Page 8 of Mountain Man Daddy

If there was anything he’d learned as a recluse, it was that deep down he still needed to be needed. And this girl needed him.

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Avery followed the path she found along the road that led into the dense bush. She wasn’t sure when they’d discover she was gone, but he’d probably expect her to stick to the roads. Plus, the trail had fresh ATV tracks and that was the only way she’d be able to find her way back. As she struggled, dauntingly slow through the brush, she thought about her original plan, pre-moose, and pre-mountain-man rescue. She’d keep on heading east to Nova Scotia—keep ahead of the thugs and revisit the places she’d been with her parents.

When her list was complete, she’d find a small town, settle in, and pray they’d never find her, but if they did, she’d at least have seen the places she longed to.

Avery’s breath was labored and her exhaustion was in full force, but if she wanted to see her plan through, she had to push herself and get back to the Jeep.

Looking ahead, Avery wondered how much farther she had to go. Not only did she have to get back and get her money and gun, but she had to make sure no one else found it. It would raise suspicion, and damn, if they figured out the car was stolen and she got caught—. She swallowed. How had her life gotten so complicated? One minute she was a simple farm girl going off to college, the next she was married to a con artist and her life was crumbling around her.

The wind had picked up, so she tightened the jacket around her throat, but her mind lingered on Alex. It was partly her own fault for falling for him. Maybe if she hadn’t been so eager for love, she would have seen through his façade—the money, plus freedom from her strict, unloving grandparents, had intoxicated her. She hadn’t been thinking clearly, and she hadn’t sobered for years.

Drawing in a breath, she steadied herself against a tree. She’d grown up praying that her grandparents would love her. As she got older, the prayers, childish dreams, and memories of a life with unconditional love had disappeared. Then she met Alex, but he was just as much of a disappointment.

The brush was tangled and frozen since the temperature had risen for a few days and then dropped suddenly. Every time Avery slipped on ice, or her foot snagged on tangled roots, she’d break out in a sweat, and her stitches would pull painfully.

Keep moving. One foot and then another.

The sight of the Jeep made her eyes widen, first in relief that she’d made it and then in shock. How had she survived when the vehicle was so mangled? She narrowed her eyes quickly as the gusts of frigid wind made them water.

She was humbled by the wreckage. It was a miracle she’d lived, let alone still stood. A wave of dizziness struck, and her vision doubled. She grabbed the Jeep to steady herself. Her hands were freezing, and the cold steel didn’t help.

Looking to the ground, she breathed in deep and slow, but the moment her vision cleared she noted the frozen prints on the ground. It brought her mind back to the crash and rescue, remembering a bear. Her brow furrowed at the thought. Maybe it was a dog, she considered. But those prints definitely looked bear-ish, and there was another set too.

Avery crouched lower and examined them. Maybe… a cat? Not a house cat though but a wild cat—something big and dangerous. She shivered and stood, closing the coat tighter around her neck again and peering around. What was in these mountains?

She climbed with her knees onto the driver’s seat, ignoring the stabbing pull to her leg sutures—not to mention the bitter cold that blew up the back of the jacket. She had to find her purse, and she needed some shelter. She looked up as the snow started.

Anxiousness flooded her the more she looked unsuccessfully for her purse. She wanted out of the woods as fast as possible—away from the elements, bears, cats, and… as if on cue a lone wolf howled in the distance and several answered, sounding nearer. Her hands trembled and she felt terror building. She sucked in a deep breath. She was just overwhelmed and exhausted. She’d be okay. Wouldn’t she?

After several more minutes of riffling through the wreck, she was still empty handed. She stood staring, dumbfounded, ignoring her eyes that watered profusely from the bitter wind. Her purse was gone. The money, the gun, her bag of toiletries and change of clothes—all gone. A wave of nausea had her doubling over, and panic overtook her. Had her husband’s killers found her already? She clutched her knees for support and tried to control her rapid breathing.

“Lookin’ for something?” Yukon’s gruff voice made her bolt upright and the world started to spin so fast she stumbled and ended up on her butt. She groaned in embarrassment, but she was relieved at the sight of him, especially as the wolves howled again.

He grumbled a curse, sounding disgruntled and hoisted her up. She swayed unsteadily and shivered from the cold. Him looking completely comfortable in the icy wilderness pissed her off.

“Wanna tell me what the hell you were thinking leaving Annie’s? Walking three miles when yesterday you couldn’t even get to the bathroom alone?” he growled, sounding more beast than man. “And how about being out in this?” His gloved hand gestured up to the falling snow and howling wind. “They’re predicting a massive storm. One that will take the lives of anyone stupid enough to get caught in it. Do you want to die, little girl?” His hands slammed onto his hips. “Do you?”

“Uh, of course not.” Wasn’tdeath-by-natureexactly what she’d been wishing for a week ago? He grunted, yanking her out of her thoughts. “I didn’t know,” she mumbled dumbly.

“It’s been all over the news you’ve been watching for days.” Avery leaned forward and clutched her knees again—this time breathing in and out in steady puffing breaths. She hadn’t given a damn about the weather report; she was watching the news for anything pertaining to her or the two men who chased her.

He swore again, walked to the rear of the Jeep, and popped open the door. Walking back to her, he bent down, scooped an arm behind her knees, and lifted her up, making her yelp in surprise. He sat her down in the back. It was the only place unaffected by the crash, but the wind blew in, curved around and back out with a bitter whine.

“You’re in no shape to be out of bed, little girl,” his voice shouted over a loud rush of wind. “You’re also in no condition to be exploring the forest with cougars, bears, and wolves around in a friggin’ storm. Especially not where the smell of blood is strong enough to attract predators for miles.” His arms were across his broad chest and his stern eyes plowed into hers. She felt a blip of nervousness and more heat.

She was confounded by her attraction to this gruff man. She should have been repulsed by his abrupt and demanding mannerisms, but she wasn’t. She tilted her head. There was concern underlying the grousing. This man cared. How could he care when both her family and Alex hadn’t?

“Where’s your coat?” she asked, suddenly noticing he wasn’t wearing one. He didn’t appear cold, but he should have. He was only wearing a blue checkered shirt with a white waffle-knit thermal under it. “You have the nerve to lecture me and you don’t even have a bloody coat on!” His right brow shot up and he looked hard at her attire. She looked down at herself. Oh, yeah. She was wearing his coat. She looked back at him meekly. “Oops.”

“Not only did you take my coat, little girl, but my keys, too.” She felt the pockets and frowned, her gut sinking. She started shrugging out of the coat but he stopped her with a warning glare, so she pulled it back on. He came closer and pulled it tighter, buttoning it up to the neck until she no longer felt the frigid air at her throat.

“Little girl?” She hugged her gut. “Why do you always call me that?” Her voice felt hoarse.

“Any woman acting like you may as well be a little girl—one in desperate need of some discipline.” His eyes narrowed. “If you weren’t such a mess and it wasn’t so damn cold, I’d put you over my knee right here.” He leaned both arms on either side of her and leaned close. “Besides, you won’t tell me your goddamned name so I have to call you something, don’t I?”

“Oh, yeah. I guess,” was all she could reply. These threats did something strange to her insides. She looked at him with a head tilt, suddenly feeling amused. “Discipline from my daddy?”she smirked inappropriately, remembering their conversation when he’d fed her.

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