Page 4 of Forever Theirs

Without a word, the grumpy guy secured the boat to the dock and motioned for me to disembark. I stood on unsteady legs from the gentle rocking motion, looping the strap of my weighed-down satchel over my head. The driver attempted to take it from me when I first boarded the boat to secure it with the rest of my luggage, but I’d refused to let it out of my sight. Between the top-of-the-line laptop with all the editing software, my camera, and various lenses I almost needed to sell an organ to purchase, everything inside was too valuable to allow someone else to handle it.

My feet hit the sturdy wooden dock, which groaned beneath my weight, and a few grumbling fishermen dodged me as I paused, giving myself a second to take it all in.

So, this was it. A chance to step away from reality, and the life I hated yet forced myself to live day after day for the last few years, and find myself again.

The two overstuffed duffel bags crammed full of all my hiking gear and anything else that was clean at the time of my rushed packing were slapped to the damp planks by my feet.

“Your ride will be here soon. You can meet him in that parking lot.”

Narrowing my eyes, I stared up at the massive asshole. “What is your problem? Did I do or say something that pissed you off, or are you always this damn moody?”

He crossed his thick arms over his chest and widened his stance as if preparing for a fight. With an arrogant look, he stared down at me, not saying a word.

“Really, Lang.” The voice at my back had the man shifting his glare over my shoulder. “Making the resort guests feel all warm and fuzzy with your stimulating conversation skills, I see.”

With a huffed laugh, I turned to find a man heading our way wearing a wide, inviting, and somewhat mischievous grin.

“Sorry about Langston,” he said, pausing in front of me. “He’s grouchy on the best day, but before he left to pick you up, a certain someone got under his skin?—”

“Knock it off, Aiden,” the burly man behind me practically growled. “Grab her stuff and get going. We have a meeting in an hour that we’ll both be late for if you don’t hurry the fuck up.”

“Charming,” I scoffed.

“Don’t take offense,” the Aiden guy fake whispered as he grabbed the two Army green duffel bags I brought along for this adventure and lifted them like they weighed nothing. “He just needs to get laid.” With a dramatic wink in Langston’s direction, Aiden stepped around me. “If you’re ready to get your adventure started—” He adjusted his hold on the thick straps and inclined his head down the dock. “—then let’s go.”

“Aspen. Aspen Carter,” I whispered, my mind still reeling as I took in the sights. And I wasn’t just in awe of the colorful wooden buildings lined up along the shore, raised high above the water by sturdy stilts, or the groups of fishermen laughing and working all around me. Despite my new and breathtaking surroundings, I couldn’t stop my gaze from slipping back to the stupidly hot man.

Classically handsome, almost pretty features fit perfectly on his heart-shaped face. A scar bisected his right eyebrow, which added to his good looks rather than took away from them. Light brown hair streaked with natural golden highlights fell across his forehead, which he constantly had to flip out of the way. It looked soft and perfect to run my fingers through. His caramel-colored eyes seemed to sparkle anytime our gazes clashed, almost as if he liked what he saw just as much as I did. Though that was probably wishful thinking, my desperate loneliness creating something that wasn’t there. Because why would he like what he saw? I wasn’t anything special. Average height, average build, dark brown eyes that were a little too big for my face, and thick wild almost-black hair, which was currently tied up in a knot that I wasn’t sure I’d ever untangle. He was far out of my league.

“Well, Aspen, I’m Aiden. Welcome to Anchor Bay.” With the end of my duffel, he urged me in the direction he came from, gently tapping it against my thigh. The solid wood planks were slick beneath the soles of my hiking boots, making each step slow and cautious to keep from falling on my ass or slipping right into the bay. “The resort’s SUV is in the parking lot. We’ll get your stuff loaded up and head that way. It’s not far, twenty minutes or so.”

“You work for the resort?” I asked while maneuvering around a thick coiled rope lying in the middle of our path.

“Not technically. I work for a local adventure and rescue company, Uplift Adventure and Rescue. I had just dropped off a couple back at the resort after their motorbike expedition when the owner asked me to help out. We’re a tight-knit community around here, so it wasn’t a problem. We support each other however we need to, even if that’s saving unsuspecting victims from Langston’s grumpy ass. Sorry again about him. He’s had a stick up his ass the last few weeks.”

I hummed a noncommittal response, not sure how to respond, too stuck on how he described the community in Anchor Bay. A tight-knit community sounded glorious, even though I knew it came with its own set of challenges. Back in Seattle, there was no community, not even within the magazine I worked for. Many times, when traveling with James and the TV production crew, I felt utterly alone. It was odd that on individual assignments that sent me deep into the mountains or hikes where I wouldn’t see anyone for days, I never felt lonely. Yet in a city full of people, surrounded by bodies and those I knew personally, the ache of loneliness was sometimes so heavy it felt hard to take a full breath.

“Are you meeting someone here?” Aiden asked, drawing me out of my depressing thoughts.

“Nope,” I said with a smile. “Just me and my camera for an entire week.”

“Ah, you’re a photographer.” I nodded. “Well, people come from all around the world to capture the sights Alaska has to offer. I’m sure you’ll find plenty to photograph.”

Right now, I just wanted to snap every aspect of the adorable town. Maybe all remote Alaskan villages were as cute as this one, but there was a vibrancy that pulsed off the people who passed along the dock and shone off the bright buildings that made me think this place was unique, special even.

“That’s us.” I trailed behind Aiden, actively trying to keep my attention off his firm ass and not stare at the way his corded arms flexed and moved, stretching the cuffs of his snug T-shirt while carrying my heavy luggage toward an older safari-type Land Rover with The Nest’s logo stamped on the hood. “Go ahead and hop in. I’m sure you’re ready to get out of the wind. I’ll load these two bags really quick.”

The mention of the cool breeze rushing off the water had me wrapping both arms around myself like that would ward off the chill. For mid-May, it was still cold to me, even with the afternoon sun attempting to break through the clouds. I had heard that the weather this time of year was notorious for changing on a dime. After climbing into the stiff seat and slamming the passenger door behind me, I secured the seat belt. Fingers tingling from the cold, I rubbed both hands together and blew bursts of hot air between them.

Good thing I packed for the various weather possibilities, or my first stop would be the outfitting store at the resort, where the prices would no doubt be ten times the cost back home.

Home.

Was that even what my tiny apartment back in Seattle was?

Maybe I should just give up the big-city life, admit that Mom was right, and head home to Utah, where my family still lived. Mom would welcome me home after reminding me how she told me photography wasn’t a sound career choice, and Dad, well, he’d just put me to work on the ranch, grateful to have an extra set of hands and not really caring why I was home, just glad that I was.

But I didn’t want to go home. I didn’t want to admit defeat just yet. I had enough money saved up to get through a few months without the steady income of a paycheck. That should be plenty of time to grab some amazing shots I could sell online.

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