10. Chase
10
CHASE
I wake up at dawn the next morning, my bedroom bathed in pale sunlight. Sienna is still fast asleep beside me, her cotton candy locks splayed out on the pillow. She’s breathing deeply, her plump lips parted, and I watch her for a long time.
She’s so beautiful.
So fucking perfect.
Falling for this girl was never part of the plan, but dammit, I couldn’t help it. I tried to resist but I wanted her too badly, and now I’m in too deep.
After last night, the thought of her leaving the forest makes me feel sick to my stomach. She told me she was only planning to stay for four days, and we’re already on day three. I feel like time is slipping through my fingers, and I don’t know what the hell to do about it.
I run my hand over my beard, sighing deeply as I get out of bed, careful not to wake Sienna. Moose whines when I head into the living room, and I pet him, feeding him his breakfast before I write Sienna a quick note to tell her where I’m going. Then I head outside with Moose on my tail, breathing in the crisp morning air.
My eyes linger on the firepit as I stride past it, the picnic blanket still on the ground where we left it last night. I suck in a breath as I remember how Sienna looked when she was riding me, her pretty lips open in a scream as she came on my cock. It was the sexiest sight in the world.
I reach Sienna’s cabin and grab my hammer, determined to get to work. I only agreed to help her fix the cabin in the first place so she’d leave faster. Now, I’m hoping it will give her a reason to stay. If I can make this place livable, maybe she won’t go back to Denver. I don’t want to lose her. I know I can’t ask her to give up her life in the city, but maybe if I can get her cabin ready in time, she’ll make that decision herself. She could pursue her writing dreams here in the woods. I could take care of her.
God knows I’d do anything for this girl.
Anything to keep her here with me.
“Chase?”
A familiar voice pulls me from my thoughts, and I look up to see Ronan striding toward me, axe in hand. He’s my closest neighbor and my best buddy in the forest. His cabin is only a mile away, so we often run into each other while we’re working.
“Hey,” I say, raising a hand in greeting.
Ronan pets Moose before turning to look at Sienna’s cabin, frowning in confusion.
“You been fixing up the old shack?” he asks.
“Long story.” I smile wryly. “The owner turned up.”
“Owner?” Ronan raises an eyebrow. “Damn. I assumed this place was forgotten about a long time ago. Who owns it?”
“A girl named Sienna. She’s from Denver.”
“And you’ve been helping her fix the place up?” Ronan asks, nodding at the hammer in my hand.
“We’ve been doing it together, working our asses off.”
He nods. “It looks good. Looks more like a cabin than a shack now. What’s the owner going to do with it?”
“Vacation cabin. That was the plan anyway. I’m hoping I can convince her to stick around though.”
Ronan stares at me in disbelief. “You mean you want her to live here? You want a neighbor?” He shakes his head. “Who are you and what have you done with Chase?”
“I don’t want just any neighbor. It’s this girl,” I say with a sigh. “I’m fucking crazy about her.”
I don’t know why I’m telling Ronan this. He’s a good friend, but I’m not usually so open about my feelings. Right now though, I don’t think I could hide it even if I wanted to. Sienna is the only thing on my mind. She’s all I can think about.
“Shit,” Ronan mutters, raising an eyebrow. “Have you told her?”
“No. She’s got a life back in the city.”
He grunts. “You should still tell her.”
“It’s complicated.”
I run a hand through my hair, leaning back against a sturdy oak as I try to sort out my muddled thoughts.
“Sienna doesn’t belong here with me,” I say eventually.
“Why not?”
I think about my words for a few moments, trying to block out Moose’s yapping as he bounds through the trees, no doubt chasing after birds.
“She deserves the world, and I’m worried I can’t give it to her out here in the middle of the woods. She’s a city girl, used to city life. I’d feel selfish asking her to stay.”
Ronan shrugs. “That’s why you’ve got to tell her, so she can make that decision for herself. You never know. Maybe she’s praying you’ll ask her to stay.”
“Fuck, I hope so.”
“Where is she right now?”
“Back at my cabin.”
“Then what are you still talking to me for? Go tell her how you feel.”
He’s right. I can’t just wait for my time with Sienna to run out. I need to talk to her. I need to tell her straight up how I feel. If she still wants to go back to Denver, then shit, I’ll go with her if she’ll have me. Sienna makes me feel things I’ve never felt before. She makes me happy. All these years in the forest, I’ve felt peaceful, sure. Calm. But never truly happy. Not until this pretty little city girl walked into my life with her pink hair and sweet smile. I can’t let her go.
I nod at Ronan, renewed determination pulsing through me. “Thanks, buddy.”
He waves me off and disappears into the trees as I hurry back to my cabin, desperate to see the woman who has turned my life upside down.