Free Traditional Change by Alta Hensley Page A

smallest movement would send her falling to her death. Yeah, maybe being up in this damn tree wasn't the smartest thing to do.
    "Get your ass down from there before you hurt yourself," Sawyer demanded, but his voice had a hint of amusement in it.
    Sawyer. Her heart beat so hard against her chest that she feared it would knock her right out of the tree. Days had gone by since she'd last seen him. Days of wishing she had the guts to say she wanted more. That she wanted him.
    She looked down through the branches at the man she thought had no interest in her at all. He was out of her league. Wasn't he? Sawyer's tattooed arms were folded against his chest as he anxiously awaited her descent. His dark hair tousled in a perfectly delightful mess, and his emerald eyes looked up at her, sparked with worry.
    "Do you need me to help you?" There was concern in his voice even though he hid it with a smirk of his lips; lips that Rebecca wanted to feel against hers. What was he doing here? How did he even know how to find her?
    Reaching for the thickest branch to hold her weight, she slowly made her way down. "I'm coming." She tried her best not to picture what she looked like completely nude as she awkwardly maneuvered the branches. She most certainly wasn't leaving anything hidden from his watchful eyes. No doubt he could see every crack, hole, wrinkle, you name it—lovely situation indeed.
    "I swear to God, Rebecca, if you fall, I'm going to bust your butt."
    Scowling, she continued to climb. "If I fall, my butt will already be busted," she grunted as her feet finally made contact with the ground.
    Despite the fact that she stood before him completely nude, Sawyer's presence eased the feeling of being lost that had tormented her. He gave her a sense of comfort, as odd as that was considering the situation she was in.
    He removed his black t-shirt, revealing his heavily tattooed chest and stomach. The ripples on his abs were covered in decorative color. He truly appeared to be a masterpiece of art. She couldn't help but study his torso as he moved closer to her. "Here, put this on," he said, as he handed his shirt to her. "Why are you up in that tree?" He smiled and chuckled slightly. "And why are you naked in that tree?"
    She snatched the shirt from his hand and slipped it on. Luckily, the large size of it covered her ass and girl parts from his view. "I am trying to be one with nature. I'm trying to connect with the earth." When he raised one eyebrow and smiled, she added, "Don't judge."
    Sawyer shook his head and raised his hands in surrender. "Who am I to judge?"
    Rebecca grinned. She knew how ridiculous she appeared. She had missed the way in which Sawyer could always stay open-minded. Nothing seemed to frazzle him—even seeing a naked woman up in a tree.
    "So were you successful? Are you now one with nature?" He smiled and crossed his arms against his bare chest once more. "By all means, if you feel the need to be close with Mother Earth again, I can always take my shirt back."
    "How did you find me?" she asked, changing the subject.
    "I asked Caine. He found out from Neely."
    "Why are you here?" She hadn't been sure how their next meeting would be, but being naked in front of him, at The Spiritual Oasis, was not exactly what she had envisioned. Rebecca now wanted to kick Coley in the shin for convincing her that coming here would be a good idea.
    Sawyer took a deep breath before speaking. "I feel like we left things unfinished."
    Yanking on the hem of the shirt to cover more of her body, she asked, "Unfinished? How so?"
    "Come on, Rebecca. Are you telling me that there was nothing between us? I spanked you, for Christ's sake. It's not like I spank all my clients after a tattoo is done. Plus, the way we talked… it was so easy and simple. I opened up to you like I've never done before."
    She remained silent, not sure what to say. Her insides were doing acrobatics at the memory of being across his lap.
    Sawyer approached her,