Leif scrambled up into a sitting position, rubbed his chin and leveled his eyes on her. “What did you say?”
She clutched her arms around her upraised knees and shrugged. “Have I told you about my ex-fiancé?”
Dryly, Leif replied, “Not only did you tell me, if you’ll remember, I met the guy.”
“Oh! I don’t mean Todd.”
“You were engaged to someone else besides Fairbanks?”
She raised one eyebrow. “You make it sound as though I make a habit of it. There’s just been one other guy.”
The woman changed gears faster than a champion bicyclist in a race. “What do any of your ex-fiancés have to do with you wanting to sleep with me? At least, I think that’s what you said.” She hadn’t said sleep, but ‘making love’, which he chose to ignore. She didn’t love him because she didn’t really know him.
“He’s gay.”
Leif raised his brow. “Oh, so you didn’t get any while you were together, huh?”
“As a matter of fact we made love quite often,” she said, her voice laced with exasperation. “I didn’t learn he was gay until just a few weeks before our wedding, about the same time he realized it.”
“He jilted you, too?” he asked, surprised.
She nodded. “Yup, guess as the big day drew near he couldn’t face the reality of living with a woman instead of a man for the rest of his life. At least he canceled out so I had time to let everyone know we weren’t getting married.”
“Okay. I can see where this is going. You want to know if you’re desirable. Right?”
“I suppose,” she hedged. It was too early to confess her innermost feelings to him. Besides, she wasn’t certain of them herself. They needed time to learn to know each other better, although she couldn’t deny the fact she was very attracted to him.
He growled, “Well, you are! Take my word and go to sleep.” He scrunched down into his sleeping bag, his back facing her once more.
She shoved his shoulder. “That’s it?”
Leif groaned. “Yes, that’s all I’m saying, but doin’ is another thing.”
He rolled onto his back and pulled her into his arms. Then he planted a kiss on her mouth that left her gasping for air, and limp in his embrace. He felt his heart pounding against her breasts, speeding up when she slipped her arms around his neck and pulled him close. After a long while he turned his head to the side to break the kiss and glared into her dewy-eyed expression.
“Does that answer your question?”
She grinned. “You do want to sleep with me.”
“Hell, yes! From the moment you plunked that fine butt of yours into the passenger seat of my seaplane.”
“Then why haven’t you made the move on me?”
“I tried and you threw a fit, that’s why.”
She shook her head and her silky blonde hair tempted him to touch it. He didn’t, though, and wouldn’t until they’d sorted things out.
“You said you were trying to scare me off,” she chided.
He growled, “Well, it was the truth, sort of.”
“Two engagements, Leif,” she said softly.
“What’s your point?” Damn, but she felt good in his arms. He rubbed her buttocks and felt heat building up through the denim of her jeans.
She sighed and snuggled in closer. “Oh, Leif, no one seems to want me.”
He grinned into her woeful expression. “I do.”
Her eyes widened. “Really? You’re saying you love me and you’ll marry me? Oh! You have no idea how long I’ve wanted to start a family, and...”
Releasing her as though both hands had been burned, he rolled back to his own sleeping bag. “I didn’t say anything about getting married. And I’m too young to be a father.”
“Then what did you mean?”
“We both need a good lay. If that sounds crass I’m sorry.”
She frowned and lay back down on her sleeping bag. “What did you mean when you said you were too young to be a father? Neither of us is too young to be a parent, Leif.”
He turned his head on his pillow to meet her eyes. “Just cause you’re afraid your biological clock is running down, it sure as hell doesn’t mean mine is. I’m not ready for parenthood.”
Leif felt miserable. He knew he’d likely hurt her feelings, not to mention he’d probably lost his chance of her sharing his sleeping bag.
“How do you feel about marriage?” she asked.
He’d heard the trembling in her voice trembled and grimaced. “It’s fine for folks, when they’re ready to be parents. There’s nothing worse to my mind, and I’m talking from first-hand experience, in having children out of wedlock. A baby’s entitled to two parents.”
She settled down as she thought over his words. He’d been born out of wedlock and had never known his own father. She wasn’t sure she agreed with the two-parent families being better for a child. But then, she knew of those kinds of families that weren’t so good. About parents who fought with each other constantly and ended up getting divorced. And she knew of single moms and dads who did an excellent job raising children.
He was wrong, and his parenting ideas were old-fashioned, but she couldn’t expect him to think differently because of his own life’s experiences.
It rained during the night. The gentle sound of it calmed Leif and Cassandra during their slumber. But, sometime during the darkest hours they found themselves turning to each other. Their tentative lovemaking began with comforting, gentle touches that built rapidly into a storm of passion.
She’d roused him from a deep sleep and stroked him into a mindless, glorious erection. He started fitting himself inside her but pulled back when she told him to wait. Deflated, he sank back on his sleeping bag, listened to the sounds of her rummaging through her backpack. He threw an arm over his eyes, breathing deeply as he held back his feelings of confusion and disappointment when he heard her whispering.
“Oh, thank heavens I found it.”
Her touching him again made him gasp raggedly. He cursed inside when he felt her slowly roll protection on him. Then he berated himself for having forgotten something so important, but appreciating her even more when she could have allowed him to go unprotected. Which, of course, could have resulted in her getting pregnant, something she desperately desired, but he didn’t. For a fleeing moment he wondered why she happened to have a condom with her in the first place, but only for a moment.
He covered her with his body and took her as surely and as hard as the storm building as the night passed and dawn approached. They made love as though this were their last time together. And perhaps, in each other’s minds, they believed it was.
~ * ~
“Uh, Cassie, you almost ready to leave?”
Cassandra looked at Leif as he stood in the tent’s entrance, a hesitant look on his face. She’d just tossed the last piece of clothing into her backpack and was in the process of flinging it around her shoulders and onto her back when he chose that moment to poke his head inside.
“As ready as I’ll ever be.”
This adventure couldn’t end soon enough, she thought, squirming and settling the pack on her back. She was tired of the straps cutting into her shoulders. She was covered with mosquito bites, even on places she would never dream of, but then, it was no one’s fault but her own. She wouldn’t have bites on her buttocks if she’d kept her clothes on last night.
He surprised her when he came inside and helped straighten the backpack. Glancing at him over her shoulder she was even more stunned when he started unloading the pack. Her gaze moved to his face as he concentrated on removing a pair of shoes, mess kit and water jug. “I just packed all of that,” she protested.
He turned away, carried the stuff outside, saying, “Yeah, well, this pack’s too heavy for you.”
Shocked, she could only stare at the vacant opening. This was three days into their trip and he’d just now decided that? Why, she wondered? Then it hit her hard, like an axe biting into a hunk of wood. The man was feeling solicitous toward her because they’d made love last night and he felt guilty.
Hmm, she could play this out one of two ways; confront him with it, or pretend nothing had happened. As she stalked outside with the now lighter pack she saw him down by the lake loading up the canoe. She’d never been one to stick her head in the sand. It was time they talked, because they sure hadn’t last night.
She frowned then and sighed in exasperation, realizing for the first time he’d enticed her into breaking her vow of celibacy. Damn! A little guilty voice inside her warned her not to go down that road. Hadn’t she been the one to make the first move?
Cocking her head to one side she stopped behind him and stared at the muscled contours of his rear as he bent over the canoe’s edge, arranging things. Khaki-colored shorts revealed long, tanned legs that didn’t appear to have a single mosquito bite on them. His T-shirt stretched across his back and shoulders with his movements, his well-developed muscles rippling as he worked.
He straightened and turned quickly, nearly bumping into her. Stepping back, he moved around her. “We’d better take down the tent.”
She dumped her pack on the ground and followed him. After collapsing the tent they worked opposite each other to fold it into a narrow cylinder to fit it into a nylon bag.
“Weather should be pretty decent today, right?” she asked.
“Yup.”
“Of course, portaging is going to be sloppy since we’ve had so much rain.”
“‘Fraid so.”
His short responses to her questions as they folded the tent were maddening.
“You were incredible last night,” she said softly, staring at him.
No response. But he met her eyes for a split second and she was surprised to see his face redden. Embarrassment just didn’t jive with his actions last evening. What in the world had changed overnight?
He threw the tent bag over his shoulder and she traipsed after him.
“Did you hear me?”
Again, no response, except, “We’ll eat on the water.” He stepped back and waved his hand at the canoe. “Get in.”
“What’s wrong?”
His gaze snapped up to meet her own. “We’ve lots of water to cover today so we’ll talk about it tonight.”
“It? You mean us, don’t you?
She narrowed her eyes when he looked away from her and across the lake.
“Leif?” she insisted.
He said softly, “Yes, us.”
With a sigh she climbed into the canoe and noted his relieved expression. Oh, she wasn’t through with this discussion by any means but he was right about them moving on.
Once they paddled away from shore he handed her a chocolate bar and an apple. “This is breakfast and lunch. Let me know if you want more.”
In other words they wouldn’t be stopping until much later.
The weather didn’t improve over the day, and by mid-afternoon Cassandra felt her throat getting raw and she’d started coughing. Damn. She was coming down with a cold.
They paddled across a small lake, portaged, then crossed another before Leif said they’d make camp soon.
Cassandra was having doubts about her stamina. With the onset of the cough and sore throat her body ached, she couldn’t stop shivering and she felt weak. She knew she had come down with some kind of virus, and all she could think about was climbing into a warm, comfortable bed, dreading the night ahead in a sleeping bag on the hard, cold ground once more.
When they paddled through another narrow opening leading to a much larger lake, Cassandra groaned. “I thought we were going to set up camp,” she whined. God, she never whined but she couldn’t help it. She couldn’t recall ever feeling so uncomfortable in her entire life. “What’s the name of this lake?”
“David.”
She stopped paddling and turned in her seat to face him. “What? They run out of Indian names?”
His lips twitched, threatening a smile. “Smart ass. No idea why it is called Lake David, but I’ll tell you it’s a fairly calm lake for its size. Shouldn’t take us more than an hour to cross, then we’ll make one more portage to our campsite.”
Within the hour, as he’d predicted, they reached the other side. It was slow going when Cassandra climbed out of the canoe, shivering and aching from head to toe, though she tried concealing her flu symptoms. She didn’t want Leif calling an end to the trip, which would in effect make her the loser.
Still, if it came down to that, she knew there wasn’t a thing he could do about Gateway not belonging to her. Any court of law would tell him so. They owned halves and he’d better get used to it and her ideas for change. She had to get the guy out of his box. His ideas of keeping things the same at Gateway were archaic. Besides, they’d drown if they didn’t forge ahead with changes to make the place more appealing to tourists.
Leif followed her and once they rearranged their gear he slowly started lifting his end of the canoe, ready to portage, but paused when Cassandra picked up her end and dropped it in the mud. It nearly landed on her feet but she’d luckily jumped back in time, avoiding it.
“Watch it, Cassie-girl or you’ll lose,” he warned.
She glanced up, ready to view a grin on his face, but found him staring at her with a straight face. All serious. She looked away quickly, wiped her dripping nose on her sleeve.
Hard hands settled on her shoulders and she found herself staring up into Leif’s thunderous expression. “You’re sick! Why in the hell didn’t you say something?” he barked.
“It’s just a little cold-flu thing,” she said offhandedly, stepping out of his grasp. “All I want to do is set up camp and crash for the night,” she added. “I’m sure I’ll be better in the morning.”
“We’re heading into Kenwick, the nearest town. I’m not taking any chances on you coming down with pneumonia.”
She didn’t argue with him, and suddenly defeat sounded very sweet to her ears. Bending, she picked up the canoe and changed her grip, positioning it over her head to portage. It was slippery as they moved slowly up the muddy bank, biting her lip and trying not to drop it again. She tried changing her grip but then stumbled over a tree root and landed in the mud, face down. Her end of the canoe crashed down on top of her and she shrieked when sharp pains ran through her left arm, neck, and chest.
The darkness lifted then and she realized Leif had pulled the canoe off her. With his assistance she jammed her palms against the earth, ready to lift herself up but shrieked in pain and collapsed once more. She’d hurt herself somehow. Falling on the muddy ground with the canoe landing on top of her hadn’t helped, of course.
“What in the hell,” Leif muttered as he squatted beside her. “I’m going to try and turn you over onto your back. I hate to say it but you either sprained or broke something.”
She frowned as she turned and stared up into his worried expression. She’d never broken a bone in her entire life, although she supposed there was a first time for everything.
He turned her over and she grimaced and held her breath against the stabbing pain in her shoulder and collarbone, afraid he was right about breaking something. She looked up at him and said softly, “I think my shoulder’s broken.”
“Don’t even think it,” he snapped. “Kenwick’s a good two miles away, through the forest.”
He checked her over and she whined whenever he tried moving her arm and pressed on her neck and shoulder. He sank back on his heels with a sigh.
“I think your shoulder’s out of its socket, not broken.”
She frowned. “Oh, well, that’s a good thing then, isn’t it? That it’s not broken but out of place?”
“We’ve got one of two choices. I either set it back in the socket, or we wait and get you to the nearest hospital and have them do it. But I’ll tell you right now you’re going to be in a lot of pain the entire time if we wait.”
“Why must I go to the hospital? Can’t we find a clinic in the nearest town? What was the name again?”
“Kenwick. Honey, believe me, there isn’t even a doc’s office nearby. The closest clinic is about an hour away. Let me check it out again to be sure.” He looked at her intently as he felt around her shoulder.
She bit her lip, tried not grimacing the entire time, relieved when his hands finally fell away.
“I’m afraid I made an error in judgment. Not only is your shoulder out of joint, your collarbone is broken.”
She gasped. “How do you know that?”
“Cause I can feel a bit of a jag—” He paused. “I just know you broke it and I need to get you to a hospital.”
Cassandra rolled to her good side and proceeded to sit up.
“What in the hell do you think you’re doing?” he growled.
“Well, if I have to go to the hospital, you certainly can’t carry me. My legs are fine so I’ll walk, but I’m telling you now, I’m not picking up that canoe again.”
Satisfaction tore through her when she saw fleeting admiration in Leif’s eyes as they left the canoe behind. With seeming ease, he carried both their packs, one arm slung around her waist as he guided her along the path through Lake Superior Forest. After a short while, though, she was having difficulty catching her breath.
“It’s because you’ve come down with a damned cold, and that ball in your shoulder out of place isn’t helping any. I’d set it but won’t attempt it with that clavicle broken.”
Cassandra sank to the ground and leaned back against a tree. She gazed up at him as he stood there with his hands jammed on his lean hips, his jaw set as he looked away through the forest.
“Have you had any medical training?”
“Yes.”
“What kind? How long ago?”
“When you’re in my line of work it only makes sense to be certified in basic first aid and CPR. I have both, but I was also an Eagle Scout and learned other types of first aid, besides. I can fix your shoulder, but not without you feeling any pain. The broken clavicle complicates things, though, and I don’t want to make a mistake.”
“Can it be done, though?
His nod gave her courage when she said, “I trust you, Leif, and I don’t think you’d make a mistake. Just do it.”
He shook his head and swiped his wet hair off his forehead. “I can’t.”
“You can, because if you don’t you’ll have to go ahead without me. I’m in too much pain to walk.”
~ * ~
Leif stared at her, knowing she was right. He knew she wouldn’t make it and he sure as hell couldn’t carry her the rest of the way. He rubbed his hands together briskly and rolled his shoulders. Squatting beside her, he tentatively reached out and took her limp arm in his. With a few short, twisting movements her shoulder slid into place. Cassandra screamed and her lower lip was bleeding from where her top teeth had bit into it.
He reached for her, cupped the back of her head, and held her face against his shoulder. “There,” he said, “I’m done. Rest a bit then we’ll see if you can make it to town.”
She lay limp against him and he smelled the rain in her hair, felt her womanly curves in his arms and decided he’d pay for this damned trip for the rest of his life. He was to blame for her injuries. He was the one who’d badgered her into going because of his territorial behavior about a stupid bait shop. After awhile, she was able to move with a bit more ease. Leif was relieved that setting her shoulder eased most of her pain so she was able to make it into Kenwick.
Leif felt even worse when he saw the tiny emergency center, one of few in the area. It appeared under-staffed, doctors and nurses milling through the place from one vacationer to the next, setting broken bones, and dispensing medication.
Other than giving Cassie a couple of shots, administering ice to her shoulder, and putting her arm in a sling, there was little the doctors could do about the clavicle. Suspending movement of her arm would aid in repairing the bones. They left the hospital and ambled into a Bed & Breakfast. There was only one room available, with a double bed, but that was fine with Leif. He wanted her close and wouldn’t think of leaving her alone for the night.
After they’d eaten a light supper of delicious, homemade, chicken noodle soup, walleye that had been fried to perfection, with baked potatoes and hot crusty rolls, he settled her into the bed and pulled the covers up to her chin. He moved to the other side of the room, sank into a deep, velvety chair and threw his legs up on an ottoman.
He hadn’t cared what the room looked like but smiled when, on the way in, Cassandra picked up a brochure at the check-in desk that gave details about the room furnishings and told him how she’d always wanted to stay in a Victorian Inn. All the rooms at the inn had been decorated in Victorian style with beautifully carved cherry wood furnishings. Old fashioned claw-foot tubs and pedestal sinks had been installed in the bathrooms. Each room had been wallpapered in different wallpaper, floral and paisley patterns.
Damn, the room was too romantic for his taste. He didn’t want Cassie getting any more ideas about getting into bed with him. Again. Last night he’d made a big mistake. She signified ‘change’, of which he wanted no part. He took a pull from his beer and nearly choked at her words.
“Aren’t you coming to bed?”
He scowled at her. “This is bed for the night.”
“You are not sleeping the entire night in that chair, Leif. This bed is plenty big enough for both of us.”
“That bed’s not big enough for both of us in the condition you’re in, Cassie. Uh-uh. This chair will be just fine.”
“You don’t find me desirable. That’s it, isn’t it?” she muttered. “That’s why you wouldn’t talk to me all day! That’s why you wouldn’t answer me this morning when I asked what was wrong? You regret our lovemaking, don’t you?”
“That’s far from the truth,” he snapped. “Far from it,” he repeated, his voice trailing off softly.
“Then what’s wrong? Did I do something you didn’t like?”
Leif threw his head back against the chair and closed his eyes. After a while he turned and looked at her. “Don’t you know you’re my fantasy-woman come to life?”