Before We Kiss (Fool's Gold #14)

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DELLINA TRIED TO remember a time when she’d felt more out of shape. Some of it was the obstacle course itself and some of it was being around three very fit guys.

They had all been in professions that required physical prowess for success. In the case of Angel and Ford, being in good shape meant the difference between living and dying. The biggest exercise challenge Dellina usually faced was how fast to walk to her destination.

While Sam hadn’t had his life on the line, he, too, had been expected to be in perfect condition. And he still was, she thought, glancing at his broad, muscled back as he completed yet another pull-up.

She managed to get through the line of tires without tripping, then watched Sam easily scale the wall. He grabbed the rope, walked up quickly and then sailed over the top. She groaned and walked around.

Angel shook his head. “You disappoint me,” he told her. “You didn’t even try.”

“I’m clear on my limitations. You’ll have to live with the disappointment.” She looked back at the course. “This is great. Can you get me the contracts today?”

Ford nodded. “Not a problem. I’ll get them out to you ASAP. Want to walk the trail?”

Sam had done a second circuit of the course. He cleared the wall with just as much ease and grace as he had the first time. She sighed.

“Sure. Let’s add hiking to the mix.” She briefly wondered how sore she would be tomorrow and decided to expand the Sunday morning mani-pedi event to include massages. Just in case.

Angel showed them the start of the trail. “It’s marked and goes in a big circle. If you get lost, there’s cell service.”

The tone of his voice clearly implied that only wusses would dare to call for help.

“We’ll be fine,” Sam told him.

Dellina was less sure about that but was also confident Sam would keep her safe from any creepy nature thing lurking in the foliage.

“Want to know the fastest time for completing the route?” Angel asked.

“No,” Dellina told him.

“Sure,” Sam said eagerly.

She faced the former kicker. “We’re walking the trail so we can know what to tell your guests. Maybe you can break records next time.”

“Oh. Right.” He shrugged. “We’ll walk it.”

“Fair enough.” Angel started to turn away. “By the way, I hold the record.”

Ford grinned. “You are so lying and I’m going to tell Consuelo. Someone’s getting his ass kicked.”

Angel glared at his friend. “Fine. I’m off her top time by a tenth of a second. She faked me out at the end.”

“Always with the excuses,” Ford said. He started back for the main building. “Consuelo, guess what I found out.”

Angel took off after him.

Dellina watched them. “Is it like that with you and Jack and Kenny?” she asked.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

She smiled. “Right, because I believe that.”

She dug her ever-present notepad out of her tote and made a few notes about the obstacle course. “Larissa isn’t actually licensed in the state of California, is she? I kind of remember Taryn telling me that.”

“She has the training,” Sam said. “But I don’t know if she sat for her boards or not. Why?”

“I’m thinking the Sunday afternoon spa experience should include massages. She would be good to have on hand.”

“Include the information in what you send the guests and have them sign waivers. If you tell them she’s our private masseuse, they won’t care about a license.”

Dellina nodded. He had a point. She would check on the legality of it all and then make her decision. Besides, they would need more than one masseuse, anyway.

She and Sam headed toward the trail. Only a few feet from the CDS warehouse was a grove of trees that stretched toward the mountains. Soon, she found herself in dense growth and all signs of civilization quickly faded.

The air was cool and quiet. If not for the gravel path, she would have assumed they were lost. A couple of dozen feet later, gravel became dirt, but she was pleased to see that the well-worn track was as easy to follow as Angel had promised.

“This is nice,” she said as they walked next to each other. She did her best to focus on her work and not notice that every now and then Sam’s arm brushed against hers. He was warm and sexy and she found herself anticipating the little tingles that shot through her with each second of contact.

“We should get one of these by the office,” he said.

She laughed. “You’re not in the middle of town, but you’re still surrounded by other buildings. How do you propose getting a forest on your property? Isn’t the basketball court enough?”