by Kate Tilney
Grabbing her travel mug, Hannah saunters back across the cabin to slide her hand behind my neck.
“What was that toll again?” she asks.
Swallowing, I tap my cheek. With a nod, she slowly lowers her lips to brush across the skin. My eyes flutter shut and I breathe in deep, her fragrant scent of lavender flooding my senses. My cock twitches in appreciation. A kiss on the cheek shouldn’t be so damned enticing, but it is.
As she starts to pull back, I wrap an arm around her waist and bring her into my lap. My free hand slides back into her hair, bringing her mouth to mine. Capturing her in a hard, deep kiss. My heart pours out of me. ‘I love you,’ it beats. ‘You’re mine,’ it echoes. And as I feel her pulse spike, it’s as if her own heart is answering mine.
Gentling the kiss, I give her one more little nip on the lip before breaking it off. Our chests rising up and down, our foreheads rest against each other.
“You’ll stick to the path?” I ask.
“We’ll stay on the path,” she replies, her voice so husky, I can’t resist giving her one more kiss. “Want to have dinner together?”
I nod, briefly annoyed that I didn’t ask her first. I suppose it doesn’t matter who asks who. Just so long as we’re spending the evening together.
Sliding out of my lap, she takes her coffee and snaps the leash on Peg. They’re both out the door, leaving me with my thoughts. We shouldn’t fit together. She’s a Hollywood showrunner. I’m an ex-soldier who works in the wilderness. We’re from two different worlds. But not anymore. Now we’re from one world. Our world.
And if any of the guys back at Jade Mountain Search & Rescue heard me saying something like that, they’d kick my ass from here to Australia.
Shoving up, I grab my fishing gear and make my way toward the lake. Ezra and a couple of the other guests are already on the dock by the boats. Ezra sees me and smirks.
“What are you grinning about?”
“Oh, nothing. I just heard from a little bird that it would seem you and your bunkmate slept well last night.”
I start to ask how he heard. Then I remembered he’s married to one of Hannah’s good friends and I shake my head. I don’t know how she had time for a gossip session in the fifteen minutes we’ve been apart. But Hannah can usually manage anything she wants if she puts her mind to it.
“I guess a lady does kiss and tell,” I mutter to myself.
Before I can elaborate—or Ezra can give me any more shit—a familiar bark grabs my attention. Turning on my heel, I watch as Peg breaks through the clearing and sprints toward me. Without Hannah. Panic grips my heart as he reaches my side. Dropping to my knees, I’m momentarily relieved to see he isn’t hurt. But the fear is back when I see what he’s wearing around his neck. It’s the scarf Hannah was wearing when she left this morning.
She must be hurt. But she was also thinking well enough to send me this message. That’s something.
“What is it?” Ezra asks.
“Hannah is in trouble.” And I pray Peg has it in him to show me where to find her.
7
HANNAH
Pushing with all my might, my arms burn but the tree limb barely moves.
“Tree limb my ass,” I grumble to myself after another failed attempt at rescuing myself from this situation. The branch may have fallen from a tree, but it’s more like one of those giant cabers Scotsmen throw around to show off in the highlands than any tree limb I’ve ever seen before.
And, just my luck, said caber fell right as Peg and I were walking under it. While Peg was able to get out of the way, I wasn’t so lucky. I’m pretty sure I blacked out for a couple of minutes. When I came to, my hips were pinned under the branch and Peg was licking me.
I was so relieved we were both alive to think about the fact that I’d just seen Peg lick his own butt with that very same tongue just moments before. When I wasn’t able to slide out from under the massive branch or push it aside, I’d wrapped my scarf around Peg’s neck and begged him to “Go find your Dad.”
It’s been ten minutes or an hour since he left. Honestly, who can tell? My phone is in my back pocket, and no amount of wiggling and shimmying has helped me reach it yet. If I could, I'd know how much time has passed. I’d also be able to call back to the lodge.
“Instead, I’m starring in my very own episode of Lassie. I hope Peg made it back to camp,” I say to myself and the squirrel that scurried past me a moment before.
Fortunately, birds and squirrels are the only creatures I’ve seen so far. If a moose or a bear comes by, I don’t know what I’d do. I guess I’d play dead and hope that did the trick.
A whimper escapes my lips, and I clench my eyes shut. Oh, God. What if I die here? No. I take a deep breath through my nose, even as a few hot tears burn down my cheeks. No, I’ll be okay. Someone will come and find me. Even if that sweet search and rescue school drop-out doesn’t make it back to the lodge right away, Elijah—or someone—will notice I’m missing. He knows which path I was taking. We hadn’t gone far. Someone will find me.
It might just be a while.
Sniffling, I wiggle my toes, relieved that they’ll still move and with only a little pain. I hope that’s a good sign. That has to be a good sign.
To distract myself, I run through ideas for how I’ll pitch this TV show to the network. The name is Camp Mountain Man: Inn Love. We’ll have an equal number of men and women sharing a cabin—two rooms filled to the brim with bunk beds. Campers will go up against each other in challenges and earn perks on dates. It’ll be The Bachelor meets Survivor. Will these men and women find love? Or will they be sent packing?
A fresh tear slips down my cheek. I’m pretty sure I found love. And if I ever get out from under this damn tree, I’m not going to waste a second telling him how I feel. I’d rather risk it all for a chance at my own happily ever after than spend another minute without Elijah.
“Hannah!”
My eyes pop open. Did someone yell my name?
“Hannah! Hannah! Where are you, honey?”
A lump lodges in my throat, and I swallow past it to call back. A moment later, Peg is in my face, lapping it with his tongue.
I giggle through fresh tears as Elijah pushes him aside and comes into view. His hand shakes as he cups my cheek.
“Are you okay?”
“I will be now that you’re here.” I flash him a bright smile. “You’ll have to tell those guys back in Seattle to give Peg another shot at being a search and rescue dog.”
“I’ll call them as soon as we get you out.”
Ezra appears over his shoulder. “I’d guess the storm last night weakened the tree. I’m sorry this happened to you.”
“It’s really okay,” I insist, fighting back another grin as these two big bear-sized men fuss over me. These guys up here are really big old teddy bears. We’ll have to make sure to cast the same sort of men for the TV show. “But if you don’t mind, I’d like to get out from under this.”
They scurry to do as requested. And, with surprisingly little effort, they move the downed tree limb off of me. Elijah scoops me into his arms, his hands moving over my body. He’s probably searching for bumps and bruises, but I still delight at how good his hands feel on me.
“You don’t seem to be seriously injured.” He sighs in relief and rests his forehead against mine. “Thank God. If anything had happened to you . . .”
“But it didn’t. Not really. And you were here to save me.” I pull back to hold his face between my hands. “I know you’ll always be here for me.”
“You’re damn right I will.”
“That’s why I love you.”
Joy lights his bright green eyes. “What a coincidence. I’m head over heels in love with you, too.”
“I had a feeling you and that pooch of yours might be.”
“You’re always so damn sure of yourself.” He chuckles, warming my heart. “That’s just one of a million reasons I love you.”
“You’ll have to lis
t them all off to me sometime. But first, I think you’d better kiss the girl.
He arches an eyebrow. “Is that in the script or something?”
“You know I don’t work in scripted TV,” I remind him, even as he wraps his arms around my waist. And then his lips are on mine and the world around us disappears.
Even if I did work in scripted TV, I don’t think I could pen a better ending than this.
Epilogue
ELIJAH
one year later
The alarm on my phone rings and I wipe my hands on the towel slung over my shoulder. That’s a little trick I learned from a chef on one of Hannah’s shows. It’s actually a pretty good program. While I still think a lot of reality TV is garbage, I’m man enough to admit I was wrong to say it all sucked.
Besides, after having a front-row seat to all of her work in the past year, I can promise no one works harder than my wife.
Pulling the bacon-wrapped scallops out of the oven, I nod in approval. My cooking skills have definitely improved over the course of the past year. With Hannah and I splitting our time between filming her show here in Alaska, a few appearances in L.A., and our home in Seattle, I’ve made it my life’s mission to be a four-star chef. Or at least one that doesn’t suck.
“Not bad at all,” I mutter to myself, flicking a stray piece of bacon to Peg, who has been watching my every move for the past half hour.
Peg and I finished his training earlier this year. Ever since he brought me to Hannah, he’s been a model search and rescue dog.
“My favorite shoes!”
I whip around to find Hannah standing at the door to our bedroom. She’s holding up what used to be a pair of red heels. Okay, so he’s been mostly a model dog. There’s still the occasional shoe or panty casualty.
I’m about to ask why she brought along a pair of heels for two weeks in the Alaskan wilderness, but I keep my mouth shut. If I’ve learned anything in six months of marriage, it’s that a man shouldn’t ask stupid questions. Especially if he doesn’t want to spend the night on the couch or have to buy out a flower shop.
Instead, I toss the towel aside and pull Hannah into my arms. “I’m sorry, baby. There’s still too much puppy in him sometimes.”
I glare at Peg, who is still licking his lips from the taste of bacon.
Hannah’s shoulders droop. “It’s my own fault. I know better than to leave a pair of leather shoes sitting on the floor.”
Pressing my lips to her crown, I give her a squeeze before releasing her.
“Your show starts in half an hour. I expect our guests will be here shortly.”
Taking a seat on a stool at the counter, she shakes her head. “I still don’t know why we’re throwing a party.”
“Because your brand new show is premiering.”
“I have a lot of shows that premiere.”
I grin at that. My wife isn’t one for humility. But she’s earned the right to brag. Even her fancy director dad had been impressed by the deal she inked with a major network. Yeah, I know phrases like “deal she inked” these days. I’m really growing as a person.
“But this show is different.”
She purses her lips. “How so?”
“For one, Camp Mountain Man: Inn Love is set right here at this very lodge. And a few of our friends in residence make appearances.”
“True.”
“It’s appeared on several ‘must watch’ lists.”
She lifts a shoulder. I guess it’s time to pull out the big gun.
“And it’s the show that brought us together.”
“Also true.” Her lips curve up. “I’m all for celebrating everything that brought us together.”
Then she gives me a look that has me wishing we didn't have a bunch of guests about to show up at our cabin. Ignoring the ache in my jeans, I reach for a bottle of champagne.
“Let’s do a toast.”
“Just water for me, please.”
I arch an eyebrow. “Since when have you ever turned down a glass of champagne.”
“Since I found out you were going to be a daddy and Peg was going to be a big brother.”
I freeze and slowly raise my eyes to her. “Seriously?”
A smile bursts across her face. She reaches into the back pocket of her jeans and pulls out a stick with a plus sign on it. “It looks like we have another production in progress.”
I don’t have any words as joy explodes through my body. But as I step around the counter to pull Hannah into my arms with Peg jumping at us in excitement, I let my kiss do the talking. We’re having a baby. Our baby. From where I’m standing, that’s the best production ever.
Thank you for reading ELIJAH. Be on the look-out for Camp Mountain Man: Inn Love in Fall 2020. In the meantime, you can spend time with Elijah’s heroic friends in the Jade Mountain Search & Rescue series.
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