Worth the Risk: (A Contemporary Bad Boy Romance) Read online

  "Escape?" Caleb asked, but before he could get an answer, they had cleared the last hill and were pulling up to Danielle's camp. He cut the engine but remained seated, breathing deeply and attempting calm, while the dean got out and wandered around the campsite. He watched as the slender fellow stuck his head in her tent, then pulled it back out with a look of confusion.

  "She's not here," he said with frustration as he walked back toward the ATV.

  "She's probably out in the field," Caleb replied, pulling out his phone and dialing her number.

  "What?" Danielle seemed irritated when she answered his call.

  Doubt punched him in the gut. Had their uneasy post-coitus comradery already turned into hostility? He hoped not. "You've got company."

  "What?" she asked again, her voice rising an octave.

  "I suggest you high-tail it back to camp," he said, then ended the call. "She's on her way," he told the dean, who'd finally settled into a camping chair. His look was one of vague distrust at the canvas material, but he carefully adjusted his shorts, pulling them up slightly to fold one leg over the other. Caleb thought the pose was supposed to be refined, but he thought it just a tad too feminine. Besides, what man with a decent sized member could fold one leg over the other comfortably like that?

  Caleb finally climbed out of the ATV and headed over to the other canvas chair, sliding into it and turning his attention to the dean. He knew Danielle would return soon, but he didn't feel like leaving this self-important prick alone in her camp. Besides, he wondered what their relationship was and would look for answers in her reactions.

  Was he more than her boss? He was determined to find out. In the meantime, perhaps he could get some more clues by making small-talk.

  "So, Jeff, do you do any fieldwork yourself?"

  The dean shot him a look of annoyance. "Jeffrey," he corrected and coughed politely. "No, I don't generally have time to gallivant off into the wilds. My position as head of Sciences makes that difficult."

  "I see." Caleb repressed a burst of laughter at the conceited correction of his name. "Yet you found time to 'gallivant off into the wilds' today it seems."

  The dean's smile was so smug Caleb wanted to wipe it off his face for him. Hard. "Well, Dani has always been a special case."

  Dani? Caleb saw red.

  "She's a very remarkable woman," the dean continued, not noticing the flush that crept up his companion's face. "And any chance to spend time with her is not to be missed. Even if I am charged with evaluating her progress, I'm sure she won't mind a little catching up on personal matters."

  His voice dripped with hormones as he said those words. "Dani and I, we--" His words broke off at the loud snap of a twig nearby. Both heads turned to look as Danielle stepped out of the tree line and into the camp.

  * * *

  Dani heard the voices as she approached the camp and realized who her "company" was. With a sigh she trudged forward, wishing for anyone else. She cringed when she heard that she herself was the topic of conversation. So I'm a 'remarkable woman'?

  She slowed down and attempted to creep forward quietly so she could better make out the words. What could the dean possibly be telling Caleb about her? Unfortunately, her natural clumsiness reared its head at just the wrong time, and she tripped over a root, landing on a dry twig with a loud snap. Too late for sneaking now, she got up from her hands and knees. She stood, grimaced at her dirty hands, and then headed into the camp.

  "Dani and I what?" she said, wiping her hands on her jeans as she approached.

  "Ah, Dr. French," Jeffrey said warmly, standing up and heading over to meet her. "So good to see that you are well."

  "Dr. Fischer," she nodded. "What a surprise to see you here."

  Jeffrey smiled, "A pleasant surprise, I hope."

  Not fucking likely. “What are you doing here?"

  "I've come to check on your progress."

  "I see," she said, then risked a glance at the forest ranger. He was staring at her, a look of frustration that he failed to hide on his handsome face.

  The dean drew her attention. "Well then, we should get going."

  "Going?" she asked, confused.

  "I thought I could take you out, somewhere out of the woods, and we could have a nice meal and talk about your research."

  Dani wanted to scream. When would he understand that she wasn't interested? "I appreciate the offer, but I have too much work to do here. Maybe another time we could--"

  Jeffrey clicked his tongue and shook his head in a manner that said he wouldn't accept a brush-off. "Dani," he said, approaching her and pulling one of her hands into his. "Let me take you out, make sure you get a decent meal. And don't worry, your frogs will still be here when you get back."

  Dani pulled away from him and put both hands in her pockets, out of his reach. "Look, Dean Fischer--"

  "Jeffrey," he said automatically, staring at the hand that had held hers. It was coated with dark mud, thanks to her fall. He pulled a cloth handkerchief out of his pocket and wiped at it while she talked.

  "Jeffrey, I'm fine. I cook for myself out here, and I don't really want to leave since I've only been here for--"

  "Nonsense," he said, his tone brooking no argument. "If you won't do it for yourself, you will agree on my behalf. I have no desire to discuss your progress out here in the woods, being eaten alive by bugs and collecting God knows what kind of germs. Gather your things, and clean yourself up as best you can. I also suggest putting on something more civilized. I'll wait."

  Dani hid her grimace until she was safely ensconced in her tent. How dare he? Her anger ran free while she rifled through her things, looking for an outfit that was "more civilized." She pulled out some slacks and a lavender button-up shirt to wear under a soft black sweater, unsure of why she'd even packed these items. At least she had something to wear. As she struggled into the outfit, she wondered what Caleb made of this whole situation.

  Climbing back out of the tent and heading over to her shower to grab a bar of soap she glanced toward the ranger again. His face was eerily calm, but his eyes were like blue ice as they met hers.

  She shivered and turned her back as she washed her hands. "Should I bring my notes and preliminary data or...?" she asked the dean, hoping Caleb didn't hear the anxiety in her voice.

  "Don't bother, this is rather informal." Jeffrey grinned. "I'm sure you've got all the pertinent facts in that pretty little head of yours anyway."

  "Then I guess I'm ready."

  * * *

  If Caleb had thought the drive to camp this morning was uncomfortable, he had no words to describe the ride back to his cabin. He blinked several times to clear his vision and pushed down the strong emotion whose name he didn't want to acknowledge, although his subconscious whispered it to him.

  Jealousy.

  Still, his rational mind forced him to remain calm. He sat silently in the driver's seat, thinking steam must be shooting out of his ears. Caleb was unaccountably furious.

  One thing he had not expected from the sexy scientist was betrayal, and yet, there she sat in the back next to that skinny snob, making conversation and laughing at his snide jokes while Caleb drove them around like a chauffeur.

  It's not really a betrayal, his conscience argued. You aren't attached, and you won't be attached. Besides, you haven't exactly gotten around to discussing your past with her, so how can you fault her for not telling you about him?

  He isn't her past, his inner devil argued back, wanting to yank the halo from his conscience's head. He's her present, and she's rubbing my nose in it.

  Caleb fumed as the couple talked about their mutual acquaintances and departmental gossip. He realized the hand, not on the wheel, had tightened into a fist, a fist he longed to throw at the smug bastard's face.

  Breathing deeply he forced his fingers to unclench. Why did this woman destroy his hard-won calm so effortlessly? He couldn't let her. Deep breaths, he thought. Count to ten. Don't think about the weasel's hands to
uching her flawless skin. Kissing her warm lips.

  The fist was back and tighter than ever. Luckily, he pulled up in front of his cabin before he could use it. The dean jumped out of the ATV and headed over to his Mercedes, whistling tunelessly. Caleb climbed out and walked around the vehicle, coming to a stop next to Dr. French. He looked down at her, and her dark eyes met his.

  "It's not what you think," she said quietly.

  "Does it matter what I think?"

  Her brows furrowed and she started to say something in response, but the dean's nasally drone prevented her. "Come along, Dani," he said, motioning her toward the Mercedes. "We've got plenty to discuss."

  Caleb didn't like his oily tone of voice, but he could do little to remedy it. Short of committing a felony, his inner devil corrected. He watched the professor climb into the Mercedes and felt the door to his heart swing shut with the closing of her car door.

  Chapter 7

  Dani's anger was like a rabid dog barely restrained by its leash when the Mercedes finally pulled into the restaurant parking lot. It was already very late in the afternoon, and the sunlight glinted orange on the ocean waves. Her lips were pressed together into a tight line as she listened to the dean's excuses.

  "Here we are," he said. "I apologize for all the twists and turns getting here. But it's not the destination, right? It's the journey."

  The journey had taken them almost four hours. Jeffrey had taken wrong turn after wrong turn on the winding byways outside the park. They'd bounced down abandoned gravel roads and even nearly been pushed off the side of a cliff by an oversized logging truck. At last, they'd found the correct highway to the coast.

  "I still don't understand why we had to come all the way to Newport for lunch," she said again.

  His cocky smile faltered as he attempted to placate her. "You know there are no decent restaurants in Alsea or any of the other tiny towns nearby. We could have headed back toward campus, but I thought you'd appreciate the scenery here better. I know we're a bit late for lunch, so how about I make it up to you with an early dinner?"

  Inside the restaurant was swanky and Dani immediately felt underdressed. The atmosphere didn't seem to bother the dean, who appeared comfortable in his khaki shorts and white button-up shirt, the obligatory knit sweater looped over his shoulders. Another glance at his shorts forced Dani to hold back a fit of giggles.

  His legs were beyond skinny, almost like two broomsticks. She marveled that such bony calves could hold up the rest of his body. Jeffrey picked that moment to meet her eyes again and took her not-so-secret smile as an invitation. He slid a lanky arm around her and pulled her close as the hostess led them to a secluded table with a view of the ocean.

  Jeffrey ordered a bottle of wine and proceeded to attack the breadbasket. In between slices, he asked her polite questions about her research. She relaxed as she talked about her work, happy to lower her guard a bit. Perhaps this really was a progress update.

  But as she talked, she realized the dean was barely listening. He read his menu, drank his wine and refilled his glass, and then settled his eyes on the ocean, occasionally muttering, "Good...good."

  All pretense at listening vanished when the waitress approached, and Jeffrey hurried to order. He paid more attention to the Catch of the Day than he had her entire presentation. Dani sighed and tightened her muscles for the upcoming confrontation. She nearly failed to hide her scowl when she heard him order oysters on the half shell. That and another bottle of wine.

  The rest of the meal was a study in avoidance. Dani attempted to avoid his refilling of her glass which was a fail, barely avoided sharing his oysters thanks to lying about having a shellfish allergy, and tried desperately to avoid any talk of libido which was stupid from the on start.

  "You know, I've heard these things are considered an aphrodisiac," Jeffrey exclaimed after swallowing another raw oyster. "I couldn't tell you if that's true myself, as I've never had any problem in that department."

  The wink he gave her almost caused Dani to throw up in her mouth. As the first bottle of wine was replaced by the second, his comments became less and less about biology and more and more about sexuality. What had started as a discussion about the reproduction of amphibian species in the wild had quickly turned into something altogether less comfortable.

  "You know, if I may say this without causing offence, your shape is perfect for reproduction. Although your waist is quite slender, your wide hips and, er, prodigious mammary glands make you eminently suited for childbearing."

  Dani wondered how he was able to use such elevated vocabulary while nearly slurring every second word. "Thanks, I think?" Her cheeks were aflame. What the hell had she gotten herself into?

  "A man can't help but notice these things," he said matter-of-factly. "It's in our DNA to seek attractive, reproductive females."

  "Of course." She attempted to steer the conversation back to safer ground, but Fischer would have none of it.

  "What I'm saying is," he started, then burped gracelessly into his cloth napkin, "is that you're quite attractive, and obviously well suited to reproduction, so I just can't help but admire those qualities, you know?"

  "Look, Jeffrey, I appreciate your noticing, but I really don't think this is the time to discuss personal matters. You insisted on bringing me out here to talk about my progress, yet we've done everything but focus on my project."

  "My sincerest apologies, but I can't seem to keep my mind on serious matters when I have you in front of me."

  "I think I'm done with dinner," she said as he drained the last of the wine from his glass. When he attempted to refill it, nothing came out but a few drops. Jeffrey raised his hand to signal the waitress, and when she came, Dani asked for the check to prevent him from ordering another bottle. It took some time for the dean to get around to signing his receipt but at last, he stood, and they headed for the door.

  The parking lot was dim, and Dani looked out over the ocean, watching with frustration as the sun began to sink behind the horizon. She risked a glance at the dean and realized he was too intoxicated to drive safely. "Jeffrey," she said in her sweetest, most cajoling voice, "could I please have your car keys?"

  Jeffrey smiled beatifically but shook his head in the negative. "No need to drive anywhere."

  "What do you mean?"

  "Well, it's getting late, and we're clearly too far gone to drive--"

  "I'm fine--" she insisted, but he continued as if she hadn't spoken.

  "--and it really isn't safe to tackle those winding roads at night, so I've booked us a room at the inn next door."

  "You WHAT?"

  He had the decency to look slightly sheepish, but he still wouldn't release his keys. "Well I figured we might have a few glasses of wine with dinner, and since it would probably be late..."

  "But we were supposed to have lunch. We're only out this late because you kept getting lost and--wait. You got lost on purpose, didn't you?"

  Jeffrey failed to hide his pleased grin immediately but tried to cover up the lapse with his words. "Now, Dani, I'd never be so devious. I figured I'd reserve a room just in case, and if we didn't need it, then fine."

  As he talked he began walking toward the inn across the parking lot, and she had no choice but to follow. "I think we should make the most of our situation, don't you? I can drive you back first thing in the morning. Besides," he said, the corners of his mouth rising into a lopsided grin, "won't it be wonderful to sleep in a nice warm bed for a night?"

  The clerk at the desk looked bored as he entered their information in the computer. "Room 222," he said, sliding a magnetized card across to Jeffrey.

  "Wait," Dani said, "I want my own room."

  The front desk clerk raised an eyebrow then shook his shaggy head. "I'm sorry ma'am, but we're full. No additional rooms are available."

  "Then I'll try the place across the street," she said, turning away from the counter and moving toward the door.

  "You can try," the clerk sai
d, "but I doubt they have anything either. It's the annual Autumn Crafts on the Coast bazaar. The whole town is packed full of blue-haired old ladies hunting down ceramic statues of turkeys, live or cooked. They come from all over the Pacific Northwest for a week of shopping and four pm seafood dinners. And they book nearly every room in town."

  "How convenient," she said, staring at Jeffrey with fire in her eyes. He didn't even have the decency to look abashed; he just met her gaze with a radiant smile.

  "Shall we, my dear?" he asked, then headed down the hall toward the elevator.

  "This is really too much," she said once they were in the elevator and heading up to the second floor. As is the way with all elevators, the shorter the distance to travel, the slower the trip.

  "What are you implying?" Jeffrey asked, his good mood turning sullen. "Do you think the Dean of Sciences would really have to trick a lady into spending the night with him? If you believe that, you are sorely misinformed. Perhaps the wine has affected your logic, but I don't appreciate these kind of accusations."

  "All right, all right." She put up her hands in defeat. "This is all some vast misunderstanding."

  "Agreed," he said, smiling again and pulling her hand into his when the elevator doors opened. "We might as well make the best of the situation," he said, tugging her along to Room 222. The door opened on a comfortable room done in white and the muted pastels that are so favored by coastal decorators.

  A king-sized bed dominated the layout. Just one bed. Dani wanted to groan but feared setting him off again. Jeffrey sauntered across the room.

  What a big saunter for such skinny legs! Dani thought, then strangled off the hysterical laughter that wanted to follow. He sat on the bed, patting the area next to him in an attempt to lure her closer.