|
The
voice seemed to emanate from the very depths of the pinewood.
Squinting into the early afternoon sunlight, Skye watched as
a figure emerged from the trees. He was tall, well over six feet if
he was an inch, with raven black hair and the slight shadow of a
beard. She couldn't
really see his eyes, but had a feeling they would be icy blue and
would have that 'damn you to hell' expression.
A chill ran down her spine. The cabin occupied an isolated
spot after all, and even if there were neighbours within screaming
distance they probably wouldn't be at home at this time of day.
Skye considered her options as the tall figure walked towards
her; if he were to prove difficult she could always throw her cup at
him and kick him in the shins, before legging it back to the safety
of the cabin. He halted
a mere foot or so from her, forcing her to look up.
"Sorry
to startle you, ma’am, but I wasn't sure if you were planning on
taking anything else off besides your shoes…" the stranger
grinned.
Skye's
mouth opened but she couldn't utter a word, and before she could
collect her thoughts, he continued.
"…Because
if you were, you'd only last about thirty minutes before hypothermia
set in, and of course, being the gentleman that I am, I would feel
duty bound to come right in after you," He warned, half
seriously. "And that would be a shame, because I'd planned on
going home and cooking this fish for lunch."
Coughing
and spluttering, Skye choked on her coffee. So a fish was more
important than saving someone from freezing to death. She inclined
her head to examine him more closely and could see she’d been
right about his eyes. Here was a man who didn't suffer fools gladly.
Well, she thought, 'Mr Damn Your Eyes' could just go back
where he came from and take his fishy friend with him!
"You’ll
be relieved to know, that I had no intention of er, er…. taking
anything other than my shoes off. The thought of going for a swim
hadn't even entered my head, but now you've mentioned it, it's not a
bad idea. As for you coming in after me, I'll take a rain check, if
you don't mind! Not, I
might add, that what I do is any business of yours.
I was assured that this was private land.
May I ask just what you think you are doing prowling around
scaring the hell out of people?"
Skye asked indignantly.
"My,
my, we're mighty touchy. What
happened, someone wake you up too early?" The icy blue eyes
flashed. There was a
trace of laughter in his voice that was totally lost on Skye.
Feeling more than a little intimidated by the stranger's
height, she stood up in one fluid movement.
Not one inch of her five foot five frame gave her any more
confidence. She barely
came up to the man's chest – a chest that any woman would feel
comfortable snuggled up against, at that.
Now where in the world
did that thought come from? Skye asked herself.
Still
feeling at a disadvantage, Skye took a long look.
Close up he didn't appear quite so intimidating -
"impressive" was a better adjective.
In fact, she could think of a number of suitable adjectives
to describe Mr Damn Your Eyes, including handsome, rugged, and
virile, not to mention offensive and arrogant.
This guy would stop traffic in London, but there he would be
completely out of place. Here in the rugged mountains of the Pacific
Northwest he was totally at ease.
Now
that she was standing, Skye revised her estimate of his height.
He was at least six feet four, possibly more.
His eyes were deep set and she’d been right about the
colour. He had a scar
over one eyebrow and smaller one on his chin.
Fleetingly she wondered how he'd acquired them, but she had
no intention of asking. He
was dressed casually in black jeans, which fit him like a glove and
a navy blue check work shirt which he wore open at the neck,
revealing a tangle of dark hair on his chest.
In one hand he held a fishing rod and a fish in the other and
looked for the entire world, as if he had stepped right out of the
pages of her guidebook.
The
stranger watched her slow appraisal of him, but said nothing. Skye
stiffened and haughtily tossed her head, her eyes narrowing as she
spoke.
"Look,
Mr…? Sorry, but I
didn't quite catch your name, and at this particular moment, I don't
even care to know what it is. I've
had a long journey and I'm tired. As far as I'm concerned you're
trespassing on private property.
I'd very much appreciate it, if you would leave by whatever
means you arrived and allow me to finish my coffee before it goes
cold."
"My,
my. The lady obviously
has a temper to match the colour of her hair. Now why don't you take
a deep breath, calm down and enjoy the day? You're obviously not
from around here otherwise you wouldn't jump down a perfectly
innocent person's throat, especially one who's trying to give you
some friendly advice. Don't
worry, I won't disturb you any longer," he said tersely.
"I'll be on my way, and for future reference, the name
is Walker, Jedediah Walker, but everyone just calls me Walker,"
he declared, challenging her to laugh. Abruptly he turned and strode
quickly up the dock before jumping down and continuing along the
pebble beach, heading off in the opposite direction from which he'd
come.
Home
| Top
|
