Chapter 3
CHAPTER THREE
Maverick
I can’t look away from her.
Who the fuck is she?
And more importantly, what the hell is she doing in Rock Creek? She looks way too young and delicate to be so deep in the mountains alone.
The way she eats her lunch, like every bite is a sensual experience, keeps me from returning to the kitchen. If Ryder has a problem with it, he’s just going to have to deal. There’s no way I can leave this doll out here alone, looking like she’s making love to every sinful bite she slips between her lips.
Especially because I’m not the only man in the place who’s noticed. A quick glance around the room makes it obvious that my sweet doll at the counter has caught the eye of a handful of locals. And if any one of them makes even the slightest move to speak to her, let alone say something inappropriate, they’re going to have to deal with me.
The possessive surge I feel toward her is overwhelming and takes me completely off guard.
“Maverick?” Ma’s voice pulls my attention. “Could you pour me a coffee, son?”
“Of course, Ma.” I nod and turn my back to do as she asks.
“And bring out a cinnamon bun, too. Extra icing.”
I still. It’s Ma’s birthday and she knows I’ll do anything for her, but getting a cinnamon bun means leaving my doll unguarded.
It’s only for a moment, I reason with myself.
I hand Ma the coffee. “Of course.”
I’m only in the kitchen for a few minutes. Long enough to dish up one of Ma’s signature cinnamon buns on a plate and tell my little brother in no uncertain terms that he’s in charge of the kitchen for a bit longer. I don’t pull big brother rank very often but when I do, I mean business.
When I reappear, cinnamon bun in hand, Ma is sitting next to her.
I freeze for a moment to watch how they’re interacting. Heads together like old friends, pointing at the map in front of them, and then Ma says something that makes her laugh.
Ho-ly shit.
My girl throws her head back in a full laugh, her dark curls bouncing around her face. Those perfect plump pink lips hold my focus, and I can’t help but think how good they’ll look wrapped around my cock.
The thought comes out of nowhere and almost knocks me on my ass.
I am not like my brothers. Ryder has a new woman in his bed every night. Briggs and Jaxon are a little more subtle, but all three of them enjoy the company of women. Griffin is the only one of us who’s met his match. He and his new wife Sophie can’t keep their hands off each other.
I, however, am a lot more private than the rest of them. I don’t live like a monk. Far from it. But it has been awhile since I’ve shared my bed with anyone.
And those women had been just that. Women.
This girl…this girl is different.
And I still didn’t even know her name.
I’m never going to if I don’t pull myself together, so I give my head a shake and close the distance between us.
“I’ll camp here,” my doll is saying when I approach. “And hopefully I’ll find the wolves right away and can spend some time?—”
“Wolves?” The hair on the back of my neck stands straight up. I look from Ma back to the girl, who is all but bouncing in her chair. “Who’s looking for wolves?”
“I am.” She speaks directly to me. Her green eyes are wide, her lips curled up in a smile.
“Madison is in town to learn more about the wolves,” Ma says, as if it’s a perfectly reasonable thing.
It isn’t.
Not. Even. Close.
“You’re doing what?”
“Maverick.” Ma’s voice holds a warning, so I tear my gaze away from my girl— Madison —and meet my mother’s eyes. “You didn’t even introduce yourself.”
I swallow hard, set the cinnamon bun down, and clear my throat. “Maverick.” I nod curtly and, only because I desperately want to touch her, I extend my hand.
When she takes it, I wrap my fingers over her tiny hand. Her skin is so soft, she feels so fragile in my massive mitt. There’s no way this delicate woman has any business anywhere near a wolf. It’s not happening. Not if I have anything to say about it.
“It’s nice to meet you, Maverick.”
Is it my imagination, or does she sound nervous? Her voice shakes a little and she’s breathing harder. A detail that I definitely don’t miss since her sharp, quick breaths have her round, perfect tits jiggling in a very delectable way under her thin shirt.
“Your ma was telling me that you’re somewhat of an expert in the backcountry around here.”
I look to Ma. She winks and slips from her chair, leaving us alone.
“I know a few things.” I still haven’t released her hand. It feels too good in mine.
“That’s awesome.” Madison is so excited she all but jumps up and down in her seat, causing her tits to bounce even more. She pulls her hand from mine, and I instantly miss her touch. “I’m planning to hike up this track here, and then camp along the ridge. I’m willing to bet the wolves will be on this slope here.” Her delicate finger points out her plan on the map in front of us. “Maybe you can help me?—”
“No!” I slam my palm down on the map, causing her to jump back, and I instantly regret it when the smile slips from her pretty face. There’s no way I’m letting her go out into the woods. Let alone show her where to go. “No way, doll. You’re not going up?—”
“Excuse me.” Madison sits up straight. Her sunshiny demeanor slips away as she crosses her arms over those beautiful tits and stares at me. “I don’t know who you think you are, but you don’t get to tell me where I can and cannot go. The last I checked, this was public land.” Her finger jabs at the map right before she yanks it off the bar and slides out of her seat. “And I’m going to go find the wolves whether you like it or not.”
Madison
I’ve been making my own decisions and taking care of myself for way too long. There’s no way I’m going to let this man tell me what to do. Especially if what he’s saying no to is the entire reason I’m in Rock Creek.
Along with the map, I scoop up my notebook and reach for my backpack before I remember I haven’t paid for my lunch.
“How much…never mind.” I reach into my pocket and pull a twenty-dollar bill out. It’ll be more than enough to cover it.
“You don’t need to?—”
“Yes.” I spin and glare at the man. “I do.”
Before he can say anything else, I grab my backpack and march toward the door.
My face is burning with embarrassment but I refuse to let Maverick stop me or discourage me from my life’s purpose.
My fingers are reaching for the door when Maverick’s massive hand presses it shut before I can pull it open.
“Excuse me.” I cross my arms over my chest. I have to tilt my head way back to look up at him. He’s at least a whole foot taller than me. “I’d like to leave.”
“Not if you’re going out in the woods,” he says, as if I’m asking his permission. “It’s too dangerous.”
“I’m a big girl. I can take care of myself.”
He opens his mouth to say something but presses his lips together in a smirk that only pisses me off more.
“And I don’t remember asking your permission,” I add. “Like I said, it’s public land. You can’t stop me from going out there.”
Maverick sighs and makes a move to reach for me, but fortunately changes his mind.
Earlier when he touched me, something inside me short-circuited and I couldn’t think straight. His touch sent fireworks through me and jumbled all my thoughts.
At the same time, I desperately want him to touch me again. My body yearns for it in a way I don’t understand. This man is grumpy, sullen, and is currently making me crazy by being the one thing standing between me and the wolves I came here to see. The last thing I should be doing is fantasizing about how his hands would feel on my body.
Yet…I can’t stop the errant thoughts from racing through my brain.
It feels like forever before he blows out a breath and says, “You’re really going to go out there?”
I nod.
“Even if I tell you it’s dangerous and completely reckless and irresponsible for a girl like you to go out there alone?”
“A girl like me?” I tilt my head so my curls all fall to one side and narrow my eyes at him, but he only chuckles.
“Yes,” he says. “A girl like you.”
Something about the way he says it doesn’t feel like an insult. More of a compliment. Still.
“Are you going to move?”
I’m starting to get frustrated, and without looking, I can tell everyone in the bar is watching to see what will happen.
“No,” he says, and I immediately let out a cry in frustration as I try to push past him. Maverick grips me by the shoulders and takes a step back from the door.
Just like I knew it would, his touch is doing things to my brain and body. But one of those things is making me mad. “Let. Me. Go.”
“Mav?” I hear a male voice call his name but he ignores whoever it is. His blue gaze focuses on me so intently I have to look away.
After a moment, Maverick releases one of my shoulders to cup my chin with his huge hand and tip my head up. “Look at me, doll.”
My stomach flips and my breath catches in my throat with the gentle way this growly mountain man speaks to me.
The only thing I can do is look at him. And as soon as I do, a shot of heat flares between my legs. I have almost no experience with men, but even I can see the desire reflected in his eyes.
Somehow I manage to swallow.
“I can see I’m not going to be able to stop you.” His voice is laced with humor, as if he thinks this is all a big joke. And for the first time, the scowl that hides behind his beard is replaced by a slight smile.
But I don’t care. As long as I can get out of there and onto the mountain where the wolves are. “You can’t.”
He nods. “I’ll take you out to the backcountry myself, okay?”
“You?” My voice shakes. “You’ll take me?”
Again, he nods. “We’ll leave first thing in the morning.”
“But I want to?—”
“It’s Ma’s birthday.” He cuts me off, the scowl returning. “We leave in the morning. I’ll make sure there’s a room upstairs for you tonight.”
He doesn’t leave any room for questions, so I nod.