by Norah Wilson
“Well, if it’s no trouble…”
“No trouble at all. Good night, young Mr. Standish.”
“Good night, Mrs. Siliker.”
Pocketing his phone, Scott pushed open the truck’s door and stepped out into the fall evening air. He looked once more at dark Harkness Mountain. The density of pines and the sun going down made it look not just cold and dark, but ominous.
Lacey Douglas. The first to die of the graduating class. His and Ember’s friend; Ocean’s best friend. Was there anyone from Harkness who could look up at that mountain and not think of her? He knew Titus surely couldn’t.
He hadn’t needed Mrs. Siliker to spill the beans about Ocean’s crush on his cousin. She’d been so much younger than Titus, it was possible that his cousin hadn’t noticed. The guy could be so freakin’ blind. Or maybe he had noticed, but had been sensitive enough to ignore it.
Either way, Scott would keep his old teacher’s confidence. If his thick-skulled brother didn’t know about Ocean’s feelings, he’d have to figure it out for himself. Presuming she still harbored any such emotion for him. That was a pretty big if. She wasn’t a kid anymore. A grown, beautiful woman, she’d no doubt been around the block a time or two. A New York block.
He sighed. His first night back in Harkness. It was supposed to be an easy evening, home with his cousins and Uncle Arden. A nice supper, then matching wits over Jeopardy. Afterward, they’d probably have cracked open a few beers, shared some laughs.
But why had Titus invited—no insisted—that he and Ember come? He still didn’t know. Was Arden sick? Was that it? Or—oh shit—was Titus sick?
Jesus, what a weekend this was turning out to be.
He looked up into the twilight.
A few stars pinpricked their brightness into the sky. Those stars felt a million miles away from it all.
No, that wasn’t right. It wasn’t the stars that felt so far away from it all. Scott did. He ached with it.
How do you know the stars will come back? I see them at night, but they’re gone in the morning. What if…what if sometime they just go away forever?
But they don’t go away at all. Not really. You just can’t see them during the day.
What if you’re wrong, Scott?
The phone buzzed in his hand. A text from Ember. He’d called her a couple times since her last text, but she’d let his calls go to voice mail. At least she had been checking in regularly. Sort of. As much as he’d expected her to comply.
He read the newest message: Staying nite w/ patient.
Scott’s jaw tightened. She was alone up there with this guy. What if he was a creep? What if he had…an axe or something? Or hell, just red-blooded male hormones?
Sure that’s a good idea? he texted back, then waited for her reply.
The cell buzzed again.
Nite, Scott. Signing off.
“Dammit, Ember.”
Apparently, the debate was over. He pocketed the phone.
Pulling out the pack of cigarettes, he lit one, then walked a circuit around the parking lot. He looked to the river, the way Ember had headed, then up at the mountain.
Fifteen minutes later he was back in the pickup. He turned on the ignition, reclined the seat, opened the roof, then turned the truck off.
In just that short amount of time, it had gotten so much darker. More stars poked through the velvety sky.
And as Scott stared up into them, he couldn’t help but look for a sign.
Chapter 11
OCEAN’S TIRED muscles trembled. How long had they been climbing? He’d said it would be something like forty minutes, hadn’t he? Of course, he might not have factored her slow pace into his estimate. Maybe it was forty minutes for Titus with his strong gait. She had to give it to him, he was well muscled. Her own thighs were practically quivering with exhaustion, but his powerful legs looked like they could keep on going forever. Much as she enjoyed the view of his form from behind, she needed this to be over.
Ten minutes ago, the climb up the ridge had become impossibly hard. Then it got harder. But Titus pushed her to keep going. They couldn’t stop now. The light was fading.
She glanced at him, but his face gave away nothing, and she’d be damned if she’d ask, Are we there yet? Gritting her teeth, she pressed on.
Fortunately, he did ease his pace somewhat as the terrain got steeper, and he looked back frequently to make sure she was keeping up. Occasionally he reached back to clasp her hand and help her scrabble over some of the more challenging obstacles. And all the while, the visibility decreased.
To her relief, the incline leveled off in a plateau of sorts. Suddenly he stopped. She almost collided with him before she realized he was no longer moving.
“We’re here.”
She pivoted, doing a closer, three-sixty visual inspection. There was no cabin here. A bit of a clearing. Trees. More trees. A bit of rock face showing from the cliff on the up side. “Titus Standish, if you were bullshitting me about this cabin—”
“Look at that rock face a little harder. Other side of that beech.”
She sucked in a breath of surprise and delight. There it was! The small patch of a building looked as though it was tucked right into the rock, embedded in the very mountain itself. The trees had grown tall around it. Strategically planted trees, she’d be willing to bet. It was so well and so naturally camouflaged, she probably would have walked right past it in full daylight, let alone at dusk.
“Give me a few minutes and we’ll be in.”
With that, Titus approached the structure and started clearing the bramble away from the door. None of it rooted, she noticed. So maybe the camouflage wasn’t all nature-made. She should offer to help, but frankly, she was still catching her breath.
A moment later, he removed the padlock from the door, shouldered it open and invited Ocean to proceed inside. “Welcome to moonshine central.”
She stepped inside the gloom, but not very far. “It’s kind of dark.”
“I’ll fix that.” A moment later, she heard the strike of a match and watched as he lit a lantern. He reached up and hung it on a peg over his head, the light bouncing around into corners until the lantern stopped its gentle swinging.
One room, one double cot. A row of cupboards with no knobs on the doors. Two dented canning pots and a ginormous cast-iron pan hung from the rafter over the stove. Someone had been adding touches to the place over the years, clearly, although she suspected that braided rug was an original from days gone by. In the corner, firewood, yellowed newspapers, and cedar kindling were neatly stacked in a wood box by an ancient cook stove.
Titus took a small LED lantern from a shelf, turned it on to test the batteries. “I’m going to check the outhouse. I imagine you’ll be needing it, and I should make sure there are no skunks around.”
Skunks? Yikes. But at least there was an outhouse. “Thank you. That’d be great.”
“No problem.” He took the lantern and left.
No sooner did the door close behind him, and the voice started: Omigod! I’ve been freaking out. Did you really do that? Kiss Titus?
She might have known Lacey couldn’t let that event pass without making herself heard. She should thank her lucky stars her friend had held off until Ocean was alone.
You totally laid a lip lock on Titus the Titan!
“Yes, I did,” she whispered, a little proud and a whole bunch confused. She chewed her lower lip. “What was I thinking?”
You were thinking it was about time. Osch, you’ve been stuck on that dude since fifth grade, and you’ve been dying for that kiss for freakin’ ever.
“Forever? C’mon, Lace!”
C’mon yourself, girl. You still think he’s—
“Gorgeous? Smoking hot? Bordering on edible? Yes, I do. And now that I’ve kissed him…multiply that by ten.”
At least.
So now what?
She answered herself in her mind: So now nothing. Just that damned lingering memory.
And linger it did. She lifted a hand to her lips, which still tingled even after their hard slog up the ridge. Lord, her whole body tingled to think of it. She’d had to go up on tiptoe and pull his head down just to reach his mouth, which meant she’d basically plastered herself against all that thrilling hardness.
He’d been surprised, which was what she’d been going for. He’d thought he could unnerve her, and she’d had to prove that he couldn’t. Well, mission accomplished. She’d all but tasted his astonishment.
She had tasted his sun block lip balm. Smelled his sunscreen, and beneath that, some masculine soap. She could have stopped there, could have made her point with a mere gliding caress of her lips over his. But she’d had to know what he tasted like, so she’d forged on, taking advantage of his surprise to delve her tongue between those cool, chiseled lips. And oh, God, he’d tasted better than her wildest imagination. He hadn’t exactly responded—hopefully because of the surprise factor—but he hadn’t resisted either. Even without his active participation, the kiss had made her insides quiver and ache.
I’m proud of you. That was totally fearless. Now if you could just do it again. Make it last a little longer next time. Try counting…one one hundred, two one hundred—
“Stop it.”
Well, not out loud, obviously. That would just be awkward.
“Lacey—”
Ocean and Titus up a tree…K-I-S-S-I-N-G.
“Make that off a cliff.”
Lacey’s giggling faded away into the background as the door opened and Titus strode in.
She frowned. “Where’s the lantern? Did it die already?”
“No, I left it outside the outhouse so you could find it. Hang a left when you go out the door, and you’ll see the light. It’s about thirty yards away. And bring the lantern back with you.”
She didn’t waste any time.
The outhouse had obviously been modernized, if you could call it that, but it was still not a place anyone would want to linger. Titus had left a packet of tissues and a bottle of hand sanitizer, both of which she made use of. She picked up the lantern and made her way back to the cabin. Her legs felt leaden with tiredness and her ribs hurt. She had some regular strength ibuprofen in her pack. She’d have to dig that out and wash it down with the bit of water she had left.
She let herself back into the cabin only to find that Titus had gone outside. She rummaged for the ibuprofen, tossed a couple back, then sat down on the double-wide cot. Lord, it felt good to sit. She was tired to her very soul. Sore. Finding aches in muscles she hadn’t even known she had. And wondering if she was being fearless or foolish.
Both, probably.
She pulled her attention away from herself and went back to taking in her surroundings. Titus’s notorious moonshine-making aunts might have built the tiny place, but someone had definitely been taking care of it over the years.
Or somebodies, considering the generational gap. Harkness Mountain itself was mostly crown land. Protected crown land. There was a maintained trail system, but other than that, no development was permitted.
She had no trouble believing Titus’s assertion that few people knew about this cabin. She’d lived in Harkness from birth to high school graduation, and she’d never heard of it. But even if someone did know about the place and came searching, they’d have a hard time finding it. The structure was so well concealed in its shroud of trees and brambles, they were likely to pass right by it. Then there was the whole business of how hard the climb was. That would certainly cut down on the foot traffic that went past.
She went to the window and searched the gloom for Titus. There he was, exiting a tiny shed. Yet another structure she hadn’t seen when they’d arrived. Maybe it had been camouflaged with brush too. She watched him close the door behind him and swing the cross bar down. Though Ocean had brought her backpack inside, Titus had his with him. With his back to her, he knelt down in front of that pack.
What was he doing?
At this point, knowing the guy’s level of competency, she doubted anything he did would surprise her.
But he certainly had surprised her back on the trail when he’d offered her this option. She’d been so sure he was going to insist she go down the mountain. And truthfully, she’d been briefly tempted. As she’d looked up at the intimidating climb to White Crow, he must have sensed the struggle going on inside her.
It scared her how close she’d come to turning back, throwing in the towel.
But she was here. Still on track. And more determined than ever to beat this freaking mountain.
She watched the shift in Titus’s shoulders as he opened his backpack. What was he doing? Maybe he would pull out a portable barbecue and a couple nice, thick T-bones to throw on the grill. Probably not, though.
Oh God, she’d love a shower. What were the chances he was packing a portable shower and some nice, soothing shower gel? Something pretty…lilac scented. What she wouldn’t give for a gentle pulse of warm water on her sore body. Her loofa. Her iPod shuffling its way through her playlist as she soothed her aching muscles...
A thudding noise dragged her out of her reverie. Holy crap, Titus was erecting a tent out there. The thumping was him driving metal pegs into the ground with a mallet. Within short order, he had the tent up, corners staked, ropes taut and straight as Titus himself. She glanced over at the small bed in the corner.
Well, what had she been thinking? That they’d bunk down together for the night? Snuggle close in that bed? His powerful arms around her, her body tucked into broad, muscled chest? She hardly knew him.
Okay, that wasn’t quite true. She’d known him all her life. Except she hadn’t. Not the way she’d wanted to. And that bothered her more than it should. While her life in New York hadn’t exactly been Sex in the City all over again, she’d met so many people, seen so much more than she’d ever dreamed of in her Harkness youth. Yet, she had to admit, she’d come home every Christmas, looking forward to the community party out at the Standish homestead so she could catch a glimpse of Titus. Why was it…how was it…that Titus Standish was the one man she just could not shake? The one who still made her stop and stare. And now…kiss.
Well, he’d started it! She’d seen it in his eyes. Trying to unnerve her with his physicality, his looming closeness. He’d thought he could send her scurrying back home to safety. But she’d turned the tables on him.
That kiss. That one daring kiss…
She’d imagined it so many times over the years, so many ways, but not like that. Not with her taking control, tasting him...
A movement outside drew her attention. Titus was zippering the tent flap shut, no doubt to keep out creepy-crawlies.
She expected him to come in but he didn’t. Instead, he reached for his pack and pulled out another object. She squinted to get a better look at what was in his hand, but really couldn’t tell what it was. Not until he aimed it at the sky and shot off a white flare.
She sat there, flabbergasted, mouth gaping as she watched that signal stretch into the sky. Why the flare? He’d already spoken to Scott, so who the hell could he possibly be signaling? And exactly what was he communicating?
A moment later, the door opened and Titus walked in. Calmly, he closed the door and set his pack down on the floor. The light from the lantern above made him look taller, darker, and more shadowed. Dangerous and sexy as sin.
Ocean wanted to leap up, but given her level of soreness, she had to sort of ease to her feet. That didn’t ease her temper.
“What the hell was that?” She pointed to the window.
“That? You mean the flare?
“Of course, the flare.” She clamped her hands on her hips. “What was that for?”
“It was for Scott,” he said, exasperated. “You noticed it was white, right?”
“That has special meaning? That it was white?”
“Yeah, it’s a code Scott, Ember and I worked out before we had satellite phones,” he said. “Cellular is spo
tty to non-existent, so we took to using colored flares. I sent that one up to signal to Scott that we’re okay, and also to tell him where we are.”
“Weren’t you just on the phone to him?”
“I was.”
“And you told him that we were going to the cabin.”
“Right.”
She shook her head. “So why the light display?”
“Look, can we take this outside for a few minutes? Scott should answer back and I don’t want to miss it.”
“You didn’t answer my question.”
His lips tightened. “I promised I wouldn’t use the phone without you present, remember? So I used a flare instead. Scott will recognize it as confirmation that we made it to the cabin and that I’m signing off for the night.”
She frowned. “Won’t he think that’s strange, that you didn’t use the phone?”
He snorted. “More likely he’ll think I’m showing off for you.”
That was such a disconcerting concept that she temporarily forgot her next question. What was she going to ask him? It was something important… Oh, yeah.
“So it wasn’t intended for anyone else, or to bring backup to get me off the mountain?”
“It absolutely, unequivocally was not. It was intended solely for Scott, the equivalent of an all’s-well-and-goodnight. Okay?”
She studied his eyes for a few seconds, then zipped her coat closed. “Okay.”
They stepped outside. It had gotten a lot darker in just the past few minutes. There was still some lightness on the western horizon, and it would get much darker before the night was done, but already she could see stars. Lots of them. You never saw stars like that in the city, with all the light bleeding from streetlights and buildings and signs. She’d have to come back out here later for the full, stunning display.
She glanced over at Titus, who was looking east for his signal. “What do you think Scott will tell my mother?”
Titus shrugged. “He’ll have already called her, I’m sure. And he’ll have told her all is well and that you’re safe.”
