tears evaporated instantly. “I’ll go with David on the river trail tomorrow. Unless...”
Charly was half-afraid to ask. “Unless what?”
“What if I took over the office stuff? All that computer crap you hate is a piece of cake for me.”
“Really?”
Tammy nodded, hope clearly bubbling over as she laced her fingers and bounced a little.
Charly glared at her. “Why didn’t you say something when I was ready to put a tent stake through the computer last week?”
“And miss a chance to stare at Will’s ass?”
Valid point. The girl had priorities, even if they were different from Charly’s. “You still have to take the tours.” She held up a hand, cutting off Tammy’s protest. “At least the ones close to town. It will help you sort out what treks appeal to what type of person.”
“Okay, okay.” Tammy shook back her cloud of perfect, bottle-blond hair. “But if I fall in the river you’ll be on your own with the computer stuff.”
“I’ll tell David to be extra careful with you.”
“Thank you.” She tapped her fingernail on the counter. “You know, I could even put the tour schedules into a calendar app and then all of you would know what’s what out on the trails.”
She and her guides already knew that, but Charly appreciated the effort. “I’d go with that in a heartbeat if—”
“Right,” Tammy interrupted. “Cell reception is crappy in the wild. One more reason to appreciate the city.”
“Takes all kinds to keep the world turning.” Charly flipped through the mail, finding an official envelope from the park service between the catalogs and handing the rest of the stack to Tammy. She ripped it open, pleased to find a check for her latest consulting work. “I’m going to run this over to the bank.”
“I’ll hold down the fort.”
Charly breathed deep of the clear, crisp air as she strolled down the block. It always felt good when a consulting job had a happy ending. This time around it had been a weekend hiker who hadn’t come back on schedule. At the twenty-four-hour mark, his wife had insisted the park service start a search and they in turn had called Charly. When they reached him, they’d found the poor guy had taken a tumble and lost his radio. Easy enough to do this time of year when the weather couldn’t decide between winter and spring.
Up ahead, she saw Will on his route, but he was chatting with the owner of the pub where they had shared their first beer. The man was too easy on the eyes, and she purposely looked away, just to prove she could. It wouldn’t do her any good to get attached to the idea that he would see her as more than a pal with breasts. She glanced down at her chest. Her barely B cups might not be big enough to meet the general definition. They certainly had never been big enough to change the way the local guys saw her.
Tammy might be right about the raw chemistry between Charly and Will, and Charly was definitely ready to see where pheromones and attraction could lead. How could she find out if Will was on the same page? She was darn sure ready for more than another buddy to talk beer, guns and trails.
She yanked open the bank door and stutter-stepped to avoid bumping into the police officer walking out. “Whoops. Sorry, Steve.”
“No problem. How are things?”
“Can’t complain,” she replied. “How are the kids?”
“Good.” He stepped back inside with her. “I’m thinking about taking my youngest down into the canyon when it warms up a bit.”
Steve had worked part-time for her father during their senior year. They’d gone to the homecoming dance—as friends—because both of them had been too busy that season to find real dates. Suddenly she felt seventeen and awkward again, remembering the time they’d driven out to prep a campsite in the canyon and stayed long into the night, watching a meteor shower from the back of his pickup truck. She’d wished for a kiss as the stars fell, but Steve didn’t oblige.
Thank God, she thought now. It would’ve been weird. More of an experiment than romance, even under that endless sky.
Steve waved his hand in front of her face. “Charly? You okay?”
With a little jump and a self-conscious smile, she apologized. “Just lost in thought.” Steve’s youngest daughter had recently discovered a new fascination with photography. “Take her into the canyons southeast of town and she can get some amazing sunset pictures.”
“That’s a great idea. She’ll love that. I’m glad I bumped into you.”
“Me, too. Have a great time.”
They went their separate ways, leaving Charly feeling half a step out of sync with the rest of her world as she made the deposit. It irritated her. She had exactly what she wanted. More. With the business she had freedom and plenty of time in wide-open spaces, challenges of every variety. She had exactly what she needed, sharing the world she loved from mountaintop to river to canyon with new people every day.
“Living the dream,” she reminded herself as she walked back up the block to the Binali Backcountry storefront. This was her heritage as well as her dream come true.
So why did it feel as though something was missing? Determined to adjust her attitude, she tipped her face to the snowcapped peaks kissing the horizon. This happened to her when she spent too much time in the office and not enough out in the field. Four days was about her tolerance for the city life, and she hadn’t led a tour in over a week. Well, easy enough to fix that. She’d just make time for an early hike tomorrow morning since she had plans tonight. Plans with a man she definitely wanted to know better. In the biblical sense rather than strictly as a friend. Maybe she should ask Tammy for pointers on how to stage a seduction. Heck, she needed pointers in how to tell if a guy was open to being seduced.
She was laughing at herself, her balance somewhat restored, when she strolled back into the store.
“Must have been some check,” Tammy said.
“Every little bit helps,” she admitted.
“I opened the fan mail while you were gone.”
“We got fan mail?”
“Sure.” Tammy spun a handwritten note card around for Charly’s inspection. “Take a look.”
Charly read it aloud, happily recalling her time with the Ronkowski family. “‘Thanks again for making our vacation something we’ll remember forever. The kids are still talking about it with anyone who will stop long enough to listen. We’ve been camping and taken tours through all kinds of places, but Charly, your expertise and passion for the area made all the difference. We’re already planning to return to Colorado and take another tour with you this summer.’”
The note went on, elevating Charly’s mood with every word. She’d led the parents and their three kids on a camping excursion through the canyon she’d recommended to Steve earlier. “Wow. We can pull a few of these lines for the website,” she said. In fact, she wanted to upload the new quotes right this second. “They were a fun family.”
“They sure think the world of you.”
“It’s easy to share what you love best.” An idea dawned, one she thought might be a good compromise for Tammy. “Want to go hiking with me tomorrow?”
“What? And close the store?”
“No. Before we open. Before breakfast.”
Tammy’s jaw dropped open. Then she snapped it shut and glared at Charly. “This is some kind of test.”
“Not at all.” Charly gathered up the mail as she rounded the counter, smiling again at the note from the Ronkowskis. “I just need to get outside.”
Tammy pointed