Chapter 3

The mountain man kept checking out my chest. Derek. He'd finally told me his name, and I'd shared mine. As bumfuzzled as I was, it hadn't occurred to me to officially introduce myself until he did.

There was no sign of Derek when I exited the bedroom, tugging at the hem of a tight-fitting T-shirt. The woman who owned this place was the same size as me, but she only had two choices in her closet—form-fitting casual clothes and button-down shirts with dress pants. Each shirt bore the Rosewood Ridge Retreat Center logo and had the exact same look but in a different color.

I skipped the dressy clothes and chose one of her T-shirts and a pair of jeans. The shirt looked loose until I put it on. I'd underestimated just how much my boobs would stretch the fabric.

After calling out for Derek and getting no response, I headed over to the table and picked up the paper plate he'd set there for me. He'd even plopped a container of sour cream and a bag of shredded cheese next to the bowl of meat and soft taco shells.

Smiling, I started loading up my plate. There was something so sweet about this burly man taking care of me. That was what was missing from every previous relationship—someone to look out for me, to warm up food when I was hungry, or fix the drain in my condo shower when it clogged. Neither my dad nor the men I'd dated had been good at that sort of thing.

I settled onto the chair, my plate full. I moaned as I took the first bite of the taco. It wasn't just that I was starving. The food was good. Damn good.

I demolished the first taco in seconds and was reaching for the second when I heard something outside. Thunk thunk thunk. It was a loud banging sound, like a hammer or an ax.

Carrying the plate, I walked over to the windows that lined the front of the cabin. No blinds, which was strange. Wouldn't the owners want some privacy, considering they were next to the main drive that led to the retreat center?

I nearly choked on my food when I spotted the source of the noise. Derek was in the front yard, still shirtless. It'd been tough to sit over on that sofa and hold a conversation like his body wasn't distracting me. But the sight of him now made my mouth water for reasons that had nothing to do with his cooking.

He was hammering a stake into the ground next to a flimsy-looking tree. He'd lowered himself to one knee, and his arm muscles flexed with every movement. I wondered what it would be like to feel those arms around me. To have him lift me and kiss me as I wrapped my legs around his waist.

I squeezed my legs together as my pussy contracted, warmth filling that area of my body. I'd felt that before and had even tried to do something about it, but I failed miserably. Maybe I should try touching myself again when I was alone, possibly under the sheets before I drifted off to sleep.

I ate my second taco while staring at him, like a moviegoer munching popcorn while taking in the entertainment. When he stood, I let my eyes feast on even more of his back as his jeans fell lower. If not for that belt, they might have fallen off. What I wouldn't give to catch a glimpse of that bare ass.

Then he turned around, and I was thinking about what else those jeans were getting in the way of me seeing. He'd be long and thick. Everything about this guy was big, so of course his dick would be too.

It took me more than a few seconds to register that he was looking directly at me. Here I stood, holding a mostly eaten taco in my right hand, plate close to my chin, my eyes directly on him. I was gaping at him through the window like some sort of weirdo.

I dropped the taco and stepped back, mortified. I shrank back into the room and turned and headed for the table, planning to make another taco. My appetite had suddenly fled, but I had to do something in case he came walking in.

The sound didn't resume, even as I sat back down. He'd stopped working. Maybe he was just doing something else. But I didn't hear the shears either. Just birds chirping and a lawnmower off in the distance. The usual sounds of summer.

When the door burst open, I almost dropped my taco again. Oh, shit. He was coming in.

"I'm going to take a shower," he said as he breezed through the living room. "Feel free to join me if you want."

My mouth fell open and stayed there. By the time I turned around, I was once again alone in this area of the cabin. But the doorway to the bedroom where I'd changed was now closed.

Shower. With him. Had he actually invited me to do that?

No, I couldn't. I was Sadie Sawyer, good girl to the core. I'd never done anything even the slightest bit rebellious. Until I ran out on my wedding and hid out in a stranger's cabin. Maybe I was on a rebellious streak.

I could say no to this opportunity and head over to his cabin. I'd spend the night there alone and tomorrow I could hop in my car and go back to my suburban hometown in northern Knoxville. I'd settle back into my life and forget about all this.

As if it would be that easy. I knew full well that if I did that, I'd spend the rest of my life wondering what might have happened if I'd gone through that bedroom door and crept into the shower I now heard running.

Yes, this was one adventure I could not pass up.