We had Spam and baked beans for lunch, neither one of us speaking much. After we cleaned up the dishes, I filled a backpack with a few water bottles. I had to walk the perimeter to make sure the traps and sensors were all still working.
“You want to come for a walk?” I asked, putting the backpack on. Despite my desire to stay away from her, I knew I couldn't keep her locked in the cabin the whole time we were here.
Interest sparked in her eyes. “Where are you going?”
“I have to check the area to make sure everything is still as it should be. I haven’t been here in a while, and the wildlife likes to mess with my traps.”
“Okay,” she said, pulling on her boots, then her jacket. “Ready.”
I didn’t think I’d ever get used to how fast she got ready. And her willingness to trudge through the woods surprised me even more. This was not the Freya I’d first met.
We left the cabin and walked in the direction of one of the smaller mountains. It was an easy trek but also a few hours round trip. But I knew she was in good shape and usually went for a run a few times a week.
Again, I was bordering on creep territory, but I just couldn’t erase all the things I had learned about her from our surveillance.
“Do you own all this land?” she asked after we’d walked for almost an hour.
“I do. It stretches all the way up to that mountain in the east.” I pointed to my left. “And up to that lake over there.” I nodded to the sliver of water that was visible from our elevated standpoint.
The lake was huge, but you couldn’t tell from this far away. It was also a great fishing spot. When I lived up here, I spent a lot of the warmer days sitting at the edge, staring at the water.
She nodded and stopped to look around. “So, no neighbors?”
I chuckled, her casual tone belying the intent of her question. “Not for about fifty miles.”
Her shoulders drooped at my words, but I doubted the fact that she’d have to walk that far would dissuade her from her escape plans. I was quickly learning how stubborn she was.
“We should keep moving,” I said. “We have about four hours of daylight left and at least that many hours to walk to get to all the traps and get back home.”
“Why did you set up traps? Did you know you’d use the cabin to hide out one day?”
“It was a possibility. And a man in my line of work would be stupid not to set up a security system. It’s what I do, after all. If I can’t even keep myself safe, how are people supposed to trust me with their lives?”
The ground was uneven out here, and we had to pay attention to where we stepped. I kept an eye out for bears, not wanting to get caught unawares. I always brought my gun with me wherever I went, and they usually stayed away, but I didn’t want to take any chances. Not when Freya was out here with me.
She didn’t complain once the whole walk; instead, we talked, the conversation flowing naturally. And I found I enjoyed myself. I wasn’t a big talker, but she filled the silences with happy chatter. She asked me questions about the area and wildlife.
But when she wanted to know why I started Locked Security, I was taken off guard. “Let’s just say I had a lot to work through when I got out of the navy. Starting the company was Carter’s idea.”
That was more than I had planned on giving her. But it turned out she was easy to talk to, and for as much as she asked me questions, she also told me a lot about herself.
And damn it all to hell, every word that passed her lips made me want her more.
This attraction was becoming too hard to ignore. I was aware of her every step and tilt of her head. I felt myself obsessively watching her, making sure she didn’t trip or get too close to the many poison-ivy plants growing in the thick shrubbery.
“You ever think of doing something else?” she asked, probing further.
One thing I’d discovered during our walk? Freya had a knack for reading people. And she was inquisitive, asking questions when she didn’t understand something or, in this case, sensed there was more to the story.
“Never. This is exactly what I’ve always wanted to do. Don't tell me you could see me in a suit, sitting in an office all day.”
Her eyes danced over my body, lingering on my shoulders and chest. “I could see you in a suit. But the office part not so much. But surely you have paperwork you need to do, even in your job?”
“It’s not too bad. I’m usually in the office between jobs, but I have a girl who does most of the stuff I don’t want to.”
She studied me for a moment before turning forward again. The cabin came into view, and I nearly ran to it. Talking to her and walking next to her for hours on end did nothing to strengthen my resolve to stay away from her.
Guess I’ll just have to try harder. And avoid talking to her.
