s stomach dropped. Once away, the giant burgundy and gold wing sailed through the air, catching thermals and gaining altitude like a hawk.
Click-click-click-click.
“Guy’s got balls,” he muttered.
Savannah lowered the camera. “You could do that.”
“Uh, no.”
Zander would never sail off a mountain nor jump from a plane. His risks had always been career based, but, as the glider soared, he wondered what his life would look like if he did do something outside his comfort zone. He slid his gaze to Savannah. Being around her was freeing, exhilarating even. And her chill vibe was contagious.
A handful of tourists had stopped to watch her taking photos. When she lowered her camera, one of the men approached.