The Simple Wild (Wild, #1)

by K.A. Tucker

I peer up at his face—still masked by all the mangy hair and sunglasses and baseball cap, pulled low despite the lack of sun. How long has he been growing that bush for, anyway? Years? There are long, wiry hairs sticking out in every direction. I guarantee it’s never seen a pair of scissors or a comb. Ever. My disgusted expression stares back at me from the reflection of his lenses and my mother’s words about falling in love with a pilot suddenly hit me. I burst out laughing. Is Jonah what she would call a “sky cowboy”? As if I’d ever fall for this guy. The skin between the bottom of Jonah’s aviators and the top of his unkempt beard flushes. “What’s so funny?” he asks warily. “Nothing.” The cool wind picks up in a gust, sending strands of my long hair fluttering around my chin and threatening to lift my hat from my head. I brush away the strays and clear my throat. “Thanks for flying me here,” I say politely, keeping my expression flat. He hesitates. I can feel his heavy gaze on my face and it makes me uncomfortable. “Don’t thank me. It wasn’t my idea,” he says, then flashes a tight, insincere smile, revealing straight, beautiful white teeth. And here, I had assumed he’d written off all basic grooming and hygiene habits.