Once he had her skis on and had given her a quick lesson on how to move, they were ready to take the lift up to the first rise. Everything else she needed to know, she could learn on the way.
“Stand by me and sit down as the gondola comes behind you,” he told her.
She looked scared, so he took her poles and held her hand as the gondola approached. It scooped them up, carrying them high above Fate Mountain Village and over the mountain.
When they arrived at the first rise, Zach helped her off and they slid slowly away from the lift.
They were in Peterson Snow Field, one of the best skiing areas in all of the northwest. Maisie tried out her new skiing skills, and they were off across the flat trek.
“It’s just a mile to the south,” he said, striding along beside her.
Maisie gritted her teeth with a strained smile. She seemed more stressed than excited. Was there something she wasn’t telling him?
Maybe she just wasn’t as into him as he was into her. But he could smell the faint scent of arousal rising off Maisie’s body as she propelled herself through the snow.
They skied on through the winter wonderland. He pointed out landmarks along the way as they made their way to the other end of the high plateau.
They skied toward the crystal blue fall of frozen water that cascaded off the cliff. It was the deep freeze of late winter rain. Beyond the falls was a little rise where the old ranger tower stood.
They took off their skis on the porch. Then Zach unlocked the frozen door and pushed it open. It was cold and dusty inside, but he could light a fire in the stove and fireplace. That would make the small space toasty warm.
Maisie walked into the small room, looking out the old windows at the expansive view. This ranger station had been built in the forties but was still standing and still functional. He liked to come up here to be close to the slopes and spend some time in quiet thought.
“This place is amazing,” Maisie said.
“I know. It’s over eighty years old. It used to be used by forest rangers, but now this land belongs to the lodge. I like to keep it up and running.
Zach started a fire in the woodstove and it started to warm up a bit. He put a kettle full of snow on to boil for water.
The place had a few pieces of furniture. There was an old table and chairs that had been there when Zach had started working at the lodge. Some things Zach had brought in, like the furs and beanbag couch in the corner. Maisie sat at the table by the woodstove while Zach knelt near the hearth to start the fire.
When he had the fire in the fireplace going strong, he slid his backpack onto the table and pulled out the things he’d brought with him.
He produced two travel Thermoses, cocoa mix, chocolate-covered strawberries, French bread, prosciutto, and Havarti cheese. He figured all he was missing was champagne.
Maisie looked at his feast with a surprised smile. Her face was pink and happy. The look in her eyes filled his heart with pride. She liked what she saw.
The water boiled in the kettle, and he made them both a cup of cocoa. Maisie arranged the other foods while he poured.
She giggled, putting him at ease. He knew he was trying too hard, and it made him feel like an idiot. He remembered the night he’d spent in the woods, hunting and devouring the deer.
He had to figure this stuff out or he was going to be messed up by it for a long time. He had to be in control of himself and his inner animal. He had to be in control for Maisie.
He was at a complete loss as to how to win her heart. None of his prior experience seemed to make a difference when it came to her. She was the real deal. She was everything. Maybe it was because it meant so much that he was thrown so far off his game.
He intended to put a stop to that today.
He took a bite of his little sandwich. It went great with the cocoa. He was glad he’d thought it up. It was almost as good as a fat turkey sandwich with spicy mustard. Maybe he’d just make that next time.
Maybe she wouldn’t mind.
Maybe she’d like it.
That thought hit him pretty hard. He hadn’t been acting like himself this whole time. He was done with that. Zach intended be the man he knew himself to be from now on. When he was done eating, he made them both a second cup of cocoa and went to stoke up the fires. He knelt down on the furs in front of the fireplace and threw another log on the flames.
Maisie knelt beside him, still bundled in her snowsuit. He’d taken his jacket off when it had started to warm up.
He sat beside her, leaning against the beanbag couch. They both had their hot drinks in their hands.
“Zach, this has been such as special day,” she said, taking a sip of cocoa.
“It’s been special for me, too,” he said, putting his arm around her.
He put his Thermos next to him on the floor and held Maisie close.
“It’s getting so hot in here,” she said, pulling down the zipper on her parka.
Zach remembered that she was in just her bra and panties under that. The thought made him hard. He was right next to her, smelling the sweet scent of her skin. He leaned in and claimed her mouth, pulling the zipper down further.
Maisie moaned and ran her fingers through his hair, pulling him closer. Her tongue darted into his mouth, and he knew she wanted what he had to offer.
He held her close and moved her around to lay across the furs. Breathless from their kisses, she looked up at him with wide, trusting eyes full of desire.
“I’m going to pleasure you until I feel you explode on my tongue.”
“Oh,” Maisie breathed below him.
10
Zach zipped down her parka, exposing her breasts in the lacy pushup bra she’d worn. Maisie could have been practical and squeezed on a sports bra, but no. She’d opted for the sexiest bra she owned. It pushed her breasts up and together, and was completely see-through. Her nipples pointed sky high and Zach lapped one up in his mouth through the thin fabric of the bra. He kneaded her breast, rolling her nipple in his hand as he sucked and teased the other.
She couldn’t resist him. All she wanted was more.
He ran a hot tongue down her stomach. The zippers on either side of her waist opened the suit down her legs. Zach grasped both zippers, revealing her see-through panties and her very wet pussy.
Zach sank between her legs, breathing deeply and flicking his tongue lightly over the sheer fabric between her legs.
“I want you to be warm, baby,” he said, pushing her panties aside. “I want you hot.”
He licked up her slit over and over again. Each time, he pushed deeper, tasting more of her. Maisie ran her fingers through his shaggy blonde hair and moaned.
She hadn’t been expecting this. She’d hoped. That’s why she’d worn the lingerie. The strawberries and chocolate had been sweet, but this…this was pure decadence. Her desire was swirling around inside her, still so thrilled to have his mouth on her sex. Her mouth dropped open with the intensity of the pleasure.
“Your cunt is like honey,” he growled, and pushed his tongue into her core.
His thumb pressed her clit and she erupted. She screamed out a pleading moan. It had been so long since she’d felt like this. When was the last time? She couldn’t remember; she couldn’t even think.
The overpowering pleasure coursed through her, vibrating through every nerve ending. She pulled Zach to her and kissed his hot, salty mouth. Maisie reached down to feel his hardness as he pressed it against her.
“I want you inside me,” she groaned.
She needed it more than she’d ever needed anything in her entire life. She would have died to have him fill her with his stiff manhood.
“I don’t have a condom,” he said.
“But…?” she asked, feeling like he didn’t want her.
“I didn’t want to go too fast with you,” he said.
“I need you inside me,” she breathed.
“In that case.”
He crawled back betwee
n her legs and slid his finger inside her wet core. She rested against the furs, her lips parted, staring up at him.
His thick finger pumped in and out of her needy core. She thrust against him, wanting more. He slid a second finger inside her and increased the intensity of each thrust.
Taking her with his hand, he leaned up and licked her tight breasts, nibbling on her electrified nipples. When he leaned up to kiss her, she came on his hand, her body throbbing and clenching around his fingers rhythmically.
He slid his fingers away and sucked them clean of her sex. Maisie squirmed under him, still wanting to feel his thick manhood fill her up to the brim.
She reached for him and tried to pull him on top of her, but he started to zip her into her snowsuit.
“Don’t you want me?” she asked as he took her in his arms.
She could feel him hard as a steel rod against her, even through the snowsuit.
“More than anything, but I’m not going to push you faster than you’re comfortable with.”
“But I want you.”
“You want to have unprotected sex?”
“I don’t care.”
He kissed her forehead.
“You’ll care later.”
She didn’t care and she didn’t believe she’d ever care. All that she felt was the overwhelming need to be with him, to have him inside her. She wanted him to fill her with his seed and plant a baby in her womb. She knew it as clearly as she knew her name.
That’s when she stopped and thought about it. She wanted a baby right now? Wait. What? She’d just opened a bakery. She couldn’t get pregnant. Zach was right!
She sat up, rubbing her head and groaning.
“Oh god, you’re right. It’s happening to me, isn’t it?”
“Yeah. But that’s fine. I’ve got you,” he said, helping her stand. “You all right with what we did?”
She let out a long breath. She’d loved it. It had been fucking amazing. She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around his waist.
“It was so good.” She shuddered. “Thank you for not taking advantage of me. This whole thing is crazy.”
“I’ve never had to deal with any of this stuff before either.”
“So we have to figure it out together,” she said, looking up at him.
“Yeah.” He kissed the top of her head.
They left the tower and put their skis back on. All the way back to the ski lift, Zach took every opportunity to impress Maisie with his acrobatics and skill on skis. He jumped over a ravine, back flipped off a short rise, and did a one-hundred-eighty-degree turn in the air as he barreled over a hillside. Maisie watched in awe as she trekked beside him, pushing herself until they made it back to the lift.
The ride down was even more exhilarating than the one coming up. She was full of excitement and partially sated lust. It was all too sexy to ignore. Maisie was becoming more and more willing to give in to this whole fated mate business.
The stirring desire she felt for Zach made her want to know everything about him. There was also something deeply creative and inspiring about how she felt for him. It was like those classical romantic poems. Love elevating the lovers to another level.
Zach made her feel more alive every time they were together. She wanted to feel that way all the time.
When he walked her to her door, she invited him up, hoping to finish what they’d started.
“I have to get back to the lodge,” he breathed, kissing her forehead.
Upstairs, she watched him drive away. Zach was getting under her skin. A few weeks ago, she never would have seen herself with a shifter like Zach. Now that she had him, she wished she understood what to do with him.
There was still a part of her that believed he’d take off as soon as he realized they weren’t compatible.
She woke up at four a.m. the next morning as sore as she could ever remember being. It was like she’d fallen off the mountain, not skied a few miles across it.
She sat up in bed, already hating life as her abdominal muscles screamed. How was she ever supposed to keep up with Zach if she was this sore after one lovely date?
She forced herself out of bed and went to the shower. The warm water partially loosened her stiff muscles, but not by much.
She got ready for the day, not sure how she was going to run the bakery feeling like this. Luckily, today was the day her new apprentice was starting.
The girl had an excellent resume and Maisie was lucky to get her. Maisie put on her chef coat and apron, ready as she could be to start the day. She’d need about a trillion cups of coffee to get through the morning.
Thankfully, her new assistant showed up right on time and helped her prepare the bread and pastries for the day. When it was time to open, she let the new girl, whose name was Sadie, take the till.
Maisie needed a little longer break than usual this morning. She sat in the kitchen eating a blueberry scone and sipping her sixth cup of coffee.
Why had she agreed to go skiing with Zach? She wanted him to want her. It was crazy, but she didn’t care.
If he needed her to be athletic, then she’d be athletic. Maisie intended to learn to ski well enough to keep up with Zach, even if it killed her.
11
Zach skied down the slope and watched his clients ride away on the lift. He had a few free hours of time to himself on the mountain. He loved his job. But feeling the fresh powder under his skis as he tore down the mountain was the best there was. Besides the feeling of Maisie’s body under his hands.
He took the lift up the mountain to the highest point and the steepest grade. He came off at the top and got into position, ready to bomb the hell out of this downhill run. Zach launched himself down the mountain, gaining speed with each meter he flew. Exhilaration grew in his belly as he prepared himself for the first jump.
There was a jump point coming up. He glided toward it and launched off of it, twisting himself around and head over heels at the same time.
He landed gracefully on his skis, going faster than any human could handle. He sliced his skis into the snow in a quick switch, back and forth down the steep slope. When the second jump point came into view, he put himself into position to gain speed. He hit the jump with full force and pummeled over, twisting and flipping all at once.
His skis slid fast over the powdered snow, and Zach flew down the hillside at unimaginable speed. As he came to the bottom of the slope, he slid to the side and slowed himself. His skis sent a spray of snow high into the air in front of him as he skidded to a stop.
A group of awestruck tourists watched him as he reached the bottom of the hill. He smiled at them and skied off to the lift. Waiting for a gondola to take him back to the lodge, he felt his phone ping inside his pocket.
When he was in his seat, he pulled it out and took a look at the screen. Maisie had sent him a message through Mate.com.
“I had a great time skiing yesterday. I can’t wait to go again.”
He smiled at her message, but Zach knew it didn’t ring completely true.
Maisie was his fated mate. He could feel her feelings inside him and the connection was growing stronger every day.
He knew that the trip out to the ranger tower and back had been too much for her. Part of him regretted dragging her out there. But he also knew they both had a fantastic time, even if the physical exertion was something she wasn’t used to.
He didn’t want her to pretend to be into something that she wasn’t. He made a mental note to make sure she knew that he liked her exactly as she was. Maisie didn’t have to pretend to be into skiing just to make Zach happy.
He’d realized he’d been doing the same exact thing until yesterday. He’d been so worried that she wouldn’t think he was sophisticated enough for her that he’d been pretending to be someone he wasn’t. He was done with pretending.
Pleasuring Maisie was the most satisfying experience he’d had in his life, even if he’d left the tower feeling like he might explode from unsa
ted lust.
What mattered most was that he gave her what she needed. There would be time for him to bury himself inside her warm body. Until he knew she was absolutely ready for him, he would focus on her.
Zach was beginning to think Maisie would be ready to make love to him by the next time they saw each other. They hadn’t come to any agreements yet, but he could feel it deep inside himself.
He could feel her inside him.
As he slid off the gondola at the lodge, he got another text message. This one was from his realtor. He had a house he wanted Zach to see.
He rolled his eyes. None of the houses the realtor had brought to him had been even remotely right yet. The problem was, Zach didn’t even know what he was looking for. He just knew that he’d know it when he saw it.
He skied over to his cabin and took his skis and boots off at the front door.
After he changed into his street clothes, he went back out to his truck to drive out to the new house his realtor suggested. He was ready to give Maisie a home. No more holding back.
Then he pulled up in front of the two-story craftsman style house halfway between the lodge and town. It was in a quiet neighborhood, at the end of a cul-de-sac. He parked in the big turnaround driveway, thinking that he could build a skate ramp out there when the snow melted.
He took the stairs up to the big front porch. Two rocking chairs sat empty and waiting for someone to sit in them.
He punched the code into the lockbox and took out the keys. As soon as he opened the front door of the house, he knew it was the right one.
Maybe it was because Maisie was finally in his life. Maybe it was the magnificent stone fireplace in the living room. Maybe it was the wall of windows that reached up to the high ceiling, but Zach knew that this place was the one.
He slowly walked across the dark hardwood floors and turned into the dining room of the open concept home. Out the French doors was a big, covered patio that led to a massive backyard.
He thought of all the barbeques he could have out there and all the games of catch he could play with his cubs.
Taking the stairs up to the second floor, he imagined family photos lining the walls. There were four bedrooms on the second floor, including the master.