by Rachel Lacey
“I hate to say it, but I think we should save our granola bars tonight.” Nate sat on a rock beside her, water dripping from his lashes and coursing over his handsome face.
She pressed a hand against her empty stomach. They had four granola bars left, which meant he didn’t think they’d be rescued tomorrow. “Okay.”
“This might sound gross, but maybe we should eat what’s left of the dog food.”
She flinched. “But what if Maya comes back?”
“She hunts better than we do. It’s something I think we have to consider if we run out of food completely. For tonight, we can share the nuts and grubs and finish off the cattail roots in my bag. Don’t think they’ll keep much past tonight anyway.”
“The grubs are all yours,” she told him, dividing the pine nuts into two piles.
“You need the protein, Isa. Here.” He opened his bag, took out one of the remaining pieces of cattail, and wrapped a small piece of the stalk around one of the grubs, then handed it to her.
She stared at it as nausea rose in her throat. There was no way she could chew on a live grub, but if she swallowed it whole, she just knew she’d feel it wriggling around inside her stomach. “I can’t.”
“Yes, you can. Make Les Stroud proud.” He nudged his shoulder against hers with a smile.
“Oh God, fine.” She grabbed it from him, popped it in her mouth, gave it one quick chomp, and swallowed it down before she’d had time to think about what she was doing. A faint flavor of something like dirt lingered in her mouth. She gagged.
Nate handed her water bottle to her, and she washed it down gratefully.
“So how was it?” he asked.
“It tasted like dirt.” She poured pine nuts into her mouth, grateful to replace the dirty sensation of the cattail-wrapped grub with the somewhat bitter taste of the pine nuts.
Nate popped the other two grubs in his mouth at the same time, making a face at her as he chewed and swallowed. “Nasty.”
“Truly,” she said after she’d washed down the pine nuts.
Nate did the same, then unzipped his duffel bag and doled out the last of the cattail roots. She took one and bit into it. It had dried out after a day in Nate’s backpack, and she gagged again trying to swallow it. But food was essential to their survival, and she couldn’t afford to be choosy. Dutifully, she choked down her portion of the cattail roots. “So where are we going to spend the night?”
“Been thinking about that.” Nate looked thoughtfully at the stream before them.
“A soggy shelter sounds miserable.” She hugged her knees against her chest, struggling to keep her spirits from plummeting. Tonight was going to suck so bad.
“I think maybe we should keep walking a little more and see what we find.”
“Okay,” she agreed, even though exhausted didn’t quite cover the way she felt at the moment. She was so tired, her bones ached with it, but the thought of lying down in cold, muddy pine straw sounded about as appealing as walking some more.
She brushed her teeth by the stream before packing up to move on.
“Just a little farther,” Nate said, sliding his warm, strong hand into hers. “Maybe we can find someplace drier to camp for the night.”
“Maybe.”
They walked in silence as twilight deepened around them. She missed Maya, missed her family, missed her warm, dry bed…
“See that tree up there?” Nate said. “I don’t know the name of it, but we’ve passed a few like it today, and they seem to offer decent shelter.”
She looked where he was pointing and saw a massive tree ahead with thick branches. It was too dark to see it clearly, but she was too tired to care. “Sounds good to me.”
Nate led the way to the tree, and they ducked beneath its branches, crouching against the trunk. It was definitely drier here. They put their bags beneath them to keep from sitting on the cold, wet ground. Who cared at this point if their spare clothes got a little more wet? Everything in their bags was already soaked anyway.
She leaned back against the tree trunk, and it was such a relief to be out of the rain and off her feet that for a few minutes, she felt almost comfortable. Every now and then, a big, cold drop of rainwater would splash down on her head, but the tree—some kind of evergreen—provided decent cover.
“Okay?” Nate asked, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.
She nodded, her eyes already drooping.
“Wait.” He rose to a crouch and pulled the remaining food out of his duffel bag. “Just in case.” He walked out of sight, returning a few minutes later empty-handed.
“No bears tonight,” she murmured. Her stomach hurt from her meager supper of forest oddities, and her body seemed to have finally given out. As night fell around them, she nodded off with her head on Nate’s shoulder.
When she woke, the first thing she was aware of was the pain in her butt from sitting on all the toiletries in her backpack. She needed to pee. It was pitch black around them, so dark she couldn’t see her hand in front of her face. And Nate’s hand was on her breast.
Nate woke sometime before dawn as Isa shifted beside him. The night around them was cold and dark, silent except for the splashing of the rain. His hand had slipped from her shoulder while they slept, coming to rest on her breast, the tight bud of her nipple pressing into his palm.
Under other circumstances, waking to find himself palming Isa’s nipple would have made him the happiest man alive. As it was, his ass was numb from sleeping sitting up. He was cold, wet, hungry, and sore as hell.
“You awake?” he asked softly, lifting his hand back to her shoulder.
“Yes,” she whispered.
“Not exactly comfortable, is it?”
“No.” She sounded as miserable as he felt.
“What I wouldn’t give for a hot meal and a dry bed right about now.” He snugged his arm around her, hoping their voices would scare away any wildlife nearby instead of attracting it.
“And a bathroom,” she said.
“Yeah, that too.”
They huddled together, alternately dozing and talking, until the sky began to brighten overhead. As soon as it was light enough to see their way around, they crawled out from under the tree, eager to stretch their legs. They spent a few minutes freshening up, and he doled out granola bars for breakfast. Only two left. Not good.
“That was pretty much the worst night ever,” Isa said, rubbing her eyes.
“Yeah, it was.” And he really wanted to get them out of here before tonight. He’d like to go up another tree to scout their surroundings, but right now, everything was too wet to climb.
“I can’t spend the day in these wet jeans,” she said. “I’m going to have to wear my ripped leggings, and don’t you dare laugh.”
“I would never,” he told her. Couldn’t blame her for changing either. Wet jeans were a fate worse than hell. Despite the chill in the air, he changed into his khaki shorts, which were just as wet but ought to dry faster at least.
He’d never laugh at Isa in her ripped leggings, but it was going to take all his concentration to keep himself from checking out the intriguing flash of yellow panties exposed by the rip. If he had to prioritize his needs right then, getting her naked was right up there with dry clothes and food.
“It’s Wednesday,” she said as they set out. “Three nights in the woods is three too many. I don’t want to spend a fourth.”
A slight drizzle lingered in the air, but they were already so wet, it almost didn’t matter. They walked alongside the stream, swollen now from all the rainfall.
“At least the rain seems to have slowed the fire,” he said. Compared to yesterday morning, when the air had been thick with smoke, today he couldn’t detect any trace of it.
“Thank goodness for that,” she agreed.
Thick undergrowth slowed them down this morning. They had to wind their way in and out of the brush, sometimes detouring away from the stream to get around it. Isa was quiet. Her face was pale, and
her eyes had lost some of their sparkle.
He needed to get them out of here. As soon as the sun came out, he was going to climb trees until he saw some sign of civilization, dammit. Around lunchtime, they stopped to refill their water bottles and rest for a few minutes.
“It stopped raining,” Isa said quietly.
“Yeah.” He sat on a nearby rock. “Keep your eye out for another tree for me to climb. I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to go home.”
“So ready.”
They got to their feet and kept walking as the sun broke through the clouds overhead, bringing with it a much-needed boost in morale. The prospect of warming up and drying off was awfully damn motivational. They rounded a bend in the stream, and…
“Whoa,” Isa whispered.
Whoa indeed. The forest before them opened up into a wide, green valley. The stream splashed over a gentle waterfall, rushing out into the open space beyond. The mountains swept aside in either direction, revealing some truly awe-inspiring rock faces. After days of seeing nothing but dense forest, the abrupt change of scenery was both jarring and awesome.
“It’s beautiful,” she said.
“Sure is.”
“It feels like we’re the first people to discover this spot.” She laced her fingers in his.
“We might be.” He was doubtful that there were many spots left in the Sierra Nevadas that hadn’t been explored, but what did he know? He was a businessman, not a park ranger.
“As romantic as it is to imagine being the first people to stand here, I really wish there was a big, gaudy hotel out there interrupting the view.”
He laughed. “Yeah, me too.”
“Maybe we’ll find some new food sources here, though.” Isa led the way, scrambling down the incline toward the valley below.
“Food would be awesome.” Because he was running on empty right now. As they left the shelter of the trees behind, he felt the warmth of the sun on his skin for the first time since the crash, and it felt fucking fantastic.
“That feels so good.” Isa tipped her face toward the sky, arms extended.
“Sure does.” The creek was wide and shallow here, dotted with rocks, its edges gentle and easy to follow. Outside the creek bed, the valley was lush with tall grasses and wildflowers.
She looked up at him, her brown eyes bright. “Would it be okay to stop here for a bit and rest, you think?”
He turned to look in the direction they’d come. The sky was still gray behind them, but it looked more like rain clouds than smoke. Was it possible the wildfire had changed course or even been contained? “I think it makes sense. We’re visible here. We could make another SOS signal while we rest up and dry out.”
“Yes to all of that.” Isa unzipped her windbreaker and slipped it off. Then her gaze caught on something behind him, and her eyes went wide as saucers. “Oh my God, Nate. Look! A house!”
8
Isa could hardly believe her eyes, but there was definitely a wooden structure concealed along the tree line at the far end of the valley. She was racing toward it before she’d even realized what she was doing.
Nate was right on her heels.
The closer they got, though, the more she realized “house” might have been an overstatement. The cabin wasn’t much bigger than a shed, and it had the look of an abandoned building, but it was man-made, and maybe…
She reached the door before Nate, stopping short at the rusted silver padlock securing it. Gasping for breath after her sprint, she knocked anyway. “Hello? Is anyone home? We need help.”
“I think it’s an old hunting shack,” Nate said.
“Is it hunting season?” Her heart refused to give up on the idea of rescue.
“Don’t think so. It doesn’t look like anyone’s here in any case.” He jiggled the padlock, testing its strength.
Tears sprang into her eyes. For a few moments there, she’d thought they were safe. Reality was like a hundred-pound weight dropped on her shoulders. “Dammit.”
“This is still good news,” Nate said. “There may be a path leading out of here that connects with one of the bigger hiking trails, and anyway, I think the situation justifies us breaking in.”
She couldn’t help the gasp that escaped her lips. “Breaking in?”
“It doesn’t look like anyone’s been here in a while. I’ll leave my number, and if the owner comes around, he or she can call me, and I’ll repay them for whatever we use. Deal?”
She nodded. Whatever was inside the hunting shack was more than they had now, and if there was food… “Please let there be food.”
“We can hope.” Nate walked a few steps away and picked up a rock the size of his fist. He slammed it against the spot where the padlock met the door, and the whole thing splintered. The door sagged open.
“Oh my God.” She stared inside, heart in her throat.
“Let’s see what we’ve got.” Nate led the way inside.
The shack was indeed just that…a shack. It was one room inside. A twin-sized bed was set in the corner on a rusted metal bedframe. Across from it was some kind of wood stove, with a couple of cabinets above it. She hardly dared hope…
Nate tugged open the first cabinet. It contained a pot, a tea kettle, and a few odd utensils. “That’s just a tease,” he muttered.
The next cabinet was the mother lode, though. Several cans were stacked inside. “Food!”
“Hallelujah.” Nate spun them around to read the labels. “Raviolis, SpaghettiOs, baked beans.” His eyebrows raised. “Spam.”
“Spam?” She giggled. “Right now, that actually sounds delicious.”
“Agreed.” He shot her a dazzling smile as he picked up the can of Spam.
Her stomach gurgled in anticipation. “I’ve never been more thankful for meat in a can.”
He popped the top and snagged two forks from the first cabinet, then handed the can to her. “Ladies first.”
She inhaled the meaty aroma, and her mouth literally watered. She plunged her fork into it and pulled out a big chunk. It was salty and squishy and… “I think it’s the best thing I’ve ever tasted.”
“That might be the hunger talking.” Nate winked as he grabbed a big bite. “Nope,” he said around a mouthful of Spam. “This is my new favorite food.”
They sat in the middle of the abandoned shack and devoured the entire can of Spam. When they’d finished, she leaned back, gazing longingly at the bed in the corner. She was so tired, and it looked so soft. “Think the owner would mind…?”
“I think a nap is definitely in order, but first we should lay our stuff out in the sun to dry,” Nate stood and set the empty Spam can and forks on a shelf near the stove.
“Right.” That made total sense, except she was so tired, she wasn’t sure how she was even going to get off the floor. She spotted a towel on a shelf near the bed. It was folded as if it were clean, and she wasn’t going to give herself the option to consider otherwise, because she had to get out of these wet clothes…now. “Give me a minute head start, okay?”
She struggled to her feet, grabbed the towel and her backpack, and headed outside. She walked to the stream and stripped down, not even caring if Nate peeked from the window. God, it felt good to be out of those cold, wet clothes. Her fingers and toes were shriveled like prunes, her skin cold and clammy to the touch. Several large blisters had formed on the bottoms of her feet from sliding around in wet socks.
She splashed some fresh water on herself, then wrapped the towel firmly around her. She rinsed her bra and panties and spread all her clothes on a large rock nearby. Walking gingerly now that she was barefoot, she made her way back toward the cabin, passing Nate on his way out.
His gaze dropped to the towel, then snapped back to her face. She flushed, tripping over her own feet as she hurried up the steps. The bed was made with red plaid sheets and a couple of worn blankets thrown over it. Nothing had ever looked so inviting.
Still wearing the towel, she slid into it, rolling tow
ard the wall to make room for Nate. He came back inside a few minutes later, buck naked, and dear God, his body was perfection. All those muscles, and his dick…
“Ready for that nap?” He climbed in beside her.
“Mm-hmm.” As much as she wanted to appreciate the naked man beside her, her eyes just wouldn’t stay open.
Nate tucked her in against him. The bed was so soft, and warm, and dry. For the first time in days, she felt truly relaxed and comfortable, and she was asleep before she’d even realized what was happening. When she woke, the sun cast an orange glow through the window, and whoa, she felt like a whole new woman.
That was the best sleep she’d had in days. The cabin might not have spelled rescue, but it was still a much-needed respite from reality. Nate’s arm was around her, his hand resting on her belly with only the thin towel separating him from her naked body. The towel had come undone while she slept, freeing her breasts. She didn’t care. She trusted Nate.
And she wanted him.
A restless ache grew between her thighs as she remembered that he was naked. He stirred behind her, and she wasn’t the only one getting aroused, if the wood poking into her back was any indication. Feeling reckless and alive, she spun in his arms. The towel fell away, and her naked body landed against his.
“Well, hello.” Nate’s voice was low and gruff, his cock impossibly hard against her belly.
“Hi,” she said, feeling suddenly shy because hello, they were both naked, but while she’d certainly never found herself naked in bed with a man she’d known for only four days before, this was different. She and Nate had gone through so much together. The bond between them went much deeper than physical attraction. They’d survived a hell of a lot, and they weren’t safe yet.
“You’re beautiful, Isabel Delgado,” he murmured, his hand sliding down to palm her ass.
She felt beautiful beneath his gaze, despite the fact that she was bruised, battered, wore no makeup, and hadn’t shaved in days. “You’re not half-bad yourself.”
“Damn nice way to wake up.” He leaned in and kissed her.