Odd. They all had them on, except for Heidi.
Strange thing to include as part of a uniform. Stranger still that all five men wore collars at all. Where she was from collars symbolized submissive tendencies in D/s playrooms, but Dakota couldn’t envision any of these men bowing to a whip.
Wielding it, maybe. But submitting to it? Not a chance.
“This is Axel, my oldest brother.”
“Only by a minute!” protested the two others who looked remarkably like him. His eyes were a rich hazel that reminded her of natural forests around Leavenworth—light green with sparks of gold and brown.
“Those two are Kelan and Reidar.” The pair waved at her with matching smiles, friendly and cute enough to make Dakota smile back. “And the pair too busy to stop stuffing their faces are Sindre and Torsten.” The brothers chuckled and winked at her without pause in their lunch. “I have another brother, Gunnar,” Heidi added, “but maybe you’ll get to meet him some other time.”
“Nice to meet…everyone.”
“Please excuse my brothers for eating in front of you,” Axel said. “They can be a bit…untamed…when it comes to meal time, but I’m sure Heidi brought enough to share. Are you hungry?”
“Umm…” She was, but didn’t want to intrude. She could pick up something on the way back to the resort.
“Not really.”
“She’s here to hire a guide for an overnight expedition into the mountains,” Heidi volunteered.
“Really. How many in your group?” Axel asked.
“Just me.” His raised eyebrow pushed Dakota to explain. “A couple of friends are having too much fun back at the ski resort, together, and I would like to really just get away—up in the mountains—for a little while.”
“The cabin on Red Dog Ridge isn’t booked this week, is it?” Heidi asked.
Axel glanced at his sister and took a sip of his cola.
“Nope.” That penetrating gaze swept back toward her, and Dakota wanted to melt.
Would it seem odd if she took off her heavy jacket?
The store was becoming much too warm.
“How do you want to travel?” he asked. “If by snowmobile, I’ll have to check to see if the trails up that way are open after the snowfall on Thursday.”
“Is it more than a day’s hike?” Leaning against the counter, Dakota wiggled her fingers against the fur of the stuffed mountain lion. The softness had her lifting her hand to stroke its pelt.
“No. It can be reached on foot in six to eight hours.”
Even the cat wore a collar like the rest of the store’s staff. She grinned. “You know, I’ve always wondered what these cats felt like.” She looked up to see Axel and Heidi watching her. “Of course, I’d never dare touch a live one. Are cougars abundant in this area?”
That’s when the stuffed cat started to purr.
Dakota jerked her hand away and stared at it with narrowed eyes, her heart thudding a little irregularly.
It was so still. Was this some sort of joke? Some gag these men came up with to tease the tourists?
The cougar’s tail flicked. Its golden-green eyes looked straight into hers, and a long pink tongue came out as it gave a huge yawn, baring canines sharp enough to tear her apart.
“Holy shit.” Dakota shrieked, jumped backwards to get away from it and nearly tumbled onto her ass. But a set of big, strong hands caught her by the arms and steadied her.
“Whoa. Careful there,” one of the brothers said before he let her go. Which one he was she didn’t know and didn’t care. Her gaze remained on the wild animal that hadn’t moved from its perch on the counter.
She decided to stay closer to the other end, near the brothers.
Axel thumped the cat on its ear and the animal growled low, although it didn’t seem angry.
“It’s alive?” Dakota eased away another step.
“Don’t be afraid,” Heidi said. “I guess I should’ve warned you, but we’re so used to him being around.
It’s just Falke.”
“Falke…”
Heidi nodded. “That’s what we call him.”
“A mountain lion…in your store.”
The woman smiled. “Actually, I’m a veterinarian.
This store is Axel’s brainchild. But, yeah, Falke’s like family, which is why we named him that. He’s sort of a fixture here. Don’t worry. He won’t harm you. ”
Right. That’s what those magicians in Vegas thought about the tiger in their show.
Heidi ruffled the fur atop the cat’s head and it playfully pawed at her. Big paws. Big cat!
Dakota kept her distance.
Axel walked around the counter. “Why don’t we go up to the front and talk about that expedition?”
“Okay.”
The door chime sounded.
“I’ll get it,” one of the others volunteered.
“Thanks, Kel,” Axel said as he escorted her toward the front.
While she and Axel discussed cost and plans for her wilderness excursion, Kelan showed a mother and her daughter down an aisle of snowboards. Since it was too late to start the trek today, Dakota agreed to be ready to go tomorrow morning. Her guide would pick her up at the resort. One day hike to the cabin, four nights there, and one day back. She’d get back in time to have one final day at the resort before driving back to Seattle for her flight to Vegas.
“Does 6:00 a.m. sound okay?” Axel asked, taking notes and giving her the forms she needed to sign.
“It’ll take about forty-five minutes to drive to the trailhead, but there are some places along the way where the sunrise makes for a spectacular view.”
“Six is fine. I may be a city girl, but I’ve always been an early bird.” Now that they’d worked out much of the details, Dakota felt a little more comfortable with him, one on one. These men would make any single, heterosexual woman a little off balance.
“Okay,” he said, “I think that about covers it. Bring only the clothes you’ll need and what toiletries you can carry. Catamount will supply the rest of the gear as part of the rental. Have you ever gone backpacking in the mountains before?”
“Yeah, but it’s been a few years…” She stopped the moment Falke meandered into view with the young girl behind it, holding its tail.
“Go kitty!” She was laughing and unafraid, but Dakota was terrified, especially when the mountain lion stopped, turned.
“Oh n—” Before she could get the fearful words out, the cat plopped down on its back and pawed at the child.
Claws retracted. Thank God.
“What is that moth—” Again she cut off the thought and shook her head as the woman in question, the girl’s mother, appeared with a smile on her face, snowboard in hand.
“Courtney, Falke might not want to pull you around the store today. You’re growing too big for such games.”
“Aww, Mom!” The girl gave the cat’s tail another tug, then dropped to her knees and petted its belly. The cougar responded by draping a huge arm over the girl’s shoulder. Dakota held her breath, watching the unusual hug. “Bye, Falke,” the girl said before getting up and joining her mother at the checkout.
“Excuse me a moment.” Axel moved over to ring up the woman’s purchase.
Dakota nodded but kept her gaze on the cat, which now lay in the middle of the floor, looking at her. Its tail swished lazily as it stared into her eyes. And then she heard it purring again.
Dakota shook her head. “Unbelievable.”
“What is?” Axel asked, returning to her.
“That cougar.”
Axel looked at Falke. “Yeah, he’s a real pussy cat.”
As if the lion understood, a deeper rumble sounded, making Dakota laugh. “Well, I don’t know about that.”
Chapter Two