Chapter Six #2
Darien furrows his brow. “Not too bad, more of a dull throbbing.” He glances around the room.
“Where am I?” He turns back to me, his eyes narrowing.
“Why are we in a cave?” He looks down. “Where are my clothes?” He clutches the dry T-shirt I put on him after Edgel left “And why am I wearing a Whispering Pines shirt?” He gasps. “Where are my pants?”
“You still have your boxers on. I wasn’t going to take them off, I swear.”
Darien’s jaw falls open before he snaps it shut again. “Nope.”
He wriggles his way out from under the blanket and jumps to his feet. His knees wobble, and I rush forward, reaching out to grab him so he won’t fall.
“Don’t touch me!” Darien yells, landing on the bed as he jerks his arms away.
I leap back. “Sorry! I just didn’t want you to fall.
” I hold up my hands, palms out. “I was so worried that the mountain lion might’ve hurt you.
” I wince. “I feel terrible about that. The predators who reside here year-round know better than to attack humans. I don’t know where that cougar came from.
But I assure you, I’ll be dealing with that situation immediately. ”
I slap my palm over my mouth. If only I’d done that before I started blabbing.
Darien chews his bottom lip as he wrings his hands. It no longer seems as if he’ll bolt from the cave, but he does appear confused. I guess I’d feel the same way if I woke up in a cave with a guy who is practically a stranger. Plus, there’s the whole no pants thing.
“Oh my God,” he gasps, then looks up. “That’s right. The mountain lion! And…” Darien grimaces. “That thing.”
I tilt my head. “What thing?”
I suddenly realize he’s referring to me. No matter what Boone and the others say, I’m not overly sensitive. But that doesn’t mean I can’t get my feelings hurt.
Darien wraps his arms around himself, his stare vacant. “It was awful,” he whispers. “This hideous beast came out of nowhere and attacked the lion. I mean, it sort of looked like a bear, but it had these large pointy horns coming out of either side of its head, and long sharp fangs.”
Darien crooks his index fingers against his lips to illustrate my so-called fangs. I mean, I guess technically they’re considered fangs, but he's clearly exaggerating.
I clear my throat. “Yeah, but you said this, uh, this beast…it attacked the mountain lion. That must mean it was trying to save you, right?”
“Oh sure,” Darien snorts. “Saving me for its next meal. Probably was mad that the lion was going to get me first.” He jerks up his head.
“And that wasn’t the worst of it. This thing made a sound like a train braking too hard on the tracks.
I’ve never heard such an awful racket before.
” Darien shudders. “No. It was definitely going to rip me to shreds.”
“He was not!” I stamp my foot, and Clover bursts out from under her blankie with a squeak. Winston raccoon jumps down from the indoor tree I made for him, hissing. The tree is another popular item from my catalog, I might add.
Darien lets out a small shriek as he swiftly tucks his feet under his legs, scooting further back onto the bed. “Watch out! You don’t know if it's aggressive or has rabies!”
He’s barely gotten the words out of his mouth before I snatch up Winston in my arms. “It’s okay, he lives with me.” I stroke my trembling buddy. “Don’t worry, Winston,: I whisper in his ear. “I didn’t mean to startle you.”
Darien heaves a sigh. “Oh, sorry. He’s your pet. I hope I didn’t scare him.”
I chuckle. “No, it’s my fault. I shouldn’t have yelled like that. We’re a pretty peaceful bunch normally.”
Darien’s eyebrows shoot up. “Bunch? How many pets do you have?”
I put Winston down, giving him one final pat before he scurries back up his tree.
“Clover and raccoon are full-time residents.” I shrug.
“But there are others who like to crash here for a while now and then.” I rub my chin.
“I think everyone is out right now. It’s such a beautiful day.
” My favorite bat lets out a high-pitched chirp.
I slap my forehead. “Of course. That’s Vlad.
He only goes out at night.” I roll my eyes. “Obviously.”
I regard Darien, whose jaw has gone slack again. He slowly nods. “Yeah, obviously.” He gingerly rises from the bed. “Gosh, I must be keeping you from…” he glances around the room. “You know, the inn… or whatever it is you do all day. So, if I can just get my pants, I’ll be on my way.”
Darien’s gaze lands on a chair in the kitchen area where I’ve draped his pants over the back. He inches his way in that direction.
I take two steps and retrieve his clothing. “Here you go. Your shirt is still wet, so keep the T-shirt. But I really should drive you back to your Jeep. It’s a few miles from here, and we’re deep in the woods. My truck isn't far from where you were, so it’ll be a short walk.”
Darien laughs shakily as he accepts the clothing. “You’ve done so much for me already. I hate to be more of a bother.” He starts shoving his toes into the leg of his soggy jeans, bouncing on one foot. “Thanks for everything, I mean it.”
He grits his teeth as he struggles to wiggle his way into his pants. Inappropriate thoughts assail me at the sight of his cute butt shaking back and forth as he battles the heavy, drenched fabric, and I remind myself that I’m not interested in hooking up with a human.
Nope. Not me. Never happen.
“Darien…” I sigh. “It’s all right, not a problem at all.”
He doesn’t bother buttoning up his jeans, scurrying to the door instead.
Shit. The protection spell around the cave.
“Wait!” I call out. “I…” I rack my brain for a plausible excuse. “I’m not sure which direction the mountain lion went. He could be nearby and…” Think, doofus. “Might be rabid.”
Darien freezes so fast, he almost pitches forward. “That’s an issue here? Rabid mountain lions?” He narrows his eyes. “I’ve never heard of such a thing. Raccoons and bats, yes. Mountain lions, not so much.”
At this point, almost any explanation I give will sound ridiculous, so I stop fighting myself and lean into the wackiness.
“Not per se, but remember that one bear who got into a drug stash and killed all those people? Who knows, maybe this one did too.”