Confused by his reaction, Olivia did as told; but, deep down, she knew that she could not stay in James’ cabin. As curious as she was, she would not resist the temptation of asking him in the morning. The atmosphere would be awkward and she did not want to fight with him. After all, James had saved her life and given her a night to remember. She would not repay him by arguing with him. So, she called her good friend, Gina Myers.

“Liv: what the hell?” There was a rasp in Gina’s usually squeaky voice. “Do you know what time it is?”

“Yeah, it’s almost midnight.” Olivia spoke too fast. “Listen, I need a favor. I’m on Slide Mountain, near the summit. Can you come pick me up in the morning? Say, 6am?”

“Are you crazy?!” Gina yelled, forcing her friend to pull her cell phone away from her ear. “First of all, what the hell are you still doing there? I thought you’d be back by now.”

“I had a small accident.” Olivia informed. “Please, girl. I really need your help.”

“It’s Saturday tomorrow!”

“I’m sorry, Gina.” Olivia sighed. “I know this is a lot to ask, but…”

“Okay: on one condition.” Gina interjected. “You drive on the way back.”

“Deal!” Olivia cheered.

“Where are you exactly?”

“I’m in a cabin; a couple of miles outside Shandaken. There’s got to be a bus stop around here somewhere. I’ll call you when I find one.”

“See in you the morning.”

“Goodnight.”

A sigh of relief escaped her as she hung up her phone. Still, Olivia remained tense and found no peace; she hardly slept that night.

Darkness was starting to fade into daylight, as she snuck out of James’ bedroom. He was still sleeping on the couch, when she carefully closed his front door behind her. Still in a little bit of pain, Olivia dragged her feet across the snow, until she found the main road. She was right; there was a bus stop a few yards down the street. She then called her friend and informed her of her whereabouts.

The high beams of Gina’s Cherokee lit up the empty, somewhat narrow, road. Olivia’s friend pulled up to the bus stop, looking unusually energized and in a terrible mood.

“You: dragging me all the way up here on a Saturday morning.” She complained. “I thought I must have been dreaming.”

“Good morning, darling.” Olivia smiled, opening the passenger door. “Oh, crap. I forgot you wanted me to drive on the trip back.”

“Forget it.” Gina urged. “I’ve had three cups of coffee; they should keep me up. Alright, Liv: start talking. What happened? Why did you spend the night out here?”

“I banged my knee.” Olivia said. “A local saved my skin. Some wolves were about to get me.”

“How long is it?” Gina spoke, a cunning smile on her face as she drove off.

“How long is what?” Olivia squinted at her.

“You know: his beard.” Gina explained.

“He doesn’t have one.” Olivia stated, as her eyes glinted with amusement. “Actually, you two have a lot in common.”

“Really?” Gina was intrigued. “Is he handsome? Does he like to travel?”

“Oh, he’s handsome alright: tall, black hair, blue eyes, pointy face. But, he’s just as grumpy as you are.” Olivia chuckled.

“Hah…” Gina gave a snort of derision “…very funny. What’s his name?”

“James Farrell.” Olivia sighed. “That’s pretty much all I know about him. That and he plays the guitar like a seasoned professional. He plays the piano, too. I didn’t let him touch it, though. We played all night long. It was amazing.”

“So, let me get this straight.” Gina said. “Some… gorgeous mountain man saved your life, you played music with him and you just…” She faltered, “… ditched him?”

“That’s right.” Olivia affirmed.

“Ok, two questions.” Gina smirked. “One: Did he give you any drugs while you were there and two: why did you drag me all the way up here? Why did you want to leave so badly?”

“Oh, Gina…” Olivia sighed, lying back in her seat. “No, he didn’t give me any drugs. He’s weird: stubborn; a little too serious, I think. And the best kisser I’ve ever had.”

“I knew it!” Gina exclaimed. “You couldn’t keep your hands off of him, could you?”

“No.” Olivia’s voice lowered to a mere whisper, as she averted her gaze from the road up ahead. “But he could. He wouldn’t touch me.”

“He did give you drugs.” Gina insisted. “What was it; pot?”

“Stop saying that.” Olivia urged.

“It’s either that or he’s gay.” Gina concluded.

“He’s not gay, either.” Olivia maintained. “I saw a huge bulge in his crotch.”

“That’s really strange.” Gina attempted a more serious tone. “But I still don’t understand why you wanted to leave so early.”

“After we kissed, he just...” Olivia paused; “… freaked out! He pulled away from me, like he thought he was doing something very wrong. I’ve never seen so much sadness in a man’s eyes. He looked broken. This morning would have been pretty awkward between us. That’s why I asked you to come pick me up.”

“He sounds like a mystery, darling. But, it’s too early for riddles.” Gina agreed. “What was so special about the kiss?”

“It had me swooning.” Olivia confessed in a slow and raspy voice. “Tender, true… God, it was so hot. I kept wishing it never had to end.”

“Something tells me you’ll be here again pretty soon.” Gina teased her.

“I don’t know.” Olivia shrugged. “I mean, I’d like that, but, I’m not sure he would.”

“What was his name again?” Gina posed a question.

“James Farrell.” Olivia replied. “Don’t tell me you’re going to Google him.”

“It’s the only way,” Gina claimed. “There’s got to be something seriously wrong with him.”

“Maybe,” Olivia nodded. “But, the way I see it, the guy’s just a whole lot different than anything I expected.”

“I’ve got to hand it to him.” Gina’s smirk reappeared. “You made a move on him and he turned you down?”

“Haven’t you been listening?” Olivia wondered. “He saved me. He patched me up; we played music all night. Does it get any better than that?”

“Yes, it can.” Gina disagreed. “You could try to seduce…”

“Stop it.” Olivia interrupted. “Don’t remind me. God, I wish we had…”