“I understand. I know a few things about shifter mating habits from a book I researched and wrote last year. Really fascinating stuff.”
“Then you know it is almost like torture to resist the urge to mate with you. And that is the very reason we must resist that urge. It isn’t logical or rational. It’s pure animal instinct that wants to control us both for the rest of our lives.”
“I totally get it,” Willow said, taking a drink of her rosé and staring into the red flames of the bonfire.
Part of her wanted to give in to her animal instincts and let them control her for the rest of her life. When it came to making love, she didn’t know if there could be anything better than that. She took another sip of wine and set down her glass, looking at Corey.
Willow threaded her fingers together and set her hands on the table in front of her, waiting for him to say something else. Having him close like this was too difficult to manage if he didn’t want to be with her.
“I wanted to know if there was anything I could do to help you. I have computer skills that could be useful in a number of different ways. I might be able to assist you in some way, to make up for what my crew did to you.”
“I’m not angry at your crew. You don’t have to do anything.”
“It would honestly make me feel better,” Corey said, putting his hand to his heart. “It’s the least I can do.”
Willow sighed and then squinted her eyes at him, trying to size him up. Could he really help her? He was supposedly great with computers. You could do a lot of stuff with computers nowadays. Maybe there was a way he could find her stalker’s identity so she could get a restraining order or something.
“I do have something you might be able to help with, but I don’t know if it’s what you had in mind.”
“What is it?”
She let out a long breath. “I have a stalker,” she said. “He somehow knows that I ghostwrite this famous author’s books.”
“What does this stalker do?”
Willow wasn’t sure she wanted to talk to Corey about her problem. But maybe he could help. No one else had been able to.
“He sends me serial killer letters. You know, with all the different letters cut out of magazines? They have quotes from my novels. Sexy, romantic passages. It leads me to believe he’s romantically interested in me, which is scary, as you might imagine. The cops haven’t helped, and it’s just getting worse. I can’t even work.”
“Why haven’t the cops found this stalker of yours?”
“They say they don’t have enough evidence.”
“Typical… If he sent you letters through the US Mail, I could find him in an afternoon.”
“Really?” she asked.
“Yeah.”
A lodge employee walked by and handed Willow a marshmallow stick and a bowl of marshmallows. She’d been wanting to roast marshmallows. It was one of those things she hadn’t done in years. The girl had handed the same set up to Corey, and he was looking down at it like he was lost.
She slid out of her bench and walked around to the bonfire where she held a marshmallow over the coals. Corey walked up beside her and held his marshmallow next to hers. The music played over the speakers and people were dancing.
A toddler was bouncing to the rhythm while his mom roasted a marshmallow nearby. A group of college age girls were dancing and drinking wine with a group of college boys. An old couple were holding hands in fold out chairs near the fire. Moms and dads were laughing with their children at the picnic tables.
Willow pulled her roasted marshmallow out of the fire and pulled it off her stick. Corey did the same and they sampled the hot treat at the same time.
“I can’t remember the last time I did this,” Corey said.
“Me either. I never do this kind of thing anymore.”
“Roast marshmallows?”
“Anything, really.”
“I have the same problem. It’s good to get out, though. Don’t you think?” Corey asked.
“That’s why I’m here.”
“You might be on to something. I hope your work turns around for you. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Okay,” Willow said, watching him walk away.
He set his marshmallow things down on an empty picnic table and stopped by the DJ to bump knuckles before he disappeared in the darkness.
Willow shoved another marshmallow on her stick, frowning. They hadn’t set a time to meet up. What was she supposed to do now? She didn’t even have his contact information. That hadn’t been him on Mate.com. It had been his crew.
She rolled her eyes and shoved her stick into the flames, which set her marshmallow on fire. She pulled it out and swished it around until the flames went out. The treat was now irreparably burned.
Willow threw her stick in the dirty bucket near the barbeque table and grabbed another glass of wine. She wasn’t in the mood to roast marshmallows anymore.
The college kids across the patio were having a great time. Now they were all dancing together in a way that was almost not family appropriate. It just made the rising tide of desire that Corey set off inside of Willow feel even more uncomfortable.
Someone was going to get lucky tonight. But it definitely wasn’t going to be her. She sipped her wine and turned on her heel to go back to her room.
When Willow woke up the next day, she had a slight hangover and a real need for a cup of coffee. She trudged to the mini kitchen in her suite and made herself a pot before going to get ready in the bathroom.
Even though she hadn’t gotten any real work done yesterday, she was going to spend the whole day today on the beach near the lake. Screw it. She was on vacation. She’d take the new book she’d been dying to read and just relax.
She put on a flowing multicolored maxi dress over her sexy black swimsuit with the cut-outs in the sides.
Willow pulled her thick curly hair into a sloppy bun and slipped on a headband. She applied fresh summer make-up and appraised herself in the mirror before she left her hotel room. She felt good and looked good. By all estimations, she was ready for her day.
She left her laptop in her hotel room, intending to go an entire day without thinking about work. After a delicious breakfast on the patio, she went out looking for the lake shore.
She’d brought her Kindle and a big floppy hat. Finally, she would unwind a little. She found some folding deck chairs out on a sandy little beach not far from a boat dock, took a seat in the summer morning sunlight, and opened her book. The warm sun shone down on her legs as she pulled her dress back over her knees to drink it in.
Willow took a deep breath, inhaling in the fresh air. Out on the lake, she could see a sailboat gliding by on the glassy water. There was a little island off in the distance that was covered in evergreens.
She smiled and flicked her thumb across the screen of her Kindle. The book was by one of her favorite authors. She’d been waiting for this book to come out for months.
Taking in the first page, her eyes speeding over the opening lines, she didn’t notice the shadow that cast over her shoulder. She flicked her thumb over the screen and continued reading.
“Is it a good book?” Corey said behind her.
She snapped her head around, knocking her hat off as she looked up at him. She balked at the sight of him and spun out of the chair, dropping her Kindle in the sand.
“Crap,” she gasped, dropping down to pick it up.
Corey dropped at exactly the same time. They both grabbed for the device and knocked their heads together.
“Ouch,” Willow said, rubbing her head as she pulled away her sandy Kindle.
“Sorry.”
Willow brushed off her e-reader with her dress, looking down at the sand. She wasn’t ready to see Corey today. She hadn’t convinced herself she wasn’t interested in him yet.
“What’s up?” Willow said, wanting to hide.
They hadn’t set a time to get together to look into her stalker situation. The way they’d left th
ings last night, she hadn’t been sure if it would even happen.
“I live right over there,” Corey said, pointing to a cabin across the lake trail, behind a grove of ponderosa pine trees. “I saw you and figured I’d come say hi.”
“Hi,” she said hesitantly.
Willow bit her lip, not sure what else to say. She looked around, remembering why she’d come out here.
“I’ll just get back to my book.”
“I was wondering if you wanted to come look into that stalker situation now.”
“I was going to read and then go swimming.” At this point, she was more interested in relaxing than thinking about her stalker. Or thinking about the way Corey’s dark eyes drank her in from behind his glasses.
“I know the best swimming hole on the lake. I could take you there after we start the search.”
“I guess that would work.”
Willow wasn’t sure spending time together was a good idea. But she couldn’t resist the idea of going swimming with Corey.
“The system will take time to parse the data, so we can start now and come back later. I can get some food brought over from the kitchen for out on the lake. You might get hungry.”
“Um, okay.”
This was sounding more and more like a date. She had no idea what to think as she followed him up to his cabin. When they went inside, she saw that his front room was completely dominated by computer monitors.
A desk with two massive screens took up an entire corner of the living room/dining room area. There was a small sitting area on the other side, but no kitchen table.
Still, it looked comfortable enough. The view out the window of his cabin looked right out onto the sun-drenched lake shore and the swaying branches of trees.
Corey pulled a folding chair over beside the computer and offered for her to sit down. He slid into his office chair, and she sat beside him.
“Okay, let’s start at the beginning. You said he’s been sending you letters? Is there anything else you could tell me? Do you have them?”
“I’ve given them to the police. They’re in evidence.”
“Great,” he said, beginning to type on his keyboard.
“How is that great?”
“That means there’s a good chance there is a digital copy I can find and analyze.”
“How are you going to find police files?” she asked, shocked.
He looked at her with a humored expression.
“Watch,” he said.
The images on the screens began to move so fast, she didn’t know what the heck was happening. But it only took a few minutes before Corey was opening digital images of her stalker’s letters.
“You did not just hack into the Seattle PD’s database,” she said, twisting around to look him in the eyes.
“That’s exactly what I did. What? Don’t look so shocked.”
“I’m speechless. This is all kinds of illegal,” she said, sitting back and crossing her arms.
“I only hack for good.”
He said it so frankly that she had to shake her head.
“So, you’re like the Robin Hood of computer hackers?” she asked.
“Something like that,” he said.
He turned to her and smiled then went back to whatever it was he was doing on the computer.
“Okay. I’ve got all the evidence entered into my system. The postmarks are excellent clues.”
“The police said it was useless.”
“Maybe for them, but my systems can do things the cops can’t or won’t do. It’s going to take a while, though. There’s a lot of video data to go through for this search.”
“How do you have all this technology?” she asked.
It didn’t seem right that he had more advanced technology than the police. Who was he? What was he doing with this stuff?
“I invented it. I’ve just kept it to myself. Releasing it to the world would cause drama that I don’t want to deal with. Now, how about that boat ride?”
7
Corey led Willow out to the rowboat, not sure what the hell he was doing. It was just supposed to be him innocently helping the woman his crew had tricked into coming to Fate Mountain.
He wasn’t supposed to be taking her on a romantic picnic. He helped her into the rowboat and took a seat at the oars. Willow held the picnic basket on her lap, looking as confused as he felt.
She looked away as he rowed, casting her eyes out over the water. It was a gorgeous day. The sky spread out blue and big above the rich green forests and towering snowcapped mountains. It was nice to get away from the computers for a while. He didn’t do this kind of thing often enough.
Willow had mentioned she’d needed a break from her own work. Working at home could make it easy to become obsessive about what you did. The boundaries between work and off time were blurred so everything became work time. Corey didn’t mind so much, since his work was his life. But he was beginning to suspect that if he took more leisure time it might help his mind perform at its optimal level.
He’d just have to ignore the incessant growls of his bear to mate with Willow here and now in the rowboat.
Intent on enjoying the day despite his bear, Corey rowed Willow out to the best swimming hole on Lake Fate. It was tucked away in a secluded corner, only accessible by boat. He only knew about it because he’d rowed all around the lake when he’d first moved to the lodge three years ago.
He rowed the boat to the shore and jumped out to pull it onto the sandy beach. They’d landed in a secluded cove, sheltered from the lake by trees. Corey looked into Willow’s eyes as he helped her hop out of the rowboat in that long flowy dress that hugged her curves.
In that moment, the thought of her skinny-dipping in the swimming hole crossed his mind. His grizzly launched onto its hind legs, exhibiting the strongest display of male power Corey had ever seen from his bear. He almost dropped Willow’s hand as he squeezed his eyes closed, trying to get his bear under control.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, noticing his distress.
“Nothing. My bear.”
He let go of her hand as she placed both feet on the sand. He backed away, shaking his head. He couldn’t get the scent of her out of his nose. The bear paced back and forth behind his third eye. Corey’s body blazed with vivid need, and he hid himself from her until it subsided.
“We can go back,” Willow said, gripping her elbow as she held the picnic basket in her other hand, looking awkwardly up to the side.
She looked so cute, biting her lip like that. So innocent. So luscious. Her breasts were perfect round globes, ripe for squeezing. The images of her moaning as he rolled her nipple in his hand flashed across his mind’s eye.
Corey growled and gritted his teeth. That was the last sexy thought he would allow to cross his mind for the rest of the day.
That was final.
“Really. I don’t need to swim,” Willow said.
He could tell she was uncomfortable.
“I wanted to spend the day by the lake. I’ll just put out this blanket and try to relax. You go swim.”
“Corey. I don’t want to torture you.”
“It’s fine. It’s over.”
He grumbled at himself as he put the blanket out in an area of the beach with dappled shade from the branching trees. He sat on the blanket that lay over the warm sand and pulled the sandwiches and lemonade from the picnic basket.
Willow stood above him with her hands on her hips, one eye squinted in the sunshine.
“You’re a strange man, Corey Bright,” she said.
“I’ve been called worse,” he said.
“Are you eating?”
“Might as well.”
“I’ll eat with you then.”
She sat beside him and opened her sandwich. She took a big bite, her eyes not leaving his face. He hadn’t wanted it to be awkward like this. He didn’t know what he’d expected. And how had he found himself on a third date when he’d never wanted a first one?
r /> “These are good,” Willow said, looking off into the pool of blue-green water.
“Yeah. I love the bread. Zach’s mate bakes it at the new bakery in town.”
“I’ll have to check it out. I love bakeries.”
“Fate Mountain is a great place to live.”
“Seems to be,” she said, glancing at him again with that skeptical look in her eyes. “I think I’ll go for a swim now.”
She stood and started toward the shore, pulling the long dress she wore up over her head. Corey watched her as she slid into the warm summer lake, her luscious curves filling his imagination with too many ideas.
Before he knew what he was doing, he was standing too. He pulled off his shirt and kicked off his sandals, stepping into the water behind her. She turned to look at him, her eyes lingering on his muscled chest. Her mouth dropped, but she looked away.
“The water’s great,” she said, walking further into the swimming hole.
As she walked out, the water rose around her hips, then over her waist, until her breasts bobbed in the silvery surface. She swished her arms slowly out on either side of her and turned back to look at him. He’d followed her to the same depth, standing a few feet away in the warm water. It felt so good. Everything felt right.
“It’s nice to get away from work for a while,” he said, dipping down further so that his chin touched the surface.
“I know exactly what you mean,” she said.
She waded toward him, smiling into his eyes. He could smell her scent more strongly with each inch she moved. She enveloped his senses.
If Willow hadn’t been so smart and beautiful, maybe resisting her would have been easier. But he liked her, damn it. Despite what his bear was doing to his mind and body, he liked this woman in front of him for who she was.
She had an inner fire that intrigued him. If she weren’t his fated mate, maybe he would have liked to spend more time with her. He liked the way she made him feel. It wasn’t just his instinct. It was Willow.
He knew she could understand many of his struggles. He already felt as if he understood her in the same way.