Fated for Love (6 page)

The chilly night air brought Callie out of her buzz. She stopped in her tracks at the path toward the cabin. It was pitch-black and reminded her of all the reasons she didn’t read thrillers. She looked toward the lodge, where the lights shined brightly against the starry sky, illuminating the lodge in a romantic haze.
Let’s see. Creepy path or fairy tale lodge? Easy peasy lemon squeezy
. Callie headed for the lodge instead of going straight back to the cabin.

The interior of the lodge was brightly lit, and like the rest of the buildings, it had a rustic feel. The lobby was outfitted in distressed leather chairs and sofas. There were wooden end tables and a massive glass coffee table with an intricately carved wooden base. Cathedral ceilings and a stairway that curved around a wooden pole gave the lobby an open and airy feel. Callie noticed a sign on the reception desk next to a telephone that read:

 
Hunkered down for the evening
.
Emergency? Call #0 and we’ll come right out.
See y’all in the morning.

 The Woodlands Staff.

A wooden placard shaped like an arrow with the word
LIBRARY
painted on it pointed down a hallway to her right. Drawn like a horse to water, she followed the hallway to a set of double doors. She pushed the door open just enough to peek inside and see that it was an enormous conference room. She closed the door and continued down the hall to the next room. The door was open, and Callie smiled as she entered the small library with inviting armchairs and plush carpeting. She was drawn to the bookshelves. With her head tilted to the right, she scanned the titles of thrillers, biographies, women’s fiction titles, and of course, books about horses and all things pioneering. She wondered if Wes had chosen the books. Her mind wandered as she began organizing the books, first by subject matter, then by author. It was a habit that soothed her nerves, which had been bundled into knots all day. Callie was crouched on the floor, organizing the last few books on the bottom shelf, when two familiar, scuffed boots and a pair of jeans-clad legs came into view, followed by a pair of brown paws and a wet tongue on her cheek. She drew in a deep breath and Wes’s masculine scent, mixed with hint of puppy, filled her lungs.

She felt his hand on her shoulder, and a flash of heat seared through her entire body. There was no way she could stand on burned legs. Surely they’d crumble under her weight. She remained there, crouching by the bookshelves, silently taking one deep breath after another and telling herself,
He’s just another guy.

Wes crouched beside her, one knee to the ground; the other thick thigh grazed her back. “You’re supposed to be on vacation.” His breath was hot across her cheek, his voice deep and sensuous.

Callie looked at him, and those darn butterflies took flight in her stomach again. Wes was definitely not just another guy.

“Sorry,” she managed. “Habit.”

He slid his dark eyes to the books, then back to her. “There are worse habits to have.” He rose to his feet and held out a hand to help her up.

Callie stared at his hand for a beat. She finally set her hand in his, and he closed his big, rough, calloused fingers around it and lifted her to her feet. Her heart galloped in her chest, which made her cheeks flush.

“Enjoying your stay so far?”

She sighed dreamily—she couldn’t help it. Every damn thing about him, from his sensuous voice to his chocolate-brown eyes and his too-hot-to-think-about body, made her go weak.
Oh, hell
. She had to pull herself together. It was now or never. She couldn’t spend the next twenty-four hours acting like a silly fan girl. She drew in another deep breath…of him. If he hadn’t been holding her hand, she’d have crumpled back down to the floor.

“Yeah, it’s really peaceful here.” She couldn’t believe it. She was actually talking, breathing, standing…and he still held her hand.

“I like to think so. Your friends really pulled a fast one on you. Are you okay with this?”

She looked down at their hands, and his eyes followed. When he let go, she missed his touch and wanted it back.

“They meant well,” she said.

He glanced at the books again. “Were you looking for a book? I have a few that a friend picked out for me.” He smiled, and it set her body on fire again.

“No, I just...I’m just sort of drawn to them. I can’t pass a bookshelf without stopping to look.” Her pulse quickened, and she worried her ability to speak might be short-lived. “I should probably get back to my cabin.”

“I’ll walk you out. It’s pretty dark by the cabins.” He patted his thigh, and Sweets trotted along beside him.

“Do you bring Sweets with you everywhere?”

He smiled down at the loyal dog. “Yup. I can’t stand to think about her alone after what she went through before I found her. I can only imagine how scared she must have been, and I never want her to feel that way again. I want her to know she can count on me, you know?”

“Yeah.” Her breathy voice took her by surprise. She knew exactly what he meant, and she wished he’d found
her
out on the trail.

Once they were outside, Callie filled her lungs with the crisp night air and breathed a little easier, despite her churning insides. They descended the hill at a lazy pace.

“I was surprised to see you. Your application said Calliope Barnes, and I never put two and two together. I don’t think I even knew your last name before today. I’m glad you’re here, though.”

You are?

His eyes were warm and honest, and one look at them nearly stole her ability to speak again. She forced words from her lungs to keep the flow of oxygen moving.

“Calliope is my given name. I have no idea why my friends put my full name, but…an application? We had to apply to come here?”

“Yeah. Everyone does. That way we know about experience levels, medical concerns, that kind of thing. Your group is pretty experienced. You all did high school sports and have been hiking and riding for years, so you shouldn’t have any trouble.”

If by hiking he meant walking from one end of her college campus to another, she was very experienced, but hiking in the woods? Never. Not once. Not even close. She should fess up to her lack of experience, but she was enjoying his company too much to inflict something that would only spark a discussion about either how lame she was or how her friends had lied on the application—neither of which was worth ruining what little time she had in his company.

“Did you always want to be a librarian?”

“Pretty much. I spent a lot of time in the library in elementary school, after school, when I’d wait for my parents to pick me up, that sort of thing. Every day I’d choose a new book, read a few chapters, and disappear for a while.” She smiled at the memory, realizing her nerves were finally, thankfully, settling down.

“How about you? Did you always want to own a dude ranch?”
Dude ranch
. The term made her smile.

“I don’t know. I was an adventure guide for a few summers, but I missed the animals. My partner, Chip, and I grew up together and went to college together. With a double major in engineering and biology, I was in this strange place with degrees in fields that I was really interested in but that didn’t really complement each other. I couldn’t be strapped to a desk—that much I knew—and field research wasn’t really my thing. One night Chip and I were talking about what we
really
wanted to do for a living.” He shrugged. “We both wanted jobs we would enjoy, you know? We love animals, and we love ranching and the outdoors, but we wanted to build something, too. Something that we’d be excited about years from now.” An easy smile formed on his lips. “My cousin Treat owns resorts all over the world and lives over in Weston. He knew Chip and I were debating opening a ranch, and when this property came on the market, he told me about it. Two months later, Chip and I owned nine hundred acres. That was eight years ago.”

“And do you still wake up happy to go to work?”

“So far so good. My sister, Emily, is an architect, and she designed the lodge, the cabins, the whole deal. She’s since opened a design-build firm, but we were her first client, so the whole place means even more to me.”

She loved knowing his sister designed the property and that this wasn’t something he bought and continued but something he and his friend had conceptualized and brought to fruition. He was much more than the adrenaline junkie she’d thought he was.

“Hey, are you too tired to take a walk? I’d like to show you something.”

Sleeping was the last thing on her mind. “No. I’d love to.”

He put his hand on her lower back and guided her up a hill, past outcroppings of rock and through a path in the woods. Her eyes finally adjusted to the darkness as they moved around trees and over rocks and sticks. Focusing on moving forward instead of concentrating on how good his hand felt against her back was a good distraction.

“I come out here sometimes.” He led her deeper into the woods. “Do you have any place that you go to be alone?”

“Well, in Trusty, I don’t really know anyone yet, so there’s no need to go anywhere, but back in Denver, where I’m from, there was this park I would go to on Saturday afternoons. I’d sit and read for hours.” She hadn’t been there in ages, and she wondered if there was a similar place in Trusty.

“I can see you doing that—reading for hours, I mean.”

They came to a mountainous boulder, and Sweets put her paws up on the side of it.

“Doesn’t she ever bark?”

“Not much. I think she probably barked a lot when she was left alone on the trail, because she was hoarse when I found her, but she’s never barked much around me.” He placed a hand on her shoulder. “Give me a sec.” Wes scaled the boulder in three easy steps, then crouched and reached for her hand.

“Take my hand. I’ll help you up.”

She looked down at her boots and back at the boulder. “I’m not very good at climbing. Or heights.” She looked up and swayed backward, dizzied by the sight.

“You don’t have to climb. I’ll lift you up, and I promise not to let you fall.”

His confidence and eager reach curtailed her fear and made her want to touch him again. With her stomach twisting in knots, she took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and thrust a shaky hand up toward his. He grasped it tightly, and in one swift move, she was on top of the boulder—and folded in his powerful arms. His chest was just as hard as she imagined it would be, and—
oh gosh
—she could feel his heart pounding against her knuckles as she clutched his shirt for dear life.

“Callie, I’ve got you,” he said in a calm, soothing tone. “Open your eyes.”

No, thanks. I’ll just stay right here plastered against you and pretend we’re on the ground.
She shook her head and felt him lowering them both to a seated position. His arms remained around her, holding her pressed to his side.

“Better?”

If I say yes, will you let me go?
She had a death grip on his shirt, and she wasn’t taking any chances. “Still a little nervous.”

“Okay. We’ll just sit here until you feel safe.”

“I do feel safe,” she admitted before she could stop herself
.

“You just said you were nervous.”

With eyes still closed, she answered, “I am nervous, but I also feel safe.”

“Fair enough.” He kept her close. “You know those books you give me each week? Sometimes I read them right here on this rock, when I’m taking a break or just need a few minutes to breathe.”

Breathe? Oh yeah, almost forgot
. She gasped a deep breath, forcing herself to try to breathe normally again. Nope. She’d have to settle for simply breathing, even if shallow and thick with desire.

“I really appreciate that you take the time to choose books for me. Not many people would do that.”

She opened her eyes at that. She thought of the way he’d asked her to collect books for him all those weeks ago, as if the person who had held the position before her had been doing it forever. “Didn’t the last assistant do it?”

He laughed and drew one knee up. “Patricia Olson? No. Never.”

“Really?” She realized she was still clutching his chest and dropped her hand to her lap. As long as she didn’t look down, she’d be okay. Maybe.

“Do you do that for everyone?”

She considered lying, but she had never been a good liar. “No. Just you.”

He smiled, and it sent her pulse wild again.

“Just me?”

“Yeah.”

He nodded at that, and she wondered what he was thinking. The silence stretched between them. Every second felt hotter than the last. She tried to fill the gap.

“You don’t have to hold me. As long as I don’t look down, I’ll be okay.”

“You sure?” He held her tighter.

No
. “Yeah. I think so.”

He took his hands off slowly. “You okay?”

She nodded, though she wished she hadn’t said she was okay.

“You don’t really have a lot of outdoor experience, do you?”

“Only if you count all the time I’ve spent in the park.” She fidgeted with her dress.

“This should be interesting.”

He said it with an arc of amusement in his voice that made her stomach lurch again—and made her want to prove she could do it.
Or run away
. Maybe running away was better.

“I’m sorry they lied on the application, but I won’t stay and ruin it for everyone.” She pushed to her feet and stumbled toward the edge of the boulder with a shriek. He shot to his feet and caught her, and in the next second, she was wrapped in his arms again.

“I’ve got you,” he assured her.

Panting and clutching his shirt—and a handful of muscular pecs—she looked up at him and stumbled backward a step.

“Stop. Don’t move.”

She froze at the seriousness in his voice. He took a step backward, bringing them both away from the edge.

“Okay, now take a deep breath.”

She did. Then another.

“Callie, I don’t care that you’re inexperienced. I meant it would be fun to help you learn what you need to know, but you can’t react like that out here. You could really hurt yourself.”