Page 24 of Wild in the Woods
She thought he might ask what was bothering her, or comment something like, “long day?” to cultivate conversation like bartenders on television, but he delivered her drink, took out his phone and started scrolling.
Not that she was up for conversation, but it would be nice to have someone placate her, even if it was meaningless. A sympathetic pat on the head was nice sometimes.
Oh, Rudd was going to have a great time with her failure.
The closest she’d ever been to the wilderness was Chicago’s Lakefront Trail, and that one time her parents took them to a cabin at a Wisconsin KOA campground and left an hour later when they realized the cabin didn’t have maid, or room service.
Her hairline tingled and her chest squeezed.
What would she do if she had nothing to lose? No boss or parent to disappoint? No ex-boyfriend to try and show up? If there was no endgame, would she take Fox’s offer and poke around at this thing between them?
Lulu scoffed at the thought. Checking the time on her phone, she groaned to see it was only seven p.m. Too early to take a bath and go to bed. With a groan, she realized she had a string of missed text messages from Rudd. Her phone had been on silent since arriving at the search and rescue station.
With an annoyed groan, she read the messages.
I’m now overseeing your assignment. They wanted someone with experience to be your guide. I need to know how things are going there.
Lulu?
Come on, this isn’t professional. Call me, Lu.
It’s after five. What are you doing? I need a story update.
Lulu?
Oversee her assignment when she was coming home tomorrow? That sounded fishy as fuck. Her boss would have warned her if he’d put Rudd in charge.
She called him. He answered on the first ring.
“Where have you been?”
She felt like gloating because he would hate it. “Attending a call with Estes Park Search and Rescue to see Fox Mitchell in action. Emergencies don’t happen during business hours. Sorry.”
“Why the hell would you waste time on that? What does that have to do with anything, Lu?” “It has everything to do with it. It paints a picture of who Mitchell is as a person and lends credibility to his expertise at what he does.”
A surge of pride welled up in her. It was true. He was a talented man, experienced for sure, and pretty damn selfless to devote so much of himself to the safety of others.
“Lulu,” Rudd sighed annoyedly. “You have so much to learn, including keeping your phone on you at all times. I’ve been worried sick.”
“You’ve been worried sick? Seriously?”
That was a first. He never cared where she was or when she’d be home while they were dating, unless it interfered with something he had going on, of course.
“Don’t be like that. We’re professionals and yes, it worries me that you’re out there with some mountain man bear shifter that no one really knows anything about, alone.” “I’m fine. He’s a gentleman and very well known in town. I’m perfectly safe.”
There was a pause. She thought the call dropped–thank God– and was about to hang up when he breathed into the phone.
“A gentleman, huh? What makes you say that?”
Nope, she wasn’t doing this with him. “I need to go.”
“Did he agree to the story or are you coming home tomorrow empty handed?”
She thought about walking into her apartment, the one that she’d given Rudd a key to for emergencies, to find him rutting into the next-door neighbor without a care in the world. He’d thought she’d be gone for the weekend on a girls’ trip with her best friend, but Megan had gotten food poisoning and started throwing up in the airport while waiting for their flight. Lulu had come home unexpectedly to her entire world falling apart.
She didn’t owe him anything. No answers, no updates. Nothing.
“I’ve got it taken care of, Rudd. Goodnight.” Lulu hung up. He texted immediately but she ignored it.
