Page 6 of Possessive Mountain Man
“Someone who knows how to make a fire and keep the bears away,” she said. “I would be up for glamping. It’s all really well organized.”
I nearly choked on the bite of french fry I’d just taken. “Glamping?” I asked when I finally composed myself.
“Glamorous camping. They give you an air-conditioned tent with a bathroom. You pick out your food, and they even provide instructions on how to cook it—if you can get the fire going, thatis. But there are bears and stuff like that. I learned about it from a reality show.”
I didn’t watch reality TV, even the survivalist show I’d thought about earlier. Although it was tough to be alive in this day and age and not know about all of it.
“Is glamping something women do?”
She shrugged. “Anybody can do it. There are also options where you tent camp but there’s a restaurant nearby. And they serve all your food. I could go for that too. I just like being outside. That’s my idea of a fun vacation. Not getting drunk and dancing on bars.”
I laughed. “I’m with you on that. I have a tent. We could camp out tonight if you wanted.”
Was I coming on to her? I shouldn’t be doing that. I’d already established there was no way forward for the two of us. But maybe I was wrong.
She’d mentioned she loved to work from home. And I’d pointed out that it could be done from anywhere. Maybe, if I worked at it hard enough, I could convince her to give up Silicon Valley for Seduction Summit.
3
EVE
My friends weren’t responding to my texts. That was no surprise. They were probably three sheets to the wind by now. They might have even met guys.
I sent a group text letting them know I wouldn’t be back to the room that night. Then I climbed into Hayden’s truck and waited in his driveway while he went inside and got his tent.
Was I really doing this? Was I really agreeing to spend the night in the woods with a total stranger?
But Hayden wasn’t a total stranger. We’d spent more than an hour getting to know each other at the lodge bar. Yeah, an hour wasn’t long, but instinct told me this guy was a good one. Not only was he former military, but he had the kindest eyes I’d ever seen. When he looked at me, I felt like the most beautiful woman on Earth.
But more importantly, he was appealing to my sense of adventure. For a long time, I’d been stuck in a rut. Yes, I’d just graduated college, but living in our busy suburban town, I was starting to see my future, and it wasn’t one I really wanted.
My friends would each marry tech bros and live a life of being called “babe” in a clipped tone in between important meetingsand phone calls. That would leave them to bear the brunt of raising the kids and keeping the household going while also working. No, this life with fresh air and a man who knew how to start a campfire—I was starting to think it was what I’d never realized I’d always wanted.
My heart sped up as Hayden approached, arms loaded with stuff. I’d offered to go in with him, but he politely insisted I stay there. It made me wonder if his house wasn’t really guest-ready.
I tried to calm myself as he loaded up the back of the SUV. It was him. He did it to me. I wasn’t sure how I was going to get on that airplane Monday and let it separate us by thousands of miles.
“Ready?” he asked as he climbed in, buckling his seatbelt.
I took a deep breath and nodded. Maybe he’d mistake my nervousness for excitement over camping out, not him.
“You’ll keep me safe from bears?” I asked.
He shifted into reverse and smiled. “I’ll do my best. If it makes you feel any better, I’ve spent a lot of time in these here mountains, and I’ve not once seen a bear.”
“But what if you do? Do you carry pepper spray?”
He tossed a look over at me before shifting into drive to start toward the main road.
“Pepper spray wouldn’t do much. I don’t even know if a taser gun would stop?—”
He broke off mid-sentence, probably realizing his words weren’t making me less afraid of bears. I didn’t even realize I was gripping my thighs until his right hand settled on top of my left hand.
“Sorry,” he said. “We’ll be safe in our tents. Unless we leave trash out or something, they won’t come near us.”
I couldn’t process his words—not with his hand on top of mine. Every cell in my being was focused on that and only that.
“Wait,” I said, frowning. “You said tents, plural. We’re staying in separate tents?”
