Page 192 of The Friends and Rivals Collection

“Tomorrow is Saturday. If not working all day long on a Saturday counts as playing hooky, we have some serious issues.”

“What are you suggesting we do?”

“I’m saying we find some sunshine and snacks, and unplug till you clear your head and let go of this stress.”

The gold flecks in her eyes twinkle, making them look green. “I do like snacks.”

“Marcona almonds,” I say in a low, dirty whisper.

She hums.

“Green olives.” My voice turns huskier.

She fans herself.

“Sunflower seeds.”

She lets out a gasp, and yeah, sunflower seed erotica is way better than s’mores smut. “Now you’re just teasing me.”

“I swear. All those can be yours.”

“But I have to review these marketing campaigns . . .”

The elevator rumbles, itching to travel to the next floor. I make my last pitch. “I wonder if there are any tall, handsome, blue-eyed, brilliant fellow business owners who’d look at them with you, say, over lunch today, so that tomorrow you could take a day off to relax.”

I see her switch from maybe to yes. I suspect it was the word lunch.

She bounces on her toes. “Can we order Italian from that new place down the street?”

And lunch is now my wingman.

“Deal,” I say, and she follows me off the elevator and into my spacious apartment. I set down my pack, letting Zeus go free. He hops out, and once his white paws hit the floor, he promptly proceeds to bestow all the affection in the world on Mia’s leg.

We spend the next two hours eating pasta primavera, reviewing her marketing campaigns, and debating favorite foods to bring along on a four-hour hike.

We settle on the aforementioned olives and almonds, and then she places an order of surprise me since I love surprises .

When she leaves, I batten down the hatches and take care of my own business, coordinating with my new West Coast manager who oversees our Northern California trips, as well as my associates out here who handle day-to-day work on the hiking, rafting, camping, and corporate retreats we manage on this coast. In the afternoon, my HR manager calls, and we spend an hour reviewing the updated employee handbook line by line.

I had some trouble earlier this year with a guide who slept with a married client on a three-day hiking trip in Vermont.

The whole situation turned into a mess—the guide slapped some angry posts on Facebook about being fired, and the client’s husband called and threatened us.

Tempers flared red-hot and dangerous, even though nothing came of it at the end of the day.

But we tightened our guidelines for employees, since that’s all we can control anyway.

The next morning I’m up bright and early for a five-mile run, and when I return, I slide the red harness onto Zeus. I snap a shot of him sitting next to a daypack and some food for the hike, then post it to his feed.

Ready for today’s adventure!

I shake my head because I can’t believe this is who I’ve become. A guy who posts cell phone pics of his cat.

But, then again, how could I turn him down when Evie brought him to me, his green eyes batting up at me like Puss in Boots?

My sister is a matchmaker, and one of her clients is a fireman.

He rescued Zeus from a warehouse fire in Queens.

The little fellow had no home, so Evie insisted he be mine, since she’s mildly allergic.

Ergo, I have a cat.

A few minutes later, I take the elevator to Max’s floor and knock on his door.

He answers and bestows the biggest scowl on earth on me. “Did you think I wouldn’t notice you were taking my sister out for the day?”

I roll my eyes at Max’s effort to play the role of scary big brother. Even though we’ve known each other for less than two years, he’s become my closest friend in New York, in part because he’s blunt, loyal, dependable, and has a kickass pool table. His opinion always matters to me.

“I figured showing up at your door would tip you off.”

But he doesn’t ease up. Instead, he snarls.

That only makes me laugh. “Dude, the whole routine is a little ridiculous.”

“I saw the way you looked at her at Henley’s dinner party a few weeks ago.”

Max and his girlfriend, Henley, built a car together for a network TV show that just finished a successful first season, and they celebrated with a party at their place.

Not gonna lie—I spent a little extra time with Mia at the party, but I hadn’t seen her in a while, and the two of us always seem to gravitate toward each other when she’s in town.

We’ve been like that from the night we met—we click.

And that’s a big reason why it sucks that she lives three thousand miles away.

But since Max started it, I can’t resist giving him a hard time.

“And at this party, how exactly did I look at her? Like I wanted to help serve the salad she made? That kind of look?” I adopt a low and dirty voice just to emphasize the ridiculousness of his point.

“Hey there, sweet cheeks. Let me help you with the tongs.”

“Don’t ever let me hear you say the words ‘sweet cheeks’ again.”

“Same goes for you.”

He cracks a smile, laughs loudly, and smacks me on the back. “Just yanking your chain. I know you’d never do anything behind my back.”

Well, that’s not entirely true. I did some seriously dirty things to her in my imagination this morning.

“Right?” he asks, pressing.

I raise my hand, as if I’m taking an oath. “Nothing behind your back, I promise. Besides, when I convince your sister to marry me, I’ll be upfront about it. Man to man.” I smack his chest.

He blinks. Rubs his ear. “You’re messing with me.”

I smirk, my lips twitching in an evil grin.

“Absolutely,” I say, since there’s nothing to tell.

I meant what I said—I would be upfront about it.

I would tell him. But there’s nothing to tell, because she lives so far away.

All I can do is grab the few seconds and minutes of time with her that I can.

Maybe if I spend enough hours with Mia, the feeling will burn off and fade away.

“Besides,” I add, “I’m just taking her to explore Mother Nature. I have the sense she needs it.”

“Man, she does,” Max says, peering behind him. “She’s been stressed about the business, where it’s going, what to do next. Henley and I tried to convince her to get a massage, but then she mentioned she was spending the day with you. I was glad to hear it.”

“Good. I guess that means you’ll let me borrow your Triumph to take her to the trailhead.”

Max sets a hand on his stomach and laughs. “That’s a good one. As if I’d let anyone but my woman touch Blue Betty. You can take your Hyundai.”

A few minutes later, Mia appears, twisting her damp hair into a bun on top of her head and flashing me a smile. “I’m ready. I have to be back by five thirty for a conference call with a potential supplier. She had some time today so we’re going to chat.”

I roll my eyes and whisper to Max, “Someone needs to cancel that Saturday conference call.”

Mia parks her hands on her hips. “I heard you. This apartment is big, but not that big.”

“Don’t forget dinner tonight with your favorite brother,” Max says drily, tapping his chest.

“You mean Chase?” Mia asks, batting her eyes innocently.

He scowls. “Fine, I’ll let him come along.” His tone turns serious. “Henley said to remind you we have reservations for seven thirty, and Chase and Josie are excited to see you.”

“I’ll be back. I swear. You act like I’m going to get stuck in the woods.”

Max scoffs. “No. I’m not worried about that at all. I’m worried you’re going to get stuck on your conference call.”

A few minutes later, Mia slides into my most-decidedly-not-a-Hyundai Jeep, and as we make our way out of Manhattan, she pets Zeus, who’s decided to spend the drive on her lap.

Can’t say I blame him.

I wouldn’t mind spending some time there, too.