Page 27 of Cozy Cabin for Two
When the trees opened, we suddenly stood on an outcropping of boulders. He held a hand out for me to come with him to the edge of the largest.
“Wow,” I breathed. There were no other words for this view off the cliff overlooking a small valley with a river below it.
“Worth the ride?”
“Hell yes.” It took my breath away. He pointed out a herd of elk grazing on the prairie below us.
“I discovered this during one of my long rides last spring. I had vowed to scope out the entire ranch, to discover every nook and cranny. Chris liked the idea, wanting me to map out the whole thing. I’m not finished yet, but I’ve covered quite a bit of ground each weekend through summer, taking photos andnotes in a journal. I sketched the flowers and wildlife, hunted or fished for what I ate, and camped out under the stars.”
“Ash. That’s incredible. I like this survivalist part of you.” I gaped at him, discovering a side of him I didn’t know existed. This mountain man part of him appealed in so many ways. Definite turn-on. I could be his mountain woman if he’d let me.
“Chris bought a few ranches, making the ODRR about two thousand acres total. I think this part has been practically untouched for years. Across the field of flowers are remnants of an old log cabin. If I had to guess, settlers from the early 1900s.”
“Breathtaking.” My soul stirred being here with him, like I belonged. “Those settlers knew what they were doing. This would be a beautiful place for a cabin.”
“Glad you think so. I’ve had the same thought nagging at me ever since I found it.”
My mind raced. A cozy cabin for—three or more here? More than a cabin, actually, more like a home for a family. Was that why he showed it to me? And here I thought he brought me here for sex, for our first time together. Or both…
I imposed a hold on those thoughts and took several photos with my phone. He brought out aflannel blanket from his pack for us to sit on. The boulder’s flat surface proved perfect for this.
“It’s so pristine up here. I feel like we’re all alone on an island. Such a peaceful place.” I closed my eyes and leaned back on my arms, tilting my face toward the big sky. The sun’s rays sent a burst of energy through me as if recharging my batteries.
“I’m so glad you feel that way.”
I heard the click of his phone and opened my eyes to find him snapping a photo of me.
“Take one of us together to show Ro. Of course, she’ll want to come up here, too, sometime.” I snuggled closer to him and smiled, and he took the photo. When he showed it to me, we looked like we belonged together. His smile dazzled me, the biggest I’d seen on him since I arrived.
Then my stomach growled. “Well, that disturbed the peace,” I giggled.
“I have a remedy for that.” He produced white bread, bologna, and peanut butter from the bag. With his pocketknife, he spread the PB on the slices, slapped the meat between them, and handed it over.
“Oh my God. You remembered my favorite?” My laughter echoed around us.
“How could I forget the day you dared me and Scott to eat them? Only he gagged at the taste, butsurprisingly I liked the combination.” He brought out a bottle of lemonade to share between us.
“Ro definitely takes after Scott. She loves bologna but not the PB part. It’s been a long time since I made these.” I grinned and took a huge bite, moaning with delight. “Yes. Oh, God yes.”
He groaned, hardly eating, watching me enjoy myself. My eyes flicked down to his crotch, where a noticeable bulge formed. With each bite I took, I played up my moans more, elongating my throat working for his viewing pleasure.
After we ate and packed the food away, I tackled him on the blanket. We laughed and wrestled until I was on top of him, pinning him down. “Finally, you can’t run from me, Ash.”
“I wasn’t running from you. I was running from this. From what you make me feel.” The words slipped from his mouth raw and honest, like the faint breeze in the air.
I had trouble speaking past the tightness in my throat. I croaked. “What do I make you feel?”
“Like I want things I have no right to want. As if Scott would even think I’m good enough for his family.”
“Scott never said you weren’t good enough. I swear he worshipped you.” I sat up on top of him, confused.
“Right. Too bad I was the brother who couldn’t stay put, who chose the Army over home, who left him to deal with our asshole of a father, and who wasn’t there when he needed me.” The words poured out of him like a dam breaking, all the guilt and self-recrimination he’d been carrying for years put before me. “And now you’re here, and Ro’s calling me Uncle Ash like I deserve the title, and you’re looking at me like-like…”
“Like what?”
“You see something worth holding onto.”
“But I do,” I whispered.
