Page 5 of Saved By the Lumberjack
Somewhere nearby, I think I hear something. There's a sound from inside the rocks like a gasp or a sob, but it's gone before I can be sure I even heard it.
The slabs of granite are riddled with crevices and small, cave-like spaces where animals might make dens; or where a woman might be trapped-- or hiding.
"Please answer me, Ivy. I need you to be safe."
My words are a prayer, spoken quietly to the forest around me while I fight my growing anxiety.
Beside me, I hear it again. Something that sounds human coming from inside a deep crevice between rock slabs.
Quickly pulling back the brush that hides the opening to the space, I look into the shallow cave and find the prettiest pair of emerald eyes I've ever seen, wide and frantic behind the sharp end of a broken stick prepared to skewer me.
Chapter Three
Ivy
The face that appears at the entrance of the tight space I've managed to back myself into isn't what I was expecting.
The man I saw all too briefly back at the bakery in Moonshine Ridge stares back at me. I recognize the olive green eyes and the dusty brown beard.
I drop the stick I was prepared to defend myself with, but I can't find the strength to crawl out of the space.
When Jake says my name like he just found the holy grail, I use every last ounce of energy in my body to sob uncontrollably.
"Rapid? Glen? You guys copy?"
Jake's hand reaches in to take mine, while he uses a handheld radio to tell someone that he found me.
"Looks beat up, but in good shape," he answers the voice that comes over the radio to ask my condition.
"How are you?" Jake slides the radio onto his belt and leans into the crevice with me. "Can you walk? Is anything broken?"
More voices crackle through squelch and static on his walkie-talkie, but Jake ignores them all.
Struggling to catch my breath, words don't come out when I try to speak. The best I can do is shake my head to answer his question.
"No to walking or no to broken?"
His voice is so low, like he's trying to calm a frightened animal and then I realize he kinda is. That makes me laugh a little and that's what it takes to finally make the sobs subside.
"I can walk," I manage. "Nothing's broken."
Jake helps me crawl out of the crevice. His grip is secure but gentle, providing support as I wiggle out from between the massive boulders that form my cave.
When I'm free of the rocks, I realize how long I was crouched in that awkward position. My legs ache and they don't want to hold me up when I try to stand. Jake's strong arms encircle my waist, pulling me against his broad chest and holding me up until the blood starts flowing back into my legs and feet.
That's not the only place blood is flowing to.
He's so much taller than me. Strong, solid, and warm, and the way he curls protectively around me has me feeling something more than mere gratitude at being saved.
"Let's get you out of these fucking woods, baby," he says. His cheek rests against the top of my head, his arms wrapped around me so tight, I don't think he plans on letting me go.
If that's his plan, I'm here for it.
Leaning into him, I press the side of my face against his solid chest and let the strong beat of Jake's heart calm me.
He smells like the forest; like sawdust, fresh air, and hard work. I wonder where he came from, why he was out here looking for me, and why it feels so right to be this close to a man I don't even know.
My brain tells me it's just the relief of seeing a familiar face after being so scared and alone. My body tells me something else entirely.
