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A few awkward seconds pass. I swear if he heard the jingle, he’d love it. It’d be stuck in his head all day. Maybe I should sing it to him again…
“So, do you live in Calgary with a boyfriend?”
His jaw clenches tight as he waits for my answer. I’d swear that he was jealous if it wasn’t such a crazy idea that this gorgeous mountain god wanted anything to do with an annoying city girl like me. He probably wants to drop me off at the earliest convenience, go home, rub hot oil all over his muscular chest, and then chop down a tree with an axe. Or, whatever hot muscular mountain men do in their free time. I’m not too sure.
“No, I live with my parents,” I answer with my nerve endings stirring and tingling. “I’m single. No boyfriend for me.”
That’s been a bit of a sore spot lately. My best friend is getting married and all of my other friends are going to the wedding with dates. I’m the only loser going alone.
He exhales long and hard, like he’s releasing some bottled-up tension.
“And what about you?” I ask as I watch his grip on the steering wheel ease up. “Do you have a wild mountain woman you live with? Does she dress in bearskin and eat bark off trees?”
“What?” he says, looking at me with a chuckle.
“Nothing,” I say as my cheeks heat up. “Do you have a girlfriend? Or a wife?”
He shakes his head and a flood of relief fills me up.
“No, I was waiting for the right one to come along.”
Was. Hmm, interesting. Probably just a mistake. Or, maybe he’s given up on love. This secluded mountain would be the perfect place to live for someone who’s not trying to meet anyone.
“She hasn’t come along yet?”
He looks at me from the corner of his eye and then turns back to the road, swerving the truck around another steep bend. “I wouldn’t say that.”
I don’t know why, but that vague answer gives me warm shivers.
“What are you doing up here anyway?” he asks.
“My friend is getting married at the Greene Mountain Lodge on Saturday. I’m the maid of honor.”
“That explains all the bags.”
“Yeah,” I say with a laugh. “Believe me, I had packed enough for five bags, but then had to narrow it down to three.”
He chuckles.
“You want to call me a princess again, don’t you?”
He grins and it makes my heart start galloping. “Maybe.”
“You can call me whatever you want,” I say with a smile. “You saved me, so you earned it.”
We arrive at a split in the road, and Tyler is able to turn the truck around.
It’s still terrifying to be driving up the mountain at this speed and in these conditions, but at least we’re not flying down backward anymore.
“No date for the wedding?” he asks, giving me that curious look again.
“Nah,” I say. “I’m the only single one.”
“I’m sure you’ll find a lucky guy to worship you properly, princess.”
This time, I don’t feel any annoyance at the pet name. I kinda like it. I smile as I watch him drive up the dirt road.
It’s getting so hot in here. The heaters are on full blast, but it’s also this hottie who’s heating up the truck. Or, maybe he’s just heating up me.
