by Zoe Chant
“It’s not mine, unfortunately,” Holly said, laughing. “I’m just renting it. If I owned a cabin like this, I don’t think I’d ever leave.”
Oh, Stefan thought. He liked the forest, but it wasn’t his natural habitat. “It is beautiful out here,” he said, as they made their way up the path. “But I have to admit, I prefer a hotter climate myself.”
“Oh, tell me about it,” Holly said. “Winters up here can be murder. I always thought it might be good to live down in California, or somewhere a little warmer. Even Las Vegas – I mean, yeah, it’s got a reputation, but that might be exciting too!”
She likes the desert, his dragon said, eyes closed to smug slits, as if it had proved something to him.
“Me too,” Stefan said, ignoring it. “In fact, that’s where I’m from originally. I grew up around that area. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t miss it.”
“Really?” Holly grinned, but there was something a little wistful about it. “Must be cool – I was all ready to head down that way just recently, but… well, things didn’t work out.”
There was sadness in her voice. It made Stefan want to hold her close and run his fingers through her hair, and promise her she’d never feel such sadness again. His fingers twitched, wanting to reach out to her…
“Why did you leave? Not for the weather, I’m guessing.” Holly’s eyes sparkled as she looked at him.
Stefan hesitated. “It was for… family reasons,” he eventually settled on. It wasn’t a lie – his mother had hidden him here so he’d be safe.
Holly opened her mouth, but then, seeming to intuit that this was a painful topic for him, simply nodded her head.
They made their way up the front steps of the cabin, Holly holding onto the carved wood of the handrail to help her as she took the steps, Stefan holding onto her other arm. His skin tingled where they touched – and he was sure that she could feel it too. He watched as her soft pink tongue darted over her full lips, moistening them and making them shine.
“Here – sit down while you take your boots off,” Stefan said, helping her onto a huge wooden chest on the porch. Holly simply flashed him a grin, her cheeks flushed.
Holly slowly unlaced her hiking boots, easing off the left one before moving her foot up and down experimentally. “Hurts a little,” she said. “But I think it’s okay. I really am grateful for you helping me – it probably would’ve taken me hours to hobble back here on my own. Provided I wasn’t getting carried around inside the bear’s stomach.”
At her joke, the dragon’s head shot up. Tell her we’d never let that happen to her! Never!
Calm down, Stefan told it as he laughed lightly. It was just a joke. People make those sometimes, you know.
The dragon’s eyes narrowed to glowering slits, nothing smug about it this time.
“I’m sure everything would have been okay,” Stefan said. “You had your bear spray, and that usually works. I’m sure it was just curious.”
“I can’t believe you faced it down like that! I’ve never seen anything like that before,” Holly said as she loosened her right boot. “You must have a lot of experience with bears.”
“A little,” Stefan said, hoping she wouldn’t press the point too much. If he hadn’t been a dragon, the tactic would have been far more risky.
Holly had removed both her boots now, and was looking up at him, biting her lip.
He knew he should tell her it was nice to have met her, and that he hoped she had a nice time for the rest of her vacation. Say that he hoped she wouldn’t have any more unexpected encounters with bears, and that she should probably stay off that ankle for a day or so, and spend tomorrow reading in the sun instead.
But somehow, he couldn’t make himself say the words. He felt rooted to the spot – he couldn’t make himself turn away from her, even if he’d wanted to.
“Look, if you’re not in a hurry to be on your way, can I offer you a cup of coffee?” Holly said, the words tumbling out of her mouth in a rush. “I mean – only if you have time. I’d just feel bad sending you off without something to eat or drink, since you were so kind to me.”
Stefan hesitated. He knew he shouldn’t. Every second more in her company only made it harder on both of them. Holly may not have known or understood a shifter’s mated bond, but she could obviously feel something between them. The sooner he left her, the more chance she’d have of forgetting about him and moving on.
Forgetting her might not be an option for him, but the less time he spent with her, the less, he hoped, he would desperately regret leaving her for the rest of his life.
“Sure, if you don’t mind. I’d love a coffee,” he said, then stiffened. He had not meant to say that.
Did you do that? he demanded, as his dragon curled itself up, smug once more, smoke coiling up from its nostrils.
“Great!” said Holly, her eyes shining. “That’s – that’s really great. I’d just really like a chance to thank you.”
Stefan opened his mouth to say that actually, now that he thought about it, he did have somewhere he needed to be – but at the sight of the wide smile on her face, the light blush on her cheeks, and most of all, her gorgeous blue eyes, he found he couldn’t say anything at all.
It’s just a coffee, he told himself. It’ll be okay.
Chapter Five
Holly
Holly could barely contain her excitement as she made her – slightly limping – way through the door.
She’d never responded to any man the way she was responding to Stefan. She had to keep reminding herself that they’d known each other all of a couple of hours, and yet, she could barely keep her eyes off him. With his tousled dark hair and bright green eyes, along with the light stubble that covered his chin, he could have wandered off the pages of a fashion magazine – except he was far too masculine for that.
She shivered as she allowed her eyes to pass over his biceps, visible even beneath the material of his jacket, and his denim-clad thighs, which were as thick as tree trunks.
Speaking of trees, I’d climb him like one, Holly thought, before blushing slightly at her own dirty thoughts.
You don’t even know him! she wailed at herself as she went into the kitchen, turning away so Stefan wouldn’t see her burning cheeks. Swallowing, she tried to reason with herself. Women go home with men they meet in clubs after even less time, she thought as she opened the coffee pot. It’s called modern life. No one cares about that stuff anymore.
But that wasn’t her scene, and it never had been. At college, she’d always been teased for being too serious and shy. She’d never had that much interest in going out and meeting men. Given a choice, she’d much rather spend her evenings curled up on the sofa with a good movie – or even a bad one – and a cup of cocoa than going wild at bars.
“You should let me make that.”
Stefan’s deep voice behind her made her jump. She’d been so caught up in her thoughts that she hadn’t heard him coming. Though she wondered how she’d missed it now – the skin on her back was alive with prickles, as if it was sent into a frenzy of heat by mere proximity to him.
“What?” she asked, momentarily at a loss, before looking down at the coffee in her hands. “Oh – no! It’s fine. I said I’d make you a coffee – it’s the least I can do, after you’ve been so kind.”
Stefan shook his head, gently but firmly. “You should be staying off that ankle. I can make some coffee – it’s no trouble.”
Holly hesitated a moment. “But –”
“But nothing. Take a seat.”
Even if she’d wanted to argue with him, in the next second he’d plucked the coffee tin out of her fingers and was busying himself filling the pot with water.
“If you’re sure,” she said, lingering a moment longer.
“Of course I’m sure. I didn’t help you all the way back here for you to go ruining your ankle making me coffee.” There was laughter in his voice as he flashed her his brilliant smile. Holly couldn’t help
but return it, feeling her insides melt a little.
Hottest man I’ve ever seen, and he’s a total gentleman, she thought to herself as she limped into the living room, flopping down onto the couch. She watched Stefan’s back as he put the pot on to boil. His shoulders were broad, and she found herself wondering what it would be like to run her hands over them, feel his steel-hard muscles beneath his warm skin…
Blushing again, Holly forced herself to look down into her lap.
Honestly. Anyone would think you were a horny adolescent, she scolded herself.
But she couldn’t help it. There was just something about him that… spoke to her. It wasn’t only a physical attraction. He resonated with something deep inside her – something hidden, something that perhaps she’d pushed down inside herself long ago. Something that yearned for wildness and freedom, the desire to fling herself headlong into the blue, open sky…
… The part of her that never wanted to go back to a desk ever again, spending all day surrounded by close walls and closer deadlines, before packing up and going back to her dull little home, cleaning up after George – or whatever man was in her life at the time – every day always the same, until… what?
Holly shuddered. She’d never wanted that life, but she had never been sure how to break out of it. With George unemployed and her paycheck the only thing keeping them afloat, there was no way she could have run off on any grand adventure. She had hoped maybe the move to San Francisco would be the beginning of something different – a new phase in her life.
And look how that turned out.
Holly swallowed, pushing it out of her mind.
I can’t dwell on the past.
Dwelling would only fill her heart with fear, and then she’d never be able to do the things she wanted to do – to fulfill the parts of her that had lain dormant.
Until now, it seemed.
“Here you go,” Stefan said as he placed the steaming mug of coffee down on the table in front of her. “White with one – did I guess correctly?”
Holly looked up, surprised. “You did!” She gathered up the coffee gratefully. “I know the sugar isn’t so good for me, but it’s a bad habit I can’t seem to break.”
Stefan shrugged. “You’re not going to approve of me, then – I like mine black with three.”
“Three!” Holly burst out laughing. “How can you even stand that?”
“I guess I’ve always had a bit of a sweet tooth,” Stefan said, settling himself into one of the armchairs on the other side of the table.
It was lucky the furniture here was so luxuriously oversized or else he wouldn’t have fit, Holly reflected to herself as she sipped her coffee, watching Stefan from beneath her eyelashes. As it was, the chair could barely contain him. He really was a big guy.
“A bit of a sweet tooth might be understating it,” she said. “If I tried that I’d be crawling around on the ceiling like something out of The Exorcist.”
Stefan cocked his head, his face blank. “I’m sorry, like what?”
Holly blinked. How could he not have heard of The Exorcist? “You know… like the movie. Little girl gets possessed by a demon, vomits on a priest, and… uh… well, all sorts of other stuff.”
Stefan didn’t look like he had any idea what she was talking about. “That sounds interesting. Is it new?”
For a moment, Holly pursed her lips, confused. “Not really. I mean… it came out in 1973. There was a bunch of sequels, but they’re all crap.” She shook her head. “Sorry, I’m a bit of a film nerd. I guess I… well, I thought everyone had heard of it. Maybe it’s just me.”
She laughed, but she was still amazed Stefan didn’t know what she was talking about.
“I’m sorry, I guess I just haven’t had the chance to watch many movies,” he said ruefully. “I hope that doesn’t count against me.”
There was a slight pause as Holly digested what he’d said. Count against him… how? In my opinion of him? She blinked. Because he cares about what I think of him?
Seeming to realize what he’d said, Stefan coughed a little, as if embarrassed. “I suppose I had a kind of… sheltered upbringing,” he said quickly. “My folks weren’t what you’d call conventional, I guess.”
Holly caught the significance of the past tense – his folks weren’t conventional. Again, she sensed a strange kind of sadness in him – she’d felt it before, when he’d said he’d moved out to this place for family reasons.
She wasn’t sure how, but when he spoke of his family, she could almost feel his sadness. Holly didn’t want to pry, so she’d hadn’t asked him what he meant back then. And despite the fact she was suddenly overwhelmed with the desire to comfort him, she felt it might be rude or upsetting to ask him about it now.
They were still almost perfect strangers, after all.
“It’s not important,” she said, shaking her head and smiling. Feeling suddenly bold, she said, “It just means there’s plenty of movies I could show you.”
Stefan glanced up at her, his green eyes warm. Holly could feel the heat of his gaze rush through her, settling in her stomach, winding its way down between her legs…
But then he coughed and looked away, shifting uncomfortably on the large chair, and the moment was broken.
Confused, Holly licked her lips. She was sure she wasn’t imagining things – there was something between them.
But then again, she thought, covering her uncertainty by taking a long drink of coffee, you just got out of a messy breakup. Are you sure you’re not just grabbing at shadows?
It had only been a few weeks since George had left her, and left her life in a complete mess. It would be a terrible idea to have a rebound fling, or to try to make a judgment about any man right now. She just wasn’t ready for that. She couldn’t trust herself to be sensible – and what if she developed feelings for Stefan that he didn’t return? Sure, there was an undeniable attraction between them, but Holly didn’t think she could stand to get her heart broken for the second time in a month.
“You still need some ice for your ankle.” As if sensing her unease, Stefan had risen and was heading back to the kitchen.
“Oh – you don’t need to do that,” Holly said, feeling as if she was in a daze. It didn’t matter what she said, though: Stefan had already opened the freezer, pulling out an ice tray and popping the cubes into a towel.
He looked over at her as he twisted the top of the towel to keep them inside. “You haven’t let anyone look after you for a while, have you?”
Holly drew in a quick, shocked breath. What he said was true: despite her long relationship with George, she’d been taking care of both of them for a long time. The idea that anyone – let alone someone she’d only just met – would take care of her for a change affected her in a way she hadn’t expected.
“I guess not,” she said quietly. Loneliness welled up inside her. She blinked rapidly, feeling tears threatening to spill down her cheeks.
No. No way. Do not cry in front of him. He’ll think you’re nuts.
Drawing in a deep breath, Holly tried to collect herself before looking up – only to find Stefan kneeling on the floor in front of her, towel in hand. His dark brows were drawn together, concern clear in his eyes.
“Are you okay?” he asked, though Holly was certain he could tell she was only just holding back tears. “Is there… something I can do?”
Holly shook her head, ruthlessly blinking back her tears. “No – no. I’m sorry. It’s nothing, really. I guess I… I’ve just been having a bit of a hard time recently.”
Gently, Stefan lifted her foot to rest it on his thigh.
It’s warm, Holly thought hazily – which contrasted to the sudden cold shock of the ice pack against the skin of her ankle.
“Eek!” she squealed, clenching her fists. “That’s so cold!”
But she could already feel the ice soothing her injured ankle – well, that, and the slow circle Stefan’s thumb was tracing over the ball of her foot. It felt a
lmost as if he was drawing the pain steadily out of her body with every soft touch. And not only the pain in her ankle, but the pain in her heart – the desperate loneliness and depression she’d felt inside her since that terrible day she’d come home to find George’s things packed.
Like poison being drawn out of a wound, Holly thought vaguely, staring down at the top of Stefan’s head, his ruffled black hair hanging down over his face. She had a sudden urge to run her hands through it – but she managed to restrain herself. Just.
“That feels really good,” she said instead, knowing she sounded a little… well, out of it. There was something about the way he was touching her that just made her relax, the tension draining from her body. “I don’t remember the last time anyone gave me a foot rub,” she continued after a moment. “Let alone one this amazing.”
Stefan looked up at her, green eyes almost seeming to glow. “That’s a shame,” he said, smiling. “Especially if you’ve been having a hard time. Is that why you came out here?”
Biting her lip, Holly nodded. She had sworn she wasn’t going to spill her guts to Stefan, but his tone was so gentle and so genuinely sympathetic that she felt the words beginning to spill out of her. “Yeah. I guess I… well, things didn’t work out the way I wanted them to. I wanted to forget about an ex-boyfriend.”
Stefan’s eyes narrowed, the warmth draining out of them. “What did he do?”
Holly shook her head quickly. “Nothing bad. I mean, he never hit me or hurt me. Not physically, anyway. But I guess he just turned out to be way more selfish than I thought he was. He dumped me really suddenly, after we’d made plans together and… and I thought we’d be starting a new life.” She shook her head ruefully. “It was stupid of me, but I quit my job really quickly too. My boss was looking to make cutbacks, and I thought it would save him some hassle and maybe a couple of my co-workers’ jobs.” She laughed, though it was humorless. “So as you can see, I got myself into a bit of a pickle. A couple of weeks in a cabin seemed like a better antidote than sitting around my apartment feeling sorry for myself.”