Stroke of Love (2 page)

“Well, this is
not
what I signed up for, so we’ll just see about this,” Penelope snapped.

Cassidy made a
tsk
sound and turned away.

The vehicle was taller and wider than a typical passenger van with a narrow aisle dividing two rows of seats. Kate rose to her feet, clutching a clipboard against her small but perfect breasts. “This is exactly what you signed up for,” she said to Penelope.

Clayton’s leg stretched across the aisle like he owned it, and he made no attempt to mask his leering. His eyes took a slow, hungry stroll down Kate’s body. Sage’s muscles twitched. The guy was the epitome of the status-driven celebrities Sage sorely disliked—entitled. Motivated by money and fame, he used people like pawns and stepped on anyone who got in his way with no regard for their feelings.

Kate narrowed her eyes in his direction. “Problem, Mr. Ray?”

Sage was drawn to her confidence, the way she wasn’t afraid to challenge Clayton, and he was powerless to turn away. And her sexy little cutoffs weren’t helping him any. With his artist’s eye, he did a quick sweep of her features, hiding his glance behind his hand as he wiped his brow again. Her deep-set, slightly upturned, smoky blue eyes stopped him cold.

“You too, Mr. Remington?” Kate arched a brow.

Shit
. Now he looked as bad as Clayton.
Am I?
He opened his mouth to explain—
I was just checking you out from an artistic standpoint. One quick glance. Jesus, you have the sexiest eyes I’ve ever seen. Fuck. Never mind
. Luckily, before he could put his foot in his mouth, she spoke.

“Let’s get one thing straight. I’m sure this is very different from the harem-filled exotic resorts you’re used to, but here at Punta Palacia we have one goal. To help the community. And that does not include any sort of sexual action from me or any other AIA volunteer.” She eyed Penelope, whose gaze was burning a path directly to Sage, and Cassidy, who was sizing up Clayton. “What you do among yourselves is your business, but we expect you to carry out your humanitarian efforts with respect for our staff and the community. Got it?”

The silence was deafening. Kate’s lips held tight in a don’t-mess-with-me line.

“Got it.” The words were out of Sage’s mouth before he had time to think.

She gave a curt nod.

“Alrighty, then. We’ll see where we end up,” Clayton said with a heavy Southern drawl.

Kate exchanged a half smile with Luce, as if they were sharing an inside joke. “When we get to the compound, you’ll be assigned a cabin. Once situated, we’ll meet at the community rec area. The path behind the cabins will lead you to the rec area. Please try to be there within thirty minutes so we can get everyone up to speed as quickly as possible.” Kate turned and lowered herself into her seat as the bus took a bumpy turn to the right and came to an abrupt stop.

Despite himself, Sage wondered what Kate would be like if she weren’t wrangling self-centered celebrities. As he stole a peek at her profile, he realized that she’d lumped him in with Clayton, and he cringed. They hadn’t even arrived yet and already he was on some celebrity shit list in her mind. Or on that damn clipboard.

KATE WAITED IMPATIENTLY while the prima donnas made their way down the dusty steps of the van. She’d been with AIA for almost five years and this was her second assignment out of the country. Each assignment lasted for two years, with an additional three months of training. In a few short weeks it would be over and she’d be flying back home to see her parents. She had misgivings about this assignment coming to an end. Punta Palacia had been her home for just over two years. She’d become close with the children at the school and the community, and she’d been lobbying for the installation of a well in the village. Just thinking about leaving everyone, especially before the decision on the well was made, caused her chest to constrict. Kate was good at a lot of things, but saying goodbye was not one of them.

She held Clayton’s stare as he exited the bus. She’d learned early on that holding her ground with entitled celebrities was the only way to keep them in line. They were all the same: cocky, surly when she turned down their sexual advances, and goddamn needy. It would take less than five minutes after they checked out their small cabins for them to stomp back with a demand to leave. Kate had never given too much thought to what it must be like going from a world of having everything at their fingertips to a developing nation such as Belize. She’d grown up traveling with her parents on Peace Corps missions and had been surrounded by families who worked with the Peace Corps her whole life. Once she’d graduated college, she couldn’t wait to leave the United States and get on with helping people who really needed it. Lately, though, she’d also longed for something more, although she hadn’t been able to put her finger on just what that
more
might be.

“Where to, darlin’?” Clayton flashed his perfectly capped teeth with a wide smile.

“You’re in cabin one. The first cabin you come to.” She pointed to the cabin, and when his smile widened, she knew she was in for trouble.

Sweat dripped from beneath Clayton’s Stetson. He swiped at it with his forearm. “You don’t need to worry about us. We’re harmless.” He took a step closer.

Kate was hyperaware of Sage standing behind him, his dark eyes narrowed, his jaw clenching.

“Unless, of course, you’d like to try ridin’ a stallion.” Clayton’s smile morphed into a smirk, the left side of his mouth tilting up.

Kate had been propositioned by celebrities before, but that didn’t stop her hand from fisting around her pen as she pulled her clipboard to her chest like a shield. As she opened her mouth to tell him what he could do with his offer, Sage stepped from the bus in his sweaty tank top and cargo shorts and cleared his throat loudly.

“Cabin one, Ray.” It was clearly a command.

His tattooed arms were solid muscle and so well defined that she had the urge to let her fingers travel their hard ridges. He was built for power, a protector, or…
No.
She wasn’t going there. She’d seen too many temporary romances during these assignments to allow herself to be drawn in only to be forgotten after the guy went back home.

Clayton walked away with a swagger, turning back once and tilting his hat at Kate.

She groaned.

“Listen, I’m really sorry for the way I looked at you on the bus.”

The command in Sage’s voice was gone, replaced with sweet richness, as smooth as melted butter. Kate felt her cheeks flush.
Damn it
.
What is wrong with me?
She lowered her eyes, steeling herself against the warmth that had found her belly and was slowly traveling lower. She dared a glance at his handsome face. He had a strong chin, and his eyes hovered somewhere between gunmetal blue and indigo.
Shit. Really?
At least he wasn’t perfectly manicured like the others. His eyebrows were a little bushy, a peppering of whiskers covered his cheeks, and his clothes looked like they came right off the rack at anyplace
but
a high-end store. Unfortunately, that only made him more appealing.

Focus.

Kate drew in a deep breath and ran her finger down her clipboard. Now she was stuck trying to figure out if he was just playing her—standing up to Clayton and apologizing like he was her savior—or if he was really a nice guy. She decided to ignore the conundrum altogether and focus on her job instead. Focusing on her job didn’t require evaluating the motives of celebrities. Her job was safe.

“Remington. Let’s see…You’re in cabin three.” She pointed to a small cabin at the end of the complex.

He nodded silently and walked away with a dejected look on his way-too-handsome face.

Luce stood on the steps of the bus with her arms crossed. “Well, look at you, staring after him like he’s a piece of meat. Maybe I’ll start calling you Clayton.” She stepped from the bus. This was Luce’s third trip to Belize. Kate couldn’t keep track of all of the celebs she handled PR for, but she was always glad to see her friend.

Kate realized she was not only staring at Sage as he walked away, but more specifically, staring at his perfect ass. She spun around. “What? Just making sure he figured out which cabin was his. They all look the same.”
No. They sure as hell don’t all look the same.
And she wasn’t thinking about the cabins.

“Uh-huh. You stickin’ with that story?” Luce’s blond hair was clipped at the base of her neck in a low ponytail, and she reeked of bug spray. Luce was always prepared. It was one of the things Kate admired most about her.

Kate smacked Luce’s arm with the clipboard. “Why didn’t you warn me about those women? You said they were a little highbrow; that’s different from—”

“No. No, no, no.” Penelope traipsed across the yard, waving her arms and lifting her legs high to avoid the thick grass and the flourish of dust that clung to her legs. “Luce, there is no way I’m staying in that bug-infested sauna.” She crossed her lanky arms, rolled her eyes, and huffed a sigh.

Luce glanced at Kate and lifted her palms to the sky. “Sorry, Pen. This is what we’ve got. It’s only two weeks, and—”

“Did you see the screened-in sleeping area?” Kate mustered a peppy voice even though what she really wanted to say was,
The cabins are fine. There are people who have real needs and you’re here to help them. Suck it up and let’s get going.
“The screen will allow the air in and it’ll keep you cooler at night,” Kate suggested. “There’s a nice shower and bathroom that’s all yours. I know it’s not what you’re used to, but remember, this was once a mahogany logging camp, so think of it like you’re reliving a time in history.”

“And that’s supposed to make me feel better? The bathroom is awful.” Penelope let out a loud breath.

Luce put her arm around Penelope and guided her back to the cabin, saying something Kate couldn’t hear. Kate checked her watch. In another twenty minutes she’d hold orientation and then hand out the assignments. She’d been looking forward to working with Sage the most. She loved his artwork and she knew how much the children loved art as well, but whatever the hell was going on in her lady parts when he was around had her on high alert. She’d have to build a little higher fence than she was used to.

Who was she kidding? She needed ten feet of barbed wire—to keep herself in.

SAGE GRABBED A bottle of water from the mini refrigerator in his cozy cabin, which couldn’t be more than two hundred square feet including the bathroom and the screened-in sleeping porch. Despite the low ceiling, it was perfect.

He applied bug repellant and left the heavy wooden door open when he went to find the others, leaving just the screen door to keep the bugs out. Coming from the forest, there was a loud sound that resembled a dentist’s drill or an electric saw of some sort—high-pitched and constant, and he wondered what it was. He stopped to listen to birds squawking and chirping, the drilling sound, and varying pitches of other indistinguishable jungle sounds.
Can’t get that in the Big Apple.

Each cabin was similar to the next, constructed of wood and concrete with thickly thatched roofs. He took a moment to breathe deeply before finding the path Kate had spoken of. His body had already begun to adjust to the humidity. Back in New York his days were consumed with deadlines, moving as fast as he was able from one thing to the next. Even buying groceries was a lesson in efficiency and crowd maneuverability. He went to bed thinking of his next project, the next gallery opening, the next article he had to prepare for, and he woke up feeling like none of it mattered but not knowing how to break from the life he’d created. It had been way too long since he’d had any time to enjoy being outdoors with nothing but grass and trees as far as the eye could see.

He walked down the narrow path, bordered by fronds and foliage so shiny and brightly colored that they could have been fake. Giant green leaves arced over the path, and smaller stalks and bushes pressed into it. Sage moved them carefully aside, making his way through to the clearing.

Kate stood before the others with her clipboard and a large bottle of water, looking comfortable in her AIA V-neck T-shirt and sneakers, but in her eyes Sage saw a shadow of stress. Penelope and Cassidy had changed into tank tops and shorts, and Clayton wore the same T-shirt and jeans he’d had on earlier.
Hot
was all Sage could think, and not the sexy kind. Jeans, jungles, and humidity didn’t make for a comfortable afternoon. Sage had never given much thought to the clothes he wore, choosing comfort over style. Watching Clayton squirm uncomfortably in his thick jeans and Penelope and Cassidy making futile attempts to brush the dirt from their designer shorts, he was glad he’d never drank the haute couture Kool-Aid that was common among people of his economic status.

Kate lifted her chin in his direction. “I was just telling the group what you can expect while you’re here. First and foremost, keep the bug repellant handy. We left some in your cabins. After you get your assignments, you’ll have a brief meeting with your mentor, and then you can enjoy the town, relax, or grab some food in the mess hall.” Kate pointed to a building similar in style to the cabins at the far end of the clearing. “We offer three meals each day, but many of our celebrity guests like to eat at one of the cafés in town. The town is right down that road.” She pointed behind her to a stretch of road defined by two dirt ruts with a grassy mound in the center. “The town’s quite small but friendly. Besides two small cafés, you’ll find an Internet café for those of you who need to be tied to the outside world, and there’s a local watering hole, fresh-fruit stand, and other basics. I wouldn’t advise drinking too much alcohol in this heat. You can dehydrate fast.” Kate pointed to the surrounding jungle. “The jungle is…well, it’s a jungle. It can be dangerous and it’s easy to lose your way, so I urge you not to venture out alone.”

“Should we worry about being stalked by a jaguar or something out here?” Sage asked.

“You have a better chance of seeing a peccary or maybe a tapir,” Kate answered without glancing his way. “Oh, and most of the residents speak English when they’re talking with us, but you’ll notice that they speak Belizean Creole when they speak among themselves. Creole is similar to English. Some people say it sounds like an island or a Jamaican accent. They tend to speak very fast when speaking Creole, and though the words are similar to ours, the meanings are not always the same.”