She lowered her cup. "Then there's the little matter of being arrested and thrown in prison for the rest of your life."
"That would also be bad for business." I tossed the last corner of the sandwich into my mouth and chewed.
"Oh, I don't know. Seth seems competent." She was struggling to keep a straight face. "I'm sure he could replace you."
"Not a fucking chance," I said.
"What are you two talking about?" Connor offered us a box of cupcakes.
I snagged a chocolate one and nodded my thanks. "Leah was just saying how indispensable I am." I bit into the cupcake.
Connor grunted. "Sure she was."
I almost choked on my mouthful of cake, trying to swallow too fast. "Don't you start." I coughed a couple of times.
Connor, being the asshole he was, chuckled and moved on, handing out cupcakes to everyone who wanted one.
"You both suck," I muttered, but there was no heat in it.
"You wish," Leah said tartly.
I swung my gaze over to her. "Youwill. Come on, it's time to get everyone out of here." I rose and brushed crumbs off my shorts, leaving her to follow.
25
LEAH
I satbetween Connor and Riley as we bumped our way back toward the road. We were the last to leave, after the other vehicles carried the tourists to their cars and waiting buses.
"They'll take them up the mountain for zip lining." Connor's long fingers were wrapped around the steering wheel. "Then they'll end up at the Frosty Brew or wherever."
"Have you ever gone zip lining?" Riley curled his hand around mine.
"No," I admitted. "My mother would have lost her mind if I did." Anything that resembled risk was a no-go, as far as she was concerned. Maybe she didn't want the hassle if I broke a limb. Or my neck.
"We won't tell." Connor glanced over at me quickly before turning his attention back to the dirt track.
"What's she going to do anyway?" Riley asked. "Leah is an adult. She's too old to be grounded."
"But not too old to be spanked," Connor said. "By Riley and me."
My face heated. "What else do you do up here? On the adventure tours, I mean." I ignored Riley's grin.
"Bungee jumping," Connor said. "I want to get one of those chairs that swing out over nothing. There's a ravine further up the mountain that would be good for that."
"Is that where Josiah lives?" I asked.
Both of them stiffened.
"Close to there," Riley said, clearly not wanting to elaborate. "Your mom kept you on a tight leash?"
I slid my gaze over to him.
"You said she'd lose her shit if you did anything fun like zip lining," he said for clarification.
"It wasn't so much that she kept me on a tight leash," I said slowly. "She would have thought something like that was a waste of time and money."
"Sounds like she needs to get out and live a little," Connor said. "You should tell her to come up here. We'll comp her a couple of tours to lighten her up."
