He grinned at her as she slowly walked up to the jeep. “Goodness, I didn’t know we needed a chauffeur,” she said, keeping her tone polite for Blue but shooting Sam a quick, deadly glare.
“And a bodyguard,” Sam said with a smug smile. “There’s all kinds of dangers out there on a blueberry farm.”
“Oh, sit in the front, dear,” Blue said, climbing into the back and shutting her door.
The jeep really wasn’t built for a big bear shifter like Sam – he overflowed in his seat and pressed up against her when she climbed in. Surely he must know that – had he planned this on purpose?
The warm, solid feel of him sent ripples of sensation pulsing through her body. He was wearing that cologne again, faint but unmistakable. She shifted in her seat and pressed up against the door, which was uncomfortable but at least she wasn’t crushing up against Sam.
“I packed a couple of picnic baskets for us so we can all stop and eat,” Sam said. “Got some of my blueberry pie in there.”
Blueberry pie. Damn the man, he was fiendishly clever. He’d described it as melt-in-your-mouth. She could resist a lot of things, but you could only ask so much of a girl. Especially a bear shifter girl with a healthy appetite.
Blue will be there, so he can’t pull anything funny, she reminded herself. And I don’t give a damn how well he cooks or how much he flirts with me, I will be strong.
They wound past the factory where their jams and jellies were canned, and headed towards blueberry fields. They drove along the long rows of blueberry bushes until Sam found a spot that he liked and stopped the jeep.
As they climbed out, Blue’s phone chirped in her purse. She answered it, then her forehead creased. “Oh, for goodness’ sake,” she said.
“Is everything all right?” Sam asked solicitously.
“Oh, Jemma says that the oven seems to be broken, and she’s insisting I come back and help her with it.”
“You’d better go back before she burns the house down,” Sam said, reaching into the back of the jeep and grabbing a wicker basket. “It’s a beautiful day. We’re still close to the house. We’ll walk back after lunch.”
“Are you sure? Well, all right…” Blue climbed in and drove off as Clover stared after the jeep open-mouthed, then spun around to glare at Sam.
“Seriously. That could not have been any more obvious a setup. And I thought Jemma was my friend. That little turncoat. Broken oven, my ass.”
“She is your friend. She likes you a lot. She’s also highly bribe-able.”
Clover let out of a huff of indignation. “Good to know.”
But Sam was already pulling out the red-and-white checkered blanket that had been neatly folded on top of the basket and spreading it on the ground.
“What are you up to, anyway?” Clover demanded.
Sam glanced at her with a grin as he pulled plates and silverware from the basket. “No good, obviously. I mean, I brought a picnic. Clearly my intentions are evil.”
He set thickly stacked sandwiches on the plates, and then pulled out the blueberry pie and set it down next to them. Her stomach rumbled. She’d been about to ditch him and walk back to her office on her own, but maybe just one sandwich wouldn’t hurt. And some of that pie.
She looked around. It was indeed a beautiful day. The blue sky swept endlessly into the horizon, with fat fluffy clouds floating lazily overhead. A faint breeze rustled the leaves of the blueberry bushes. Why should she deprive herself of a delicious lunch out here in the middle of paradise? It wasn’t like she’d agreed to go on a date with Sam.
She sat down as he knelt and poured iced tea into paper cups.
“A picture of a couple strolling hand in hand in between rows of blueberry bushes probably wouldn’t be the worst idea in the world,” she said as Sam handed her a bottle of iced tea.
“Are you calling us a couple?” That mischievous glint twinkled in his eye.
“Not in a million years. I meant a real couple. A model couple. Hey, why are you sitting right next to me?” she said as he settled down uncomfortably close.
“It looks comfortable here. And I like how you smell.”
She could have gotten up and moved to the other side of the blanket, but that would just have been childish.
They sat in silence and ate their sandwiches. He’d layered on just the right amount of tangy mustard and mayonnaise, and the lettuce was clean and crisp. She didn’t bother trying to hide her appetite around him. That was one nice thing about eating with a bear. He wouldn’t look on in horror as she chowed down on two big, fat sandwiches.
She washed down the last delicious bite with the rest of her iced tea, and glanced over at Sam, who wasn’t even trying to hide the fact that he was staring at her. He had a sensual, hungry look on his face, and that amused gleam had changed. Now his gaze held a raw animal hunger that filled her with pulsing desire. Her nipples swelled and hardened, and she felt them rubbing against her shirt, shamelessly announcing her arousal.