3. Penelope
3
PENELOPE
Yep, hiking is definitely a destressor for me. I need to do this more often, even if Anna continues to bail on me. I tilt my head back and inhale deeply, filling my lungs with clean forest air. It’s such a welcome change of pace from the constant barrage of scents I get when I’m back in town, especially working. Coffee, cigarettes, burnt food on the grill. That’s what I’m used to.
But out here, it’s like breathing pure heaven. Ever since I left the car and started my hike, I’ve felt an enormous sense of relief. My lungs are clear, my sinuses are open, and as corny as it may sound, I feel like I’ve become closer to nature.
And that’s a good thing!
I set my pack down on some clear dry ground and remove my water bottle. I take a small swig, but not too much, as I’d like to avoid having to squat in the woods as much as possible.
I look around. Anna and I have been this way before, and I’m pretty sure we’re close to where we were that time when we–
Snap!
A loud cracking sound causes me to whirl around and look behind me. Of course there’s nothing there. Probably just a branch falling, and that’s something I’m still trying to get used to. The sounds of the forest.
It’s so quiet out here compared to back in town where noise is constant. Here, any little sound can get your attention.
I sigh and take a seat. I can’t stop mulling over the disaster last night at the bar. What was Anna thinking, introducing me to Mack? I never storm out on anybody, but I had to get away from that vile, disgusting pig.
Drenched in cologne, hitting on me like a frat boy, and then he actually had the balls to make a joke about eating my ass when we’d just met two minutes ago? Yuck.
Anna called me to apologize later, but that only made things worse. I went off on her for springing Mack on me like that and asked her why it was that he was inferring that he knew I was “unconventional.”
Anna told me that maybe she’d let a few of our private conversations about sexual fantasies slip to Todd, and that maybe Todd had been the one who told Mack.
I hung up on her after that and went to bed.
“Private conversations, Anna!” I sigh as I put my water bottle back.
I guess I shouldn’t have expected anything less. Anna does have a big mouth, and her taste in men is nothing like mine. Anna loves Todd because of his dad-bod stomach and his enormous beard. Personally, he does nothing for me.
Then again, most men do nothing for me.
Maybe I’m the problem. Maybe I am too much of a little freak, and that’s why I’m still single and still a virgin. But is it really that absurd to wish for a man who knows just what I want and can give it to me–?
Snap!
Another loud noise causes me to jump. But this time I control myself and don’t spin around wildly like there’s a bear behind me ready to pounce.
A bear? Of course there’s no bear, Penelope!
This time I take a calming breath and slowly turn. And what I see causes my heart to nearly leap out of my throat.
A shirtless man in a black mask stands in the middle of the trail, a coil of rope in his right hand. He’s not a bear, but he looks like a wolf.
I’m so shocked I can’t even scream.
He’s wrapped in muscles, with the physique of a bodybuilder. Insanely thick arms, a massively broad chest, and abs that look like you could do laundry on them. He’s wearing dirty jeans and old running shoes and is staring at me like a predator ready to strike.
And I’m the prey.
A cold shiver runs through my body while at the same time, the heat of a blush comes over my cheeks.
I know instantly there’s nothing I can do. If this man wants to harm me, there’s no one around to save me. I’m out here all on my own.
His eyes are narrow and focused behind the mask, but he raises his chin and smiles, revealing a set of flawless white teeth, complete with savagely pointed canines.
And then he speaks.
“Hello, Penelope.”
I’m off running. Sprinting as fast as I can through the woods as the brush and overgrowth pulls at my ankles and feet.
I ditch my bag. All it will do is slow me down.
My heart is pounding. I feel like it’s about to burst as I put everything I have into forcing my legs to move faster. My muscles are burning as I leap over rocks and fallen trunks of trees.
I hear the masked man behind me, chasing me down, crashing through the forest like some kind of unstoppable force, shattering anything that gets in his way.
I glance back over my shoulder and see him gaining on me. He moves like a runner or some kind of athlete.
How am I going to escape?
I see a half-fallen tree trunk in front of me, leaning against another tree, and an idea springs into my mind. I race to it, spin around, and quickly kick it, dislodging it and sending it rolling down the slope toward my attacker.
But without even a hitch in his step, the masked man simply leaps over my attempted trap and continues his pursuit.
Shit!
My breath comes rapid and short, painful breaths that set my lungs on fire as I run and run and run for what could be my life. I always tell myself I’m in good shape from being on my feet all day serving customers, but I was not prepared for anything like this.
I feel myself starting to falter, my muscles going weak as the slope grows steeper and steeper. But there’s nowhere to go. No shelter here. So I do the only thing I can do.
I keep running.
I hear the breaths of the man chasing me. They’re deep and controlled. This exertion is nothing for him. I might as well be trying to escape from a wild animal.
From my left, I hear the sound of rushing water and instantly alter course as my pursuer continues to close the gap between us. The sound grows louder and louder, and the ground beneath my feet grows rocky until suddenly I emerge from the trees onto the top of a cliff looking down over a great waterfall crashing down into a pool below.
The sheer height of the view gives me a slight moment of vertigo.
I already know it’s too high for me to jump, but what alternative do I have? If I don’t, the man behind me will capture me. That’s what the rope in his hand is for, isn’t it? And who knows what he’ll do to me once he has me.
My heart thumps harder as a rush of heat hits me and I glance over my shoulder to see the masked man emerge from the trees.
That’s it. No other options left.
I turn back to the cliff, look down at the water, and jump.
Just as my feet leave the ground, a pair of iron arms wrap around my waist and snatch me out of the air.
“Oh, no you don’t.”
My nose fills with the scent of man-sweat as I’m pressed to the ground, thrashing wildly and screaming.
But it’s no use. The masked man is enormous, his strength unyielding, and he pins me to the rocky ground with a single knee on my back.
“Easy, Penelope,” he growls, his breath hot in my ear. “Don’t squirm. You’ll only scratch that beautiful skin of yours.”
How does he know my name?
All of a sudden, a tingling sensation forms between my legs as the man grabs my arms and forces them behind my back.
Right now?
I’m blushing too. Is this the response most girls have when being kidnapped? I doubt it.
“Help!” I scream but am instantly silenced by a rag being forced into my mouth. He ties it off behind my neck, muffling any sounds I try to make.
Sweat drips down onto me from his naked top half. Then I feel the rope being wrapped around my wrists.
“This will make things easier,” the man says. Is that delight I hear in his voice as he binds my arms and legs? I look up at him as he rolls me onto my back.
From down here, it’s like staring up at a giant. He’s straddling me like the world’s most alpha alpha. My eyes, which I no longer have conscious control over, follow his v-taper down to the massive bulge between his legs.
His arousal is blatant as his pants tent over what he’s got hiding beneath. This man wants me, and now he has me.
He also knows who I am.
How could that be? Has he been watching me? Stalking me? And if so, for how long?
He leans down, and I take another deep breath through my nose, embedding the scent of his body deep into my lungs. His pheromones are strong. This man’s testosterone levels must be off the charts.
My back arches off the hard stone as he reaches for the zipper of my jacket and tugs it down, revealing my halter top beneath.
“Christ, look at those perky teenage tits. You truly are more beautiful than I’d imagined.”
The tingling between my legs soars to new heights. Even my fingers and toes are hot now. I simply do not know what to do as he reaches down, and with a single arm, lifts me up and hoists me over his shoulder like I weigh nothing.
“That was a fun chase, Pen,” he says, his voice low and bassy. “Now you’re coming with me.”