Laura woke up much as she had during those summers with Aunt Joyce. The birds were chirping madly outside and light was streaming through the thin curtains over the window. She rolled over with a low groan. It had been tough to fall asleep the night before, and when she had finally drifted off her sleep had been plagued by bad dreams. She couldn’t remember them now, but there was still a lingering trace of fear in her chest.

She slowly clambered out of bed, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. She would be spending the morning tidying up the place, but first she wanted another shower. And a coffee.

Dammit, I should have thought to pick some things up in town yesterday. The cupboards would be pretty bare, but maybe Joyce would still have some instant coffee lying around.

Laura took a quick shower and did a bit to get herself semi-presentable. Then she took a look through the cupboards. There was in fact some instant coffee left, as well as a few cans of tuna and an expired jar of peanut butter. As she took out the kettle and heated some water, she thought about what she had to do today. She wanted to keep busy so that she wasn’t sitting around worrying all day.

Clean out this place, go in to town to buy some groceries… Dammit, I’ll be done before noon.

She took her mug of coffee out to the front porch to drink it. Taking her first sip, she grimaced a little. It wasn’t very good. Still, it was coffee. Sort of. As she sat she watched the occasional car drive by and just listened. She hadn’t realized how much she had missed this place. She loved New York, but there was something soothing about being here. It felt like a different world, one where the hustle and bustle of the cities could never belong. She hoped there would always be places like this.

Slowly she became aware of a sound nearby. It was so steady that it blended perfectly with the sounds surrounding her. Thunk. Then a pause. Thunk. It continued like this. Could there be new neighbors? She had certainly never heard Mr. or Mrs. Bettleford chopping wood. They were pushing 60 when she had last seen them, what ten years ago?

She set her cup on the step and stood. The sound was coming from the next cabin, which was through about 50 feet of forest on her right. It wouldn’t hurt to say hi to whoever had moved in there. At this point I’ll do anything to help kill a little time.

She walked straight into the woods, finding the worn trail right where it had always been. It meandered a bit as it went, and the sound of wood chopping got louder as she walked. The path curved one more time, and then she could see the Bettleford’s old place.

Oh my.

The wood chopper was still there, and he was big. Well over 6 feet tall, and wearing nothing but a ragged pair of jeans and work boots, he was an impressive sight. He was facing away from Laura, and muscles rippled across his back and arms with every swing of the axe. His hair was cut quite short, almost military length, and there was a tattoo across the upper right side of his back. She couldn’t really make out what it was from where she was standing…

“You gonna come out and say hi?” the guy said, turning his head a bit towards where she was standing in the trees. Laura realized she had stopped and just gawked for at least half a minute. She felt her cheeks heat up and knew she had turned bright red.

The man split another log as she walked out from the woods towards him. “How did you know I was there?” Laura asked, trying to control her blushing. She knew she hadn’t made much sound coming through the woods, and the direction he’d been facing while she stood in the tree line wouldn’t have let him see her, even from the corner of his vision.

“Smelled ya,” he said with a chuckle. His words had a bit of country boy lilt to them, making him sound good natured. He set down the axe against the tree trunk he was splitting logs on and began to turn towards her.

“Smelled me??” Laura sputtered with faux indignation. “I’ll have you know I’ve already showered today!”

Her first glance at the lumberjack’s face did nothing to help her calm the heat in her cheeks. His jaw was wide with light stubble, and he had a pair of the most piercing blue eyes Laura had ever seen. That stubbled jaw led to a wide neck sitting on top of one of the most muscular bodies she had ever seen. Broad shoulders and big square pecs made a V line in to his sharply defined abs.

What a hunk.

Laura realized with a little gasp that she had literally walked up to him, stopped, and gawked. The warmth in her cheeks grew to the point where she knew her face probably resembled a tomato right now.

She snapped her eyes back up to meet his, but there was something in his expression that she couldn’t understand. He seemed stunned, eyes wide with an almost comically surprised look on his face. His handsome face.

“Uhhh hi, I’m Laura. I’m staying in the cabin next door, and I heard you chopping wood over here and thought maybe I should come say hi.”

He shook his head a little, as if to clear it. “Hey, I’m Rick. You staying at Joyce’s place? Haven’t seen her around yet this year.” His eyes started to drift down, checking out her body, but quickly looked back up. His expression shifted again, this time looking like a boy who had been caught passing notes in class. Abashed, Laura thought that was the word for it.

This guy is too cute.

“Yeah Joyce is my aunt. She won’t be out here this summer, but I came down to stay here for a while. Needed to get out of the city.” Just that small reminder of why she was here made Laura’s insides knot up.

“That’s too bad, I like Joyce. She’s got this motherly air about her,” he said, reaching down to pick up a black t-shirt that had been lying beside him. He slid it on in one quick motion, covering up that sculpted body she hadn’t been able to help but stare at. “You just get in yesterday? Why don’t you let me make some lunch for you? I bet that place doesn’t have much in the way of food right now.”

“Lunch would be great!” Laura said, hoping her voice wasn’t gushing too much. It was such a weird mix of emotions. Part of her brain couldn’t stop thinking about Craig, but every remaining neuron was fixated on this sexy man in front of her. “I totally forgot to pick up things on my way in yesterday.”

“Alright, give me an hour or so to get cleaned up and come back. I’ll whip up somethin’ nice.”

“Okay, see you in an hour Mr. Lumberjack,” Laura teased, turning back towards the woods that led to Joyce’s.

“See you then, city girl.”

Laura walked back in to the forest, feeling almost giddy. And ashamed for feeling giddy at a time like this. But still giddy.

 

Rick walked up his porch and in to his house, still stunned. The moment he had seen Laura for the first time his entire body had lit up with desire. He had never felt so strongly about anyone before, and he didn’t even know her! That first vision of her walking towards him would stay etched in his memory forever. Simple clothes, just jeans and a white t-shirt, shoulder length brown hair running wild. Her face had been beet red, likely because he’d caught her staring at him, though he knew she hadn’t believed him when he said he had smelled her.

What the hell is happening to me? I never date humans.

Still, he had noticed some things. Like that she was in some kind of trouble. As soon as she had mentioned needing to get out of town her scent had changed, lust giving way to fear, almost panic. Joyce’s niece was hot, but she might be more trouble than she was worth.

Did it really matter though? With how strongly he felt for her already, it was almost a foregone conclusion that he was going to pursue her. Remembering the way she had stared at his body, it was pretty clear that she would be receptive to him.

Rick hadn’t been with a woman for quite some time, since he had left his crew up in Canada. The scars from that parting were still fresh, and he had avoided relationships since then, knowing that he wasn’t mentally ready for anything yet. He hadn’t been around any other bear shifters since then, and had actively tried to stay away from the local wolf pack that resided in the area. Bears and wolves tended to not get along very well.

Rick got to work in the kitchen, wanting to prepare a lunch that would blow Laura away. Humans could be such a pain to date, since he always had to hide his animal side from them. No telling how they would react to a shifter. Probably terror, followed by a mob carrying stakes and garlic.

With an inward groan, he finally admitted to himself what was happening. Laura was his mate. When his father had talked about meeting his mother all those years back, he had described the first sight of her exactly like what Rick had experienced. An electric hum had shot through his entire body, desire flooding him. Beyond just desire, when she had briefly smelled afraid the protective instincts of his bear had kicked in immediately. He wanted to hold her in his arms and tell her that she would always be safe with him, that whatever was going on he could help her sort it out.

Dammit, why do I feel like things are about to get really complicated?

 

Laura got back to Joyce’s cabin and quickly set to work. She did need to get this place cleaned out today, and an hour was a pretty short time limit to get it all done within. Still, a little scrambling now would mean an afternoon spent with the sexy lumberjack next door, which seemed like a pretty okay deal.

She quickly took out everything she would need. Dust cloth, broom, mop, cleaning supplies. Opening the windows was first on the list: the air inside was musty and stale. That done, she got to it.

She still couldn’t believe how little control she’d had over herself when talking to Rick. He was so big, almost a foot taller than her, but more than that, he radiated this sense of… solidity. Like those wide shoulders of his could bear the weight of the world. She groaned when she remembered how she had gawked at him, standing there all shirtless and hot. He must have thought she was some kind of perv, waiting in the tree line watching him. Still, his invitation to lunch said he hadn’t taken offense at it.

She still couldn’t figure out why he had been so surprised to see her. He had known she was there before he turned around, so it wasn’t just her presence that had done that to him. She wasn’t some kind of stunning beauty either, being fairly average in her own opinion. Why had he been so shocked?

Regardless, meeting him had been a pleasant surprise, even if she had come across as a weirdo. Anything to take her mind of Craig’s lack of contact so far. She knew it had only been a day and a half since she’d left New York, but not knowing what was happening with him was chewing her up inside.

She felt like a coward for leaving him to deal with it. She knew that she wouldn’t be any help in this situation. She wasn’t tough or strong or clever enough to figure a way out for him, and he had been right when he’d told her that she was just another thing they could threaten him with while she was there. It still felt wrong though. Maybe she should have followed her first instincts and called the police. Craig had insisted that that wouldn’t help him, however, and she had eventually given in.

Laura looked up from her work and realized she was almost done already.

Amazing how fast time goes when your thoughts are full. This is good enough for the moment.

Laura checked her phone, wondering if she would have time to fix herself up a bit. Nope, it had been about fifty minutes already. She closed most of the windows and threw her shoes back on, a light flutter in her stomach telling her that she was without a doubt excited to get back and see Rick.

 

Laura walked out of the woods half expecting to smell hot dogs. Rick had seemed eager to have her for lunch, but she had been sorely disappointed by the culinary ability of most of the men who had been a part of her life up until now.

Her first glance of Rick’s place caused her jaw to drop. All of the logs he had been chopping earlier were now stacked up against the side of the cabin. A large red and white checkered blanket had been laid out across the grass, and the blanket was sporting what looked like a feast. Different meats, fruit, salad, and even a bottle of wine had been spread across the blanket. She even saw strawberries and a can of whipped cream. The blanket was so full that they might end up on the grass.

Just then the front door opened and Rick stepped out. He was wearing the same black tee and jeans from before, and carrying a small tray in each hand. He smiled widely when he saw her. “What do you think? Not as fancy as you might get in the city I suppose.”

“This is… wow, more than I expected. I thought if I was lucky you might have some milk to put in the mac and cheese. How did you ever get all this ready in an hour?” Laura’s heart beat a little faster as he walked up to her, his sheer size and presence filling her attention completely.

“Awe this? It wasn’t so hard, I had some of this stuff cooked up and sitting in the fridge. The only thing I made from scratch is this chicken cordon blue,” he said, gesturing with his head to the tray in his right hand.

Laura loved it when a man could surprise her.

“Cordon blue eh? Sure it isn’t chicken cordon bleu?” she asked, chuckling a bit.

Rick made a show of looking around in every direction. “Wait, we in France now? No? Well then it’s chicken cordon blue, and you’ll just have to deal with it.” A mischievous light sparkled in those deep blue eyes of his. “Grab a seat if you can make some room. Guess I might have brought out too much.”

Laura’s stomach chose just that moment to rumble loudly.

“Actually I’m starving, and all this looks delicious.” As she spoke she shifted some of the plates on the blanket so she could sit on one corner. Rick did the same, sitting down across from her. “Besides, you look like you can put some food away.”

Laura started in on the food, grabbing one of two empty plates and loading it up.

“You callin’ me fat city girl?” Rick’s country boy accent was starting to grow on her. He seemed so good natured, the type of guy who could laugh about everything. “That isn’t exactly a polite way to talk to the chef.”

“You, fat? Rick, I think your muscles have muscles,” she said, as her eyes moved down his huge arms.

“Yeah. I do yoga,” he said with a grin.

Laura almost choked the grape she had just popped in to her mouth. The image of this monster of a man wearing yoga pants while doing poses was just too much, and laughter burst out of her.

“What? I can be graceful when I really try.” Rick talked between mouthfuls, clearly hungry after the work he had done that morning.

“I don’t know. Some people think bulls are graceful animals I guess,” said Laura, as she continued to work her way through the various foods on the blanket. Everything was delicious, the chicken he had prepared especially. It was wrapped around some kind of smoked cheese which was leaked out when she cut in to it.

Laura liked how easygoing Rick seemed. This kind of lighthearted afternoon was exactly what the doctor ordered, and she felt her initial attraction to him growing even stronger. Big, strong, kind, and he can cook too? She was very glad that her curiosity had gotten the better of her that morning.

Rick’s heart had started racing as soon as he had seen Laura again, and the light banter he traded with her was more difficult than it normally would have been for him. His attraction to her was almost painfully strong, and he knew that he was basically running against the clock here. Laura hadn’t said how long she would be staying, but obviously planned on returning to her home in New York before too long. He had to win her love before that. Then convince her to stay here with him. A tall order, to be sure.

Other men might have thought the lunch he had prepared was too much, that it showed his hand too strongly too early. Rick didn’t agree. He was a blunt guy, and when he wanted something he would pursue it. The game that people played these days made no sense to him. Pretending not to care about someone just in case they care about you less than you care about them? The constant effort to seem coolly detached during the beginnings of a relationship? It all seemed so fake.

So Rick would wear his heart on his sleeve, and waste no time in wooing this beautiful woman who had stumbled out of the woods and into his life.