“It smells wonderful,” she said, the aroma of the stew making her mouth water. “Do you grow everything yourself?”
“No,” he said, sitting on a chair opposite her with a mug of coffee of his own. “I trade for food. The soil is too thin up here for most vegetables to grow.”
“So you go down to town often?” Did she really sound that excited at the prospect of one day running into him again?
He certainly thought so, because his eyes darted to hers, once again trying to read her thoughts. “Not too often. Every couple of weeks.”
“What do you trade?” she asked, taking her first mouthful of the piping-hot stew. It was delicious, even if, despite blowing on it, it burnt her tongue.
“I carve things. Animals mainly. Or walking sticks, I take orders. It makes me enough to live on. That and the foraging I do. Nuts, fruits, they are abundant at this time of year.”
“Why?” she asked, letting his stew warm her and his eyes excite her. “Why do you live up here like this all alone?”
He took a sip of his coffee and turned to look at the fire. “Something happened, and I needed to get away.”
She laughed ironically. “I can certainly sympathise with you there. Sometimes I think there would be nothing better than to get away from it all.”
“Aren’t you happy? With your life?” He frowned and his eyes flicked to her ring, his full attention on her now.
“Sometimes, things don’t always turn out how you expect them to. Do they?” She held his eyes, trying to see if he could understand what she meant.
But he dragged himself away, getting up abruptly and leaving the room. “I’ll get some blankets. You can have my bed, I’ll take the sofa.”
She ate the rest of her stew, watching the fire as it happily consumed the wood in its hunger to burn bright and long. Just as she thought her love for Jerry, would always burn bright and long. But already, after being here with Nate, that future was dimming. Maybe she hadn’t loved him as much as she thought. Instead, she had been in love with the future they were going to build together.
She knew why. If she looked very hard, she knew exactly why. It was to replace the family she had lost when her mom died of cancer. Because her family life had been torn from her at that point. Her father never tried to rekindle it. Instead, he took a new wife, and the warmth had gone from her life.
Jerry had offered her a fairy-tale ending. One where the wicked loneliness was replaced by a husband and kids to love. A tear trickled down her cheek, which she quickly brushed away. She really was one messed-up jilted bride.
Chapter Six – Nate
He went to the bedroom, big mistake, because all he could think of was how wonderful it would be to lay her down on his bed, the bed he had carved himself, and make love to her. He could just imagine pressing himself inside her warm sex, of feeling her come around him. And he was sure she felt something too, the scent of her arousal tickled his nose.
But the ring on her finger was like a talisman, warding him off. She was not his to take; she belonged to another man. Until she took that damn ring off, she was not his to touch, not his to kiss.
Opening the closet, he took out a spare pillow and blanket. Then he grabbed an extra one to place on the bed. She didn’t have his warm bear blood, and the fire wasn’t lit in here. He didn’t want her to get cold.
But he could warm her with his body.
No. No, he couldn’t. Nate firmed his resolve. Tomorrow, he had to find the willpower to carry her back down the mountain and permanently out of his life. He needed to remove the temptation that was Chloe. His true mate.
Back out into the living room, he found her staring at the fire, an air of sadness around her. Missing her man, he suspected.
“Come on, I’ll carry you through to the bedroom. I expect a good night’s sleep will do wonders for you. Then tomorrow we’ll get you home.”
She didn’t brighten when he said that. Once more, she confused him. If only he could read her mind.
“Are you sure? About me, having your bed? You look too big for the sofa.”
“I’ll manage. I can always sleep on the floor.”
“Now I feel even worse.”
I could always share the bed with you. Make love to you all night, and erase the very thought of your fiancé from your memory.
“I insist.” He came to her, but before he picked her up, he asked, “Is this OK? If I carry you? Or I could help you walk.”
“No, I don’t think I could take another step.”
Nate bent down and lifted her, cradling her gently against his chest, feeling her soft, sweet breath on his neck. Her head rested on his shoulder and she took a long, contented sigh. In his pants, his cock stirred, growing harder, until it was painfully pressed against his zipper, begging to be released.
Trying to quell any thoughts of Chloe naked in his bed, he took her to his bedroom and practically dumped her on the bed as if she burned him. She looked a little startled.
“Sorry,” he said, with no more of an explanation.
“Do you have a shirt or something I could wear? It’s just that my clothes are filthy and I don’t want to get your bed all dirty.”
You could sleep naked.
“I’ll grab you something.”
He went to his closet again, and fetched her a shirt. Placing it on the bed, he looked down as she struggled to undress, her hands stiff and sore.
“I didn’t treat your hands.” So much for caring for her.
“They aren’t so bad.”
“No, let me bathe them and then bandage them. I have some ointment that will take the pain away.” Once more, he left her to fetch a bowl of hot water, and then he went to the bathroom and got the ointment. By the time he came back to her, she had her shirt unbuttoned, her breasts so beautiful in the light of the candles.
If it was possible, his cock swelled even more, and he licked his lips, wanting more than anything to taste her plump flesh.
But she gathered the fabric of her clothes together, and covered herself up. The message was clear; she belonged to another man.
Chapter Seven – Chloe
Why did he excite so many forbidden sensations in her body? She was in real danger of making a complete idiot of herself. When he walked back in, she would have happily thrown her shirt on the floor and begged him to kiss her breasts. Her nipples had already turned to hardened peaks of desire, and so she covered herself up so that he wouldn’t see her foolish behaviour.
“Sit down on the bed, and I’ll bathe your hands.”
She did as she was told, holding her hands out for him to see. He cupped each one in his, making her wince as the warm water entered her cuts. He worked meticulously to remove all the dirt and small stones that had lodged in them. Whatever was in the water slowly took the pain away.
“It’s an herb I gather high up on the meadows. It is a great analgesic.”
“I can tell; the pain is almost gone.” She wanted to ask him if it worked on broken hearts too. But when she looked at him, at the concentration on his face as he worked to make her hands better, she knew that he was probably the best thing for her broken heart. He could heal her pain with his soft touch and warm eyes.
“There. Now, we’ll wrap them in clean bandages and by tomorrow they should be feeling a lot better.” He smoothed ointment over them and then wrapped them up, which of course posed another problem.
“I can’t finish undressing,” she said. Her hands were now almost immovable.
“I’ll help, if you want?”
“Are you sure?”
He nodded and began by removing her shirt, his eyes lingering on her breasts. She wanted to offer them to him, and feel his mouth on them. His warm lips on her flesh, his mouth sucking in her nipples so he could roll his tongue over them each in turn.
But he instead reached for his spare shirt and helped her dress, covering up her quivering flesh. Next, his hands went to the buttons of her jeans and opened them deftly, slipping
them down over her rounded thighs. She wondered if he could feel the heat of her desire as he helped her step out of them, one foot at a time.
He breathed in her scent, she knew he did, a long shuddering breath traveling through his body. She swallowed her desire, not knowing what to do. If she touched him, if she gave him any come-on at all, would he lay her down on the bed and make love to her?
He rose slowly, their eyes meeting, and what passed between them was not hard to understand. In that one moment, they were connected on a deeper level than she had ever felt with another human being. Her tongue slipped out, moistening her lips. He was going to lean forward and kiss her; she knew it.
A faint warmth as his breath covered her cheek, he was so close now, she could feel his desire, palpable in the air. Closing her eyes, she opened her lips imperceptibly, waiting for the moment when he would press against her and taste her for the first time.
Instead, he pulled back and said, “Good night, Chloe. Sweet dreams.”
And then he left, her arousal so strong she knew she wouldn’t be able to sleep. That she would toss and turn, every minute of the long night filled with thoughts of him, next to her, inside her.
Yet she was wrong. As soon as her head touched the pillow, her eyes closed and she slept, her dreams filled with a big bear, who stood and watched over her. And in the morning when she woke, she felt more herself and knew that she needed to get away from him, or he would drive her insane. He was so sexy, so incredibly desirable, and yet he had shown her repeatedly that he had no interest in her.
No, it was best if she left him to his peaceful world. A lonely world, but it was the one he had chosen and she needed to respect that.
Putting her feet on the floor, she tried to get up. Thankfully, she found that if she stood on her very tiptoes, she could hobble forward. At least he would not have to carry her anymore. Although the descent down the mountain would not be possible without help. Then she remembered the walking sticks he said he carved. Yes. That might be the answer.
Finding the bathroom was her first goal, not hard when the cabin was so small. Feeling fresher, she went into the living room, to find it empty. Not liking to wander around his house on her own but needing coffee, she went into the kitchen, placing the kettle on the top of the stove. Still no sign of him.
With one hand on the counter top to steady herself, she searched around for the coffee mugs, getting two down and placing them on the counter top. Then she reached for the instant coffee, spooning it into the mugs and pouring on the boiling water. It was only when she turned she saw he had come in behind her, silently, and stood watching her.
As if she had broken the spell, he came to life, smiling at her and holding up four eggs. “Fresh this morning.”
“You keep hens?”
“Yes, a few. They like to scratch around the place, and the bonus is they lay great eggs. Scrambled?”
“Yes, please. Do you want me to help?”
“No, you go and sit down and enjoy your coffee. Or, if you want to wrap up, you can sit on the porch and watch the morning. It’s bright and clear. The birds are out, singing to the new day.”
She smiled, hoping he wasn’t just trying to get rid of her. “I’d like that.”
He helped her outside, grabbing a warm coat, which smelled of him, masculine with the added scents of wood smoke and pine needles. A bench on the porch, which he had added cushions to, was where he guided her. Lowering herself down was tricky, and she needed to hold his hand so that she didn’t fall, a thing that ignited that heated friction between them once more.
This time she played it down, looking away as though admiring the birds that flittered though the clearing in front of his cabin, when in reality every part of her being was aware of him and the warmth of his touch.
“I can see why you live here,” she said, looking at the view. She hadn’t noticed it last night, it had been too dark, but from the porch, a gap in the trees gave way to an uninterrupted view across the mountain range. The sky went on forever into the distance, while the tops of trees in the valley below looked like fluffy green clouds. “It’s stunning.”
“Thank you. I chose the position for the view.” He stood admiring it with her, and then said, “I’ll get those eggs.”
She listened to him rattling around in the kitchen, a comforting sound, while she sipped her coffee. The day grew warmer, the sun sneaking through any gap it could find in the trees to dapple the ground. A big patch of sunlight made its way slowly towards her though the large gap overhead, touching her toes and warming her up as it covered her inch by inch.
When he emerged from the cabin with two plates in his hand, she had her head resting on the back of the bench, her eyes closed.
“Is it alright on your lap?”
She opened her eyes, taking a minute for them to focus. When they did, she had to acknowledge that the sight of him was even more stunning than the view from the porch.
“That would be great. I want to enjoy every moment of this morning.” And she didn’t just mean the sun on her face and breeze in her hair. No, his company made her feel at home. A thing she had found missing in her life for so many years.
“I sit here each morning and drink my coffee, watching the seasons change.”
“Do you think you will ever move back to town?” she asked, eating her eggs, which were accompanied by two slices of thick homemade bread. He would make a wonderful husband. But not for you.
“That depends.”
“On whether the thing that brought you here goes away?”
“Something like that.”
“Wouldn’t you miss it, though?”
“For the right reasons I would move back to Bear Bluff.”
She longed for her to be that reason. Yet the ring still sparkled on her finger, and she could see no way of removing it without laying her heart out to him, and that would just seem weird. A man like Nate had his own problems, he didn’t need hers added to them. Not when they had only just met.
“I thought that we could pack some food and make our way down to the town. It will take some time. There are some steep parts that will not be easy with you in my arms.”
“In your arms? I thought I would be able to walk some of the way. If you give me a walking stick.”
“It’s a long way, Chloe.”
“I know. But with your help … if you don’t mind helping me.” She still wasn’t sure that he did. He had become more unreadable the longer she had spent with him. “I think I can go some of the way on foot.”
“Of course. No, I don’t mind.” And then he sat back and ate his eggs in silence, and she let the morning sun warm her heart, which was filled with longing for him.
Chapter Eight – Nate
She had made it quite clear she didn’t want him near her. The closeness of last night, when he thought she wanted him to kiss her, was gone. No wonder—last night she had been in shock, thinking she was going to be eaten by a bear. His bear.
Now, in the warm morning sun, she had come to her senses and remembered that fiancé of hers, who would probably be frantically looking for her right now. Nate knew that if she were his mate, he would be out on the mountain right now trying to find her. And how would he feel to find her in the arms of another man?
She was right. Walking was the best idea. Although he knew she would find it painful and certainly impossible in places.
He took the plates and the cups inside, washed and dried them, and made sure the cabin was secure. Chloe had come inside and managed to dress herself, after removing the bandages from her hands.
“I can’t believe how much better they are today,” she said, flexing them, looking at the cuts that were scabbed-over and no longer inflamed.
“I could rub some on your ankle, than strap it up. It will help, but really you should go straight to the hospital when we get back to Bear Bluff.”
“I thought you said it wasn’t broken.”
“I’m not a doctor. But let’s ge
t to Bear Bluff first. I expect you will be able to use your phone and call for help. An ambulance could meet us at the bottom of the trail.”
“It all seems like too much trouble, just for me.”
“Nothing is ever too much trouble,” he said cryptically and then left her to go and wait outside.
Chapter Nine – Chloe
Chloe tied her laces, and then got up to go and join him. He wasn’t on the porch, so she sat down on the bench, taking in all the sights and sounds of the cabin, wondering if she would ever come here again. Not that she would be able to find the way. The trees were thick around them. He might have chosen this place for the view, but he also had chosen it for its seclusion.
“Here,” he said, holding out a walking stick for her.
“Thank you. Wow, so you carved this?” Her hand covered the smooth wood, seeing the detail he had put into it. “A bear, I get it, for Bear Bluff, right?”
“Something like that,” he said, his thoughts hidden as he held out his hand. She took it, sensing the current running between them once more. Then they walked very slowly away from the cabin. He was very patient, holding her arm when he saw she needed extra support, and letting her rely on the walking stick when the terrain was relatively flat.
That worked fine until they turned to follow the path down the steep side of the mountain. It was then that she realised she would need him to carry her. And the thought of that made her body tremble with desire. She couldn’t wait to rest her head on his chest and hear the strong beat of his heart.
But how was she supposed to ask? However, he had read her mind.
“I know you don’t want to be carried, but it’s too dangerous. If you slip and fall, you could end up sliding down again. The slopes aren’t safe.”
“I know. Are you sure you don’t mind?”
“Of course not. I just want to make sure you get back safe and sound to your fiancé.”
She opened her mouth to speak, to undo the lie she had been living since she had found Jerry cheating on her, but then he moved, scooping her up in his strong arms. And she couldn’t find her voice as strong sensations swept through her body, making her long for this man to stay with her forever.
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