I pulled up in front of the inn and parked, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly. I was finally there, and that meant that I could relax and ignore anything that had to do with real life. I got out of the car and looked up at the old Victorian style home in front of me. It was absolutely gorgeous, with its long wrap-around porch and rocking chairs right up by the screened front door. I could smell something delicious cooking in the kitchen. It was like coming home for the first time in a long time. It was perfect.
I looked up at the light shining through a fogged-up window at the top of the house, from what I presumed was the attic room. There was someone sitting inside but before I could see anything, she reached up and shut the curtains. It must be the woman looking for quiet, and I was more than happy to oblige. I walked around and grabbed my backpack from the trunk and slung it on my back, happy to feel the familiarity of my gear dangling around me again. When I walked through the door, there was an older lady standing at the front, smiling at me.
“Hi,” I said, smiling. “I’m Rob. I reserved the inn for the weekend.”
“Yes, yes,” she said, hurrying over and shaking my hand. “I’ll get you checked in.”
“You have an amazing place here,” I said, signing the forms and handing her my credit card. “It’s exactly what I was looking for.”
“Excellent,” she said. “You have the whole place except the attic to yourself. There are linens in every room; you can take your pick. Here are the keys, and dinner is ready, so whenever you’re hungry, you can have a seat in the dining room.”
“Would it be all right if I take dinner in my room?”
“Of course,” she said kindly. “I’ll be up shortly.”
I made my way up and picked the first room at the top of the stairs. I unpacked some of my stuff and pulled my phone from my pocket. I turned it off and tossed it in my back pack, already packed it for the next day of hiking that I was planning on doing. Before I knew it, there was a knock on the door and I opened it to find Miss Mary standing there with a tray of food. She explained what I would be eating and then brought it in and set it on the table by the window. She was a very pleasant woman, very accommodating, which was something I wasn’t used to living in the city, where everyone had some sort of attitude, including me.
When she was gone I took off my shoes and grabbed the maps out of my bag. I pulled them out in front of me on the table, eating as I searched over the maps. It had to be the best vegetable chowder that I had ever had, and I remembered sitting in the cabins on vacation with my parents, eating homecooked food that my mother had made us after a long day of climbing. It was amazing how at home I was feeling, and I couldn’t wait to get out and do some hiking and climbing the next day.
I had researched the place before I booked the inn, finding some seriously good climbing to be had. The one I was really interested in was about a half a day’s hike into the park. I was totally fine with that, since it would give me a chance to warm up my muscles before I climbed, especially since it had been a while since I had been out. The last thing I wanted was to get halfway up the cliff and get a cramp or pulled muscle. The cold air outside would invigorate me, and the warmth of the midday spring would make a really amazing atmosphere for lunch before my climb.
I loved cold weather and though spring was amazing, I couldn’t believe that I was going to have to face the heat of New York City summers. The place was like a hotbox, with its black asphalt streets and bright mirrored buildings. You could almost melt into the sidewalk just walking to work every day. I didn’t understand how people could actually function for long periods outside in it. I was acclimated to the cold weather, having climbed in it my whole life.
When I was done with dinner, I took my dishes downstairs and set them by the sink. I didn’t see Miss Mary, so I was assuming she had retired for the evening. I was fine with that; I was heading back up to bed anyway. As I climbed the stairs, I caught sight of the back of the woman climbing up to her room. She was probably heading for bed just like I was. When I climbed under the sheets, and my head hit the pillow, I was out like a light. I had finally found the peace I was looking for, and the next day was going to be an amazing adventure.
Chapter Nine
Tiffany
The sun wasn’t even up yet when I woke up, excited to get my day started. I jumped up out of bed and got dressed, making sure to wear everything I would need for cold and warm weather. The day would surely warm up a bit since the weather was calling for clear skies and I didn’t want to overdress. I pulled my pack on my back and filled my water bottle from the bottles of water Miss Mary had left in my room. She always knew exactly what I would need.
I headed downstairs into the dining area and grabbed an apple and a fresh baked blueberry muffin to eat as I drove. I never skipped a breakfast at the inn; Miss Mary was a hell of a baker. I rounded the corner and caught a glimpse of the man leaving the inn. Mary smiled up at me and I shrugged, listening to his car start up. She laughed to herself and I tossed the apple up, catching it in my hand.
“Be careful out there today,” she said.
“Always,” I replied, walking out the door as the car sped down the drive.
I wondered to myself what that guy was doing at the inn. From the looks of his expensive sports car, he didn’t seem like the kind of man that would enjoy being out in the middle of nowhere. At the same time, I knew that looks could be deceiving, especially since there were occasions where I sat in a salon chair, forced to get my hair done, and I was not that kind of girl. I shrugged it off, figuring it didn’t matter anyway; that wasn’t why I was there.
I hopped into my car and started toward the head of the trail. It was a beautiful drive and the air was cool and crisp. I loved getting there before the sun came up; it gave me a quiet and fresh hike through the woods. I never had to worry about being hurried by another hiker because most of the people that came here didn’t hike so early in the morning.
When I arrived, I pulled into the parking area and put my car in park. I wasn’t going to start until the sun started to lighten the sky, so I sat there going through my pack and making sure that I had everything that I was going to need. I didn’t want to get out there and realize I had forgotten a map or my water bottle or something. It wasn’t just a mile hike, and it would take me all day to go the length of it and back, which I was really excited for.
When the sky began to lighten at last, I got out of the car and tightened my pack on my back. Usually I looked around to get ahold of my surroundings, but since I had been there so often, and I was so excited to get started, I didn’t even look up from the ground in front of me. It was a shame that I didn’t, otherwise I would have noticed that I wasn’t there by myself. In fact, I would have immediately recognized the vintage sports car parked behind me a few spaces. Nonetheless, I started for the head of the trail, pausing as I heard a familiar voice call out my name.
I stopped in my tracks, standing there for a second and making sure that I’d heard the voice correctly. When he started to chuckle, I turned around and stared at him with surprise. It was Rob, leaning against the sports car that I had seen at the inn. He had a shit-eating grin on his face and I could tell that he was just as surprised to see me. Actually, he looked quite amused. He was dressed in hiking gear and had climbing gear tied to his pack. I walked forward and cracked a smile, shaking my head.
“I thought I was getting away from the city,” he said, laughing.
“I guess they let any kind of riff raff stay at the inn,” I tease. “What are you doing here?”
“Funny, I was just about to ask you the same thing but once I saw your backpack and hiking boots, I thought maybe I could take a good guess,” he said, chuckling.
“Funny,” I laughed. “Are you the one renting the inn?”
“Yep, though I wasn’t able to get the whole thing because some grumpy woman is on the top floor,” he teased.
“Yeah, well, I thought I would be alone, but some rich
snob rented the whole place,” I teased back.
“I just needed some—”
“Peace and quiet,” I finished his sentence.
“Yep,” he said, smiling. “I researched the climbing out here and it said it was awesome.”
“You climb? That’s great! I actually came out here for the hundredth time to do some hiking,” I said. “I love this park, and it has some of the best long trails for relaxing that I’ve ever been on.”
“And the weather is perfect for it.” He looked me in the eye and smiling big.
“Yep,” I agreed. “This trail leads right through the cliffs. Is that where you’re going to climb?”
“I am,” he said. “There’s a really good one about halfway, so I thought I’d have some lunch, do a little climbing, and come back. Why don’t we hike it together? If you want to keep going when I get to the cliffs, we can go our separate ways at that point.”
“Sounds good to me.” I turned back toward the trail.
“Perfect,” he said, walking up beside me.
I couldn’t help but notice how excited I was to see him, something that almost never happened to me when it came to men. We walked quietly through the trail, stopping from time to time to take in the view in the clearings. It was absolutely gorgeous that day, and having him with me gave me a whole new view of the trail. I pointed out different birds and plant species as we went, and he smiled and nodded, taking in everything I said, like he was actually interested in the species of ferns along the path.
“So how did you know about this place? It took me some digging online to even find that there was a park here,” he said. “It’s kind of off the map.”
“Well, I’m a severe nature lover,” I said. “I grew up only about an hour from here, and I was always out kayaking, hiking, and just being outside. I found this place one day on a drive and have been coming back here ever since. Miss Mary always has a bed for me, and I’m happy to help support her business. How about you? How did you end up here?”
“Well, I grew up in Vermont,” he said. “I’ve been climbing since I was a little kid. When I moved to New York I needed a place that I could go to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city. It gets kind of overwhelming at times.”
“Tell me about it,” I scoffed.
“I’ve been coming upstate for a while but wanted somewhere new, and I found it after a bit of digging online.”
“I’m glad you found it here then,” I said. “If you’re a nature lover, then you’ve earned the right to see this beautiful place. Growing up, my parents pushed me outside before I was old enough to even crawl. I just love everything about it. The city, it’s really not for me.”
“I totally understand,” he said. “My parents were climbers, so I grew up outdoors. I loved it, and the city just takes a lot out of me. It’s hard to feel comfortable there, and there isn’t really anywhere you can go to get a break from it.”
I nodded as we walked, listening to him talk about how beautiful Vermont was growing up. I was completely shocked by the fact that this man was so grounded. I mean, he was a billionaire with one of the largest marketing firms in the country, and he just wanted to get away from the people and the noise. For a moment, it felt like we had a lot more in common than I originally had thought, and his beard and hiking boots made a hell of a lot more sense now that I knew about his love for the outdoors.
When we reached the cliffs that Rob wanted to climb, we stopped and had our lunch. We talked about climbing, about how I wanted to learn better, since I had only done minor climbs on trails, and about all the things to do in the park. It was a really nice lunch. When we were done, I decided to stay and watch him climb, not ready to leave his side yet. He seemed pretty happy to have me there, and I wasn’t at all disappointed to not make the rest of the hike.
I put my pack down on the ground and perched on one of the boulders, looking up and watching as he climbed higher and higher. His body was so athletic, and I could see his arms rippling as he pulled his body up the side of the cliff. He was definitely way sexier in shorts and a T-shirt than in some silly expensive suit, smoking a cigar. His ass was solid as a rock and his muscled thighs flexed as he got his footing. Maybe I was wrong about this guy after all. He had definitely been hiding this whole thing from me for the last five years, and I could tell that he needed to be out there as much as I did.
I started to wonder if he was someone that I could actually spend time with, even back home in the city. He was a business guy, that was a fact, but he was one in the shadows, and I was starting to understand that. He had a curious sense of humor and now that I thought back to his awkward stance outside the restaurant and the fact that he never talked to anyone in the bar, I started to think that he was more like me than I could have imagined.
When he was done climbing, he came down and packed up his things. We immediately headed back down the trail, trying to reach the end before the sun went down. I hadn’t realized how long we had taken for lunch or how long I sat there admiring his sexy body as he climbed that cliff and then rappelled back down. I could have walked the whole trail and been almost back by the time we started down toward the end.
“That was a lot of fun,” I said, walking over to my car. “It was a nice surprise, having you stalk me from the city.”
“You mean you stalking me from the city,” he said, laughing.
“Okay, you got me,” I chuckled.
“Hey, uh, do you want to have dinner with me? I saw this restaurant in town,” he said.
“Yes,” I replied, shocked at how fast I agreed.
“All right,” he smiled. “I’ll meet you at the inn.”
I nodded and climbed into my car, feeling the heat rushing to my cheeks. This was completely unexpected, but I couldn’t tear myself away. Maybe this was part of what I needed, to meet someone that could remind me, even in the concrete jungle of New York, of exactly what I wanted in life.
Chapter Ten
Rob
“Miss Mary,” I said, walking in the door. “I’m glad I caught you.”
“Is everything okay with your accommodations?” she asked anxiously.
“Oh, yes,” I reassured her. “It’s fantastic. I just wanted to let you know that you don’t have to cook tonight. Tiffany and I will be going out to dinner.”
“Oh,” she said with a giggle. “I just love Tiffany. She’s such a lovely girl.”
“She definitely seems that way,” I said, smiling and heading for the stairs.
I was really surprised by how good of a time I had spending the day with Tiffany. Looking at her, I would have never thought that she was a nature lover like me. Sure, she always seemed different then the rest of the crowd in New York, but she was my bartender; she was supposed to act how she thought I wanted. Turned out that she wasn’t any different in real life than behind the bar, only she had a hell of an eye for hiking.
When I got inside the room, I could see Tiffany pull up out front and hop out of her car. I sat down and thought about the conversation we had as we walked. She’d been so knowledgeable, pointing out all the different kinds of birds and plants that were native to the area. It all went over my head, but I was more than happy to listen to her talk and her laugh just lit up the whole forest around us. Every time she giggled, I could feel butterflies in my chest.
I hadn’t been around a woman that I could hold a conversation with in a really long time. It felt really good to be around her, but I was definitely still a little guarded. I wasn’t fully convinced that she wasn’t like the other women in New York, and though she had done more than just prove she wasn’t, I was slightly jaded from my experiences in the past. It wasn’t like me to like a woman that fast, and I think that was part of the reason I hadn’t let my guard fully down yet.
I opened my suitcase and pulled out my khakis, a button-up, a sweater, and got dressed for dinner. I looked in the mirror, sticking my hands in my pockets and figuring it was the best I could do on short notice. For s
ome reason, though, I really didn’t think that she was going to judge me on my dinner outfit. I grabbed my wallet and pea coat and headed downstairs to the lobby to wait for her. I wasn’t sure how long it would take, so I wandered around downstairs, looking at all the books and pictures.
I was standing at the large picture window in the living room adjacent to the staircase when I heard the sound of footsteps on the old wooden floors. I turned around and smiled, the air completely leaving my lungs. She looked absolutely stunning, and I wasn’t expecting it at all. I mean, I already thought she was gorgeous in both a black button-up bartender garb and in hiking attire, but this was more than I was expecting to see in the lobby of the inn. I stood there for a second and crossed my arms over my chest, shaking my head.
She blushed and bit her bottom lip, sending heat into my stomach. Her hair was down, flowing over her shoulders, large loose curls billowing down. She was wearing a short black dress that hugged every curve. Her long legs were covered in sheer black stockings and she stood in tall black heels. Her lips were painted a medium shade of pink and she had put on a little bit of makeup. She batted her long eyelashes at me and I almost lost it right there. She looked absolutely stunning, and immediately I felt self-conscious about my outfit.
“You look absolutely gorgeous,” I said, walking forward.
“Thank you,” she giggled.
“Do you normally bring a knock-out dress on a hiking trip?”
“No,” she laughed. “Actually, all I had was a pair of ripped jeans and a sweatshirt, but I grabbed Miss Mary and she took me to the room her granddaughter stays when she comes to visit. She had some of her clothes stored there and it looks like we’re the same size.”
The Art of Seduction Page 5
