by Jennie Marts
“She’s not bothering me. She’s adorable.” Avery snuggled her face against the dog’s. “I think she was lonely out there by herself.”
“I think she’s hungry.” He stretched, opening his eyes and squinting at the windows. The rain had slowed to a steady drizzle and dusk had settled in. “She’s not the only one. I seem to have worked up quite an appetite myself.”
He patted her belly. “How about you? You hungry? I don’t have a lot of food up here, but I have some canned stuff, soup, and probably a few boxes of pasta. And I always keep some extra dog food up here if we get really desperate.”
“I could eat. I’ll pass on the dog food for now, but the other stuff sounds great.” Her stomach growled, confirming her statement. With the mention of food, she was suddenly ravenous. She sat up, then looked around the room, a sinking feeling filling her gut. “Um, I have a bit a problem. I have no clothes. Mine are muddy and wet and still laying on the floor of the shower.”
He grinned. “That doesn’t sound like a problem to me. In fact, I’ve heard canned soup tastes better when you eat it naked.” He sat up next to her, dropping a kiss on her shoulder. “I know an old shoe would taste delicious if I were eating it while sitting across the table from your naked body.”
She chuckled and nudged his shoulder, her cheeks warming at the thought of eating a meal with him in the nude. The brazen hussy part of her seemed to have abandoned ship, and she suddenly felt shy as she pulled the sheet around her. “How about I just wear this sheet? I heard togas are back in this season.”
He pushed up off the bed, giving her a great view of his naked butt—damn, the man had a magnificent butt—as he crossed to the dresser on the other side of the room.
“I have a few clothes here.” He opened the drawer and grabbed out a pair of gray shorts. After pulling them on, he tossed her a yellow T-shirt with a picture of a fish on it and a pair of black gym shorts. “Those shorts have a drawstring, so they should do in a pinch. And it won’t bother me if they happen to fall down.”
She laughed again. Seriously, the guy wasn’t that funny. But she just felt happy, and it felt good to laugh. Felt great, actually.
She held up the shirt, reading aloud the caption printed on the front. “Kiss my bass.”
Sully shrugged. “We sell them at the shop. I always get the overstock, and it’s good advertising if I wear them.” He pulled out another shirt and tugged it over his head, this one with a fisherman on the front that read: I’m calling in sick because my arm’s in a cast.
“They suit you,” she told him, then pulled the shirt on over her head. The shorts were too big but the drawstring worked and she pulled it tight around her waist. “I’m going to wash my stuff out and hang it to dry, then I’ll help you with the meal.”
“I got it,” he said. “Take your time.”
She padded into the bathroom and gasped as she caught sight of herself in the mirror. The remnants of her mascara were smudged under one eye and her wavy hair was in chaos, pressed flat on one side of her head and a crazy mess of curls and wings on the other. She had enough wingers going on that she could take off and fly.
She stripped out of her clothes and took another quick shower, using the masculine shampoo and shower gel that were in there. The scent of Sully rose in the steam, and images of the two of them pressed against the shower wall filled her head. Holy hot shower—she still couldn’t quite believe she’d done that.
After washing up, she quickly rinsed out her clothes and hung them on the shower rod to dry. She towel-dried her hair and searched the drawers, praying she would find a brush or some hair product. She figured a tube of mascara would be too much to hope for.
Finding a comb and some toothpaste, she did the best she could to untangle her hair and get it in some semblance to air dry. Using the toothpaste and her finger, she gave her teeth a quick scrub.
It was the best she could do under the circumstances. The circumstances being that she had no makeup, no hair product, and was going commando in men’s shorts and a fishing T-shirt.
Sully looked up and smiled as she stepped out of the bathroom. He gestured to the small table where he’d set out two plates and some silverware. “I found some spaghetti and a jar of sauce. It’s not fancy, but it’s hot.” He held the lid over the pan to strain the noodles as he poured the water down the sink. “I’ve got bottled water, some soda, and a few beers. Take your pick.”
She opened the small refrigerator and pulled out a bottle of water. Twisting off the lid, she took a drink, the cool water feeling good on her dry throat. “This is great. And I love spaghetti.”
He dumped the noodles into a pan of sauce that was bubbling on the stove, stirred it together, then carried the pan over to the table.
Spooning piles of spaghetti onto each plate, he nodded for her to sit down.
“This looks delicious.” The scents of tomato sauce and pasta filled the air, and she sat down across from him and dug into her plate.
They ate in silence for a few minutes, both of them engrossed in getting the food into their mouths.
“That was perfect,” she said, leaning back in her chair and holding her stomach. “The best damn spaghetti I’ve ever eaten.”
“It was pretty good. I’m glad I found some stuff to throw together. I try to keep a few more things up here in the summer because I usually come out every weekend,” he explained, loading his fork with the last of the noodles on his plate.
“A few more things like a purple box of condoms?”
He dropped his fork, the utensil clattering against the plate as his ears went red.
“So, is this your own personal love nest?” she asked. “Like where you bring all your romantic trysts?”
He laughed. Laughed so hard that she thought he was going to choke.
“No,” he finally sputtered. “The only thing nesting in this cabin are squirrels.” He took a sip of his beer and let out another chuckle. “And this is not where I bring my romantic trysts. I do not have romantic trysts or any kind of trysts, for that matter. I’m not even sure that I know what a ‘tryst’ entails. But Matt brought someone up here this winter, and I knew I’d seen a box of condoms somewhere in the cabin.” He looked slyly at her. “But I’m certainly glad that I found them.”
“Me, too.” She laughed, then stood up and straddled his lap. Running her fingers through his hair, she leaned down and gave him a kiss. He tasted like beer and tomato sauce. “So, you’ve never had a romantic tryst up here before?”
He shook his head. “Not a single one.”
“Let’s change that now.” She kissed him again, first on the mouth, then on the cheek, then on his neck under his ear. “Consider this your first tryst.”
The bold girl was back, and she grabbed the hem of her T-shirt, pulled it over her head, and dropped it onto the floor.
Sully’s eyes went wide, then a grin tugged up the corner of his lips as he looked down at her bare breasts then back up to her face. “I’m still a little unclear on what all a tryst entails. I might need a little instruction.”
“How about I instruct you to take me back to bed?” she asked, her tone saucy.
“That’s an instruction I can handle.” He lifted her up, and she wrapped her legs around his waist as he carried her to the bedroom.
She had a feeling her hair was about to get messed up again. And she couldn’t care less.
…
There was a strong possibility that this woman just might kill him.
Sully crawled out of bed, careful not to wake her, and crept into the kitchen to make some coffee. Sadie had been asleep by the foot of their bed, and she followed him out.
After measuring the water and an extra scoop of coffee into the pot, he scratched the dog’s neck then stretched his arms over his head as he waited for it to brew. He’d used muscles last night that he didn’t even know he had, and today his body was stiff and sore.
Evidently a tryst involved a naked woman and staying up half the
night discovering the things that made her sigh and moan, and the ones that made her clutch the sheets and cry out his name. He kind of liked those things the most. They were the ones that made the sore muscles and the few hours of sleep worth it.
The first sip of coffee was the best, hot and strong, and the jolt of caffeine was just what he needed to greet the morning. He found some bacon in the fridge and started frying it in the cast iron skillet, then let out Sadie out front.
The sun was just coming up and the rain had stopped, but the ground was still wet. He stood on the front porch and could see the river in the distance, its banks swollen from the heavy rain. The sky was still gloomy with clouds, and the air smelled of damp earth and pine.
Inhaling the crisp mountain air, his face broke into a smile.
Yeah, he could learn to like these tryst things. Especially if they were with Avery.
God, she was beautiful.
And so far out of his league that they weren’t even in the same coalition. But that didn’t seem to matter to her. What was it she called him? Lumberjack porn? Whatever the hell that was.
He may not have known what it was, but he didn’t care. If she wanted lumberjack or rugged mountain man, that’s what he would give her. He would give her just about anything right now.
Even his heart.
And he didn’t think he’d had any heart left to give.
He’d thought Sheila had taken his heart and wrung it so hard through the wringer that it would never recover. The things she’d said to him hadn’t just broken his heart, they’d destroyed it. Like not just sending it through the wringer, but also chopping it up with a cleaver then cranking it through a meat grinder, leaving his heart in a bloody pile of hamburger flesh.
But somehow Avery had been knitting the pieces of his broken heart back together. She was funny and sweet and made him laugh. But she was also bold and daring—holy shit, some of the things that came out of her mouth—it made him hard again just thinking about it.
She was exciting. And he liked her. Liked her a lot.
But he still didn’t know exactly how she felt about him. Besides the fact that she thought he was sexy.
He fought back another grin as he took a sip of coffee.
He knew she liked him. Obviously. Or at least she liked being with him. She seemed to like that a lot. But there was a big difference between enjoying that and having real feelings for someone.
She seemed to really care about him, at least that’s what he read in her expressions and the look in her eyes, but he didn’t really know. This could all be part of the act of them being a couple. She could still be pretending this whole fake relationship thing. Although if she was faking all of that last night, then she was a pretty damn good actress.
But he didn’t think—didn’t hope—this was all an act. They were all alone out here. Who would they be putting on a show for?
The easiest solution would be to ask her. But he wasn’t sure if he wanted to know the answer yet.
Sadie ran back to him, and they stepped inside. The cabin smelled of frying bacon and fresh coffee, and the scents must have drawn Avery out of bed, because she padded barefoot into the kitchen.
“Coffee,” she murmured, opening the cupboard and reaching for a cup. She had on his T-shirt, and he swallowed as he watched the hem of the shirt ride up with her reach, revealing the underside of her bare ass cheeks.
Damn, but she did have a great ass.
She turned around and caught him staring, and her face broke into an impish grin. “Good morning, Sully. You been up long?”
He wasn’t sure if she referred to how long he’d been awake or the current state of his boxer briefs. Knowing her, it could have been either. He grinned back. Two could play at this game. “Not long. Just having some coffee and admiring the view.”
She chuckled and poured herself a cup of coffee. “Any chance you have crème brûlée-flavored coffee creamer?”
It was his turn to chuckle. “Not much of one. But there might be some milk in the fridge, and I’ve got sugar.” He crossed the room and used a fork to turn the bacon.
She cocked an eyebrow at him. “Is there really milk in there or are you just trying to get me to bend over so you can check out my ass again?”
He shrugged, transferring the crisped bacon onto a paper towel-covered plate, then leaned his hip against the counter. “Could be either one.”
Raising an eyebrow, she regarded him with a cocky glance then opened the refrigerator and deliberately bent forward, wiggling her butt way more than necessary for a simple search for milk.
His eyes widened, and the air left his lungs as he watched the sexy display.
Yep, she was definitely going to kill him.
…
It took another hour for them to get out of bed the second time, then they devoured the cold bacon and a pot of oatmeal.
Sully told her that he wanted to hike down the river a bit to see if he could find the raft or any of their supplies. He really hoped to find some of his fishing equipment—he’d just bought the newest Eagle Claw rod and had brought it along, hoping to try it out. He prayed it hadn’t floated down the river.
He told her she could stay at the cabin, but he shouldn’t have been surprised when she stated that she wanted to come along. She wore the same gym shorts and T-shirt from the night before, and had found one of his old flannel shirts to put on. She’d rolled up the sleeves and tied the front ends in a knot at her waist.
Her shoes were still wet, but he gave her a thick pair of wool socks, and she put them on then stuffed her feet into the sneakers.
He led her along the trail, instructing her to keep her eyes peeled for the blue raft or any of their supplies that might have washed up on the banks of the river.
“There—I see something.” She pointed to a patch of blue up ahead.
Hurrying forward, Sully let out a sigh of relief when he saw the raft, with their supplies still secured inside, tangled up in the willows. “I can’t believe it. I thought I’d lost everything.”
He grabbed a stray branch from the ground and held it out over the river. Leaning as far forward as he could without actually stepping into the water, he used the branch to hook the rope that laced around the outside of the boat. Pulling it toward him, he got it close enough to grab the rope and pull it up onto the shore.
“It looks like all of our stuff is still here.”
“What should we do?” Avery asked. “Try to pull the raft back to the cabin?”
“Nah, it’s too heavy with the frame. I’ll tie it to this tree and get Matt to come down with the trailer later and help me get it out of here.” He climbed into the raft and opened the storage box under the seat. He pulled out the bags that had the food, the fishing gear, and his rain coat. He sure could have used that yesterday.
He found some rope and the small backpack she’d brought with her and tossed them on the ground. “You might want that. The rest of the stuff we’ll just have to carry back with us.”
She grabbed the pack and hugged it to her chest. “Yes. I’m so thankful we found this.” Strapping it on her back, she hauled out the other bags while he pulled the boat farther up the shore and lashed it to a sturdy cottonwood tree.
Taking most of the bags, Sully led her down the path and back toward the cabin.
Sadie ran ahead but suddenly stopped and started barking as the hair on her hackles raised on end.
The sound of a hard huff followed by a fierce growl had Sully pushing Avery behind him.
Sadie barked again, and they silently crept forward on the path, rounding the curve to see a large brown bear standing under a tree and two small cubs clinging to the branches above her head.
She turned to look at them, then stamped her feet, letting out another throaty huff.
“Sadie, come.” Sully gave a firm command to the dog, who ran back to him and obediently stood by his legs. “Stay. Good dog.”
“Keep behind me,” he instructed Avery. “But
raise your arms up. We want to look as big as possible. She’s a mama black bear, and they get pretty testy when their cubs are around.”
She raised her arms above her head. “She’s a brown bear, not a black bear.”
“What?” His focus was on the bear, tracking her eyes as she watched their every move. He took a cautious step along the trail, hoping they could just walk right past her.
“You said she was a mama black bear, but she totally looks brown to me.” Avery followed closely behind him.
“Eighty percent of the black bears in Colorado are actually brown in color. Real brown bears are grizzlies, and they’re mainly up north.” He continued to slowly ease forward.
“Why do they call them black bears if the majority of them are brown?”
He stopped and let out a sigh. “I don’t know, and I don’t have time to debate the wisdom of whoever named this particular species of bear. I’m just trying to get us all out of here in one piece.”
The bear lifted her head and let out a gravelly growl. She must not have liked his tone of voice.
Sadie let out another loud bark as the bear shook her head then charged toward them.
Chapter Ten
Avery screamed as the bear lumbered toward them.
Her shriek must have been loud enough to put the bear off-kilter, because it stopped and sat back on its haunches.
Sully stepped forward, his arms raised above his head, growling and yelling at the bear in a ferocious voice. “Get on outta here. Go on.”
She was scared to death—could feel her head tingling, and her body broke into a sweat, tensed and ready to run.
But Sully—he just stood up to that damn bear, hollering and standing up tall and acting like he was tougher than she was and not seeming to be scared at all.
It was the bravest thing she’d ever seen.
“What if she attacks us?” Her voice trembled as she imagined how her skin would feel as the bear ripped a chunk of flesh from her face with its thick, sharp claws. Although, according to Goldilocks, bears weren’t particularly fond of blondes.