Her eyes grew serious. “There are all kinds of smart, Elijah. And you’re one of them.”
His heart didn’t only flip at that, it practically tumbled out of his chest. He couldn’t look at her, couldn’t bear to know if she was teasing him, or even if she wasn’t. What the hell did he do with information like that?
“Let’s get these tomatoes in,” he mumbled. They’d have to can them so they’d keep. Hopefully the vegetables in the ground would survive.
Once the tomatoes were inside, Elijah secured the shutters over the window. He brought in as much wood from the lean-to as he could, spending the remaining hours chopping more to keep his supplies up. The chickens he left for now. They were close enough to the house he could risk going out to check on them, and he didn’t want to have to secure all the food he kept in the spare room.
He also clambered onto the roof to check the chimney was clear and there were no potential leaks. All clear. He hopped down to find Gia bringing her soap mold into the house. He grinned. Not what he would have chosen as a priority, but he found it endearing.
Her actions also reminded him to cover the lye, and his compost bins after emptying the toilet. He added another layer of leaves, too.
Finally, he figured he was done.
And he had no more excuses to avoid going inside.
Gia was sprawled on the bed, as if waiting for him. But as soon as he entered she sat up and pressed her hands together.
“So what do we do now?” she asked.
“We wait,” he said simply.
She nodded. “You said you don’t have any hobbies except work. What do you do when you’re trapped inside?”
He knew what he’d like to do. He wanted to join her on that bed, spread himself over her, and taste every inch of her skin. He wanted to please her, bring her pleasure, over and over again. And then he’d thrust into her until he came, planting his seed deep in her belly.
His cock hardened painfully and he turned away, opening the pantry and stared blindly into it. What had her question been? Nothing about sex or him impregnating a woman he’d just met. Though the idea sent a bone-deep satisfaction through him. He wanted that, wanted her, could see them building a family together. It was mad, but it was true.
Lust was clouding his mind. That’s all it was. Lust making him crazy.
It wasn’t any wonder. He hadn’t been this close to a woman since he was fifteen, and his cock begged to finally know what it was like to experience a woman’s warmth. His hand didn’t quite cut it, though it’s all he’d ever had.
Now, though, he knew there was hope for him. Hope he’d finally lose his virginity.
And not just to any woman. To this woman. One that made his heart flip in his chest. One he wanted to care for, and provide for, and protect.
Gia.
Question. She’d asked him a question. He focused his mind on a jar of beets and tried to focus his mind.
“I knit,” he blurted out. “And do my leatherwork, of course.”
“You knit?”
There was a note in her voice he couldn’t quite understand, so he risked a glance at her. She was both amused and surprised, judging by her expression.
“Of course,” he said, shoulders creeping to his ears. “Where do you think that sweater came from?” He pointed at the one she wore. It hung on her like a sack and still didn’t manage to hide her curves. He’d never wear that sweater again without thinking of her.
“You made this?” she asked.
He nodded. “No one else will do it.”
She grinned at him. “You have to teach me.”
“Now?”
“We’ve got some time before dinner.”
He stared at her a long moment. Was she serious? Her face was perfectly straight. He shrugged and collected his needles and yarn from the shelves in the storage room and brought them out. He sat next to Gia on the bed, ready to show her how it was done.
And immediately realized his mistake.
She was so close. Heat radiated from her, and the scent of her and his soap mingled together, hitting him right in the gut. He tried to focus on the needles, to explain what she needed to do. He cast on for her, his muscle memory taking over when his mind shut down.
But he couldn’t think of anything but her and how damn close she was.
He sighed.
It was going to be a long snow storm.
Chapter 13
The plane was a mangled wreck.
The fuselage had been filleted like a fish, and the tail lay somewhere on the trail behind them. Trees, leaves, and branches had already partially-covered the exterior, the first step to nature claiming the plane as its own.
Better yet, the plane hadn’t been burned. He’d expected a fuel leakage, the remains of an explosion. If they’d only found ashes, his money would be gone. Instead, it was perfectly intact. The long trek up this fucking mountain with the guide winding this way and that had been worth it. At one point he’d been sure the man was toying with him, but true to his word Aaron had found the plane.
Every bone in Ray’s body ached. He had bruises on him from falls and sleeping barely an inch off the hard ground. His skin was raw and he’d run out of toilet paper a day ago. His fucking guide had forced him to use moss. Disgusting.
He was half-sure his feet rotted in his wet boots—he hadn’t been willing to check—and at least one of the scratches he’d got on his leg burned painfully. Not that he’d let that smug asshole of a guide know.
But now none of that mattered.
He’d made it. And soon his money would be back in his hands, and everything would go back to normal.
Satisfaction welled within Ray at the sight of the plane. Surely there was no way his bitch of a wife had survived this crash. Even if she’d managed to live past the initial impact, she would have perished out here in the wilderness without supplies. She was too stupid to do anything for herself.
Perfect.
“So you found it after all,” Ray called to Aaron. The other man closed in on the wreckage. He leapt onto a log and peered into the cabin through the gash. Howie lurked on the edge of the tree line behind him.
“Told you I would,” Aaron called back. He frowned at something inside the plane.
Ray came up beside him. “Is my wife in there?” he asked, not caring if Aaron believed he was still a grieving husband or not.
Aaron hesitated. “I need to have a closer look.”
Something in his tone caught Ray’s attention. “I’ll go,” he demanded.
Aaron’s jaw worked like he planned to protest, but then he stepped back with his arms up in surrender. Ray shoved past him. Some part of him noticed it was strange the plane’s stairs were down, since he hadn’t noticed Aaron near them. But he didn’t think about that. He was too busy staring into the cabin.
The empty cabin.
Ray growled. She had to be here somewhere. The money had to be here.
He whipped around and ran to the cockpit. The corpse of the pilot had teeth marks in what remained of the flesh. The rest had rotted in the seat, thankfully not too badly due to the cold weather. Ray checked around the dead body as best he could without actually touching it, searching for a space that could hide a person or a bag.
Nothing.
He went back in the cabin. Under a seat was Gia’s purse. This was definitely the right plane, since he’d bought her that ridiculously expensive bag. And she’d had the gall to leave it behind.
No sign of the money in there.
On another seat sat her luggage, open. He dug through it. No sign of the cash, no hint where she might have gone without even toiletries.
He checked the bathroom, the drinks cabinet, everywhere he could reach.
Not a fucking hint.
He would murder that woman.
He stomped down the stairs. “She’s not in there,” he announced.
Aaron gave a smile, but Howie’s eyes went wide with alarm. Ray knew what his right-hand man was
thinking. No wife, no money. More hiking through this shithole part of the country.
Aaron clapped him on the shoulder. “It’s good news she survived the crash. Maybe the rescuers managed to get to her and they haven’t radioed the news yet,” he said, waving the radio usually clipped to his belt, which occasionally crackled with news.
“Right,” Ray managed, white-hot fury rolling over him like a wave. How dare she? How dare she steal his money and run, only to survive and take his money from him all over again? Now he’d trekked up this fucking mountain, wiped his ass with moss, and for what? Not a goddamn thing.
“Boss—” Howie warned.
Ray nearly growled at him, but managed to hold onto his temper. Just. Instead, he ignored his right-hand man and stormed off to the edge of the clearing the plane had made in its hasty descent. He paced near the trees, boots crunching over remaining snow. Fuck. Fuck. That stupid bitch. Always ruining his life.
He never should have married her in the first place. Or maybe he should have been harsher with his punishments, shown her who was boss.
But there had to be a way to fix this. There had to be. She had to have gone somewhere, and wherever that was, she most likely took the money with her. As long as she still had it, there was a chance he could get it back, even if he had to destroy this entire fucking mountain to do it.
He turned back to the other two men. Howie hovered nervously by the plane, waiting for Ray to come back. Aaron was crouched down, staring at something on the ground. He stood when Ray walked over.
“It might be a good idea for us to go back down the mountain,” Aaron told him. “As you know, we’re running low on supplies.”
“No,” Ray said.
“Excuse me?” Aaron said.
“I said no, we’re not going back. You’re going to find her for me.” He had to force the words out past his rage.
Aaron shook his head. “It’s too dangerous. I won’t take two inexperienced hikers any further. This was bad enough.”
“Boss, he’s right. It’s dangerous. Bad weather is coming in. Can’t you feel it?”
Ray didn’t even look his way. “I’ll pay you double,” he grit out, focusing on Aaron. His muscles seized in rage. Rage at his wife, at the situation. Rage at these two assholes standing in his way.
“No deal,” Aaron said firmly. “I won’t be responsible for all of our deaths.”
Ray had had enough. He whipped out a gun from the side pocket of his pack—the only one he could reach—and pointed it at Aaron. The man’s eyes widened and he took a step back.
“What the fuck?” Aaron asked. Color leeched from his face.
“Find her,” Ray barked. “Find my fucking wife and my fucking money or I will put this bullet through your head.”
“Boss—” Howie warned.
“You wouldn’t,” Aaron sneered. “You’ll die up here without me.”
“What if I put the bullet through a non-essential part, huh?” Ray said. He pointed the gun at Aaron’s arm. “This, maybe. Hard to climb mountains with one arm, but not impossible.”
Aaron paled, but Ray wasn’t done.
“A foot, maybe,” he said, pointing at Aaron’s toes. Then, he slowly moved the aim up. “Or maybe I’ll shoot your dick off. Won’t need that up here.”
Aaron stared at him. “You’re crazy.”
“Crazy enough to need to find my wife and everything she stole from me.”
Aaron’s jaw worked but he said nothing. He shifted his gaze to Howie. “You down with this?”
Howie hesitated. “I really think we should wait, boss. Until the weather is better. The investor can be patient a little longer. And I know for a fact these mountains can be dangerous when the wind is coming in like this. Snow isn’t far behind.”
“Howie, remember. I don’t pay you to think. If we don’t find Gia soon, she might disappear for good, and my money with her. She’ll have got away with her betrayal. I can’t allow that. She needs to be punished.”
“But if we die—”
“One more word out of you and you won’t be coming down off this mountain with us, got it? I have the gun, I make the rules.”
Howie swallowed heavily and nodded.
Ray turned back to Aaron, to see the man looking even more concerned. Good.
“You found the plane. I know you can find one stupid woman wandering around this God forsaken place.”
Aaron’s eyes darted down to the ground he’d been studying, then back to Ray. Ah, so the man did know something.
“Let’s get moving,” Ray said, sick of this argument already. “The sooner you find her, the sooner we can get off the mountain and back to civilization.”
“Ray,” Howie demanded, firmer this time. “Please.” The man wouldn’t give up, accept his place.
Aaron sighed. “I’m not joking when I say we don’t have enough supplies for three people. I’m worried if—”
Before he’d even finished the sentence, Ray raised his gun to Howie’s head and pulled the trigger. The man dropped like a stone and lay still on the ground, unmoving. If he wasn’t dead, he soon would be. Ray couldn’t find an ounce of compassion in him.
He turned back to Aaron, whose gaze was wide with shock. “Fuck,” Aaron breathed.
“One less mouth to feed,” Ray commented. He bent and pulled Howie’s supplies from his pack, still holding his gun on his guide. Toilet paper. Perfect.
Aaron swallowed but finally stopped arguing.
“Now, let’s get moving. We’re wasting daylight.”
Chapter 14
Gia threw aside her knitting. Or attempted knitting was probably more accurate.
It was more complicated than it looked and she kept getting it wrong. Elijah had told her she needed to build up muscle memory, but she wasn’t particularly patient today. Nope, she was restless. And seeing Elijah bent over his leatherwork, hands deft and sure, was not helping.
She wanted those clever, work-roughened hands on her. Against her skin.
He could ease the ache that had been building in her since she’d arrived. And now they were alone, trapped in this house by the storm outside, it was about time she did something about it.
She stretched out on the bed. “What are you working on?” she asked.
Elijah’s gaze shifted from his leatherwork, to her face, to her legs, bared when her sweater had slid up, then back to her face. His eyes darkened, and a thrill of satisfaction ran through her.
“They’re for you,” he said simply, and Gia was immediately distracted from her mission.
“For me?” She sat up, eyes darting to the leather in his hands. From the way he held it, she couldn’t quite see what it was. She hadn’t paid any attention before.
“Yes,” he said. That bashful blush was back on his cheeks. Her heart flipped. This mattered to him.
Slowly, he held it out to her. Gia took it—no, them. Shoes. He’d made her boots. Beautifully made, even her inexperienced eye could tell the care he’d put into them. They were decorated, and hand sewn through holes he’d punched. The upper leather was so soft beneath her fingers, while the base was made with a much sturdier material Gia couldn’t identify.
“I know they’re not your style,” Elijah said, sounding nervous.
She tore her gaze away from the shoes to see him waiting anxiously for her reply.
“They’re beautiful,” she whispered.
His blush deepened even as he smiled. “More comfortable for when you’re outside in the garden, or making soap.” He cleared his throat and glanced away. “Better for the hike down the mountain, too.”
Gia’s breath caught in her throat at his words and her heart protested in denial. No, don’t send me away. I want to stay. Ask me to stay.
But he didn’t. Instead, he stood and moved into the kitchen. It was late, and the only light came from the fire beside her. Wind buffeted the cabin outside. But all she could see was Elijah’s strong back as he stared into the sink.
Did he wan
t her to go? To stay?
Even if he did want her to leave him to his solitude, did that mean they couldn’t share something in the meantime?
She stood and placed the boots on the bed. “Thank you,” she told him. “It’s such a generous gift.”
He shrugged. “It was nothing. I…never mind.”
“You what?” she asked, placing a hand on his back. His muscles tightened beneath her touch. She could only see his profile, but even then, his tension and uncertainty were clear.
“I wanted to give you something to remember this place by.” His voice was low and rough, and Gia knew there was a hidden meaning to his words.
“Remember you?”
His eyes squeezed shut. “I know it’s ridiculous. You didn’t want to be here, and now you’re stranded out here with me. I know I’m strict about food and make soap out of lard and you’ll be relieved when you can go back to the city.”
“Elijah…”
He shook his head, silencing her. “I don’t know if you’ll remember me fondly, but I wanted to make you something nice.”
Gia’s heart expanded. “You know, Ray used to buy me all kinds of the most expensive gifts he could find. Shoes. Handbags. You name it.”
Elijah glanced at her. “I can’t compete with that,” he said.
“No, you misunderstand. None of those gifts mean even half as much as those boots.”
Elijah froze, then slowly turned towards her. “You mean that?”
“I do. I didn’t even like most of the things he got me. He didn’t think if I wanted or needed them, he just bought them because they cost a lot. But you made me something with your own two hands. Something I needed and wanted. That’s incredibly thoughtful.”
Was it more than a gift? Was he trying to tell her something with actions instead of words?
“You didn’t have to give me anything at all,” she murmured.
“I wanted to,” he said again, firmer this time.
He slid his hand along the bench until it stopped an inch from hers. Gia didn’t move away, just stared at the juxtaposition of his large hand beside her small one. Her breath caught in her throat, and she teetered on the precipice of something momentous.
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