On the drive to the airport, I do my best to put the conversation with Max out of my mind. No need for baggage, right?

The past is the past.

The present is a gift.

I’m not the dude who dwells on what went wrong. I focus on the here and now. On Mia and me. On what I can offer her. Normal, considerate, easygoing. That’s my stock-in-trade, and I aim to deliver.

I keep the conversation free and easy. We chat about the new product lines she’s working on, as well as the volunteer work she hopes to do with animal rescues here in New York.

“WildCare is my jam,” she says, drumming her fingers on the dashboard. “I need to hook up with something like that in Manhattan.”

“I’ve no doubt we can find an organization like that for you,” I say, turning into the airport parking lot.

Mia smiles. “We. You said we.”

I raise an eyebrow as I search for a spot. “Any reason I shouldn’t say we?”

She shakes her head. “No. I just like that you think of us as a we.”

Okay, then. Score one for this guy on Project Make Mia Fall Madly in Love with Me.

“And I’ll be hoping the next thirty-four days pass quickly,” she adds.

I breathe another small sigh of relief. Yep, I’m going to stay the course. Build on this connection the two of us have. That’s how I’ll deal with the Eric issue. I’ll make sure Max and I stay friends, because our friendship matters to me, and because I don’t intend to lose his sister. My goal is to keep winning Mia’s heart every goddamn day.

And her body, too.

And her tummy, since I know that’s a key route to her ticker.

“You’ll be back in New York before we know it.” Then I remember a booking Dana told me about in our meeting—a trip she wanted me to handle in California. Maybe, just maybe, I can squeeze in a visit with Mia while I’m there. Nothing like a little proximity to make Mia remember why I’m the guy she can’t stop thinking about. “You know, I think I have a trip on the West Coast in the next few weeks. Something in Tahoe. I don’t have all the details yet.”

“How serendipitous,” she says, a playful glint in her eyes, as I pull into a parking spot. “Maybe we can have lunch.”

“Yeah, let’s do lunch, Mia,” I say drily, since we both know we want more than lunch.

I cut the engine, open her door, and take her bag. “Carry-on?”

She scoffs. “As if there’s any other way to fly.”

“Traveling light. I love it.”

As we head inside, she checks her phone. “Oh!” Her eyebrows rise in excitement.

“Let me guess. Your flight was canceled, and you’re excited about the extra half dozen orgasms I can give you tonight?”

As travelers scurry past us, and announcements boom in the terminal, Mia stops in her tracks and tap dances her fingers down my shirt. “Or maybe the half dozen orgasms you can give me in a tent.”

My interest perks up, as well as my dick. I loop my arm around her waist and yank her against me.

“Well, hello there, hard wood,” Mia says in a purr.

I laugh. “Speaking of wood, and hard wood, and woods, I would very much like to get you under me in a tent.” I lower my voice. “And in your favorite position, too. On your hands and knees.”

She shivers against me. “Maybe on a little secluded trail somewhere?”

“I’m liking the sound of this in-the-woods seduction. You, me, a campfire, and a sleeping bag to share. Is that what you’re thinking? Because I would love to make you come under the stars.”

She hums her yes out loud, and then she kisses my jaw.

Proximity—it’s exactly what we need to make sure we work. We need to see each other. We need to touch each other. I need to remind her why she’s breaking her rule for me.

She pulls back and meets my eyes. “I’m thinking I’d like to melt marshmallows with you in, say, another week or two when you lead the corporate retreat we just hired you for.”

My world goes deafeningly silent amidst all the beeps and buzzes of the noisy terminal, the boarding-soon calls, and the baggage announcements.

They are a wasteland of sound to my ears.

“What?” I somehow manage to say, setting my hands on her shoulders.

“That California client you have? I was hoping you'd be the one handling the trip because that’s me! That’s Pure Beauty. We don’t have to wait thirty-four days to see each other,” she says, bouncing up and down, radiating pure glee. “Surprise!”

“The Tahoe client is you?” I ask, dumfounded.

“Yes! You convinced me.”

“I convinced you?” I ask, and now I’m doubly dumbfounded.

“You told me how great the rafting trip was for the company that merged. And I thought since I’m moving my employees, this could be a great bonding experience for those making the transition, and it’s something we can keep doing once we’re all in New York. To make us a better team. Help us navigate the change. Isn’t that what you specialize in with the corporate retreats?”

“Yeah,” I say, a stone lodged in my chest. I scrub a hand across my jaw.

“I’m sorry,” she says, bringing her hand to her mouth. “Is this too soon? Is this a bad surprise? I thought it would be great for all of us. And I just received the confirmation from Felicia, who set it up. She said she was talking to Dana at your company. That was what I was so excited about when I looked at my phone.”

Mia shows me an email from Dana confirming that our CEO and founder will be perfect for your Tahoe trip and the ongoing monthly adventure tours when your move to New York is complete. Can’t wait for you to meet Patrick Milligan. He’s a total pro outdoors, with years of experience, and all our clients love him.

Awareness hits me hard. Dana never gave me the names of the new clients when we last met. We don’t usually discuss them as we plot out which guides will handle which bookings. We assign trips based on skill level, as well as the type of retreat. When Dana gave me the basic details—a small company wanting to contract ongoing trips to foster an ideal transition to a new location—she said I’d be perfect for it.

And I’d agreed.

And that also means I’m going to California to see Mia in a couple weeks. Which is precisely against the corporate guidelines I signed off on.

“Mia, we can’t be involved if I’m working for you. I have a strict rule for all employees, including myself.”

Her jaw drops. “What?”

“I had some trouble earlier this year,” I say, explaining the issues that led me to tighten the rules. I give a half-hearted grin. “You could just fire us.”

Her sigh is heavy. “Felicia already transferred the funds for the deposit.”