Page 60 of Barefoot Lake

I yelp loudly and unintentionally draw its attention to me.

I hear Jake scrambling inside behind me.

“Ace! Don’t!”

His hand wraps around my biceps and yanks me roughly back, his other arm coming to band around my waist as I fall into him, taking us both to the ground in the vestibule. Less than a second later, a monstrosity the size of a small truck goes barreling across the opening where my head just was and down my driveway.

“What the hell was that?!” I screech even though I know exactly what I just saw. My heart is jackhammering in my throat.

I feel Jake tighten his grip around my stomach like he’s afraid I might disappear or get dragged off by the beast. Thankfully, the thunderous sound of his hooves fades quickly.

“That…” Jake is breathing as hard as I am. “Was a moose.”

CHAPTER 26

Jake

Ican feel Alice’s heartbeat with her back pressed against my chest, and I focus on the rhythmic thudding. Fast as it is, it’s a reminder that she’s alive. She’s ok.

You shouldn’t go outside expecting to see a moose around Barefoot Lake, but it has happened once or twice in my lifetime. That doesn’t help with the shock or the fear I felt when I heard Alice cry out.

Someone who hasn’t seen a full-grown male moose up close and personal might expect it to be fairly similar to a horse, and while a large horse may weigh the same as a moose, moose are taller, and their antlers are things you can’t really understand without seeing. Let’s just say you really don’t want a moose to run into you. It’s likely the last thing you’d experience.

I shift and begin to lift Alice off of me. She reaches for the door to help pull herself up but finds it wobbling loosely on its hinges. Taking a few hundred pounds of human bodies falling against it was a bit too much for the poor old door.

“I’ll fix that, I promise,” I say as I heave myself up. “Are you alright?”

Alice looks down at herself as if she needs visual confirmation that she’s in one piece. I take in a sweep of her, too.

“There was a moose in my driveway!!” She still seems a little stunned by the whole ordeal. I don’t really blame her. She shakes her head in disbelief before suddenly perking up.

“My car!!” Alice launches herself toward the door but stops before stepping onto the driveway, carefully looking both left and right to make sure there aren’t any other guests.

“Thank goodness…” Her shoulders sag with relief.

I come up behind Alice to take a look, too. The garage door has a hefty dent and several scratches on it, but the CRV seems ok. Thankfully, Alice parks on the far side of the two-car driveway so she can fully open the driver’s side door without squeezing between her car and the house.

She looks over her shoulder at me. “What does one even do when a moose nearly runs them down? Do we call the police and tell them there’s a moose on the loose? That sounds like a goddamn nursery rhyme. Like, what even caused it to come over here? Is that something I should expect on the regular?”

I rub my hands up and down her arms, feeling goosebumps beneath my touch from a moose-induced adrenaline rush.

“It’s very uncommon, I swear. It was probably just curious. There’s really nothing to do. It likely just took back off into the woods.” I reach over her shoulder and point down her driveway in the direction the moose was headed. “Once you pass the street that goes around the lake, there really isn’t any civilization in that direction for miles. I doubt he’ll be bothering anybody else.”

Her gaze follows my finger, and she nods slowly. I guess she is coming to terms with her moose encounter.

“I think its arrival might have been my fault,” I admit. She looks back at me sharply, eyebrows furrowed. “Look at the garage. I think it might have been after the pumpkins I put in there this afternoon. They wouldn’t all fit in the food locker. More likely, it got curious, and there weren’t people outside to keep it from checking things out. I’m sorry if the pumpkins somehow drew it out.”

Alice turns to face me in the small space and presses a hand to my chest to walk me back into the kitchen. The side door lamely swings once we’re not in its way, and Alice needs to wedge a kitchen chair under the knob to keep it shut. Once she does, she faces me again with hands on her hips.

“Jake, you have nothing to apologize for. We live in the woods. Animals were here first, and they’re going to pop up from time to time.” She steps toward me and slips her hands into mine. “You just saved my life, and that’s frickin amazing. So, thank you.” She stretches up and places a gentle kiss on my lips.

I back her up until she’s leaning against the kitchen counter, and I can grip the edge on either side of her to ground myself. I release her lips but stay leaning forward so I can press my forehead to hers, keeping my eyes closed.

“You just told me, maybe an hour ago, that you might be able to find happiness here. I couldn’t lose you so soon. That was fucking terrifying.”

For a moment, we just breathe the same air. Then, Alice slips her fingers into my belt loops like she did the first time I kissed her. She tilts her head back so her lips brush against my jaw. I shiver and turn my head to hungrily capture her lips. One of my hands releases the counter and skims against her body as I move it up and place it on her throat, needing her pulse beneath my fingers. I feel the vibration from her groan at the possessive touch, and I cherish her trust in me.

“Jake...” Her voice is steady and calm, but needy as her lips move against mine. “No miscommunication. I want you, Jake, if you’ll have me.”