Page 10 of Lion Conquers All
He knew the drink was her favorite. He’d watched her order at Lily’s multiple times while he was eating breakfast. She didn’t anymore, at least not at breakfast.
Lily knew he was interested in Connie. She called it being “sweet” on her. He didn’t quite understand all the slang in the English language, but it sounded positive so it didn’t bother him. And Lily seemed thrilled, although she had warned him that Connie was notorious fornotdating. That were several in town who had tried over the years and been rejected.
He had assured Lily that he would not be rejected because he had no intention of asking Connie for anything.
Lily had looked at him quiet for a minute before shaking her head and grinning wide. Then she told himgood luckand he’d been buying Connie’s morning macchiato ever since and had been delivering it to her porch.
Connie stopped in front of a large map on the wall and pointed to spot about twenty miles deep into the park. “That’s Crooked Rock and if they are camping, they are likely on this end of it. There’s fresh water and flatter areas for tents here.” She pointed to a smaller green area. “The best way in is to take the East Trail Road, then take the first fork to the right and follow it until you get to the Crooked Rock hiking trail. There will be a sign for where the trailhead starts. You’ll have to hike in from there. It’s probably four miles on foot.”
Aarav studied the map carefully. It was pretty straightforward. He snapped a couple of pictures, so he’d have them on his phone to refer back to, then made a couple of notes on the small pad of paper he carried in his back pocket.
“Thank you, Connie. This was very helpful. I appreciate you taking the time out of your day to help me.”
“You’re welcome.”
He wanted to stay. He wanted to see if maybe she would talk to him for a few minutes, but there was a boy missing and he couldn’t waste time. Sam was probably fine. Most kids in Mystery were experts on the trails. They’d grown up wandering around Denali. But on the off chance that something had gone wrong, he needed to be able to tell the parents he’d gone and checked everything he could possibly check on his own.
“I hope you have a good day, Connie.” He smiled down at her and then turned for the door.
“Please let me know if you don’t find Sam. I’d like to help if I can, though I really do hope he’s up there with the Tragher boys and his phone is dead.”
Aarav paused and turned back toward the woman Fate had declared to be his mate. She shined with thesoul call. A luminescence only he could see surrounded her like an ethereal aura.
She had the heart of a true lioness.
So quick to help and self-sacrifice.
She loved this town and its people. She did the work of three people—answering emergency calls, calls at the school, and any time people needed a family doctor, she opened the neighborhood clinic and served there too.
The poor woman needed to relax more. He could think of more than one way to help her achieve relaxation.
Stop it.He couldn’t go there. He would get more aggressive with her if he let himself think about her luscious curves and sweet-smelling body.
Instead, he flashed her another smile—a friendly non-pursuer smile. “You’ll be my first call when I get back.”
Her face flushed a pretty red color and he had to bite back a growl.
She was so beautiful.
So perfect.
He loved everything about her, inside and out. Her heart and her passion for this town was unparalleled by anyone. And then there were the personal details. Like the fact that she watched movies by herself every Tuesday evening when she was off. Her favorite snack was graham crackers and peanut butter dipped in honey. She was especially fond of children. She loved on the Tribe’s babies every chance she got and anyone in town that had a baby, she was the first to bring a gift.
He also knew she never saidnoto anyone who needed her.
That last attribute he considered a weakness and a strength, and he fully intended to exploit it if possible.
“Unless you’d care to take a ride with me up to Crooked Rock and check on the boys with me.”
“I—ummm—well, that’s probably not necessary. You know how to get there now, right?”
“Oh, I’m sure I can find it.”
“Without using…without changing…”
He waited. He knew what was coming.
“You’re following the rules, right? You can’t cheat and—It’s dangerous for you and for this town. If people knew…”
