Page 11 of November is for Nate

“We’re still working on it. I do have something that falls into your area of expertise I want you to take a look at though. One of my deputies called in an accident up by Lake Bliss. While he was up there, he swears he saw a pair of caribou in the area. I tried to tell him he must have been seeing things, but I thought I’d pass it along in case you want to check it out.”

It had been five years since someone spotted caribou in Montana, and even then I didn’t get the chance to check for myself. “Thanks, John. I’ll take a look.”

“Thought you might enjoy that. I’ll keep you posted on those prints.”

“Sounds good.” I hung up, wondering if Ainsley meant it when she said she might be up for a hike. There was only one way to find out.

CHAPTER10

AINSLEY

I hadn’t beenable to deny Nate when he asked if I’d be up for going with him to check on a report of caribou sighting. We’d been trekking through the woods for the past thirty minutes. Even with my winter boots and coat on, the cold still had me shivering.

“We’re almost there. Just a little bit farther.” Nate gripped my gloved hand in one of his. He carried a case holding a trail cam and other equipment in the other.

Seeing him in his element, doing something he loved, reinforced the fact that he’d never be happy living anywhere near a big city. Nate Fisher was made for the mountains of Montana, and I was made for him. I hadn’t figured out how we would handle the future, but I knew with one-hundred percent certainty I couldn’t ask him to leave this place.

“Right here ought to be good.” He stopped and set down the case holding the camera. “How are you holding up?”

“I’m fine.” I shoved my hands in my pockets, thankful for the hand warmers he’d given me when we got out of the truck.

“Give me a few minutes to set up the trail cam and we can start heading back.”

“Is there anything I can do to help?” I felt useless standing around watching him get to work.

“You can look for scat.”

I rolled my eyes. “Great. I was hoping you might give me something more exciting to do than search for reindeer poop.”

Nate laughed as he unpacked the camera. “I won’t tell you how much of my time is spent studying shit. It’s one of the most glamourous parts of my job.”

Obviously, he loved his job. The flush on his cheeks and spark in his dark brown eyes were more than enough proof. I wandered away, my eyes on the ground, scanning the snow for something that looked like the picture of the caribou pellets he’d shown me. The woods held a quiet peacefulness I’d never felt anywhere else. Nate and I used to hike around the base of the mountains in Bozeman year round. Some of my favorite moments we shared happened in those woods.

It didn’t take him long to get the trail cam set up. He checked to make sure it was recording, then packed everything up. “You ready to head back?”

“My toes and fingers are, but I hate to leave. It’s so beautiful here.”

Nate crossed over to where I stood. He wrapped his arms around me and leaned down for a kiss. “Remember our overnight camping trip freshman year of college?”

“How could I forget?” We’d been dating a few months when he invited me to go camping with him for the weekend. I’d already fallen head over heels for him by then. Our first night out, we made love under a million stars. My cheeks heated at the memory.

“I knew then that you were the one for me.” His grip around my waist tightened. “We haven’t talked about what’s going to happen when you leave, but I’m prepared to follow you this time, Firefly.”

“What?” I tilted back to meet his gaze. He was serious.

“I made a mistake when I sent you away.”

“Nate, we’ve already talked about this. You thought you were doing the right thing. That’s in the past—”

“I did do the right thing. You needed to take that job and go after something you wanted.” He reached up to smooth my hair away from my face. “But I should have gone with you.”

“You belong here. You would have hated it in London.” I tried to imagine him walking down the cobblestone streets by my flat or riding the underground to a job that made him feel hollow and empty inside. The image wouldn’t come. He belonged in the city streets of London just about as much as a wild bison did.

He shook his head. “The only place I hate is anywhere away from you. I lost you once, Ainsley. I won’t do it again. If you’ll have me, I want to come with you.”

“If I’ll have you?” Was he for real? I’d spent the past eight years trying to forget him. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t force him out of my head or out of my heart.

“I was an idiot, but I’m smart enough not to make the same mistake twice. I’m yours, baby. Wherever you go is the only place I want to be.” His mouth slanted over mine and warmth rushed through my limbs. I forgot I was in the middle of the woods in northern Montana. Heck, I even forgot my own name as he claimed me with that kiss.

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