Page 9 of Tempted By the Mountain man

Suddenly craving nature and a late-night dessert, I slip my phone in my back pocket along with some cash and head out the door. Hopefully my bestie will have her fill of orgasms by the time I return with a belly full of sweets.

With the sun now below the mountains, I head down the steep driveway covered in dusk. Destination: Sugar Moon Bakery. I spotted the cute little shop when we arrived in town last night, but I didn’t have a chance to check it out before River showed up.

I’m only halfway down the driveway when I hear a distinct snap of a twig. I only notice it because the rest of the world has gone eerily quiet.

Shit.

This can’t be good.

I search the immediate area, but I can’t find the source of the noise.

“Hello?” I call out, my voice unmistakably shaky. That’ll show the bad guy I mean business.

I hate that I’m afraid, but I’d be stupid not to be scared, right?

Before I can answer my own question, a large bear the color of midnight steps out into the driveway.

Though I’ve never personally encountered a bear that wasn’t in a zoo, I’ve never in my life seen a black bear the size of a fucking elephant. I thought only grizzlies got this big.

I try to remember the sign at the airport. One that explained what to do during a bear encounter. But the damn thing was color-coded. Do x for a black bear, and y for a brown bear. Or was it a grizzly? I think cinnamon was on the list. Or maybe I’m thinking gummy bears.

Dammit!

“Back away slowly.” It’s River’s voice, low and firm. A full-body shiver travels through me, but I have no idea if it’s sheer terror or lust. Probably a little bit of both.

“It’s a bear,” I say, as though that weren’t obvious.

“Go slow,” River says, moving me behind him. “Don’t turn your back to the bear.”

I shuffle backward up the driveway at a snail’s pace, ignoring every instinct to run. I trust River. I trust the man completely. Which doesn’t make any sense considering how little I know about him. It’s a knowing deep in my soul that promises he’d protect me from any threat no matter the cost.

I watch as he raises his voice to the bear, not quite shouting, but definitely a firm warning to leave. He lifts his arms above his head, as though to make himself appear larger. I think that was on the airport poster.

To my utter surprise, the bear turns and stalks down the driveway, as though the whole thing annoyed him.

I stand, paralyzed with fear as the creature fades into the growing darkness.

“Hey, you okay?” River asks when he reaches me.

“We, uh, just don’t have a lot of bears in Indiana.”

River is so close I can feel the body heat radiating off of him. Or maybe it’s pure, fiery adrenaline I feel. Whatever the source of warmth, I step into it, ignoring all the warning bells going off in my head in the process.

“You shouldn’t go walking at night alone,” he says, his tone firm with a hint of scolding. “It’s not safe.”

Fuck me, it’s sexy.

Too sexy.

I step closer, and suddenly my palm is flat on his chest. How did that happen?

“Jade,” he says, my name a pure growl escaping his lips. Or maybe I’m imagining that part, blurring my earlier dirty fantasies with reality.

“Thank you,” I say, licking my lips as our gazes catch and hold.

“It was just a bear,” he says, one corner of his mouth lifting. Oops. Guess I’m staring at that now. “It’s not like I had to fight it.”

“But you would have?” I ask.