---

What Scott should have done after leaving Lucas Lee’s office was go home. Or back to the café to take his frustration out in a way that was actually productive. Instead, he went for a walk along the lake, starting with the mallard’s site that was the whole reason he’d been in Lee’s office in the first place. There really was nothing special about the shoreline. At least not to look at it.

But he knew, and he done the research about the mallard duck and how they migrated to the lake every spring to build their nests and lay their eggs. He turned to look at the condo unit already going up. It wasn’t ugly or ostentatious or offensive in any way. In fact, Scott knew it was a good thing for the community. The second building was slated to go up right where he was standing. It wouldn’t matter whether it was moved back. It would make no difference to anyone or anything.

Except for the ducks.

And that’s why he was so fired up. Lucas Lee refused to see the big picture. It would not only be better for nature, but also for his potential new condo owners, who would be able to still keep their lake view while also enjoying the view of the nesting area. The whole thing was ridiculous. Lee was just being stubborn.

Scott picked up a rock and hurled it into the lake. “Arrogant jackass.”

That was why he was so fired up. It had nothing to do with the rumors that Lucas was interested in Chelsea. And more than interested, but actually spending time with her.

No. His feelings had nothing to do with that.

He had to keep telling himself that. Just the way he’d told himself that repeatedly before even going into the meeting. Business—or in this case, charity—was separate from personal. His meeting in regards to the Friends of the Lake Society issues had nothing to do with Chelsea and some stupid gossip that was going around about her and Lucas.

It didn’t.

And it had nothing to do with how angry he’d just gotten in Lucas’s office.

“Dammit.”

It had everything to do with it.

Scott kicked a rock and started walking. He’d leave his car at the building site for now. He needed the walk to clear his head.

One thing he’d learned in the few months since he’d moved to Cedar Springs was that people in a small town liked to talk. A lot. And the subject they preferred was definitely other people’s love lives. Being in the café, he heard it all.

From who was dating who, to who was cheating on who, to who wanted to cheat, to…it was mind-boggling and for the most part, Scott didn’t usually pay any attention to gossip and the stories people told each other because they were just that. Stories.

But when he heard Chelsea’s name mentioned in hushed whispers, his ears had perked up.

Especially when her name was mentioned in conjunction with Lucas’s.

He didn’t know the man well, but it was easy to see he was the type of man who got what he wanted, without any regard for anyone else. Cocky, too self-assured, and too damn slick.

Scott was not a pushover, never had been. And it wasn’t like him to put any stock into the crap that people said, but something about it had struck a chord. Maybe because Lucas was the direct enemy in his fight with the Friends of the Lake Society; maybe because things were still so new, and more than a little unsure with Chelsea. Whatever the reason was, this particular gossip had gotten under his skin and he was going to get to the bottom of it.

It didn’t take Scott long to walk around the point and onto the beach outside the Grizzly Paw. He hesitated. He really should go back to work. No doubt the soup would be ready and he should take it off to cool for tomorrow. Maybe even check on the roast he’d put in that morning. Of course, that’s why he’d hired Cameron. He was a competent chef, and a smart kid. Scott didn’t need to oversee every little detail anymore. That was the point.

He took a breath and shook off all the reasons, both real and made up, that he shouldn’t go into the Grizzly Paw right then and look for Chelsea. Because there could be a thousand reasons why he shouldn’t. But the only reason to go looking for her was the only one that mattered. He was falling for her.

So early in the afternoon, the Paw was pretty quiet, with only a few customers scattered around and Samantha at the bar, looking through some papers. Scott glanced around. He still didn’t know everyone in town but more and more, faces were starting to look familiar.

“Hi, Scott.” Samantha looked up from the papers she was reading. “I don’t usually see you in here at this time of day. Don’t tell me you’re checking out the lunch competition.” She laughed and gave him the side eye.

“It does smell amazing in here,” he admitted. “What kind of soup do you have on today?”

The Grizzly Paw had recently acquired a new chef, who’d had some special tutelage from Jax Carver up at the Stillwater restaurant, and they’d been offering some delicious new lunch and dinner options. Not that Scott was worried. He appealed to a different clientele, and there was definitely room in town for everyone to succeed. And whatever soup was on was making his stomach growl.

“We have a Thai chicken with basil, today. I know it’s not your usual pub fare,” she said in explanation to Scott’s questioning look. “But I always think that slow season is a good time to experiment with new things and my new guy was excited to try out some new recipes.”

“Well, it smells amazing. I’d love a bowl. And a pint.” He settled on to a stool at the bar. “And hey,” he added as casually as he could. “I assume she’s not working now, but is Chelsea working later?”

Samantha looked up from the beer tap and grinned. “What’s going on with you two anyway? You sure are spending a lot of time together.”

Scott nodded but couldn’t help but think to himself, Not enough time. “I think we’re getting pretty serious,” he said, and hoped it was true.

“Well, then I’d think you might know when she’s working.” Samantha winked at him and put the beer down in front of him. “Just kidding. She’s actually not in until tomorrow night.” She turned around and disappeared into the kitchen to get his soup, leaving Scott with that thought.

It was true. He should know when Chelsea was working. Their relationship should be moving forward faster than it was. Or maybe it was moving at just the right pace.

But if that was true, how come he didn’t know where she was? He pulled out his cell phone and stared at the blank screen. She hadn’t answered any of his text messages and when he’d called, it had gone directly to voice mail.

But that didn’t mean anything.

He took a gulp of his beer.

It didn’t mean anything at all.

“Here you go.” Samantha put a steaming bowl of the fragrant soup in front of him. “Enjoy.”

“Thanks.” He looked up. “Hey, I know this might seem like a strange question but do you happen to know where Chelsea is today? She hasn’t answered any of my text messages and before I get panicked…”

Samantha chuckled. “Don’t worry so much. She’s fine, I’m sure. But she did go for a hike today so she probably doesn’t have any service.”

“A hike? With that hiking club?”

“Yeah. I was a little surprised, too, because I know the club usually only meets on Tuesdays and Saturdays but she mentioned something about an opportunity to hike Larch Valley and it’s so beautiful I told her she shouldn’t pass it up. Have you ever seen the larches at this time of year?”

He hadn’t. And at that moment, the beauty of the trees was totally lost on him because of a white-hot jealousy running through him landing in a ball, heavy in his stomach. All he could think about was something Lucas Lee had said about joining the local hiking group and needing to leave for a date.

He wasn’t talking about Chelsea.

Was he?

Scott knew the truth. Lucas had been talking about Chelsea.

Shit.

He pushed the bowl of soup away. His appetite was gone.

It wasn’t a secret that Lucas was after Chelsea, but was Chelsea interested in him?

No.

Not when she was dating him. That was what they were doing. Dating. They’d never put a label on it. But in fact, their relationship hadn’t progressed much past a few dates and a few amazing kisses that had definitely left him wanting more.

He shook his head in an effort to process everything going through his head.

“Scott? Are you okay?”

“Yeah.” He nodded but changed his mind. “No. I’m not, Sam.” He looked straight into the eyes of the woman he’d only recently started to think of as a friend. “I’m a little concerned about Chelsea. Do you have any idea who she went hiking with?”

He’d give her the benefit of the doubt. He’d give the entire situation the benefit of the doubt. He had to.

Sam shook her head. “Like I said, I assumed it was the club, but I know they only meet a few days a week so I’m not sure. But probably with some people from the club so I wouldn’t worry about it too much. I’m sure she’s perfectly safe out there.”

It wasn’t her safety he was worried about. At least not when it came to the wilderness.

He reached for his wallet and tossed a twenty on the bar. “Thanks, Sam. I just remembered there was something I needed to do.”

It was only once he got outside that Scott realized he had absolutely no idea what it was he had to do. All he knew for sure was that it better be damn good because he didn’t want to lose Chelsea. And especially not to Lucas Lee.

---

---

The larches were everything Chelsea imagined they’d be and more. There was something truly magical about a coniferous tree that turned a vibrant yellow before dropping its needles. She walked down the path surrounded by the bright trees like a child in a toy store with her head tipped back, looking every which way.

“This is incredible,” she said for what had to be the hundredth time. “I’ve never seen anything like this. I just…there are no words.”

Lucas laughed. “Oh, I don’t know. You seem to be finding one or two.”

She smacked him playfully. “Don’t you think it’s amazing?”

“I do,” he said seriously. “I’ve never seen anything so beautiful.”

Something about his voice cued her and she turned away from the tree to see Lucas staring directly at her.

“I meant the trees.” She shook her head and tried to laugh it off but she couldn’t ignore the flutter in her stomach. How was it possible that she could feel the same flutter, the same pull, toward two very different men?

He stepped toward her, reached out and stroked her hair. “I meant you,” he said. “I have never seen anything or anyone so beautiful.”

It should have felt like a line. But it didn’t and when he leaned forward and kissed her, it felt nothing but natural. Chelsea leaned in and wrapped her hand around the back of his head, pulling him into her. A little voice in the back of her head tried to tell her she shouldn’t be kissing him, that it was wrong. But there was no way that something that felt so damn good could be wrong.

“And that,” Lucas said when he finally pulled his lips off hers, “without a doubt was the most amazing part of this hike.”

She couldn’t help but laugh as she touched her fingers to her lips, trying to memorize the feel of him.

“I don’t know if it was the most—”

“It was.” Lucas grabbed her hand and held it in his.

When she looked into his eyes, her knees buckled a little. It was ridiculous and it was so wrong. He was so wrong for her. He made her feel like a teenager again. As if anything was possible and they had the whole world open to them.

Was that wrong?

She didn’t know anymore.

“Hey,” he said. “What’s going on in that head of yours? You look like you’re a million miles away. Not exactly the reaction I was looking for after that kiss.”

She smiled and pulled her hand away. “I was just thinking that we should probably do a little more hiking.” She turned away before he could see the lie in her eyes and started walking down the trail at a much faster pace than before.

“Hey,” he called after her. “Slow down.”

But she couldn’t slow down. The feelings crashing through her were too strong. They propelled her forward. Chelsea broke into a jog in an effort to go even faster with the unexplainable need to put distance between them, urging her to go faster, get farther away.

“Chelsea!”

He called after her, but she broke into a full run and right as she heard him call her name again, she slipped. Her foot twisted on a root and the next thing she knew, the world was sideways for a moment before she crashed to the ground. A stab of white-hot pain radiated from her ankle.

“Chelsea.” Lucas dropped to his knees in the dirt next to her. “What the hell was that all about? Are you okay?”

“My ankle…my…it hurts.” She swiped blindly at the hot tears that pricked at her eyes. “I don’t know what happened. I tripped…oh my God, it hurts so much.”

“Let me look.” Lucas shed his pack and quickly moved around so her foot was in his hands. His touch was so gentle, but even so, Chelsea tensed. “It’s okay,” he said. “I promise. I’ll be careful.”

His fingers moved gently over the area. He pushed a little and prodded, just enough. Chelsea dropped back on her elbows and let him examine her. She bit her lip and tried to keep the tears at bay. She’d never been very good at handling pain, but now as well as the intense hurt coming from her ankle, she was also deeply embarrassed.

“I don’t think it’s broken.”

“That’s good, right?” She sat up.

“It is good.” He smiled a little. “But it’s definitely twisted. You’re not going to be able to walk out of here.”

“What?” She tried to struggle to her feet. “If it’s not broken, of course I can—”

“Chelsea.” Lucas put a hand on her shoulder. “You’re not walking.” His tone left no room for argument. “Let’s just rest for a second and I’ll figure out how to get you out of here.”

They sat in silence for a minute, her foot gently cradled in his lap. Finally, Lucas leaned forward and brushed a strand of hair off her cheek. “I’m not going to push you. I just want you to know that I like spending time with you. That’s all.”

She eyed him. “That’s all?”

“Well, that’s not all. But I have a feeling it will have to do for now. And I’m okay with that. I’ll take what I can get for the time being.” He carefully put her foot down, propped it up on his backpack, and moved over her so he straddled her. Chelsea sat up to meet him, and he pulled her close to him again. He held her head and dropped a kiss first on her forehead, then a soft chaste one on her lips before looking in her eyes. “I’m going to kiss you again,” he whispered in puffs against her mouth.

Chelsea wrapped her arms around his neck, the pain in her foot forgotten completely as she stared straight back at him. “You’d better.”

She pushed every other thought out of her head that would have tried to talk her out of doing exactly what she was doing, because in that moment, Chelsea didn’t care about anything else except for the man in front of her and how his kisses made her feel.

Finally, mercifully, his lips came together with hers. He kissed her with an intensity and need that sent electric shocks racing through her entire body.

She threaded her fingers through his hair and tugged him gently down with her.

“Chelsea, you are so beautiful and so…”

“Stop talking and kiss me.”

He did as he was told, only this time, one hand traced a line from the base of her neck all the way down her body until his hand was on her breast, cupping and squeezing with a frustrating tenderness until she moaned and writhed beneath him.

“Lucas, I—”

Growing impatient, Chelsea lifted her legs to wrap them around his waist. The movement of her ankle caused a sharp, and very painful, reminder of her situation. “Dammit!”

Instantly, Lucas rolled off her and was looking at her with concern. “Are you okay?”

She nodded. But she wasn’t fine at all because Chelsea knew when it came to Lucas, she was in trouble. Very deep trouble.

“We should get you home.” Lucas jumped up, and Chelsea immediately felt the loss of him. “It’s going to take awhile to get you out of here and the sun goes down a lot faster these days.” He turned away from her and ran a hand through his hair. Obviously their kiss had an effect on him too. How could it not? Chelsea used the opportunity to catch her breath and calm her thoughts. At least she tried to use the opportunity to figure out what the hell had just happened.

No matter how she tried to process it, she couldn’t. Because all she really wanted to do was kiss him again.

But Lucas was right. If they were going to get back to the trailhead before dark, they needed to get moving. The throbbing in her ankle was a very constant reminder of their predicament.

“You’re right,” Chelsea said. “But how are we going to do that? You just told me I wasn’t going to walk. But I—”

She sucked in a breath. She’d tried to turn her ankle, testing to see how much it could take. A sharp pain let her know it wasn’t going to take anything at all. At least not for a while.

Lucas turned around and gave her a look that told Chelsea he was thinking exactly what she was. He was going to have to carry her. A chill ran through her, and she couldn’t blame the cool air.

She swallowed hard. “I’m heavy.”

“And I’m strong.” He grinned. “Besides, I doubt you’re very heavy at all.”

Chelsea struggled to sit up and with his help, stood on her good foot.

“Okay,” he said. “You’ll have to hold my pack and climb onto my back.”

Chelsea shook her head. “No way. I meant it when I said I was heavy. You can’t carry me. Not all that way. It’s too far.”

Lucas took a step toward her and shook his head, determination on his face. “Chelsea, we don’t have any choice about it. And I told you, I’m strong. You’re going to get on my back.”

He handed her his pack, and with no choices left, Chelsea took it. She attached her pack to his and slipped them both on her back. If he really thought he could carry her out of there, he was crazy. But it was worth a shot, and the throbbing in her ankle was only getting worse. Plus, Lucas was right: it wouldn’t be long before it got dark. And when it got dark, it was going to get cold.

“I told you, you’re not heavy. Now climb on.” Lucas crouched in front of her.

With a sigh, Chelsea hopped forward, wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his back and squeezed her body to him.

Lucas stood easily from his squat and hitched her up a little higher onto his back. “See? I told you I could handle it.”

“We’ll see how you do. It’s a long way back to the trailhead.”

It was a long way, and Chelsea didn’t even bother to pretend that she wasn’t going to enjoy it. There was a heat coming off Lucas that made her feel safe and protected in a way she never expected. It was one thing to have his mouth on hers, kissing her, lighting up something inside her. But this was different. She snuggled tighter into his back and rested her cheek against his shoulder. She didn’t know what any of it meant, but they had a few miles to figure it out. Or not. Either way, she was going to enjoy it.

---

---

They didn’t have any options. Short of staying on the trail huddled up for warmth and waiting until someone came to rescue them—which, come to think about, didn’t seem like a bad idea to Lucas at all. He could think of a whole lot worse things than snuggling up with Chelsea for the night. But it wasn’t a real option and they both knew it. He’d get her out of there. It just might take awhile.

Not that Lucas was complaining when she snuggled up close to him and laid her cheek against his shoulder. He wasn’t complaining at all. In fact, nothing ever felt so right. Just like everything else with Chelsea.

But she was holding back. At least she had been. That kiss definitely hadn’t been holding back. Not at all.

Lucas wrapped his arms tighter around her legs. He hadn’t been lying; she wasn’t heavy. In fact, he would happily carry her all day. Especially if it meant that she would cling to him the way she was.

“Are you okay up there?”

“Me?” She lifted her head and twisted it around to try to look at him. Lucas immediately regretted saying anything. He wanted her cheek back on his shoulder, her warm breath on his neck. “Are you okay? This trail isn’t the easiest. Never mind with me on your back.”

“I’m fine.” He was more than fine. Except for the slight discomfort that was starting to develop between his legs. Her nearness was definitely affecting him in all the best kinds of ways.

“So now that I know that you won’t be able to run off on me again,” he said with a little grin she couldn’t see. “You want to tell me why in fact you did run off?”

He felt her shake her head against his back. “No,” she said. “I don’t.” She laughed a little but the sound cut off abruptly. “The truth is, I don’t know what I’m doing. About anything.”

“That’s okay. Why do you have to know? I mean, why can’t we just enjoy each other?”

“That’s not what I mean. It’s just, I don’t know what I’m doing in my life. So it’s probably not fair to—”

Lucas waited a beat but when she didn’t finish her thought, he asked, “Fair to what? I’m a big boy, Chelsea. You don’t need to worry about being fair, at least not to me.” He knew she was talking about Scott; at least, that was definitely part of what she was talking about. He wasn’t about to pretend that he didn’t know there was something going on between the two of them. But he really didn’t care, because he liked her. A lot. He wasn’t about to ignore those feelings just because there was somebody else who might be having feelings as well.

“I’m not just talking about men.” She laughed at herself. “That makes me sound totally ridiculous. But what I mean is, mostly I just don’t know what to do with my life. I think I should probably figure that out before I get involved with anyone, don’t you think?”

“You want my honest opinion?” He hitched her up a little higher on his back and she tightened her legs in response.

“Of course I do.”

Lucas took a breath and focused for a moment on the trail in front of him before he spoke again. “I think it’s ridiculous that you try to figure out your life. And what’s more, I think it’s really ridiculous that you seem to think you can figure it out at all.” He felt her stiffen against him but he didn’t regret what he said.

“Why shouldn’t I be figuring out my life? How is that ridiculous? Besides, it’s easy for you to say because you’ve already figured yours out.”

Lucas couldn’t help himself; he burst out laughing. The very idea that he had anything figured out at all was hysterical. But even so, he had to admit it probably looked that way from the outside.

“What are you laughing about?” She slapped him lightly on the back. “I’m serious. You have a great job that you’re passionate about. You’ve traveled all over the world. You’re confident, and—”

“That doesn’t mean anything,” he said. “All it means is that I have a job and I’ve traveled. I definitely don’t have everything figured out. But that’s the point. You’re not supposed to have everything figured out because then what fun would life be? I mean, if you knew everything that was going to happen and what tomorrow would bring, would you still be excited about waking up every day?”

She didn’t answer at first, and he knew she was letting that sink in. Finally he felt her shake her head and swallow hard. “I guess you’re right. I never actually thought about it that way before. But I still think I have a few things to sort out. I mean, there’s still so much pressure on me. What I want to do with my life and what I want to do for a career. I should at least figure that out.”

“I thought you wanted to write? Did you not just tell me you were writing a book?”

She laughed again. The vibration traveled through his back and right to his core.

“That’s not a job.”

“Who says it’s not?”

She wiggled against his back, and Lucas decided it was time for a break. Besides, he was long overdue to look into her beautiful eyes again. He slipped her down gently until he was sure she was standing on her good foot before he turned around and looked at her. She tried to look away and not meet his gaze, but he wasn’t about to let her get away with it that easily.

“Chelsea, I really think you might be looking at this a little too seriously. Yes, I have a job. And you’re right, I really love it. But it’s not everything.” As Lucas spoke, he realized he meant what he said. His job wasn’t everything. Sure, it was a family business and he had goals he wanted to meet. Namely, convincing his father he was suitable for the overseas jobs and maybe even one day running the company. But why was that one of his goals? Had he just done what he’d finished telling her not to do?

Maybe he didn’t need to plan so much either. After all, life had a funny way of throwing a curveball. He could think of one very beautiful curveball standing right in front of him. Never in his life had he considered the possibility of meeting someone he might actually want to be with. And that realization both terrified and excited him.

“In fact, I think maybe we should both take a step back. And I mean, a step back from the future. At least thinking about it and planning for it. And definitely stressing about it. I think we should both focus on this moment, right now.” He reached his hand up and cupped her cheek. Her skin was so soft, slightly chilled from the cooling air. Gently, he pulled her close and kissed her again. He couldn’t get enough of the taste of her lips on his and the small little moan she made when he deepened the connection. Yes, they should definitely focus on this moment that they were in. He couldn’t think of anything better or more important than that.

Again, Lucas could’ve kissed her all day. In fact, he hoped there would be a day very soon when he could do just that. But he was also aware of the sun getting lower in the sky, and they still had a few miles to cover before they got back to the trailhead. Reluctantly, he pulled back and touched a finger to her lips. “To be continued,” he said, because he had every intention to continue what they had started. “But we really should keep moving. Are you ready?”

She nodded, so he turned around and presented his back to her again. She climbed up and they resumed their hike. Lucas tried to move as quickly as he could without endangering either of them by tripping over a root and causing further problems that they desperately did not need.

After a few moments of silence, Chelsea asked, “Do you really think writing a book could be a job?”

“What I do know,” he said after a few seconds of thought, “is that when you find something you love to do, and that you can make a living at it, that’s the perfect combination for a successful, happy life. So yes, I think you should write that book. And then maybe write another one. And while you’re doing that, figure out how to make a living at it. And I don’t see any reason why you can’t.”

For the rest of the hike, they talked about everything they could think of. From the book Chelsea was writing, to their childhoods. Lucas told her about all his favorite places that he traveled to, and Chelsea in turn told him all the places she dreamed of going. He couldn’t help but hope maybe one day he’d be able to show her some of those places.

The time passed quickly and they hardly noticed as the sun went down until finally it was too dark to see where he was walking. Chelsea got her smartphone out of her pack. Despite the fact that there was no service, she powered it up and turned on the flashlight function. Lucas had to slow his pace, but with Chelsea lighting the way, he was able to pick his way down the trail until finally they got closer to the start of the trail.

They knew they were close when the sound of a voice calling her name, followed by the light beam of a flashlight, bounced through the trees.

“I really hope they didn’t organize a search party,” Chelsea said with dread in her voice.

“Did you tell anyone you were going on the hike today? I mean, it would’ve been good if you did. I probably should have told someone too.”

“I did. Gwen knew, of course. And Samantha.” Lucas couldn’t help but feel a small sense of satisfaction that she hadn’t told Scott she was going to hike with him. “But surely they wouldn’t have panicked just because I was a few hours late getting home. Would they?”

“It certainly looks that way.” Lucas chuckled, although he would have rather their hike gone on forever. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d enjoyed himself so much with a woman. Especially with their clothes on. “We better hurry, and put their minds at ease. Hey! We’re up here,” he called out into the night. “We’re fine. We’ll be right down.”

“Thank you,” Chelsea whispered into his ear before snuggling in tight one last time. “Thank you for getting me back.”

Lucas was about to tell her that he would happily do it again tomorrow, or the next day. And that he wanted to see her again, perhaps as a real date. But before he could say any of those things, they were interrupted by a flood of light, as their search party of one found them.