She hesitated. “Right. Okay. Yes. You’re right.”
“Besides,” I added, “nothing else is likely to surprise us today.”
She gave me a look. “Carson. Do not tempt the forest.”
“Noted.”
She took another breath, this one more centered, and gestured down the trail.
“All right. Let’s work.”
I nodded and followed her, watching the way her shoulders finally loosened with each step. She was herself again with quick, bright, and steady steps.
But her earlier vulnerability still hovered in the space between us, even if she refused to acknowledge it.
And as we started deeper into the woods, I realized something I had been fighting since the moment I met her:
I didn’t want distance.
But I forced myself to maintain it anyway.
Because wanting her, wanting that connection, was a risk I wasn’t sure I could take.
Still, as she walked ahead, checking the snow levels and muttering to herself about trail conditions, I felt the heat of something settle low in my chest.
Something dangerous and undeniable, and possibly something I couldn’t push away forever.
And when she looked back at me over her shoulder, cheeks flushed, eyes bright with determination, I felt it again… that spark and warmth, and something wild and alive springing to life.
I just followed her deeper into the woods, and the feeling followed me.
No matter how far I tried to push it back.
Chapter Thirteen
Sienna
By the time we reached the campsite, the sun was pressing low against the ridgeline, throwing warm orange light between the pines. The snow here had packed hard through the late winter, but patches of brown earth peeked through, which was a hopeful sign that things might thaw before the honeymoon couple set foot on this trail.
I was exhausted, but it wasn’t from the hike.
It hadn’t been from the icy terrain or the lingering adrenaline from the wolves or bear family.
It was fromhim.
From the silent orbit we kept swinging through—too close, too aware, too careful.
My pack dug into my shoulders as I dropped it beside the fire ring. “Well. We made it.”
“Yes,” Carson said, scanning the clearing. “This spot will work well for the couple.”
“Sure,” I said. “Nothing says romance like getting stalked by nature on the way up.”
He shot me a sideways glance. “You weren’t stalked.”
“Says the man who literally stepped in front of me like a human tank twice.”
“That was a precaution.”
