Foreign Affair by Shelli Stevens

feet up on his side and glanced out the windows.
    The lush, green land sprawled out for miles, and she stared out, one hundred percent enchanted. Everything was so foreign.
    At home there were large evergreen trees for miles around, and mountains. Both of which were extremely beautiful, but there was something charming about the simplicity of the countryside she looked at now.
    Her thoughts strayed toward Keith again, and guilt stabbed at her.
    Hey, he’s still banging some chick in Maui. Have your own fun and worry about tomorrow when it comes.
    Lena nodded, more inclined to listen to the little devil on her shoulder.
    She sighed and squeezed her eyes closed, resting her head against the cool glass of the window.
    One thing had become all too clear, though. There would be no going back. No matter how much she tried to convince herself she could go home to Oregon and try and work things out, nothing would ever be the same. Not after Tyler.

Chapter Eight
    When Tyler returned to their car, Lena’s attention was too focused on the view outside the window to notice him.
    She was so passionate in everything she believed in. That aspect of her personality drew him to her almost more than the physical attraction. Things were so comfortable with her he had no problem just being himself. And neither did she, apparently.
    He winced, remembering their mini talk on females. Then again, he couldn’t remember the last time a woman had amused him so much.
    Lena must have seen his reflection in the window because she turned to him with a sheepish grin. “I hope I didn’t really make you sick.” The apology came in her tone rather than in words.
    “Nah, you’re okay. I lost my appetite a bit.” He rubbed a hand across his stomach. “Your shock factor test made a little dent, but my appetite will return full throttle in a bit.”
    “Just a little dent?” She shook her head and grinned. “I’ll have to do better next time.”
    “Please don’t.” He came and settled next to her, laying his head in her lap and stretching his legs out across the other seat.
    She reached out to play with his hair. “You have two sisters, hmm?”
    Tyler’s lips twitched. He wouldn’t call her on the “no information” rule. This time. “I have two sisters. One younger, she’s twenty - five, and one older, she’s thirty - six.”
    “Ah, you had those kind of parents.” Lena gave him a knowing nod. “The ones that just kept going like the Energizer bunny and have kids that are ten years apart.”
    “Yeah, well, those days are over.” Tyler grimaced. “Fortunately they’re a bit too old to be getting it on.”
    “Oh, you are so wrong. It’s not like you hit fifty and give up having sex. I mean, come on. It’s sex .”
    “Okay, even if you’re right, I’d rather not sit around and discuss my parents’ sex life,” he drawled. “How about you? Do you have a parade of brothers at home ready to kick the ass of any guy who touches you?”
    “Absolutely not.” Lena let out a loud laugh. “I am an only child. I always beg my parents to tell me if I was an accident, and they insist I wasn’t. But I’m pretty sure Mom got knocked up and they lived together for a few years before actually getting married.”
    “You really believe that?”
    “I don’t know. My parents both went through the hippie phase after the hippie phase had already ended. My mom was only seventeen when she had me.”
    “That’s pretty young. Hippies, huh? So, you were raised in a relatively modern, relaxed environment then?”
    “Oh, just a bit.” She rolled her eyes. “I remember one time I came home from a school dance and found my parents smoking pot. It was a total role reversal. I swear, I must have lectured them for at least a half hour.”
    Tyler laughed and shook his head. “I can’t even imagine. My family is your classic, cookie-cutter, sitcom family. I have two sisters, and they both were homecoming queen. My mom is a motivational speaker, and