Free Glow by Beth Kery Page A

to Jim.
    â€œI wouldn’t say that. If it’s anything close to what I’m thinking in my wildest imaginings, though, I can’t quite make out why I’ve been left in the dark.”
    â€œYou haven’t been left anywhere. But if you
had
, surely there would be good reason for it,” Dylan replied. “Whatever you’re thinking, coming out here to the woods and badgering Alice isn’t warranted.”
    â€œStop talking like I’m not even here!” Alice blurted out, their private little conversation infuriating her.
    All three men gave her startled glances. She met Sal Rigo’s gaze straight on, zeroing in on the most comfortable target. The man had been her watchdog for the past several weeks, slinking around, following her every move on Dylan’s request. The reality of her invaded privacy suddenly seemed all too real. After she and Dylan had made love in Addie Durand’s old room last night, she’d suddenly had an unpleasant thought and asked Dylan about Rigo’s and Peterson’s nighttime duties. He assured her that her “bodyguards” were finished for the day once she was with Dylan, a fact that had relieved her greatly.
    Certainly, she wouldn’t have made love later on that night in that window if she’d thought otherwise.
    But had Rigo or that other Durand security manager—Josh Peterson—been skulking in the trees every time she met up with Dylan in the woods at night? Did they exchange information about it and smirk knowingly to each other? Had one of them been secretly watching on that day when she threw up after completing the zip line when Thad had comforted her, holding her against him while they talked?
    Had Rigo run and told Dylan about her seemingly private interlude with Thad? Is that why Dylan had been so prickly thatnight when he’d found her on the beach with Thad? Nothing major had happened between Thad and her, but just the idea of her privacy being breached at such a vulnerable moment suddenly felt like a hand tightening on her throat.
    â€œLook, I don’t know what you hoped to gain by coming here today,” she told Jim in a pressured, quiet tone, “and I don’t know why
you
,” she glared at Rigo, “felt it was important to run and tell Dylan about it, or why
you
,” she glanced at Dylan, “thought it was necessary to come here to the woods, but I do know one thing: I’m
working
. I don’t have time for whatever game you three are playing.” She started to walk off, then paused, frowning at Rigo. “And don’t follow me right now.
Got
it?”
    â€œAlice, wait,” Dylan called tensely. He clearly wasn’t faking his concern, but she was too angry at that moment to feel any compassion for him. For the first time since she’d known him—for the first time since she’d begun to fall hard for him—she ignored his request to stop. If Dylan had his way, he’d keep her under wraps for an eternity, treating her like a fragile piece of glass that would shatter with the smallest pressure.
    He still had a lot to learn about Alice.
    She hauled up short with a gasp, stopping just shy of the wooded path back to the zip line platform. Sebastian Kehoe stepped into the clearing, his curious gaze running over her face. She held her breath when she saw his eyes move rapidly over the other three men.
    â€œDylan. This is a surprise,” Kehoe said after he’d gathered himself. “And Jim. It’s good to see you,” Kehoe said, stepping past Alice’s frozen form, hand outstretched. He shook hands with Jim. “To what do we owe this honor? I hope nothing is wrong at the camp?”
    â€œNo, everything is fine from what I’ve seen so far,” Jim said, returning Kehoe’s handshake. “As usual, you have Camp Durand running like a well-oiled machine.”
    Kehoe looked bemused. An awkward silence fell in the