Chapter 14 (Jasper)

The scent of her hair lingered in my nose, making me smile. She smelled so sweet and innocent. I felt like no matter how much I had of her, I would never get enough.

I was addicted.

that would make letting her go even more painful. I shuddered, already thinking about the withdrawal I would experience in her absence.

I thought about going back, wanting to hold her a little bit longer. I wanted to feel her body against mine, two puzzle pieces that belonged together.  it was more than that. I wanted to keep her safe – to protect her from all the evils in the world.

Even if she knew how to fend for herself, I wanted to be by her side through every hardship she might face along the way.

Deep down, I knew that wasn’t possible. She would soon walk away from my life and I’d never see her again.

Outside, I headed for the shed where I cleared a pile of snow from the door. The lock was frozen, making it impossible for me to open it.  I had to spend over five minutes trying to thaw it with my hands before all the ice finally melted away.

The shed was filled with hunting supplies as well as a couple of kayaks in case I ever wanted to take a ride down the river. For the most part, I stuck to my rifle, enjoying the weight of it in my hand.

I slung it over my shoulder and grabbed some ammo. Before leaving the premises, I glanced at the cabin, seeing Mandy in the window.

She smiled at me and waved goodbye.

I waved back, feeling confident that she would still be there when I returned.

After a few minutes, the cabin was no longer within view. I continued forward, trudging through the snow drifts, keeping my eyes peeled for any sign of movement among the sea of white.

For a long time, all was silent. I was left with my thoughts. Most of them concerned Mandy. Everything about her was intoxicating to me – maybe a bit too intoxicating. In such a short amount of time, I already felt so strongly about her. Of course, I hadn’t told her head, scared of pushing her away, but at the same time, it was becoming harder and harder to keep my emotions to myself.

Maybe, if I told her, she’d stay.

Who was I kidding?

I was destined to be alone and this was just a small reprieve in my solitude.

Suddenly, before I could ponder the matter any further, a rabbit dashed forward from its burrow, jumping over the snow. I aimed my gun at it, finger on the trigger, but at the very last moment, I dropped the gun, unable to do it.

I couldn’t kill an innocent creature.

Instead, I stepped forward, moving slowly and silently. Maybe, if I could catch the bunny, I could bring it back to Mandy as a sort of gift.

I continued forward, holding out my hand.

It munched on a couple of bright red berries, nose twitching back and forth.

Crunch.

Accidentally, I stepped on a twig.

The bunny looked at me, brown eyes wide with wonder before it high-tailed it out of there as fast as it could.

So much for catching a bunny.

I laughed, shaking my head.

Wolf probably wouldn’t have gotten along very well with a rabbit for a brother.

***

I continued my hunt for over an hour. Despite running into a few more rabbits, I came home empty-handed.

Sighing, I decided to gather a few berries, thinking I could make a pie or something. As far as I could remember, I had enough flour and shortening to make the crust.

With my pockets full, I walked through the front door. “Mandy?” I called out, looking around the living room, expecting to find her on the couch. To my surprise, she wasn’t there.

I headed for the kitchen. She wasn’t there either. Even Wolf’s bed was empty.

“Wolf?” I whistled, trying to get my dog’s attention.

I waited but nothing changed. I was met with silence.

Already, anxiety started to creep underneath my skin. Had she left? Or had something happened while I was gone?

“Mandy?” I called out once more, bounding up the stairs to the bedroom. Maybe she had fallen asleep and simply couldn’t hear me.

The bedroom was empty too.

Where was she?

Before I could lose my cool, I paused, taking a deep breath. There was no need to jump to conclusions. 

Still, I couldn’t help but think the worse. What if something had happened to her?

Quickly, I headed back to the kitchen, looking out the window, hoping to spot her, but all I saw was a blanket of snow painting everything in white.

But then, out of the corner of my eyes, I noticed a bright pink slip of paper on the table. I grabbed it.

It was a note.

Jasper,

Don’t worry, I didn’t run away. I just needed some air.  I took Wolf for a walk. I’ll be back soon. Keep the bed warm for me – or the kitchen counter – or the couch. Whatever you want but you won’t be able to stop me from getting you this time around. No more teasing.

Love,

Mandy

I reread the note a few times, smiling to myself. I loved how sexy she was.  most of all, I was surprised by her “Love, Mandy.” Did she just write that out of habit or did she really mean that? Could it be possible that she genuinely loved me?

The thought instantly sparked suspicion in my head. I had heard those three words before. Every time they were hollow – meaning nothing. They were simply a ruse to get into my bank account. 

Still, I wanted to believe that maybe, just maybe, Mandy was different. There was something about her that was different from all the others. When she looked at me, her eyes sparkled.

I smiled. Maybe it was time for me to open up to someone.