CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Chase

“You cold?” I asked, feeling her shiver against me.

“Not really. Aftershocks, I suppose,” she giggled.

I laughed. “Good. I want your body tingling.”

“Oh, it's tingling all right.”

We lay in bed, cuddling each other and enjoying the afterglow of some early morning sex. Waking up with her was addictive. Sex with her was far more addictive. I never wanted to leave the bed. Her back was to me, but I could feel the tension in her shoulders. She wasn't quite as warm and cuddly as she usually was after sex.

“Everything okay?” I asked.

I could see she was being different, not looking at me or sinking into me as usual. In a short few days, I had come to know her very well. This was not the normal behavior for her.

“Madison?”

She sighed. “Chase, I want to believe you, but my gut is telling me you’re hiding something. I just can't shake the feeling. I don't want to feel like this, but I do.”

“Madison, seriously, drop it.”

“Fine.”

The way she said it told me she was anything but fine. She would pretend, but I knew it was going to continue to bug her. All I could do was hope I could make her forget about that little niggling in the back of her mind.

“I need to go get the fire going,” I said, rolling away from her and getting out of bed. I pulled on my jeans, not bothering to put on a shirt and headed out to the living room. Once the fire was stoked, I started the coffee on the stove again.

She walked into the room, stood in front of the fire for a few minutes and then moved to the large picture window that overlooked the backside of my property. For several long minutes, she stood and stared, not moving a muscle.

“It is beautiful here. I have always loved the mountains,” she said slightly breathless.

“Why do you live in sunny Florida with miles of beaches then?”

She shrugged. “I don't know. It's always been my home. It's where my life is.”

“You aren't bound to Florida. You could paint anywhere, right? Why not go where you're happy?”

“I could paint anywhere, but my family isn’t anywhere. Emily.”

“You said your parents are on the road a lot, so they aren't there. You just broke up with your fiancé. He's not a factor. Emily, your friend—well, friends move. What else is there?”

She turned to look at me. “Nothing.”

“Why has it taken you so long to get to Colorado? I mean, you seem to make your own hours. Why now? Why not in the past?”

“Mark.”

“What?”

“Mark is not fond of the cold. He never wanted to come here, and he would definitely never have considered moving here. I wasted so much time with him, living for him. Doing what made him happy. I got a little lost there for a while, but I think I have new clarity.”

I stood beside her, not touching her, but just standing near her. It was a way of showing her what was in Colorado. Me.

“Well, Mark is out of the picture, so now is the perfect time. Embark on a new journey. Make yourself happy,” I said, a passionate plea to convince her to move closer to me.

There was a long sigh. “I can't. My whole life is there.”

I guffawed. “It sounds like you’re making excuses. You admitted there was nothing really holding you back. What are you afraid of, Madison?”

There was a long pause and when I thought she wasn't going to answer, she turned to look at me. “You.”

“What? Me? How do I scare you?” I asked suddenly very worried she had looked into my past. “Have I done something to scare you??

My heart raced. We had some rough sex but not overly so. She seemed to like it, even encouraged it. I had claw marks down my back to prove she was as aggressive as I was.

“Not like that, Chase. I'm afraid I'm falling for you. I just met you, and I have these crazy, intense feelings for you. It isn't normal. It is like an infatuation. I know it can't be real, and it can't possibly last. I’m afraid to let you have my heart.”

I reached out a hand and took hers in mine. “I think it is real. I feel the same about you. I can't quite get my head around it, but I can't imagine my life without you in it. I don't want to. I want you, here with me. You can trust me with your heart.”

I saw tears well up in her eyes. “That's very sweet.”

I leaned down and kissed her. It wasn't a kiss that implied sex. It was a kiss that was meant to show her how much I cared for her. I wanted her to know I was serious. It wasn't a line. I wanted to be with her. I didn't want her to leave me, and I wasn't sure how I could ever go back to my old life now that I had a taste of what real happiness was.

She stepped away and turned back to look outside. I could see she was still wrestling with something. I hoped it was the decision to move and not worrying about the big secret she suspected I had.

“Madison?”

“I need to get this rental car business straightened out. Do you think you could take me into town? There’s some paperwork I need to fill out.”

“Of course.”

She was pulling back. It was painfully obvious. I could feel her slipping through my fingers, and there was nothing I could do to stop it. The truth would not set me free on this one.

“Are you going to get another car?” I asked, hoping she would say no.

I liked being her only source of transportation. If she could come and go as she pleased, she could very well go and never look back.

She nodded. “That's the plan. I had the insurance, but there’s a ton of paperwork I need to fill out. There's some confusion about the insurance. If they tell me I didn't have it on that damn car, I will have to kick some serious ass.”

“I'll go with you.”

She looked at me. “And?”

“And, I'm a big guy,” I left out the fact I was an ex-con, “and I can intimidate people pretty easily. I won't let them give you any trouble.”

She laughed. “If you say so. It seems odd this is all taking so long to figure out, but I guess I wasn't the only one who wrecked that night.”

I cringed. “Wow. That is crazy. I hope everyone else was okay.”

“Me too. First, they have to get the car.”

“Uh, what do you mean? That car was towed out of there days ago.”

“They didn't tow it. The wrecking yard towed it. They said I didn't report it to them, and the car was towed by someone else. Seriously, it is a mess. The car was towed to the wrong shop apparently.”

“We'll figure it out. First, we need to track down the car.”

“I know where it's at and already called to have it towed to the right place. We'll need to stop there first. I don't know how they figure that was my problem, but I need to return the car,” she said using air quotes, “before I can get another one. I'm guessing they're not going to give me a free upgrade this time.”

I laughed. “If they wanted to give you a free upgrade, they should have given you a four-wheel-drive SUV. These are the mountains after all.”

“Yep, but I picked the car up in Denver. I don't think it’s quite the same there as it is here. Here, you guys are legit backwoods. No paved roads or stoplights.”

I nodded my head. “Exactly. And that's why you love it here so much.”

“You're right. It is definitely a selling point.”

“So, did you want to make a day of it?” I asked her, hoping to keep her with me.

“What do you mean?” she asked.

“Get the rental stuff handled and then stop by Liza's house.”

“That would be nice. Thank you. Hopefully, everything goes smoothly, and we don't have to rely on your intimidation skills.”

“Bummer. I was looking forward to it,” I told her with a grin.

“I'm going to shower and dress. Then, I'll be ready.”

She leaned up, gave me a quick kiss, and then headed out of the room. I watched her walk away. My mind drifted as I thought about her living here permanently. This tiny cabin was great for me, but I would need to add on if she wanted to move in. I had been mulling over doing that for a long time. My mom had given me the land and the cabin with the hopes I would settle down and have a family here. She said the place was meant to be a home, and she wanted to visit her grandchildren here one day.

She would never get that chance. My detour in life had stolen that from her. I shook it off. I couldn't let myself get pulled into that den of guilt. I had spent too long in there, and it had nearly killed me. I would only look to the future. A future I hoped included Madison.

While Madison called, I made a few phone calls. She didn't know the people around town like I did. I called Bob's Towing and arranged to have the car transferred to the rental company's preferred shop. He agreed to do it as a favor since he knew my family. I did have to pay the nominal fee, which I didn't mind doing. I told him to make sure that part was kept between us. Madison didn't need to know. If she did, I knew she would make a fuss about it.

I let him know we would be at the rental place in about an hour. He agreed to have the car there by then.

“I'm ready,” she said, startling me.

I turned and took in the sight of her. She was so gorgeous. I couldn't believe I was the guy fucking her every night. I kissed her.

“You're so beautiful,” I whispered against her lips.

“Thank you.”

I kissed her again, being careful not to get too carried away and mess up her hair that had been piled onto her head in a very pretty messy-bun look. I knew it looked messy and thrown together, but I also knew that look took some time to achieve. She had explained as much the last time I pulled her hair out of the bun in a bit of a sexual haze.

“Let's go. The tow company will meet us at the rental place,” I told her, grabbing my keys.

“Really? You called them?”

I nodded. “Old family friend.”

She laughed. “Of course it is. I forget you know everybody in town because that's how small towns work.”

“Yep, and it is a great way to get things done. You call up a person, ask, and things happen. You don't have to talk to complete strangers who have no real interest in helping you.”

She nodded. “I could definitely see the benefit of having a network of people.”

“Live here, and I'll share my network with you,” I winked.

She didn't agree, but she didn't disagree. Progress, I hoped.