Page 4 of Only Ever You
“Would you like to keep the blanket?” I asked as I reluctantly eased my hold on her.
“Please. I’m still wet, so without it, I’ll get cold fast.”
“You didn’t lose a thing,” I pointed out, gesturing to the net and her waders. “Smart move to take those off.”
She shrugged. “They were filling with water. I’m glad you all caught my net for me.”
She let the blanket fall down around her waist before tucking the ends of it to hold it in place. My eyes dipped down to notice her T-shirt was damp. I forced my eyes back up before they lingered too long.
I cleared my throat before standing up and handing her the handle to her net. “Drop that in the water. You can get that last fish.”
She tucked the handle to the net in a holder and let the net drag through the water by the boat. Minutes later, she let out a happy squeal when a fish swam into her net. She dragged it into the boat and started jumping up and down. “It’s a king!
She quickly freed it from the net and held it up to show it off. Griffin threw a grin over his shoulder as he steered the boat toward the ramp.
When I looked over at Luna again, she was covered in sand with a few streaks of fish blood on her arms from a busy day of catching, gutting, and cleaning fish. Her curls blew in a wild riot around her shoulders, and all I could think was that I wanted her.
Chapter Three
LUNA
Months later
The trees rustled above as I stopped, resting my hands on my hips as I looked around. There was a distressed sounding animal nearby, but I didn’t know what animal, or where it was. After I walked a little further, I came to an abrupt halt in front of a hole in the ground, almost a perfect square and maybe four feet deep. Inside, two moose calves looked up at me. I whipped my gaze in a circle to discover a mama moose lingering in the trees nearby.
At the moment, she was eyeing me cautiously, as if trying to decide if I was friend or foe. I’d grown up in Alaska, so I was deeply familiar with how protective moose were of their calves, rightly so. I needed to be careful.
“I’m going to help your babies!” I called over to her.
She remained in the edge of the trees, watching as I peered down at the moose calves. “Luna, what are you thinking?” I mused to myself.
My gaze flicked over my pink pajama bottoms with a fleece jacket thrown over the top. I’d heard the sounds while I was trying to enjoy my morning coffee. Worried, I’d decided toinvestigate. I quickly checked my pocket, pleased to discover I’d thought to grab my cell phone when I hurried out. I contemplated which of my friends might be awake at this hour and finally decided it was safe to text Casey.
Me:I’m rescuing two moose calves. If I’m late to drop off the donuts, mama moose has probably trampled me.
“There,” I said to myself, or I suppose the moose.
I glanced around, considering my options. A few minutes later, I dragged two boards over from the shed nearby and made a little ramp. I brushed my hair out of my face and clambered down, knowing if I thought too much about it, I might talk myself out of it.
At this point, mama moose approached. “Don’t you come down here,” I warned her.
The moose calves were all legs. I’d guess they were maybe a few months old. For the second time this morning, I asked myself, “Luna, what are you thinking?”
Now, I was in this. I had to somehow get these two calves out of here. They were studying me with rapt curiosity.
“Well, I’m here,” I announced.
I approached them, taking a herding approach to get one over toward the side of this hole where I lifted its front legs. The moose wiggled like crazy, and it was heavy enough I could barely hold on. I clumsily shoved the calf out from behind. “You made it!” I cheered when the calf scampered over to mama moose, who sniffed her all over.
I repeated the process with the other calf. This one was even more wiggly, giving me several kicks in the thighs with sharp hooves.
“Yay!” I cheered when calf two scrambled away from the edge of the hole.
I hoped mama moose had enough sense not to jump down in here, but I decided it was best to give her a few minutes to moveaway. My breath was heaving, and I was absolutely filthy. My pink flannel pajama top had a big tear in it. I was relieved I had a tank top on underneath. At least I wasn’t flashing the wilderness in my backyard. All in all, I couldn’t believe I’d gotten them out of here.
Peering out, I watched as the three moose walked a short distance and began snacking on some alder trees. It was early autumn in Alaska and chilly in the morning. That was Alaska.
“I’m going for it,” I announced to them. Even mama moose ignored me.
