I didn’t slip once.
I’d sent Emily back to the fishing lesson after assuring her I planned on staying in the shower for a week. I saw my fishing pole next to her at the river so I headed that way. The fact that Matt was helping her with her casting at that very moment had no bearing on my decision. Pulse, normal. Respiration, normal. Mental state , crazy!
Matt turned and looked at my feet, now clad in tennis shoes instead of sandals. “Much better.” He winked at me.
He’d changed into khaki cargo shorts and a black T-shirt wit h Runs With Scissor s printed on the front. Like his other T-shirts, this one clung to his muscular arms and chest. I told myself I only noticed because he looked so different from Dirk. Dirk was slim and toned, but not muscular. He spent most of his time in a business suit trying to move up the ladder. He didn’t have the outdoorsy look Matt had.
Yeah, all I was doing was cataloging the differences. That’s it.
I picked up my pole and moved down to a narrower part of the river. A swirling little eddy near the opposite bank looked to be the perfect place to try to sink the fly into. I stayed a good three feet from the edge of the bank, aimed, cast, missed and pulled in the line. Aimed, cast, missed, pulled in the line.
I heard some commotion up the bank, then a happy cry from Emily. She’d caught a fish. Cool!
Matt helped her pull it in. I hate to admit it, but watching it flap around with its buggy eyes and glistening body was not making me want to catch one. I didn’t relish the idea of going all girly-girl when Matt came to help me. You know, “Eew! No, I don’t want it! You take it!” How embarrassing woul d tha t be. I’d already met my embarrassment quota for this trip. Maybe I’d just pretend to try to catch fish for the rest of the weekend.
“Hope you’re all hungry tonight,” Matt said, holding Emily’s fish up for everyone to see. “For a bite, anyway.”
Oh, I hope it ends up looking like fish in a restaurant. After seeing it alive and jiggly, I didn’t think I could sit around a campfire and eat something that still had its head attached.
I grimaced and turned back to my casting. Okay, trying to build a skill. That’s it. Not trying to catch a fish. Hey, maybe I should take the lure and hook off the end. Then I can’ t catch any fish. No, then it wouldn’t fly over the water right. It needed some weight. Hmm, I thought about it as I pulled in the line again. Well maybe I could—
“Lookin’ good there.”
I jumped. “Do g gon e it! Stop sneaking up — are yo u tryin g to make me fall in?”
“Little jumpy, eh?” Matt smiled and crossed his (muscular) arms over his (muscular) chest. Apparently his usual stance. I needed to stop noticing. The last time I’d seen this many muscles on one man was when Hugh Jackman played Wolverine. Who cared about the storyline whe n tha t was onscreen the whole time?
Matt’s damp hair formed little curls around the sides of his neck. My mother would say he needed a haircut, but I liked it. Pretty adorable, actually.
“At least you’re a safe distance from the water here. I don’t want to have to dive in after you again.”
I looked at him and sniffed, nose in the air. Then I looked away and prepared to cast again. “I wa s co n centrating,” I said in a mock huffy tone.
I heard him laugh softly, but I didn’t look at him. The last thing I wanted to do was look stupid while he was watching me.
I focused and cast the line out. Whew! I made it pretty close to the eddy I’d aimed for. I looked back at him with my eyebrows raised and sniffed again. “See?”
When he laughed, I couldn’t help myself. I dropped my act and laughed, too.
But Matt barely glanced at the fly I had cast. I swear he was looking me up and down like , yo u know. I couldn’t quite remember what I was going to say. Those eyes were just stunning in their intensity.
Now what was I supposed to do, to say? I panicked as he wandered a
I’d sent Emily back to the fishing lesson after assuring her I planned on staying in the shower for a week. I saw my fishing pole next to her at the river so I headed that way. The fact that Matt was helping her with her casting at that very moment had no bearing on my decision. Pulse, normal. Respiration, normal. Mental state , crazy!
Matt turned and looked at my feet, now clad in tennis shoes instead of sandals. “Much better.” He winked at me.
He’d changed into khaki cargo shorts and a black T-shirt wit h Runs With Scissor s printed on the front. Like his other T-shirts, this one clung to his muscular arms and chest. I told myself I only noticed because he looked so different from Dirk. Dirk was slim and toned, but not muscular. He spent most of his time in a business suit trying to move up the ladder. He didn’t have the outdoorsy look Matt had.
Yeah, all I was doing was cataloging the differences. That’s it.
I picked up my pole and moved down to a narrower part of the river. A swirling little eddy near the opposite bank looked to be the perfect place to try to sink the fly into. I stayed a good three feet from the edge of the bank, aimed, cast, missed and pulled in the line. Aimed, cast, missed, pulled in the line.
I heard some commotion up the bank, then a happy cry from Emily. She’d caught a fish. Cool!
Matt helped her pull it in. I hate to admit it, but watching it flap around with its buggy eyes and glistening body was not making me want to catch one. I didn’t relish the idea of going all girly-girl when Matt came to help me. You know, “Eew! No, I don’t want it! You take it!” How embarrassing woul d tha t be. I’d already met my embarrassment quota for this trip. Maybe I’d just pretend to try to catch fish for the rest of the weekend.
“Hope you’re all hungry tonight,” Matt said, holding Emily’s fish up for everyone to see. “For a bite, anyway.”
Oh, I hope it ends up looking like fish in a restaurant. After seeing it alive and jiggly, I didn’t think I could sit around a campfire and eat something that still had its head attached.
I grimaced and turned back to my casting. Okay, trying to build a skill. That’s it. Not trying to catch a fish. Hey, maybe I should take the lure and hook off the end. Then I can’ t catch any fish. No, then it wouldn’t fly over the water right. It needed some weight. Hmm, I thought about it as I pulled in the line again. Well maybe I could—
“Lookin’ good there.”
I jumped. “Do g gon e it! Stop sneaking up — are yo u tryin g to make me fall in?”
“Little jumpy, eh?” Matt smiled and crossed his (muscular) arms over his (muscular) chest. Apparently his usual stance. I needed to stop noticing. The last time I’d seen this many muscles on one man was when Hugh Jackman played Wolverine. Who cared about the storyline whe n tha t was onscreen the whole time?
Matt’s damp hair formed little curls around the sides of his neck. My mother would say he needed a haircut, but I liked it. Pretty adorable, actually.
“At least you’re a safe distance from the water here. I don’t want to have to dive in after you again.”
I looked at him and sniffed, nose in the air. Then I looked away and prepared to cast again. “I wa s co n centrating,” I said in a mock huffy tone.
I heard him laugh softly, but I didn’t look at him. The last thing I wanted to do was look stupid while he was watching me.
I focused and cast the line out. Whew! I made it pretty close to the eddy I’d aimed for. I looked back at him with my eyebrows raised and sniffed again. “See?”
When he laughed, I couldn’t help myself. I dropped my act and laughed, too.
But Matt barely glanced at the fly I had cast. I swear he was looking me up and down like , yo u know. I couldn’t quite remember what I was going to say. Those eyes were just stunning in their intensity.
Now what was I supposed to do, to say? I panicked as he wandered a
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