Drawn to Vail Mountain Read online

Mrs. Wiser turned, a gray bun on top of her head, her plump face gleaming with sweat as she worked over the stove. She was dressed in her usual long, flowing dress, this one a pale blue, and a white apron hugged her thick waist.

  “Good morning, Connie. There’s coffee ready, and how many times do I have to tell you to call me Susan?” she said, raising an eyebrow over blue eyes that smiled at her.

  She loved the other woman who reminded her of her own mother when she was a little girl.

  “Susan,” she allowed, smiling as she retrieved her cup from the cabinet and poured herself a steaming coffee. Breathing in the aroma of the coffee beans, she could already feel her body wake up without even taking a sip.

  “You make the best coffee.” Connie sighed, finally taking a sip as she leaned against the counter. It was their routine of the past week. Connie always came to keep the other woman company before the sunrise and the start of the day. Nina was an early riser too, along with Rob and Emily, but the other woman had said that they spend the early morning hours together before taking on the day, so the lower floor was usually deserted except for Susan, who always prepared the day’s meals in advance.

  “So, what’s on the agenda for the day?” Susan asked, stirring something that smelled heavenly in a large pot on the stove. She usually didn’t eat much for breakfast, but the smell was even making her hungry.

  “We have a guest checking in this morning, a hunter, I believe.”

  A noise at the doorway brought her attention up, and she worked on controlling the shiver that wanted to consume her as she met Jacob’s eyes. He was usually gone by the time she came down, something that she was thankful for. They hadn’t had a chance to talk much and not at all about the kiss. She had a feeling that was about to change with the determined glint of his dark eyes that scanned her body, taking in her jeans and blue sweater.

  Goosebumps rose, and she shivered again as a slow smile curved his lips as if he knew the effect he had on her.

  “Good morning, Connie.”

  Before she could respond, he turned as Susan spun from the stove, earning a wink from him and a grin.

  “And how is my favorite cook this morning?”

  A flush stained Susan’s cheeks, and she chuckled, shaking her gray head as she went about cooking breakfast and lunch. “That charm won’t work on me, Jake. No bacon until breakfast. Why aren’t you in town? Aren’t you the new sheriff now?”

  Susan was the only one who called him Jake, but he didn’t seem to mind as he grabbed his chest and groaned as he faked a heart attack, bringing a chuckle from them both.

  “You wound me, darling! But coffee will have to do. I finished most of my meetings yesterday, so I just have a few more this afternoon, and then I can settle into a routine and my actual job. I hate meetings,” he muttered, causing Susan to laugh before she turned back toward the stove and a smile to tug at his lips.

  With that, he walked closer, and Connie moved out of his way, but he blocked her in, standing in front of her. Seconds ticked by until she looked up into his eyes.

  “Good morning,” he whispered again, his eyes caressing her upturned face.

  “Morning,” she said, gulping, trying to find the breath that had left her body at his close contact.

  A throat clearing to her right snapped her back, and she skirted around him, almost spilling her coffee in her haste for some breathing room. The damn man knew what he was doing given the hungry look he sent her way that had nothing to do with food, but she wasn’t going there.

  “Thank you for the wonderful coffee, Susan,” she said quickly, avoiding Jacob’s raised eyebrow and that determined glint that told her he wasn’t finished with her.

  Before Susan could answer, she took off out the back door to where the sun was just peeking over the trees of the mountain, almost feeling like she was running from a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Damn the man. She didn’t care if he thought she was a coward. He made her feel too much. She barely knew him and yet…

  She walked along the wraparound porch to the corner of the building where two rocking chairs sat facing the beautiful sunrise, and with a sigh, she sat down and felt her shoulders slump, the tension leaving her body as quickly as it had come.

  She didn’t know what it was about Jacob that got to her, that brought that tension to her shoulders and neck, but she didn’t think he was a man she could ignore for long, or avoid for that matter.

  The sun rose, and she held her breath for another reason as the beautiful colors filled the sky. The peace she had been craving flowed through her as the warmth from the sun bathed her face. She loved it here. She couldn’t imagine returning to the hectic city, yet did she have a choice? She had a job there, a stable income even if it wasn’t something she wanted to do. She didn’t have any family, so that wasn’t stopping her, but the fear of failing was there too. The nagging voice in her head said to take the leap of faith and do what she wanted, but she had always been a coward, been too afraid to let go and follow her dreams. To pick up everything and move with just her small savings was a risk that she didn’t know if she could do, yet the desire, the urge, was there.

  Was she strong enough? Did she have what it would take to make that kind of leap and commitment?

  Fear nearly choked her as she sat, her thoughts racing.

  Jacob watched Connie, observing the range of emotions flittering along her expression in an unguarded moment, but just then, he spied the fear that suddenly swept across her pale face, and he stiffened. It wasn’t just fear but pain, and he hated it.

  Unable to bear it a second more, he stepped closer, and she finally became aware of him, stiffening in the chair. He felt her withdraw, and a shutter came down, hiding her thoughts. Jacob wanted more than anything for her to trust him, but he knew it would take time—time he was invested in. He was determined to break down her walls, to get her to see him and them, what they could be together.

  “Is everything okay?” he asked quietly, sitting down beside her in the rocker to her right. He knew she would probably have preferred being alone, but he didn’t have it in him to give her that, refusing to make the mistake again of sitting on the sidelines and waiting, not when she had suddenly become so important to him so fast. He was done questioning it despite never believing it could happen this quickly. Even when he had thought he loved Nina, he had known her for five years, and the last two years of that had been trying to be her friend and something more.

  This…this was so much more.

  She shrugged and took a sip of her coffee as she stared at the rising sun, clearly avoiding his gaze.

  “Yes. Just thinking about returning to work next week.”

  At her words, he froze, and his throat closed. With everything he had going on, he had forgotten that she had a different life away from the mountains, a life to return to, and the fear of losing before he had even begun tasted bitter, almost like the acid at the base of his stomach. He swallowed, trying to get past the choked feeling that threatened to strangle him.

  “Do you like your job?” he asked, glad to hear his voice was calm and not the trembling mess he had thought it would be.

  She shrugged again, the blue sweater pulling tight across her chest, but given their sudden depressing conversation, his eyes were on her face, watching for anything that told him her thoughts, and if he hadn’t been watching so closely, he would have missed the flinch.

  “It’s okay. It’s a stable paycheck.”

  He wasn’t satisfied with her answer, but before he could dig deeper, he heard a motor coming up the mountain, and Connie quickly stood.

  “That must be the guest checking in today. Have a good day, Jacob.”

  With that parting shot, she left, walking back around toward the kitchen door and leaving him to stare after her with a sinking feeling that his time was running out. She would be leaving next week, returning to her life in the city. He felt the loss and ran his hands through his dark hair as a black truck came into view but then disappeared aro
und the side.

  You can’t lose something you never had, he thought, his fists clenched at his side as he stood up.

  Sighing, he walked back in the front door in time to see Connie greet a stranger, his broad back to Jacob.

  “My name is Steve Wellington. Here for a week of hunting,” the black-haired stranger said with a smile aimed at Connie. The man was tall, easily a few inches taller than Jacob’s six feet. Steve turned and caught sight of Jacob standing behind him.

  They shook hands, the other man’s grip strong and firm, but something about him, his dark blue eyes, bothered Jacob.

  “Wonderful. Well, we are glad you’re here and hope your stay is a relaxing one,” she said, writing his registration in the log book at the counter not far from the door.

  “Where are you from?” Jacob asked casually, his hands shoved into his jeans pockets.

  “California for the last ten years but grew up in Montana, so let me tell you, I miss the mountains and try to take a couple of trips a year to refresh myself on my roots,” he responded after signing his name to the log book.

  “Well, let me show you to your room. The owners, Rob and Nina Garland, should be down soon to greet you, and breakfast will be ready in about an hour.”

  “Perfect.”

  With that, Jacob watched the two head for the stairs, the man handling one small suitcase, and finally, Jacob shook his head, bothered, and yet he didn’t know why. The man had been nothing but jolly with a positive attitude and excited about the coming week.

  Maybe it was because he hadn’t seen a wedding ring on the other man’s hand, and he wasn’t ashamed to admit that he had looked. So as far as Jacob knew, the other man was single, and, technically, so was Connie. That was probably what sparked the lack of trust.

  Jealousy.

  Growling, he started to head outside but saw Rob walking toward him, a serious expression on his face.

  “What’s up?” he asked, following Rob outside to the porch.

  “Just got a call from dispatch. A hiker never checked in last night, and the other two men he was with made it back just fine. They’re worried, and now so am I.”

  Jacob frowned and looked down at his phone. No messages. “Why wasn’t I notified? Do you have his coordinates?”

  “The south side of the mountain and dispatch usually just calls me if it’s on the mountain or close by, as my base is the rescue center for the mountain. If you want that changed, that’s fine, but the old sheriff usually didn’t want to be bothered.”

  Jacob scowled. “Well, I do care, so yeah, I would at least like to be notified that a citizen or tourist is missing. Want company?”

  Rob shrugged. “Sure. Hop in. Nina plans to make sure the guest is settled in and then head into town for some shopping with Emily. She said something about dragging Connie along anyway.”

  That left Jacob to fend for himself, and he was antsy to get the lay of the mountain and surrounding areas, so who better to show him than Rob?

  Chapter 12

  The man scowled watching as the women and dark-haired child jumped into a truck and left. Fuck. That hadn’t been planned.

  He hadn’t expected the ranger to take the bait of the lost hiker so quickly, or even the new sheriff tagging along, but the women leaving, now that posed a problem, throwing a kink in his plans for the blond.

  Glaring out his bedroom window, his thoughts raced, discarding each alternative plan he came up with. He pulled out his cell and dialed the number he had memorized.

  “Plan’s changed. The bitch left before I could grab her.”

  He listened for a minute, nodding every so often, his scowl going darker the longer he listened.

  “Got it. Don’t worry. I’ll get it taken care of. Just letting you know it will be a little bit longer.”

  With that, he disconnected the call, still staring out toward the mountains. He anticipated everyone being gone for most of the day. All who remained was the cook in the kitchen, but he wasn’t worried about the older woman. If she got in his way, well then, collateral damage was to be expected in his line of work, but since he had a while to kill—pun intended—before he had to come up with another way to grab the blond, he figured he could walk around the grounds and familiarize himself with the layout. He knew the way down the mountain and was prepared in the exit plans, having traveled them the last few days before he had arrived, experimenting with different ways. He could see how easy it would be to get lost in the wilderness. Being from Montana had been a lie, but he had grown up in Oregon, and it was just as wild, affording him valuable experience in this foreign mountainous terrain.

  He hated when plans had to be altered, but it couldn’t be helped. Since he had to kill her anyway, he planned to have some fun with the bitch first, regardless of what they were paying him for and what they had said not to do. They wanted it to look like an accident, but when he was done with her and the animals got to her, no one would be able to tell that she had been fucked. Just the thought had his jeans tightening and his scowl replaced with a wide grin, his eyes glittering with the thought of spreading her legs wide and ramming his cock into her tight hole, either hole—he wasn’t picky. It had been a few months since he had had a woman and even longer since he had a good fight on his hands. The fight made it that much sweeter—the fear in her eyes…

  The bitch would do just fine to relieve that stress, and he couldn’t wait.

  It always amazed Connie how beautiful the town was and how welcoming everyone seemed to be. So different from the city and the hectic lifestyle.

  Connie, Nina, and Emily strolled down the sidewalk, greetings from the townspeople filling the air.

  “You’re so lucky, Nina. This is a beautiful spot to raise your daughter.” She sighed, taking in the quaint older buildings lining Main Street.

  Nina shot her a look, a sly smile on her face. “You know, you could move here too.”

  Connie had already thought of it but had soon discarded the idea, becoming depressed all over again as she shook her head. “I have an accounting degree, but I seriously doubt anyone is hiring around here. I need to be able to support myself.”

  Nina didn’t say anything to that as they entered the small café on the corner. It was now lunch, and they were all hungry, having shopped at a few stores and worked up an appetite. The smell hit her first, erupting a serious growl from her stomach, making Emily laugh.

  They sat down at a corner table in the back, one of the few tables left, as it was lunch rush and the place was packed. Connie wouldn’t have thought there were that many people in the small town, but it was almost standing room only as people waited to be seated. Two waitresses were running between the tables, taking orders and cleaning up for the next customer.

  A waitress came and took their orders before disappearing into the crowd again, and Connie looked around, amazed.

  “Is it always this busy?”

  Nina nodded with a smile. “Sally owns the café, and she’s one of the best cooks in the area. There are only two places to eat in town—Sally’s and the small restaurant on the other side of town. Major competition between the two but I don’t think it’s much of one. Owen doesn’t get nearly the business that Sally does.”

  Their food soon arrived, and all three dug in, the silence only broken by the many conversations going on around them. Finally, they were done and left, letting a couple take their table.

  “You’re right. That food was delicious!”

  Nina laughed as they headed toward her truck. “Told you.”

  Connie let Emily climb into the back seat and then jumped up herself. The tires were huge, a good two feet from the ground, but then again, they would have to be to get up and down the mountain even in the best of months.

  “Ready to head back?” Nina asked as the large truck rumbled to life.

  Connie nodded, suddenly tired and craving a nap. The drive back passed in silence; even Emily was quiet in the back seat. Connie turned to look at the little gir
l and chuckled. The sweet child was passed out, lying curled up on the seat, out cold.

  “She can sleep anywhere. It always amazes me.” Nina laughed as the resort came into view.

  The truck parked, they climbed out, and Emily woke, trotting behind her mother up the porch and inside.

  Connie made her way to her room. It was only around three in the afternoon, but she could barely keep her eyes open. She didn’t know why she was so tired. Maybe it was the mountain air or just the day trip, but a nap was in the cards for her.

  She flopped down on the bed, fully dressed, and sleep hit her, hard.

  Jacob frowned and glanced at his watch. It was after four, and they still hadn’t managed to find the missing man. “Wasn’t this the location of the missing hiker? The last time he had called in to his friends?”

  Rob was frowning himself and nodded. The two men had been all over the south side of the mountain and had even widened their search with no success before returning to the general location of the last ping of the man’s cell phone. They hadn’t even managed to spot any tracks, which was puzzling in itself. There should have been tracks, damn it. The rain the day before brought the perfect condition for tracks of some kind, but there were no tire tracks or footprints. Nothing.

  “Damn it. We have to head back if we want to be back by dark. Fuck. This isn’t right. Something’s off.”

  Jacob agreed. Something didn’t feel right.

  They hiked for another hour before Rob shook his head, stopping next to a large tree. The forest was darkening, and before long, it would be full dark. “Time to head back. I’ll try again at first light.”

  “I’ll come with you tomorrow.”

  Together, they made their way back to the truck, each lost in their own thoughts and worried for the lost hiker. Even though it was early fall, the nights were pretty cold, and only the experienced should have been hiking by themselves. They didn’t have any evidence that suggested the man was experienced, and that bothered them both.