Page 57 of Clumsy in Love

“You didn’t read the pamphlet, did you?” She got into her pack and dug out the bear horn. “Never run from a bear. And neverfeeda bear. We gotta scare him off.”

“Woman. Are you nuts? If that thing comes in here, I’m shooting.”

“That’s a last resort. On three, I’ll open the door. Just make as much noise as you can. One. Two.” She threw open the door and blasted the air horn, which succeeded in surprising the bear. So much so, that it fell backward, rolling ass over kettle down the rickety steps, landing in a heap at the bottom.

“Yeah,” Cole yelled, pointing his gun sideways like a gangster. “And stay down, ya clumsy oaf.” A few yards of separation appeared to have bolstered his confidence.

Holly burst into laughter. Cole stepped to the top of the stairs and made some unflattering comments about the bear’s weight and dexterity. The bear righted itself and glared. Cole retreated a step but kept at him with a yo-momma’s-so-fat joke. Holly blasted the horn between insults.

“You stink, brah. Did ya use a dead skunk for deodorant?”

The bear inched away and finally shot them a dirty look before lumbering off into the woods.

“That’s so mean,” Holly scoffed. “You hurt its feelings. What if he’s in a gang and is going for reinforcements?”

Cole shut the door and latched the deadbolt. In the distance, a wolf howled.

“Wolves too?” he muttered. “Yeah. We’re gonna die up here.”

“I can’t stop laughing,” she said, grabbing her sides and giggling like a child. “Wine on an empty stomach was a bad idea.”

“You have an odd sense of humor, lady,” he said dryly.

“Why’d you have to bring up Lady? Now I miss my dog.” Holly settled back on the couch, curious whether they would pick up where they left off, or if bear chasing had given him an opportunity to come to his senses.

Cole went to the fireplace and gently placed another log on the fire.

“We should keep it going all night,” Holly said. “Otherwise, it’ll get pretty cold in here. We can take turns sleeping.”

“With all the wild animals around, there is zero chance I fall asleep, so I’ll be in charge of that.”

Holly slept in fits and starts. The snake, the bear, the wolves, and the roof on the verge of collapse had killed the mood, and Cole hadn’t kissed her again.

At first light, they packed up—including all their trash—and put on their boots, which were warm and dry after a night by the fire.

They opened the door to find the bear sound asleep on the porch. “Ah. He just wanted a dry place to sleep,” Holly said. “Poor little guy.”

“I am so far from home,” Cole mumbled. “What do we do?”

“Nothing. Let’s go.” They tiptoed down the steps and set off down the mountain.

By noon, they were back at Holly’s work rig. At the visitor’s center, she asked a coworker to tell Rick she was taking the rest of the day off.

“I notsick, sick,” Holly said. “Just exhausted. And filthy. And starving. I’d be worthless trying to work today.”

“I thought you slept in a cabin,” her friend said. “You look like you been roughin’ it for a week and sleepin’ in the dirt.”

“The trail was slick from the rain. I may have fallen once or twice.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Anyway, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

She put her radio on a charger and grabbed her truck keys. Cole had waited in the lobby, and she found him standing in front of an exhibit, reading the history of the falls. How did he look so good? He’d endured the same hardships she had over the last twenty-four hours but still looked like he was showing up for an outdoorsy catalog photo shoot. So not fair.

“You ready?” She came up behind him.

“Food first?”

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