Page 3 of Peaked Desires

CHAPTER TWO

Elise

My lungs fill with fresh air, stepping down the steps of the employee cabin. I can’t help but hold a hand over my belly, the sinking, squirming feeling inside feeling like it’s about to suffocate me.

It’s a feeling too familiar.

This is not how I imagined my first day at Mountain Retreat Lodge would go.

I take a deep breath. A beautiful bird with the brightest of blue feathers lands on a giant fir tree branch directly above the huge man walking ahead of me. It’s like a sign from nature to calm the fuck down.

“I’ll get you started with Tracy today,” Huxton says, twisting his massive boots on the pebbled path ahead of me.

I nod gently and smile.

I still can’t look my new boss in the eye. A gruff, wild man like him storming into the cabin like some kind of yeti mountain beast isn’t exactly settling. Add in the fact that I was standing in a towel that barely covered my lumps and bumps? Shoot me now.

Huxton waits ahead of me, broad shoulders that I swear are wider than the tree trunk we pass. His coat is hanging open, and I need to distract myself from the tight t-shirt hiding what appears to be well-defined muscles beneath. The cute little bird starts to sing above us, a gentle whistle so sweet it matches our beautiful surroundings. It provides the perfect distraction from the attractive man-beast I’m following.

The lodge is nestled in the peaks of a tranquil mountain landscape. Never-ending forest, earthy aromas of cedar, damp soil and freedom. As I look around, log cabins are scattered everywhere. Like precious little gems, each of them looks far more cozy and inviting than the skyscrapers I left behind in Seattle.

I packed my bags weeks ago, finally taking the leap and doing something for myself. This is a new adventure. A chapter in my life that is exactly that - mine.

A new life. A new me.

The wilderness of Falls Creek Mountain and this gorgeous new retreat is the change I need. Finally, I can play by my own rules.

“So where have you come from?” Huxton grunts when I catch up to him.

His voice is so low and growly. My skin prickles at the sound.

“Seattle,” I reply, working double time to keep up with Huxton’s giant steps.

He looks down at me, daggered blue eyes piercing a heat on my cool cheeks. “City girl, huh?”

I’m not sure if he means to sound unimpressed, but it feels like a punch to the guts hearing the judgement in his voice. I mean, I should be used to being pigeonholed, but that’s the exact reason I’ve escaped the city.

“I guess so,” I reply. “But I needed the change of pace. Escape the noise and expectations of the city. A fresh start, you know?”

Huxton nods thoughtfully and quizzes me a bit more as we walk. I’m surprised at his interest in my history, but the more I open up about why I’ve moved to the mountain, the slower he walks. Eventually we turn the final corner on the path, and his eyes narrow ahead of us. I follow his gaze and see we’ve reached the main entrance of the retreat.

“Is that the office?” I say.

“Yeah,” Huxton drags out.

His steps slow beside me, as if something has crossed his mind. I look up at him and can almost see the wheels turning in his head. Suddenly he comes to a complete stop, one hand diving into his pocket, the other scrubbing his thick beard.

He’s deep in thought, silent for just long enough for me to get my first proper look at him.

Of course I’ve noticed the handsome features on his face. Those dark lashes that frame perfectly blue eyes. They’re almost cobalt blue - gorgeous. But he’s chiseled elsewhere, a square-jaw covered in a thick beard. I wonder what it would feel like on my skin?

“I tell you what,” he says eventually, his eyes darkening as they close in on mine. His eyes flick down my body and my skin heats. A flush of something I don’t recognize swarms over my body from the intensity of his stare. “Why don’t I show you around myself? There’s a lot to see here, and Tracy has been run off her feet this week.”

I blink, taken aback by the offer. I’ve been an inconvenience my entire life, shunned to the background. Pushed aside at any cost. So to have someone reach out with such kindness is new to me.

I realize Huxton is still staring at me, and I haven’t answered his question. I’m just standing here staring back at him. My heart begins to race, and I swear I catch his eyes roaming down my body again.

He can’t be though, can he? He can’t be interested in me that way.

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