ROMANCE: Love Untamed: A Diamond Creek Alaska Novel, Contemporary Romance (Diamond Creek, Alaska Novels Book 4)

by Croix, J. H.

  “That simple, huh?” Jared finally asked in reply.

  Trey chuckled. “I didn’t say it would be easy. But, yes, that simple. It’s pretty obvious how you feel to me, so you might as well tell her.”

  “It’s obvious?” Jared asked, his heart picking up speed at the mere contemplation of how he felt about Susie.

  “You love her.”

  Jared knew without a doubt Trey was right, but hearing it said so simply terrified him. His brain scrambled at hearing the word he kept trying to avoid thrown out there with confidence, as if it were a fact. He’s right. You love her and you know it. Stop trying to pretend like it’s anything else. Jared’s heart felt like it was going to beat it way out of his chest. He wanted to be in control, he didn’t want his heart to be at the whim of love. He tried to feign ignorance. “You think so?”

  Trey turned to him. “Sure looks like it to me.”

  Jared elected not to argue the point because Luke and Nathan pulled up. He somehow gathered himself, shoving his confusion about Susie and Trey’s way-too-confident proclamation into a compartment. He couldn’t think about it now. Yeah, because it hurts too damn much to wonder if you’ve completely blown it.

  In short order, they were at the small lake where Trey kept his floatplane. The group they were guiding consisted of four men, all avid fishermen. Matt and Ben were brothers, and Craig and Reid were their good friends. The group had traveled and fished together frequently. Jared was pleased to learn they were fairly experienced with backcountry fishing. They were flying into Katmai National Park to fish along the Brooks River, famed for rainbow trout, arctic char and salmon. The area also boasted the single largest brown bear gathering in the world. It was one of the most phenomenal places in the world to fish. Yet it required skill and a clear understanding of the importance of respecting wildlife.

  Once the gear was loaded, Trey powered up the floatplane, and they were flying across the bay and Cook Inlet. The view from a floatplane was breathtaking. It was as if one could reach out and touch the glaciers and mountains as they flew over them. A cluster of sea lions rested on some rocks near the mouth of Kachemak Bay. Trey landed the plane in a wide stretch of the Brooks River.

  Several hours later, they had checked in at Brooks Camp, the official camp area for visitors to the Brooks River. They headed down to attend the required bear safety and etiquette briefing. Jared, Luke and Nathan had been here several times since they’d moved to Alaska. The experience was awe-inspiring every time.

  After a pizza dinner on the camp stove, Nathan’s specialty, Jared stretched out with a book in the tent he was sharing with Nathan and Luke. Their tent had a screened roof, so he could see the sun as it dropped lower toward the mountains. He wondered what Susie was doing and considered Trey’s blunt point. He tried to remember how he felt shortly before he planned to ask Jen to marry him back in Seattle. He thought he loved her, but now he wasn’t so sure. He certainly never felt the gut-churning sense of loss he did with Susie since she’d driven off the other day. It was worse than after the first time she stormed off. Part of what weighed on him was the sharp pain in her brown eyes, those eyes that were usually warm and held a glint of mischief.

  ***

  The following morning, Luke led the way to a fishing area upriver from the famed viewing platforms. Jared brought up the rear of their group. Once they found a quiet area to fish with enough visibility to see if any bears approached, he and his brothers got busy helping the guys with them select preferred flies and get started. The entire group planned only to catch and release for the trip. For Jared, they represented true lovers of fishing. They fished only for the love of the sport, not to keep any trophies.

  Hours later, Jared rested on a log by the river and gulped down some water. Nathan sat down beside him.

  “Can you hand me one of those snack bars?” Nathan asked, gesturing to the backpack resting on the ground beside Jared.

  Just as Jared reached for the backpack, he saw movement in the grass across the clearing where they were fishing. A large brown bear entered the clearing trailed by two cubs. Jared didn’t hesitate and stood immediately, Nathan jumping up with him.

  “Hey guys, cut your lines! They’ll go for the fish first,” Jared called.

  Luke was by the shore and moved swiftly, slicing his line with a fishing knife and turning to help Ben, Craig and Reid. Matt was furthest out in the river and didn’t appear to have heard Jared’s call. Regulations required they stay fifty yards away from bears once their presence was known, not to mention that any moment a brown bear was nearby, they were in a volatile situation. A mother with cubs raised the risk. The safety factor on their side was that the bears were focused on fish, not them.

  “Nathan, we have to get Matt’s attention,” Jared said.

  Nathan skipped a rock in the water by Matt, and Matt finally turned, his eyes widening once he saw the mother bear headed into the water downstream from him. He quickly cut his line and started wading in to shore. Several tense moments later, they were all clear with the bears occupied with their own fishing.

  “Damn, that happened fast,” Ben, the younger of the brothers, commented.

  Luke nodded. “Usually does. That’s why it’s not optional to attend the bear safety briefing. They’re everywhere around here.”

  Nathan glanced to Jared. “Looks like now might be a good time to grab our stuff and head back to camp for a bit.”

  Craig looked at them, eyes wide. “You mean to walk closer and get our packs?”

  Nathan nodded. “Mama bear and her cubs are busy right now. Our packs are far enough away.”

  Reid piped in. “I’ll help.”

  Jared shook his head. “Nope. You guys stay put. Nathan and I can carry everything.”

  Without a word, he looked to Luke who nodded. “I’ll wait here.”

  Jared and Nathan moved at a measured pace toward the cluster of backpacks on the ground. Fortunately, every one in the party only had one fishing rod and kept them in hand when they moved away. He and Nathan slung packs over their shoulders quickly and started walking back. Nathan was a few strides ahead of him. Jared looked up once to see a look of concern flash across Luke’s face. The moment he looked up, Jared tripped on a rock and fell, unable to keep his balance with the weight of the packs. As he stumbled, a sharp pain shot through his ankle, and he heard a crack.

  “Jared, you need to move it!” Luke called out. “Mama bear is headed your way.”

  Pain shooting up his leg, Jared rolled to his good side to see. Unlike with black bears, the best defense with brown bears was to play dead. As soon as he realized how close she was, he rolled onto his stomach and lay still. He prayed Nathan or Luke would move fast and get the bear spray out. He could feel her approach and sniff the packs on his back. His heart thudded as he tried desperately to keep his breathing slow and quiet. She pawed at a pack that had fallen to his side. She seemed curious, not aggressive. He felt the packs shift on his back and suddenly a flash of searing pain. Her claws had scraped his back in her curiosity. He ground his teeth together, breathing through the pain. Another few seconds passed, and he heard the distinct sound of bear spray. The bear rapidly retreated. Jared lay still as he heard the grass on the far side of the clearing rustle and the lumbering strides of the bears moving away.

  Luke’s voice broke through the haze of pain. He heard Luke barking orders at Nathan and the guys with them. He grimaced and rolled on to his side. “She wasn’t being aggressive, just curious,” he said, between gasps of pain. “Think my ankle’s broken and she got me when she was messing with the packs. She was doing what bears do.”

  Luke leaned over, his green eyes calm and steady. “Stay put, okay? Nathan and Matt headed back to the main camp to get help. Let me see where she got you.”

  Jared’s breath hissed through his teeth as he tried to breathe through the pain. The area where the bear had scratched him was burning. His ankle pain dulled to a throb. Luke carefully
moved the packs and checked on his back and ankle.

  “Your ankle is swelling fast, and those scratches are deep,” Luke said, his voice concerned.

  Luke came back to his other side. “How ya hanging in there?”

  “Hanging. Coulda been much worse. Can you radio for Trey to fly in sooner? You guys can stay and finish the trip.”

  Luke nodded. “Nathan was planning to radio Trey on his walk back to the camp.”

  Jared rested on his side and waited. He heard Luke conferring with Ben, Craig and Reid. Ben was a doctor and efficiently splinted his ankle and did a preliminary cleaning of the scratches on his back with supplies from the basic medical kit they carried. After that was done, Ben and Luke helped carefully prop him up against a log. Luke dosed him with ibuprofen. “Won’t be as good as the heavy stuff, but it’ll help with the swelling and bring the pain down some,” he said gruffly.

  Jared heard the concern in Luke’s voice and shook his head. “I’m okay. It hurts like hell, but it’s just a broken ankle and some damn deep scratches. Made me think of when you watch cats bat at things. She wasn’t even trying to hurt me, but their claws are so long, it doesn’t matter.”

  Luke nodded, but the concern didn’t fade in his eyes. He tugged a small log over and sat beside Jared on the river beach. Luke glanced skyward, the lines around his mouth tight. “I’m worried about the weather. Clouding up fast. Unless it moves through quick, no one will be flying in today.”

  Jared hadn’t been paying attention to the sky and looked up. Dark gray clouds were rolling in and blocking out the sun. It had been a mere half hour since Jared had fallen and the weather had shifted markedly. But then, that was par for the course in backcountry Alaska.

  Jared lost track of time, but was relieved when Nathan, Matt and two park rangers arrived. Hours later, he was resting inside a room at one of the lodges inside the park. He chuckled when he considered the outrageous cost of staying at the lodge, but the owners had been kind enough to offer up one of the staff rooms for him to rest in. Luke’s concern had been warranted. Rain lashed against the windows. Nathan had contacted Trey with their satellite phone. According to Trey, the weather was just as bad in Diamond Creek. He couldn’t give them an arrival time. According to one of the park rangers, it may be at least another day or two before they could fly out. Meanwhile, Jared knew he needed medical treatment beyond the basics offered here. He was more worried about his back than his ankle. With Ben’s skill, his ankle appeared properly set. Ben tried and failed to keep the concern out of his face after he got a good look at the scratches on Jared’s back.

  “Just tell me how bad it is,” Jared said bluntly.

  Ben eyed him for a moment and ran a hand through his brown hair. Ben screamed outdoorsy. He was tall, fit and lean with brown hair and blue eyes. He had a quick grin and was quiet and low key. He’d been a steady presence since he helped Luke with Jared’s ankle on the beach. He let out a breath. “I’m concerned because the scratches are so deep. They need to be cleaned thoroughly, and I don’t have the equipment for that here. Honestly, you’re going to need anesthesia to get through the cleaning these scratches require. Keep in mind, brown bear claws can be as long as three to four inches or more. Even a casual swipe can gouge you deeply, and that’s the case on your back.”

  Jared tried to make light of it. “At least it was close to my ass,” he said with a chuckle.

  Ben barely smiled. “At least.”

  Nathan poked his head around the corner of the door. “How about some food?”

  Jared’s appetite was minimal, but he knew he needed to eat. At his nod, Nathan came in with a tray. He sat on the edge of the bed and grabbed a tray stand and situated it over Jared’s legs. His eyes were worried, but he did what Nathan usually did and cracked jokes to deflect.

  Late in the night, Jared shifted uncomfortably in bed. He was propped on the pillows, mostly on his side, keeping the pressure off of his back. His brothers and the other guys had headed out to their tents for the night. Jared lay in the dark and thought about Susie. He wanted to hear her voice more than anything and could have used her wry humor and warmth right about now. In the long hours since his fall this afternoon, when he could think past his pain, she filled his mind. All his worries about where they were headed and how to handle a relationship had fallen to the wayside. He would give anything to be in Diamond Creek right now with her messing up his tidy world. Instead, he was afraid he’d waited too long to make sense of his feelings. For now, he had to get through this long, rainy night alone and wonder if it was too late to make sure she understood just how much she meant to him.

  Chapter 20

  Susie slammed the door behind her after Jasmine raced inside. Rain was falling heavily and blowing sideways with the wind. The warm summer weather had disappeared with the cold rain. She flicked on a few lamps and turned on the heat to drive the chill out of the house. After she got Jasmine dried off, she took a shower and changed. Her thoughts kept traveling to Jared, wondering how he and his brothers were faring on the fishing trip in Katmai. Stop thinking about him. He doesn’t know what he wants and you’re in too deep.

  Susie’s mental train of thought around Jared was a broken record. She was still furious at him, but more furious with herself for letting her desire get the best of her and opening the door to her heart. Her body craved his presence and her heart ached—though her head said one thing, her heart missed him like crazy. With a sharp shake of her head, she stomped back downstairs to scrounge something up for dinner. She was startled to hear a knock at her door. Before she got to it, Hannah came in, followed by Tess.

  “What’s up?” Susie asked.

  Hannah tugged her raincoat off and gave it a shake before hanging it on the small coatrack by the door. Tess did the same while both kicked muddy shoes off.

  Hannah gave her a long look. Susie was starting to get nervous. Hannah finally spoke. “Jared’s injured and they can’t fly out because of the weather. Trey says he probably can’t even get clearance to fly until tomorrow at the earliest, and that’s only if the weather lets up.”

  Susie’s heart froze, and her stomach felt hollow. Fear raced through her, the only two words she’d heard were ‘Jared’ and ‘injured’.” Her mind whirled and tears welled. “What?”

  Tess sat down on a stool beside Susie and tugged her hands into hers. “Jared fell and broke his ankle and got swiped by a bear. It wasn’t an attack, just curiosity. Nathan called Trey to ask him to fly out as soon as he could to get them, but the weather’s grounded all small planes.”

  “Why can’t they send a helicopter?” Susie demanded, an anger driven by her fear rushing inside. She tugged her hands away from Tess and started pacing.

  “Because even though he’s hurt, it’s not considered an emergency right now,” Hannah said calmly.

  “How do they know it’s not an emergency?” Susie asked, struggling to keep her composure. She pictured Jared in pain and waiting in this cold, dreary weather. Her heart clenched, and she wanted to do something. She couldn’t stand the thought of him waiting by himself in pain in this weather. Being trapped here, miles and miles across the ocean was excruciating.

  “I talked to Nathan myself. He said Jared will need to get home soon, but he’s okay right now, mostly in a lot of pain,” Tess said evenly.

  Hannah joined Tess by the counter. “Luke called me too and said that one of the guys on the trip with them is a doctor. He thinks Jared will be okay, but they need to be able to fly back soon. I’m sure if Trey can’t get clearance to fly out tomorrow or the day after, they’ll figure something out.”

  “Susie, he’ll be okay. We wanted to come over, so you didn’t hear from someone else,” Tess said quietly.

  Susie stopped pacing and leaned her elbows on the counter, face in her hands. Her throat was tight. She finally lifted her head and didn’t bother trying not to cry. Hannah came around and hugged her. “Jared’ll be okay. We just have to wait.�
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  Susie pulled away and swiped at her tears. She walked into the living room and plunked on the couch, hugging a pillow to her chest and staring out at the rain. It was driving so hard, the mountains were barely visible across the bay.

  “Are they waiting in tents?” she asked, picturing Jared trying to stay warm and dry in this weather.

  Hannah and Tess had followed her into the living room, Tess joining her on the couch and Hannah sitting in a chair to the side. Jasmine leapt up beside Susie and nuzzled against her, purring audibly. Susie stroked her thick gray fur.

  “Luke said one of the lodges in the park put Jared up in a staff room, but the rest of them are sitting tight in tents. Luke said the doctor with them has been checking on Jared regularly. He’ll be okay. We just need to wait,” Hannah said.

  Susie couldn’t seem to get her heart rate to slow down. Worry galloped through her mind. She needed to know Jared was okay. “Can we call Trey? I want to know when he thinks he can fly over.”

  “Susie, it’s almost dark. Even if the weather was better, Trey wouldn’t be able to fly over until morning,” Tess said evenly.

  Susie tossed the pillow to the side. “Well, can we call Luke or Nathan? Who has the satellite phone?” she demanded.

  Hannah handed her phone over. “It’s the last number in my recent calls.”

  Susie tried calling, but got no answer. The next few hours passed in fits and starts. Hannah left to bring pizza from Glacier Pizza, and Tess insisted they were spending the night at Susie’s. When Susie demurred, Tess pointed out that Luke and Nathan were out in the weather too, and Hannah had dropped John off with Susie’s mom so they could have a girl’s night. They tried to keep her distracted with television, cards and wine, but Susie struggled to keep her mind off of Jared. She couldn’t bring herself to talk about it, but she could hardly stand how worried she was. She kept replaying the last afternoon she saw him, the replay freezing when she turned around and saw tears in his eyes.