“I’m going to shower.” River flapped her hand at him. “Shoo.”

“You can’t shoo me out of my own bathroom.” One side of his mouth twitched upward.

“Did you plan on staying?” River raised an eyebrow. The result was his neck flushing red as he muttered something inaudible, the door clicking shut behind him as he made his getaway.

After kicking Easton out of the bathroom, River took a quick shower. The water was hot and relaxing, even if her mind kept trying to cover Easton with chocolate sauce. The man had crawled into her head and was making a home there, a distraction to her even when he wasn’t present.

His shower curtain had cartoon rubber ducks on it. River thought that was funny for a mountaineer living in Alaska.

A knock on the door startled her out of her thoughts.

“It’s me,” Bree said through the door. “Can I brush my teeth? There’s a line forming out here.”

“Yeah, I’ll hurry it up.”

At the start of her career, River had done a handful of commercials and a couple of low-paying modeling gigs. Enough to be used to small spaces with multiple people getting ready. While Bree went about her flossing routine, River sadly ended her shower. Sneaking her hand outside the curtain to grab a towel, River wrapped herself up and sat on the edge of the tub.

“He’s awfully good-looking.” Bree glanced at River in the mirror, words muffled by her fingers and the floss. “I’m starting to think you like him.”

“If I did, it doesn’t matter.” With a sigh, River shook her head. “Besides, you know me. Tall and rugged always distracts me, but it’s the endgame I’m focused on.”

“Right.” Bree smirked at her.

River chewed her lower lip to keep from laughing. “Okay, I will admit that he’s gorgeous. And I kind of want to steal his hair tie and watch his hair flowing in the wind.”

Bree tossed her floss away, then flashed her teeth at the mirror to check her handiwork. “I want to steal his hair tie to see what’s under there. He might have a bald spot or a really big mole. Just saying. Now out. It’s my turn for a shower.”

River dressed quickly in soft yoga pants and a comfortable sweater, then padded through the unfamiliar house. She found Easton at the kitchen table, feet kicked up on a second chair as he combed through a stack of maps.

“There’s water in the fridge.” Easton indicated the counter behind him with a tilt of his head. “Glasses in the cupboard above the sink.”

Murmuring thanks, she poured herself a glass and sat in the chair next to him. Peering at his papers, she tried to understand what she was looking at.

“What is that?” River leaned closer in inspection.

“A topographic map.”