Page 5 of Snowed In With the Grizzly

I leap to my feet, charge outside, and head for my car again. And…

The dang thing won’t start. The engine coughs and coughs, but it won’t turn over. I try again, and again… but,nada.

So much for that idea. I drop my head to the steering wheel.

Now it’s really going to be a brutal night.

When I lift my head again, I spot something in the distance—another cabin, maybe a couple of hundred yards away. Weird. I don’t remember it being here before. Anyway—

Time for plan C.

I get out of the car and start walking. The snow is getting heavier now. The wind stings my face and I can feel the blizzard approaching. But lights are glowing from the windows of the cabin. It looks cozy and welcoming. Fingers crossed that’s the case. There’s a big black truck parked out the front. Looks like the owner’s home.

I walk up to the solid wooden front door and knock.

No answer.

I wait for a minute and knock again, but no one comes.

There goes that idea.

Heaviness weighs me down.

But as I turn to leave, the wind drops and I hear a thud. I go still.

There’s another, and another, coming from behind the house.

Whatisthat?

It sounds violent. I feel uneasy, but I follow it anyway.

I creep around the corner, and… freeze.

Because there’s a bare-chested man, swinging an axe. He has his back to me, but as I approach, he swivels around, axe in hand.

A gasp dies on my lips.

He’s huge, tall, musclebound. In a daze, I take in tousled dark hair, a scruffy beard and a pair of blazing eyes—which are fixed on me. He’s the most handsome man I’ve seen in my life. And he’s outside, shirtless, in the dead of winter.

His eyes get fiercer as he takes me in, almost glowing in the dim light.

I should run. Some primitive part of my brain is telling me so. We’re in the middle of nowhere. He’s massive. There’s a deadly weapon in his hand. And a predatory look in his eyes.

Any sane person would be running in the opposite direction.

But I don’t.

I just stand there andstare.

“Finally,” he says. His voice is low and hoarse, as if he hasn’t spoken in a long time. But the word pours out of him like relief. His eyes continue to burn into mine, and he takes a step toward me.

I hold still, heart fluttering like a bird’s.

2

Jaxton

My animal twitches beneath my skin as I take in this vision. I can hardly believe my eyes. I’ve waited for this moment for four long years, part of me doubting I’d ever see her again.

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