She wasn’t so sure. “I rode once with a boyfriend in high school. He hit a bump and I fell off the back. If I’d been sober, it probably would have hurt.”
He rolled his eyes. “I’m sure you’ve outgrown being stupid. And it would be fun. Andy Miller has a two-up machine I bet I could borrow.”
“Two-up?”
“It’s designed for two people. It has a passenger seat with its own handholds and footrests. I bet if I tell Rose Davis I want to take you out in the woods but I’m not supposed to have you on my government-issued quad, she’d give me the keys to Andy’s so fast he wouldn’t even know what happened.”
She slapped his chest. “You wouldn’t dare.”
“Dare what? To borrow his quad?”
“Get Rose involved. It’s bad enough the entire town thinks we’re sleeping together because we had breakfast at the diner.”
“Which is a fairly ironic thing to say when we’re naked in bed.”
She grinned. “Their speculation was premature.”
“Mmm.” He nuzzled her neck and slid his hand up her stomach to cup her breast. “I’m glad that was the only thing that was premature.”
“Didn’t you promise me supper?”
“Ten more minutes.”
*
MATT SET TWO dishes of chicken and gravy over white rice on the table and then sat down across from Hailey. She had the look of a very well-satisfied woman and he’d be lying if he said that didn’t boost his ego a little.
“Why are you staring at me?”
“I didn’t mean to. You just look especially pretty right now.”
She blushed, shaking her head. “Thank you. But I’m starving and this smells delicious, so what comes next might not be as pretty to watch.”
Since he’d worked up an appetite himself, he didn’t mind at all. They ate in silence for a few minutes, or almost silence, since Bear was eating, too. The dog’s manners as he worked his way through his bowl left a little something to be desired.
“So you up to a ride tomorrow?” he asked.
She paused, fork halfway to her mouth. “You were serious about that?”
“Of course.”
“Oh.” She took the bite of chicken and chewed slowly, probably trying to buy herself time to think. “Seeing the twin moose was very cool, but you seem to be forgetting I’m not really an outside kind of girl.”
“It’s fun. And four-wheelers are becoming a big thing for Whitford. Don’t you think you should at least see the trails?”
“I don’t think the librarian having firsthand knowledge of the trail system is going to make or break Whitford, but nice try.”
“How about I just want you to go out riding with me?”
She looked at him, her head tilted slightly as if she was trying to figure him out. “Like another date?”
“Sure.” Whether that would be a plus or a minus in her eyes, he couldn’t guess. “I honestly think you’ll have fun or I wouldn’t have asked you.”
“Why tomorrow after work? Why not on the weekend?”
“I have court tomorrow, which almost guarantees I’ll be home on time, if not a little early.”
She frowned. “Court?”
“I’m not in trouble. I have to testify on a couple of cases. It’s not my favorite part of the job, but it means I’m not available for calls.”
When she started moving rice around on her plate without eating it, he got the feeling her mood had taken a turn for the serious, but he wasn’t sure why. He didn’t want things to turn serious. The morning had been fun. The sex had been really fun. He’d like to see it go on the same way.
“This dating thing...it’s just about having fun, right?” She wouldn’t meet his eyes. “Nothing too serious?”
Because he wasn’t the kind of guy she was looking to get serious with. It was a small blow, but not too painful because he wasn’t looking to do serious, either. He’d known the sexual chemistry between them was too strong to be ignored and, after their kiss that morning, he’d known—or at least desperately hoped—sex was in their near future. But in the long term future, they were both looking for something different.
“I like having fun,” he said. “You like having fun. No reason we can’t have fun together for a while. Dating’s just a convenient word, I guess.”
“Okay. In that case, I guess it wouldn’t hurt me to go four-wheeling with you. At least I hope it won’t hurt, anyway.”
He leaned back in his chair and pushed his empty plate away. “You won’t get hurt. I’ll call the lodge in the morning and see if I can borrow the two-up from Andy.”
About the time she took her last bite of the chicken and rice, Matt realized there was some awkwardness dead ahead. Was she expecting to spend the night with him, or was she going to go home? Since they’d just agreed they weren’t really dating, but were just having fun together, he guessed she wouldn’t stay, but he couldn’t be sure.
“That was delicious,” she said. “I hate to eat and run because it’s rude, but I need to get home. I will never go on a four-thirty in the morning date again.”
He laughed and got up to dump their plates in the sink. “Duly noted.”
“So...thanks, I guess.”