My log cabin is probably the most remote of all of ours and sunk back into the woods. It’s quiet out there, but I don’t mind it. Especially since we’ve closed the bunkhouses to skiers for the season. After Connor met Evie, he wanted to shut it down completely, and we didn’t argue with him. Sometimes we get requests from friends of people in town to come and stay, so we open them in the warmer months. Right now, it’s just us, and although I don’t miss the people all up in our shit, talking to someone besides my immediate family is nice.
Since last winter I’ve let my hair and beard grow a little long, but it’s nice to have something on my face when the wind cuts. As I open the door to the general store, I pull off my winter hat and knock my boots against the shoe brush next to the entrance. Most of it comes off, but they still squeak on the old hardwood floors.
When I finally look up, I see a woman behind the counter that I know I’ve never seen in town before. I’d never miss eyes like hers. They’re big and a soft brown, like fall leaves in the woods. Her black hair has copper highlights, and it’s so beautiful I wonder what it would be like to run my fingers through it.
My legs move before I can tell them to, and I’m walking slowly to the counter. I haven’t blinked, haven’t taken a breath, since I laid eyes on this stranger. I lick my lips and open my mouth to say something, but all I can think about is kissing her. Would she taste like fire or the smoke that lingers afterwards? Would she be so hot she’d burn straight through me, or would she smolder like a cinder in my chest? Cinder. That’s what it feels like when I look at her. A warmth beginning at my heart and slowly spreading all over me.
“What can I get you?” Her quiet voice hits me like a sledgehammer, and I want to fall to my knees and promise her the world.
“Everything.” The single word comes out of my mouth before I can stop it, and I have to clear my throat. That’s when I blink and look down at my hands, trying to get myself under control. What the actual fuck is happening to me right now? I feel possessed. “I mean, everything on this list.”
I pass the piece of paper over the counter between us, and she looks down at it. “Let me see if we’ve got all of this.” This time when I look up at her she’s smiling at me, and I swear my knees feel weak.
“I can do that.” Normally I come in and grab what I need, but Connor called down and placed an order yesterday. It should mostly be together behind the counter, but I’ll take any excuse to stay longer. “I haven’t seen you around here before, have I?” I know the answer to that question because there’s no way on this earth I’d forget her. My eyes move a little lower, and although she’s covered in a thick sweater, I can tell her curves are ample.
“I’ve been here for a little while but only work the shop for my gran when she’s out.” She shrugs a little and gives me one of those million-dollar smiles again. There’s that cinder again, burning me up inside. “I’m Bri, by the way.”
“I’m Wilder.” I hold out my hand, and she pulls hers out of her pocket to shake it. It’s warm and so fucking soft I want to rub it against my face.
“Can I get your sausage?” Her voice is breathy as she says it, and I can’t help my smile.
“Excuse me?”
Bri’s face immediately turns to shock, and she jerks her hand out of mine. “I’ll grab your sausage.” I have to press my lips together to keep from laughing as she bumbles over her words. “I mean I’ll get you some sausage because it’s on your list and that’s what you came for,” she says carefully without making eye contact as she comes around from behind the counter.
“That’d be great, thank you.” I want to tease her because I love how cute she looks when she’s embarrassed, but I decide to give her a break.
“Are you visiting for the winter or making Bear Mountain your new home?” I ask, trying not to be hopeful that it’s the latter.
When she walks in front of me, I shamelessly stare at her ass and try to suppress a moan. She’s got what my grandma used to call “child-bearing hips,” but seeing Bri’s ass right now, I’m thinking they’re more like handlebars.
“This is home now.” She shrugs, and when I glance up, I see a sad look cross her eyes for only a quick moment before it’s gone. “I love it up here.”
“It takes someone special to stay up here year-round. Most people leave after the first big drop of snow.” We walk down to the refrigerator section, and she grabs a basket. I immediately take it from her, and she smiles.
“Thanks,” she says as she points to all the options in the cooler I already know by heart. “So far it’s wonderful, and the people in town have been really welcoming.”
“That’s good to hear. Maybe I could show—” Just as I’m about to ask to show her around town, she reaches up and tucks her hair behind her ear. When she does, the movement causes light to reflect off the ring she’s wearing. The giant diamond wedding ring. I close my mouth quickly and look away from her. “You know what, I think my cousin called this order in. It should be behind the counter.” I clear my throat and take a step away from Bri.
As beautiful as she is, as much as I want her, I won’t go after a married woman. Not now, not ever. That cinder that was in my chest is still burning, but now I resent it. Why would this happen if it wasn’t meant to be? My dad told me when I saw the one, I’d know right away. I would take one look at the woman that was going to be my bride, and the world would stop. That’s what I thought happened today, but fate is a cruel bitch. I’ve met the woman that I’m supposed to marry, but she’s already taken.
“Oh, um, okay yeah, let me check.” She turns away, and this time I don’t look at her ass.
Instead, I walk to the counter and lay my cash down as she finds the order.
“Thompson?” she asks, and I nod, still not looking at her.
When she tells me the amount, I pass the cash and take the bags. “Keep the change,” I say and force myself to back up.
When I get to the door, I hesitate and stand there staring at it. Behind me is what felt like my forever, and outside it’s nothing. I close my eyes, and for half a second, I think about running back to her and telling her that she’s wrong and she’s supposed to choose me. But I won’t be the thing that breaks up a home.
With all the strength I have, I walk away from the woman I’ve just fallen in love with.
Chapter Three
BRI
“What was that?” I whisper to myself.
My heart is still pounding out of my chest, but it never stopped once Wilder walked through the door. He’s the most handsome man I've ever seen in my life. Emphasis on the word man.
I never really thought I had a type, but clearly I want them to have thighs as thick as tree trunks, rugged beards, and eyes so blue they could pierce your soul. Because that’s what Wilder has done to me. He marked me and then he turned and walked away.
Before I know what I’m doing, I’m rounding the counter and stepping out the front door of the shop. I watch Wilder’s taillights disappear, and my heart starts to slow. But then that familiar ache of loss returns. I’d almost forgotten the pain for a moment. I reach up and rub the center of my chest, and the ache is worse now. How is that even possible? Or maybe I think it’s worse because it lifted for a second and something else filled the space.