At Any Turn (Gaming The System) (2 page)

Emilia and I both turned to her, aghast at her blatant error—every nerd’s nightmare. Kim held up her hands in surrender. “Kidding!”

Peter chuckled and shook his head as I began to cram the french fries in my mouth as fast as I could. He eyed me cautiously. “Want me to get you another burger? You’ve got to be starving after Yogi stole your picnic basket.” He glanced at my plate. “Next one’s on me. You’re looking kind of scrawny. Starting to remind me of your high school days.”

I glared at him. Well,
that
was below the belt. I didn’t weigh much more than a hundred pounds in high school. Peter got up and went to the counter to make his order.

Emilia pulled out her cell phone to look at the time. “I’m going ask the concierge at the hotel to see if I can get you an appointment with the barber.”

I looked at her with mock hurt. “What—you don’t like my new look?”

She grinned. “Is that what you are calling it? You have food in your beard, Grizzly Adam.”

I shoved another handful of fries into my mouth and groaned. “Damn, that’s good!”

She wrinkled her nose at me. “You’re gross.”

“
Bo Shuda!
”
I cackled through my half-eaten food in my best imitation of Jabba the Hutt.

She rolled her eyes. “Gee,
now
I want to kiss you…”

My eyes went to her lush lips. I was kissing her the second I brushed my teeth. After the next burger—or maybe two. She’d just have to deal with the beard.

After I ate, I checked into my room and collapsed onto the bed. We were staying at the Awahnee Hotel in Yosemite Valley—once the playground of famous celebrities during the first part of the twentieth century. Now it was a luxury lodge for those who cared to visit the park, but who didn’t care for the inconveniences of camping. And—as I’d spent the previous five weeks either sleeping on the ground with the bugs or hanging in a tent hammock—I was ready for a little luxury.

I showered, then soaked in the Jacuzzi tub and managed to soothe many of the aches, but I couldn’t do anything about my practically obliterated, blister-covered feet. I’d probably have to keep my socks on at all times for the next few weeks so I wouldn’t gross Emilia out.

I crashed in the early evening and didn’t stir until midmorning the next day when Peter called and asked when we were going to breakfast. Food. That I didn’t have to pull out of a pack, reconstitute and cook over a propane-fueled hiking stove and choke down. Breakfast that wasn’t mushy, watery oatmeal.

Bacon, eggs, pancakes, toast, and more bacon. I still had the shaggy look going on, but I no longer reeked of Eau de Roadkill. I was clean and I really wanted to see Emilia. I’d missed her every day of the five weeks I’d been gone. She’d stayed overnight with her mom to give me a chance to catch up with my sleep, but she’d be moving into my room today. I couldn’t wait.

During the longest, loneliest and remotest stretches on the Pacific Crest Trail, I found a voice inside me so loud and persistent that I couldn’t drown it out—especially on days of complete solitude. I went days at a time without talking. I had hours stacked on hours to think about life, Emilia, everything.

I’d made that journey to try and discover things about myself, to think, to pull myself away from the dangers of an addictive lifestyle that threatened my health and happiness. But I found I didn’t love being locked inside my own head as much as I’d thought I would. I’d proved I could live without my addiction. Twenty-eight days of reprogramming in a rehab worked well for drug and alcohol addicts. What better way for a work addict like me to reprogram than by unplugging himself out beyond the reach of cell phone reception, Wi-Fi and the other modern trappings of technology?

Well, it was done. I felt satisfied and I relished the sense of accomplishment. I’d pulled myself away from creature comforts and gained a new appreciation for the things that were truly important. Or so I hoped. I’d also come up with a fantastic idea for a new game I wanted to work on—a private little project that I’d keep secret for now because…well, it was my style to reveal things in my own time frame.

Once I’d gotten over missing my Wi-Fi and cell phone, I’d spent a lot of time thinking about Emilia and this new entity,
us
.
My feelings had only grown stronger during my time away. And that next day, as we toured the Yosemite Valley, visited the tallest waterfall in the United States, and marveled at wonders in sheer granite cliffs like El Capitan and Half Dome, I couldn’t keep my hands off of her. Off the curve of her hips, the small of her back, her waist, her hands.

I couldn’t stand next to her and
not
touch her. The five-years-ago me would be vomiting at the sight of current-me. And I found myself cherishing these little things that I never even thought about before—the way she’d turn her head toward me and lean into me whenever I touched her. The way she ran her thumb over mine when we held hands. The way she’d smile and give me a fake long-suffering sigh whenever I’d lean in to kiss her neck.

While we stood admiring the rainbows that the late afternoon light threw across the frothy water of Bridal Veil Falls, I took a moment to study her lovely face. She looked thoughtful, a million miles away.

I tightened my hold on her hand. “You all right?”

She jerked her head toward me, features lighting up immediately. “Yes. I’m happy you made it safely. I worried about you every night. Kept logging in to the maps program to check where your GPS marker had you located.”

It was the only bit of technology I’d taken with me—that she had insisted I take. The locator showed her on a map where I was at all times.

“Anything interesting happen while I was gone?”

“Hmm,” she said turning back to the falls, frowning. “I got rejected.”

I frowned. “For med school? What idiots rejected you?”

She threw a half shrug, trying to blow it off, but I could tell she was bothered. I brought her hand up to my lips to kiss it.

“Davis,” she said.

“Bah. You didn’t want them anyway. That commute would be murder.”

She laughed. “They weren’t my favorite choice, that’s true.” She gave another stiff shrug and a brief frown creased her brow again. She looked away, but I squeezed her hand again to get her attention.

“No, really…you okay?”

She looked down. “Nervous, I guess. First response being a no. It’s just…kind of like blowing the MCAT all over again. Wondering if Davis is just the first in a long line of nos.”

“I reject that line of reasoning. Someone’s got to say no. You just happened to hear from the no first. I bet the rejection doesn’t even have anything to do with you either, but some deadline bullshit or something.”

She sighed. “But…if
they
were so quick to reject, it makes me wonder if any of the others will want me.”

“But you aced your MCAT this time. You had a kickass score. And fantastic grades on top of that. You’re brilliant and any school that doesn’t see that is too idiotic to deserve you.”

She leaned her head on my shoulder, released my hand to wrap her arms around my waist. I turned my head to steal a kiss in her hair, a rush of feelings tightening in my chest.

I hated to see her so disappointed. I knew how hard she’d worked to retake that test and in some ways, her previous failures had really shaken her confidence. She sighed. “You’re pretty good for my ego. I think I’ll keep you around for a while.”

I cleared my throat and decided it best to get her mind off the negative thoughts. “So, how about some good news? Did I miss out on anything interesting?”

She straightened and grinned at me. “I’ve been dying to tell you, actually. The hidden quest in Dragon Epoch was discovered! It’s all over the blogs.”

I froze. My heart started hammering and I’m pretty sure the blood drained from my face. That quest was my baby and I was just hearing this
now
? Weird. I swallowed a lump in my throat and watched her as she smiled up at me.

Then she frowned as she watched me. I was frozen. Speechless. The emotional reaction was shocking even to me. She pulled away. “Shit, are you okay? I’m sorry. I was just kidding.”

The rush of relief hit me with the force of a ton of water from that waterfall. I was almost dizzy with it. As she watched me, her forehead puckered into a frown. “I’m so sorry. That was fucking mean of me. I had no idea you’d—What was that, anyway? You almost looked…panicked.”

I looked away and shrugged, trying to brush it off. I barely understood the reaction myself. How the hell could I explain it to her? “I dunno. Just upset I’d missed it. You’re right…it
was
fucking mean.”

She pulled me into a hug again. “I’m so sorry. I feel awful.”

I drew her against me, wrapped my arms around her. Then I bent my head to nibble on her ear. “You know this means you’ll have to make it up to me later, right?”

She laughed. “I feel so bad.”

I continued kissing her ear. “Don’t. Just make sure you make it up to me later,” I said, my voice thick with meaning. I pulled her tighter against me so she would have no doubt what I was saying. As I kissed her, I tried not to examine that strange relief I felt at the news that she’d been kidding. The quest was still safely hidden away. It wasn’t time yet. All was good.

When we got back to the hotel that afternoon, she left me with the order to shower and visit the barber. I milked the joke about keeping the new look for as long as I could before I drove myself insane with the itchiness. I did manage a few more whisker-rubs, though, while I still had the chance. But I was anxious to shed the fur. Especially because I was horny as hell and she probably wasn’t going to let me near her when I was looking like B.C. the caveman.

When I got back from the barber, she was in my room getting ready. She called from the bathroom while I changed clothes to get ready for dinner. The four of us were supposed to meet in the downstairs dining room at seven. But when she came out, ready to go, I knew we were going to be late.

Because—guh—she was gorgeous. She wore some kind of wraparound strappy dress that clung to her lithe frame. It was dark red and next to it, her pale skin gleamed.

No. We weren’t leaving until I did something about my instant hard-on. I swallowed, looking her over.

She laughed. “You have a beard tan!”

I rubbed my smooth cheek. “Do I? Well, at least it’s
some
tan. Better than I usually get.”

“I bet you feel five pounds lighter without all that hair.”

I grinned. “Come here and give me a real kiss now.”

She hesitated, likely having figured out what was going through my mind at that moment as my eyes landed on that sacred valley between her breasts. “Okay, but we don’t have time for anything else, unfortunately. We have to be downstairs in five minutes,” she said.

“Sure. We’ve got a whole night after dinner. You still owe me for that mean little joke of yours,” I said, motioning for her to come to me. It wasn’t a lie. After dinner I’d be more than ready for go number
two
—and probably three. Maybe four if I had a thick steak and dessert to fuel me at dinner. The only thing that could possibly slow me down would be exhaustion. It sure as hell wouldn’t be lack of desire.

She came toward me. “
Only
a kiss for now.”

“Sure,” I said, pulling her into my arms and landing a dizzying kiss on her soft, full lips. She opened to me immediately and I curled my hand around the back of her neck, holding her mouth to mine. Her lips were firm and petal-soft. They moved under mine, returning pressure as I firmly held her to me. My tongue darted inside her mouth, eager to claim her.
Mine
.
The word echoed in my head as a fierce wave of possessiveness rushed over me.

That hike had been a great famine of more than one kind. I pulled her body flush against me. Our tongues tangled with one another. I wanted her right there and then. No surprise, after all. I hadn’t gotten laid in five weeks.

My hands went to her breasts. Pliant, firm, just the right fit under my palms. Her nipples obediently responded to my strokes. She was every bit as irresistible as I remembered. I deepened the kiss and—

She pushed my hands away and stepped back, flushed and breathing fast, so beautiful. She avoided my gaze. “Okay, umm, time to go,” she said in a breathy voice, but I knew her heart wasn’t in it.

Color crept down her neck and over the tops of her breasts.

I licked my lips like a starving tiger that’d just had a bloody steak dangled in front of him and then snatched away. No way that tiger was going to be left starving without a fight.

“Good things come to those who wait.” She smiled and swatted my hand aside when it reached for her again.

She backed away. We looked at each other for a long moment, the air thick with expectation. She took a deep breath and a step back, but I didn’t move. Sighing, she turned and went to the door. I watched her but didn’t follow. She pulled the door open before realizing that I hadn’t budged. Looking back over her shoulder, she asked, “Are you coming?”

My eyes traveled down her long legs where they peeked out from her above-the-knee hemline. All the blood in my body was being pumped to my cock and I was relieved to know that all the essential equipment still worked like it was supposed to after such a long dry spell.

I went to her, reached up and gently loosed the doorknob from her grip, closing the door.

“Adam—” she began.

I hooked my other arm around her waist, burying my mouth in her neck. “They’ll wait. They can order an appetizer.”

She turned toward me and now I had her sandwiched between me and the door.
Perfect
.

She laughed and wriggled to get free, sending a jolt of pleasure right through me. “You aren’t going to take no for an answer, are you? Typical.”

I groaned and kissed her neck again. “Give me five minutes,” I said.

“Five minutes?
That
doesn’t sound like much fun.”

“Give me five minutes to convince you why fucking right now is a good idea.” And before she could agree or disagree I reached up and tugged on the tie that held her wraparound dress together.