Becca turned a frown on him as he drove them back to town. “Aren’t we going to cut the tree right now?”
“Trust me, Rebecca. I know where I’m going.” Alec forced his gaze back to the road and pulled in a calming breath. Becca had turned into a beautiful woman, and he couldn’t preserve discipline if he watched her animated face.
And never mind touching her or, for heaven’s sake, kneeling at her feet like he had this morning to help her with her new boots. Either of those would only lead him deep into trouble. “Isn’t that the plan?”
“But we’re heading home?”
“You’re smart.” Her lack of trust grated on his nerves. “You’ll figure it out.”
Clenched-jaw tension simmered in the warm air coming from the heater. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught Becca unfolding the permit and the sketch of the cutting area. “The ranger marked an X on the opposite side of the river.”
“Bingo,” he teased. “Come up to the front and claim your prize.”
“Stop being obnoxious, Alec. I haven’t had any coffee yet.”
“You don’t offer coffee to your guests for breakfast?” He waited a beat and then pressed his hand to his chest. “I’m shocked. Shocked, I tell you.”
She swatted his arm. “Stop that.”
He lifted an eyebrow. “Watch out, I’m driving.”
“I brought my coffee pods for the kind of coffee machines we have available in our hotel lobbies, but for some reason, this kitchen doesn’t have a machine, only a drip pot. And I totally forgot about it yesterday when I bought the car battery. Actually, buying the battery took a lot of time because I had to wait in the service queue.” She pulled out her cell, swiped, and tapped.
“Ordering takeout?”
She gave him an astonished look. “Is that possible?”
“They would have to deliver over the mountains.” He reached for the phone in the console.
“Don’t bother. I’m not ordering coffee. I’m making a note to tell the office.”
“You want to stop by my place and grab a cup?” Gad! What was he doing?
“That’s all right. I’ll live.”
“That’s good.” Based on the renovations he’d seen during the grand opening of the inn, not to mention Becca’s high-fashion clothing, his apartment would not be up to her standards. And he could live without hearing her opinions.
They passed the city limits sign that described Angels Glen as the place to “Lock Your Love” and took the left side of the Y-split to cruise the main commercial street. A turn down a short block took him to the old river bridge. He waited for a car to cross the one-lane span and lifted a hand to the man behind the wheel.
“I see people are still locking padlocks on the bridge.” Becca slanted him a look. “Didn’t Lauri Newsom get you to put one on when you were dating? Still in love with her?”
“Never did the lock thing.” His tires slapped the pavement on the other side of the river, and the road led into the forest at the bottom of the mountain. “I’m safe now. Lauri’s happily married to someone else and has two kids.”
“I guess this means you kept in touch.”
He ignored her dig. “I saw her at a class reunion a few years back.”
Becca let the subject drop, probably because she hadn’t gotten a rise from him.
After climbing for a mile or so, he took a turnoff and bounced along the rutted forestry road under lofty pines. Most of the lower branches had fallen off, creating a sun-spackled understory. After the recent warm spell, snow had melted, and he had to keep the truck moving to avoid getting stuck in scattered mud puddles. He parked at the junction with another dirt road and gestured to the new growth. “How’s this spot look?”
Becca shook her head. “I can’t really tell from inside the truck. We need to get out and walk around.”
“Now you’re the expert?” Alec opened his door and stepped down to the ground.
“Not really, but I can see that other cars have stopped here which means the area is picked over.” Becca slid across the console and braced a hand on the door. “The best ones will be farther from the road. We should bring this.” She reached behind her to pluck the measuring tape from the console. “Remember what the selection rules said.”
“Right. Toss it to me.” He cupped his hands.
She pitched the tool to him and climbed down. The wind whipped a strand of her golden hair across her cheek, and he jammed his itchy fingers into his pockets. She didn’t notice, but he told himself to watch out.
Alec let the dogs down from the truck bed and retrieved his hatchet while Becca snapped on Trixie’s leash. As he followed her around the thicket of manzanita bushes and into the trees, he filled his lungs with the fragrant scent of pine needles underfoot. He hadn’t been up this way in a while, but he’d always loved having the outdoors close by whenever he wanted to escape his family drama. “Remember when Rob and I used to hike up here?”
“Only the time I got scared of the bears. Are you saying you two came up here regularly?” Becca’s pretty mouth flattened.
Uh-oh. His shoulders sagged. “Maybe that was one of the things we weren’t supposed to tell you.”
“Who said?” She propped her hands on her hips.
“Could have been your mother, but I’m not sure.” He rubbed a finger under his nose. In truth, Rob had been the one issuing that rule, but Alec had gone along because he hadn’t wanted a repeat of the fishhook event. “It was probably just us being obnoxious boys.”
“Why am I not surprised?” Becca tossed off, walking deeper into the woods.
“You don’t still resent me for that.” He followed, snapping and unsnapping the hatchet’s leather cover. “Do you?”
“I guess not.” She tugged Trixie away from an interesting scent. “That would be pointless.”
“Good.” Relief loosened his tight shoulders. She’d said she’d changed, or that people changed, but he’d obviously touched a nerve. “Why don’t you let Trixie off leash? She wants to explore.”
“She might run away.” Becca scanned the forest.
“I can whistle for her.”
“You’ll probably have to.” She unhooked the leash and looped it around her neck. The dogs scouted ahead, and she rubbed her arms. “It’s colder up here than I thought.”
“You want my vest?”
She sent him a startled look. “I’m okay. The cold is actually invigorating.”
That was also a big reason he never minded staying in the mountains through the winter. Plus, he loved the sense of fellowship with the few residents who remained over Christmas.
Not much scrub grew beneath the trees, and they mostly walked on fallen needles. He halted beside a bushy little pine not far from the road and measured the bottom of the trunk. This one met the cutting requirements the national forest set—six inches from the ground to the first branch—and he grasped a branch. “How about this one?”
“Not suitable. Let’s see what other kinds of trees we have to choose from.”
“They’re all going to be pines.” He retracted the tape. “We’re not high enough to get the spruce and firs.”
“Okay, pines.” She walked on.
Brandy kept pace with them while Becca’s dog darted from tree to tree, sniffing every fallen pinecone. “I want something bigger. One that will—”
A rustling echoed through the morning stillness.
Both dogs went rigid. Becca froze in place. When the canines bounded deeper into the forest, Alec, worried now, rushed to stay with them.
“Wait,” Becca called. “Don’t leave me.”
“Stay there.” Seconds later, he found the pups circling a tall pine. High above, the branches swayed in the wind.
Becca panted to a stop beside him and grabbed his arm, shaking as if she’d seen a ghost. “W-where is it?”
“Where is what?” He put his arm around her shoulders.
“The bear.”
“There is no bear.” He tugged her closer, liking the way she fit against his side.
“What are you doing?” Her blond brows rose.
“Living up to my name.” Taking advantage was more like it. “‘Alec’ means protector.”
Another rustling noise rang through the forest.
“Look out.” He pulled her over to the tree trunk. A large cone fell where they’d been standing, and the dogs danced away. Her face pressed his chest. Her perfume tantalized him and set his blood pumping harder. Bringing Becca up here had been a bad idea. Doing anything with her was dangerous. She was way too tempting.
“This is the time of year pines drop cones.” He lifted his arm from around her and stepped away. “The wind must have knocked off some loose ones.”
“Good thing we have Brandy and Trixie to protect us from airborne missiles.”
Alec laughed. “They’re sure getting lots of excitement out of this trip.”
“We should still be on the lookout for bears, though.” She clutched his arm and scanned the woods. “Come on, let’s find a tree and get out of here.”
A few minutes later, she stopped at a much larger tree than the one he’d chosen. He shaded his eyes and gauged the height, shaking his head. “Too tall to carry back to the truck.”
“I’ll help.”
She was as good as her word, standing in the truck bed to heave the tree up while he lifted the trunk. After trading places with her, he tied the tree down. The top hung past his open tailgate, and he tied a red handkerchief on the tip. “You can go ahead and get in if you’re cold.”
She went around to the driver’s side and called to her terrier. “Why don’t we let the dogs ride with us? They won’t have enough room in the bed now.”
He rubbed the back of his neck. “I was thinking the same thing, but things will be tight.”
“We don’t have far to drive.”
“You’re right.” He handed the dogs up once she got settled, climbed behind the wheel, and drove down the mountain, a smile stretching across his face.
Becca held Trixie in her lap. “That was fun.”
Yeah, it had been. Had he always enjoyed her companionship this much? He couldn’t remember. He’d always kept his hands to himself. Yet when she’d run to him during the “bear scare,” he’d automatically tucked her close and had almost bent down and kissed her.
Almost! Kissing Becca was not a good idea. His best friend had asked him to protect his baby sister, not hit on her.
“Thanks for your help.” She stroked her puppy’s head. “My offer still stands about paying you for your time.”
“Friends don’t charge friends.” He shifted into low gear as the grade grew steeper.
“But friends can lend money to friends, or friends can borrow from friends, right?”
She had to be talking about the dented door; he’d caught her staring at the side of his truck again. He threw her a grin. “I promise to get it replaced when my sister gets back.”
“You should. Especially if you plan to offer rides to someone not as athletic as I am.” A little smile teased her mouth. “You know something?”
His nerves went on alert. She had an idea cooking, and she wouldn’t be saying anything if it didn’t involve him. “What?”
“Would you be willing to help me put the tree up? And wrap pine boughs around the front porch columns? If you help me decorate, I’ll introduce you to my guests.”
“That sounds like a bribe.”
She ignored his remark. “There’s going to be a writer and editor for an outdoors magazine and a sport clothing manufacturer looking for winter shoot settings. I’m sure the magazine guys would be thrilled to meet a local fishing guide.”
The VIP guests must be the real reason Becca had suddenly appeared in Angels Glen, not her recent hard times, whatever those were. All right, he didn’t know that for sure.
Becca shifted in her seat, and his skin tingled with awareness. What was she seeing? “I know you could probably find a way to meet them on your own. But wouldn’t it be nicer to have a proper introduction and a positive recommendation?”