When he took her fingers, entwining them before resting them on his chest, River was pretty sure her ovaries flinched in warning.

“We’re not having Alaskan mountain babies,” she warned him, breathless. Seriously, how hot had it gotten? Menopause hit in late twenties sometimes. This was definitely not because of him.

A warm laugh filled the air between them. “I’m just trying to keep up.”

Too many abdominal muscles beneath her fingertip, each one flexing in response to her fingernails lightly scratching down them.

“Do you want to do this?” he asked her, the softest of pressure of his hands wrapping around her waist.

“I think I’m going to be really, really disappointed if we don’t,” she breathed.

“Then, River, you are about to be really, really disappointed.” Easton winked at her. “Try not to go full unibrow.”

He left her standing there, her nonmenopausal parts wailing in protest.

“That was so mean, Easton,” River called after him.

“Yep.”

“And I’m really not liking you right now!”

“Ten four.”

Leaning back against nothing, River stayed at an uncomfortable angle, trying not to fall flat on her back or face or any important parts in between. Only when her team came over did River sigh lustily.

“Bree? I might like him.”

She nudged River upright. “You think?”

• • •

It didn’t take long before Ash’s badass dragon of the sky came thumping into view. After his attempt at teaching his clients the proper safety protocol, Easton was ready for some backup, even in the form of his twin.

From their place on the tarmac, the crew had a view of the talons painted on the underside of Ash’s Robinson helicopter.

“I think I want to be your sister when I grow up.” River sighed. “And now I totally understand your respect for powerful women.”

“Scary women.”

“Strong, smart, powerful women.”

Easton tilted his head in acknowledgment. “All that too. But scary is on the list.”

The film crew greeted her and promptly asked Ash to sign a waiver and let them film her. Ash never let anyone run roughshod over her, but Easton had gained an increasing respect for River. It was possible the two were evenly matched.

“No filming,” Ash declared, as if that would be the end of it.

“We won’t film you,” River promised. “Only the helicopter.”

“I said no filming.”

Bree piped up. “It’s an awesome helicopter.”

“Yes, but you’re not filming it.”

“How about out the windows while we’re flying?” Jessie countered, making the request sound entirely reasonable.

“You sure about this?” Ash asked Easton. “I’m exhausted, and I’ve been around them for less than fifteen seconds.”

“I don’t know. They’re growing on me.”

“Fine, they can film out the window. And that’s it.” Ash frowned at him. “I’m not a human scale, but that doesn’t look like the agreed upon gear weight.”