Page 15 of The Mechanics of Lust

Blue looked momentarily surprised, then pleased. “Sure. We appreciate Wild Run’s support and you for giving up your time. Plus, it’ll help pass the time while these bozos get lost.”

I flipped Blue off. “No one’s getting lost. Jojo’s got her mojo on,” I rhymed. “I can taste the margaritas already.”

Kelsie laughed and planted a kiss on Pedro’s head. “Good luck with that, sunshine. My boy’s been in great form lately.”

Charlie piped up, “And Hellboy says Doug smells like last month’s dags. Carmine won’t be able to get the stench out of his nose long enough to findanything.”

Doug huffed, “You can both kiss my arse. Carmine for the win, hands down. None of you lot can handle your drink anyway.”

“Says the man who tried to dance with Cooper’s Angus bull at the last Christmas Party.”

Doug’s eyes danced. “In my defence, he was wearing a very fetching collar.” He cast a wry glance at Luke. “I’m partial to a bit of leather.”

Luke flushed a bright red not often seen in the Mackenzie and I tried not to deck Doug where he stood because... reasons... most that I refused to look at too closely. Noting my silence, Doug’s curious gaze lingered on mine before his frown rapidly switched to a sly grin.

Dammit.I really needed to work on my poker face.

I got busy with my backpack and tried to ignore him. Life had been a lot simpler when everyone thought I was straight. When the word spread that I’d come out—read faster than a speeding bullet—I’d quickly found myself the centre of attention for a number of reasons, both good and bad. Those who wanted to gossip. Those who had opinions about my father’s reaction. Those who stopped talking to me—well, fuck ’em. And those members of the LGBTQ+ community who wanted to bring me into the fold. Doug had been one of those, and although I was grateful, all these people trying to set me up were becoming a pain in my arse.

Throwing me a wink, Doug shouldered his pack and wandered over to Luke like butter wouldn’t melt in his mouth. “So, how are you finding the social life in our tiny neck of the woods?” he asked, like I didn’t know exactly what he was up to. “Must be slim pickings after what you’re used to in Wellington?”

Luke blinked and glanced my way. Caught staring, I held his gaze, suddenly very interested in what the answer would be. He shrugged. “I, um, it’s fine, I guess.” His gaze bounced off mine again. “But I didn’t come here for a social life, so you won’t hear any complaints from me. To be honest, I’m enjoying the quiet. The club scene gets old pretty quickly.”

Doug looked between us, nodding thoughtfully. “Oh, what it must feel like to be getting enough tail to get bored with it, right,Zach?”

I shot Doug a glare and said waspishly, “We’d have to drag you away from Cooper’s bulls first, wouldn’t weDouggie?”

Charlie hooted with laughter and everyone joined in, including Doug.

Blue clapped Luke on the back as he passed, saying, “We’re an acquired taste, son.” Then he checked his phone and opened his hands. “Okay, is everyone ready?”

We all nodded and Luke headed back toward the chopper without a word or another glance my way.And why should he?I reprimanded myself as I watched him go, a niggle of discontent rolling in my belly. It was exactly what I wanted, right? I wanted Luke to leave me alone. I wanted Luke to stop talking to me. Stop trying to be my friend. Stop... tempting me.

A hand on my shoulder put an end to my musings and I turned to find Doug following my gaze. He chuckled softly. “You’re drooling. Then again, I don’t blame you. The man has a fine arse.”

I huffed unconvincingly and lied through my teeth. “He’s not my type.” Because he couldn’t be. Because it made no sense. Because I’d been in love with Holden, and Luke was as far from Holden as you could get. Holden was steadfast, trustworthy, reliable. You knew where you stood with Holden. He had a solid plan for his life. He would never run when the going got tough.

Whereas Luke... well, Luke was annoyingly flippant and an unknown quantity in just about all of those other things, including a particularly poor performance record in the running-away category. There was enough uncertainty in my life without adding an unreliable man to the mix. I could admit to lusting over the man’s looks and fantasising about... things, but that was as far as it went.

Doug was clearly unconvinced. “Yeah, well, I don’t think your dick got the memo. But if you’re not interested in tapping that beauty, then maybe I will.”

The river fell silent, the voices of the others faded into white noise at my back, and I wasn’t about to put a name to the surge of emotion that rolled through my gut as Doug’s words dropped with a resounding clatter in my brain. Instead, I summoned my best eye roll and replied, “You couldn’t tap a water main, arsehole, but be my guest.”

Doug roared with laughter, but his eyes called me on the lie. Thankfully Blue interrupted before he could say anything more.

“Come on, folks. We’ve got a weather system to beat. Time to get serious.”

We gathered around for our final instructions along with the scent packets, and it wasn’t long before we were heading upriver with the dogs’ noses to the ground. Somewhere behind me Luke’s chopper lifted off and he flew a low pass over the river before banking left and heading to Tekapo.

And if I happened to stand there gaping unattractively as he flew overhead, it was nobody’s business but my own... and apparently Doug’s, at least judging by the shit-eating grin on his face when he caught me staring.

CHAPTERFIVE

Luke

The first touristtransfer went without a hitch, and the subsequent scenic flight involved a delightful German couple in their sixties who chatted the entire time like we were long-lost friends. It was their third visit to New Zealand but the first to the high country, and I quickly realised I needed to do a lot more research if their probing questions were any indicator of things to come.

I’d only been in the job a few weeks and I’d learned a lot from Holden and his team over the past ten months, but I felt woefully uninformed on many of the subjects the German couple had raised—the political climate around sustainability and protecting New Zealand’s unique conservation areas like the high country being one.

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