Dakota looked between the cat and Axel.
“He wouldn’t have hurt you. He was playing.”
Falke hadn’t hurt her. She hadn’t even felt his teeth through her thick jacket and sweater. But still… She sat up and reached out to pet the cat’s head.
“It’s okay, big guy,” she said softly. “Just scared me is all.”
Falke licked her gloved hand, then stood up and rubbed his cheek against hers. She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him. “For such a big kitty, you’re just an old softy aren’t you?”
He purred and nuzzled her neck.
“Cold nose!” She shoved his face away from hers with a laugh.
Axel was beside her, and she smiled at him. He returned the grin, and she saw something in his eyes.
Don’t go there. Just don’t. The more time she spent with him, the more she never wanted it to end. But she knew it was all an illusion. She’d hired him. She was sure he would bring anyone out to this spot to show off the scenery. It wasn’t just for her.
But, damn, she could really imagine it was.
“Falke will never harm you, Dakota. I swear it on my life—the life of every one of my family members.”
“That’s a pretty big statement. He is a wild animal.”
She scooted around until she could get onto her knees on the slippery ice, made even more slippery by her ski pants. “I want a picture of you two.” She pulled off her gloves and reached into her jacket for the camera.
Axel didn’t say anything more, but he made a little face that let her know he wanted to argue the fact his cat was tame.
“Falke, go stand by Axel,” she said, making a shooing motion to the cat.
Falke got up, this time without sliding one bit on the ice, and she realized he’d probably…teased her?
No, a cat couldn’t tease. But he could walk on the ice just fine, his claws clicking softly, so what explained him sliding into her before?
“Put your arm around Falke,” she said to Axel, who sat in the snow.
He draped his arm over the cat’s neck.
“You don’t seem real affectionate toward him,” she noted, realizing that he never touched Falke.
“He prefers the ladies,” Axel said in a dry tone, making Dakota laugh.
She raised the camera to her eye, but stopped and lowered it as she stared at man and beast sitting next to each other. “Dang, you two must have been brothers in another life.”
“What?” Axel’s tone was filled with shock. The cat turned its head to look at him.
“You two…You sort of look alike.”
Axel sputtered. Falke made that silly chuckling sound.
“Same eye color, same hair color. Haven’t you ever noticed?”
“Uh…yeah…a bit, I guess. Take the picture, Dakota.”
She almost laughed again at Axel’s strange reaction to her comments. She snapped a picture, then another, then a third for good measure because she wanted to have one to hang up in her condo. They sat in the almost blindingly white snow, with the dark trees behind.
“Come here.” Axel held out his hand, and she walked on her knees to get over to him. When she was close, he took the camera from her hand and pulled her onto his lap. “It’s not ideal, but I think we can get the three of us in a shot.”
She grinned and snuggled up close to Axel, her head on his shoulder. Then Falke straddled her legs and scooted up to her, his head next to hers, which made her laugh.
Axel held the camera out, pointed at them, and snapped a picture just as Falke licked her face.
She burst out laughing and shoved Falke’s cold nose to the side.
“Be good,” Axel said to the cat.
Falke made that cute little laughing sound and laid his head against her chest. Axel snapped a few more pictures, then shoved Falke off of them and wrapped his arms around her. “Look,” he whispered, and gestured across the white expanse of the lake.
Dakota squinted through the brightness and saw what he pointed at. A huge bull elk was slowly picking its way across the lake, slipping here and sliding there.
“He’s big.”
“Yep. And those antlers can kill if they’re pissed off.”
She took the camera from Axel’s hand and held it up. Even though the elk was probably too far away for the cheap little camera, she snapped a couple of pictures.
“Want to hike across the lake? There’s this really pretty little glade over there—” he pointed in a direction away from the elk, “—where we could have lunch.”
“Lunch?” she turned and looked at him. “Elk stew?”
He kissed the tip of her nose. “No, I made some sandwiches. They’re in my pack.”
“A man after my own heart.”
He stared into her eyes, and she again saw that something she couldn’t quite define, or didn’t want to look at too closely. It made her skin feel tight and her heart race.
She pushed off his lap and carefully gained her footing. Axel followed.
“We can leave the snowshoes here,” he said, picking up two and sticking them in the snow so they were standing up, then he did the same for the other pair.
Falke took off over the white flatness.
“Dakota?” Axel said as he moved next to her.
She looked from Falke up into Axel’s eyes.
“Yeah?”
He leaned down and kissed her, softly, tenderly.
“All kidding aside, you might be the woman after my heart.”
Before she could get her brain functioning again, he was fifty feet away, heading after Falke.
“You coming?” he called over his shoulder.
“Uh. Yeah…” Her insides fluttered, and her heart pounded against her chest. She still couldn’t let herself fantasize such a thing, but she couldn’t deny that what he’d just said was probably the sweetest thing she’d ever heard.
Chapter Five
The next day was spent much the same way. Exploring the forest, watching wildlife and having fun just being together. But time sped by, and now it was time to gather their things and head back down the mountain.
Their days together were over.
Gunnar leaped onto the loft and sat watching Dakota stuff her clothes into her backpack. She was already dressed in a pair of jeans, long-sleeved T-shirt and socks. Her boots awaited her by the front door, but they still had some time before she’d have to put them on.
Axel hollered from below. “I’ll be right back. Gotta head out to the food cache. How about some pancakes and sausages for breakfast?”
“Okay. Sounds good,” she replied.
“I’ll bring back some wood to restock the bin before we go too,” he added. You need to go outside, Gun?
No, thanks. I’m good. Having to piss outside in the winter sucked, but no one would believe a mountain lion could be trained to use the toilet, so it was a price he had to pay as a shifter when non-family members were around.
’Kay. Back in a bit. The front door closed as Dakota slung her backpack over one shoulder and headed for the ladder. Gunnar leaped down, easily making the eight-foot plunge without mishap. He turned to watch her navigate the ladder and drop off her pack by her boots.
This sucks. He brushed his body along her thigh and drew her attention enough for her to run her hand along his spine. Her touch made him purr. He wanted more time with her, to meet her in human form, have the chance to talk to her.
“I like you too, big ’un.” She patted his head and headed for the bathroom.
Gunnar walked over to the fireplace, laid down on the woven rug and watched the dying flames lick at the last hot embers of what had been a log.
His ears perked up. Something wasn’t right.