“No problem. I know a trailhead near your cabin that almost no one uses. We’d have the privacy somewhere along that trail for me to show you what happens when I shift.”
“Thank you, Jake. I hope you don’t think I’m just a voyeur.”
He traced her jaw with one finger. “You’re not just anything, Rachel, least of all a voyeur. If I’d thought that for a second, I wouldn’t have offered to let you watch. So are you ready to eat?”
“I’d rather shower first, if that’s okay.”
“Help yourself.” But the longer he looked at her, the hotter burned the flame in his green eyes. “Maybe you’d better lock the door, though.”
She gulped. “Okay.” Turning, she walked back into his bedroom and was acutely aware of his gaze following her there. She had the sensation of being tracked. And she liked it way too much.
Chapter 15
Jake had wondered if they could pull off their plan without a hitch. Ted had been notified that they were hiking today, but as Jake rode with Rachel over to her place, he suddenly remembered someone else who could be a problem. “What about Lionel?”
“I just thought of him, too. He’ll probably be sitting in the parking area, waiting for me and wondering where the hell I am.”
“What are you going to say?”
She glanced over at him. “I’ll let him think that you and I had a wild night together, which we did. He’ll be a little embarrassed and let it go.”
“Okay.”
“I’m like his big sister. He’d rather not think about me having a sex life.” She approached the parking area at the end of the path leading to her cabin. “And sure enough, there he is. Let me do the talking.”
“Absolutely.”
Lionel sat in his old truck, his earbuds in place, his head moving in rhythm with the music only he could hear. But he could see perfectly well, and Jake noticed him glance into his rearview mirror when Rachel parked to his left. He’d registered the fact that Jake was in the truck with her.
Depending on how observant Lionel was, he also might notice that Rachel was wearing the same clothes she’d had on the day before. Jake figured Lionel didn’t miss much.
“Hey, Lionel!” Rachel didn’t look Jake’s way as she grabbed her backpack, climbed down from her truck, and walked around to Lionel’s.
Jake took his time opening the passenger door. If she wanted to advertise that he was her new lover, he’d play along. Romances sprang up and disappeared every day. He and Rachel could be a flash fire that burned itself out in no time.
Except he wondered if anyone would believe that of Rachel. Nobody knew him well enough to make a judgment, but Ted and Lionel might doubt that Rachel, a woman with deep emotions, could conduct a brief affair without getting hurt. In fact, she couldn’t. Neither of them could, and on some level they both knew it.
Jake was willing to be the bad guy who left her. He didn’t care what others thought of him. But he cared about hurting Rachel, and he now realized that was inevitable.
Rachel said something to Lionel and they both laughed. She was making light of the situation, which she should when it came to Lionel. Jake vowed to mimic that attitude. Maybe they could fool Lionel into thinking nothing serious was happening.
Meanwhile Jake was beginning to sort out the truth. His connection with Rachel had been intense from the beginning, and now it was off the charts. He knew it was the same with her. He could see it in those silver eyes.
Along with that fiery connection, they were developing mutual trust. During his run he’d realized that was critical now that she knew his secret. Ironically, he had to trust her completely in order to let her go. When their bond became strong enough, they would part. And that was going to hurt like hell.
Thoughts like that weren’t going to put a bounce in his step, though. He made a conscious effort to smile as he walked toward Rachel and her assistant. “I guess we messed up your schedule, huh, Lionel?”
“That’s okay, Mr. Hunter.” Lionel had a faint blush going on, but he smiled back at Jake. “I’d rather have Miss M spend the night with you than that wolf she had living in her cabin.”
“Yeah, I take responsibility for that wolf situation.” He hadn’t heard the Miss M label before. Cute. “I’ve decided he belongs in a wildlife sanctuary, after all.” He avoided Rachel’s gaze and hoped she’d just go with this tall tale.
Lionel nodded in approval. “Good call.”
“Yeah, after Rachel filled me in on the bear incident, I decided the wolf would get himself killed if I didn’t do something to protect him.” It didn’t matter what story he concocted, so long as nobody expected to see a wolf running around Polecat. They wouldn’t see one, because he’d just realized he would be selling his place and moving on.
Once he and Rachel said good-bye, he wouldn’t be able to stand living across the lake from her. Some lovers you could stay friends with, but Rachel wasn’t in that category. Every time he saw her, his heart would bleed.
Rachel turned to Lionel. “Obviously I haven’t done a lot of work since you were here yesterday, so there isn’t much cleanup.”
Jake wondered how she’d solve this dilemma. Lionel needed the hourly wage she paid him five days a week, and he was an independent contractor, so if he didn’t work, he didn’t get paid.
“Tell you what.” Rachel crossed her arms and leaned against the dusty fender of Lionel’s truck. “I’m running low on interesting wood to carve.”
“You want that piece back that you gave me? It’s probably too good a piece for me, anyway.” Lionel’s devotion to Rachel was obvious.
Jake wondered if his own devotion to her was that obvious. Could be.
“No, Lionel,” Rachel said. “That piece has your name on it. But if you’d spend the morning scouring the woods for more like that, I’d be thrilled. You’d help me a thousand times more than you would by sweeping out my shop.”
“I can do that.” Lionel appeared excited about the prospect. “I think I know what you’re looking for.”
“I’m sure you do.”
“Okay, then! I’m off. See you later, Mr. Hunter. I’m glad you’ve found a safe place for that black wolf. Much more time around here, and somebody might’ve shot him.”
Jake noticed Rachel’s shiver. “That wouldn’t be good,” he said.
“No,” Lionel said as he climbed into his truck. “The only bad thing is that Miss M used that wolf for inspiration. Now she won’t ever get to see him again.”
“I have a really good memory,” Rachel said.
“You still should’ve taken more pictures while you had the chance.”
“I doubt the wolf would have appreciated that,” she said. “He was pretty beat-up.”
Her assistant laughed. “You think that wolf was vain?”
“I know he was.” Rachel sent the briefest of winks in Jake’s direction.
“Sounds like an inside joke.” Lionel looked from Rachel to Jake with a bemused expression. “Well, see you two later. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.” He backed his truck out of the parking area.
Rachel glanced up at Jake. “I guess that went okay.”
“It went fine.” Jake watched Lionel’s truck disappear around a curve in the road before turning back to Rachel. “He thinks a lot of you.”
“I think a lot of him.”
“He’s liable to hunt me down after we . . . well, when all this is over between us.” He hated the finality of those words and wondered if she hated it as much as he did. He imagined he saw a flicker of regret in her silver eyes.
Then she blinked, and her gaze was clear. “I’ll make sure he knows it was a mutual decision. Lionel is protective, but he listens, and he’s smart enough to know when to back off. He wanted me to turn you over to Fish and Game when you were in my cabin, but when I said no, he let me do things my way.”
“I’m grateful.”
“I would never have called them, Jake. As for Lionel, he wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize his job with me. I think he knows that I’m hoping he’ll become my apprentice. If he starts helping me with the carving, then I can pay him more and give him longer hours.”
Lucky guy, to have the prospect of spending more time with her. “That would be a great opportunity for him.”
“And for me. I have more work than I can handle. If I had a partner in the business, it would free me up for . . . other things.”
Something about the way she said that put him on alert. “Like what?”
She met his gaze, and there was a defiant light in her eyes. “Like what most women my age would like to have—a great relationship with a guy, maybe even some kids.”
Although she might be saying that to find out how he’d react, he pretended that the concept of her with someone else didn’t bother him at all. “Sounds reasonable.” But inside he was screaming in protest, which he had no right to do.
“Being with you has convinced me I have to try harder to find that. I’ve been so wrapped up in my work that I haven’t made dating a priority. When nobody interesting turned up on the Internet sites, I let the whole idea drop.”
“So how are you going to meet Mr. Wonderful?” From a possessive standpoint, Jake didn’t want her anywhere near another male. From a security standpoint, he wondered if a close relationship would make her more vulnerable to accidentally revealing the secret she had to keep.
“Good question.” Hoisting her backpack over her shoulder, she started down the path toward her cabin. “I’ll probably get my friends in Fairbanks involved. We’ve known each other since college, and they’ve been after me to get a life.”
Jake fell into step beside her. “Do you see them much?”
“Not as much as I should, but I’ve been so busy with work. That’s my whole point. I need to reduce the number of hours so I can socialize more.”
“Right.” But he couldn’t help worrying. He pictured nights of food, wine, and laughter. Her guard would be down. A slip of the tongue would be so easy.
“Your jaw is clenched, big boy. What’s up?”
He consciously relaxed his muscles. “Sorry. Just thinking.”
“You’re afraid I’ll spill the beans to my friends, aren’t you?”
He glanced at her. “You wouldn’t mean to.”
“I wouldn’t do it, period. But let’s say for the sake of argument that I got a little tipsy and started talking about you. Then I had another glass of wine and told everyone that I slept with a werewolf.”
He stopped walking as his whole body tightened. “But you wouldn’t.”
She stopped, too, and turned back to him. “Of course not, but even if I did, don’t you see what would happen? No one would believe me! They’d laugh and think I was making a joke. There’s no way I could accidentally betray you. I wouldn’t be taken seriously.”
“I suppose you have a point.” He scrubbed a hand over his face and sighed. “You’ll have to forgive me for my paranoia. I’ve never been in this situation before.”
“Neither of us has,” she said gently.
“What about this great guy you’re hoping to find? Wouldn’t you be tempted to tell him eventually? It’s a big secret to keep for a lifetime. And if he loves you, he’s not going to think you’re crazy.” Jake knew that much for sure. Any male in love with Rachel would know she wouldn’t lie to him.
She moved close enough to lay her palms against his chest. “I will keep this secret for a lifetime.” Her eyes glowed with purpose and something he dared not name. “Whatever relationship I have with this person, Jake, I won’t be sharing my memories of you. Even if I hadn’t promised you to keep my mouth shut, I still wouldn’t share with anyone. Our time together is private.” She lifted her face and brushed her lips over his. “Special.”
With a groan he pulled her into his arms and captured her mouth in a kiss that said all that he could not say. He poured all his longing and frustration into that kiss. She responded by wrapping her arms around his neck and pressing herself tight against him, as if she wanted to climb right inside and never leave.
Unable to help himself, he hoisted her up, backpack and all, so she could wrap both legs around him, too.
She cooperated with the plan and then moved out of kissing range by leaning her head back.
“Hey, don’t stop kissing me.”
“I just want to know where you’re going with this maneuver.”
“Don’t know.” He settled his aching c*ck against the welcoming vee of her thighs. “Playing it by ear.”
“From the sound of this tune, I suggest we play it inside.”
“Excellent suggestion.” He carried her to the front door and held her tight, not wanting to break the erotic connection, while she unhooked her backpack and located her keys.
She finally found them after much wiggling around. Her cheeks were flushed and her breathing uneven by the time she pulled the key out and fit it in the lock. “I think that counts as foreplay.”
“Good thing, because I’m not in the mood to dawdle once we get in there.”
“Mm.” She tightened her thighs. “How gratifying to have an eager man. I mean, an eager—”
“Lover.” He carried her over the threshold. He liked the sound of lover, even if it did imply more than a two-day affair.
Once they were inside, she dropped the backpack to the floor. “To the right.”
“I remember exactly where it is.” He kicked the door shut and headed for her bedroom. “And how desperately I wanted to be in human form that night so I could do to you then exactly what I’m about to do to you this morning.”