Page 32 of Chasing the Wild
"But what about—"
"What happened between us was intense. Survival situations do that. Make everything feel more important than it is." He finally looked at me, and his ice-blue eyes were shuttered. "Doesn't mean it was real."
The words hit me like a physical blow. "You don't believe that."
"Doesn't matter what I believe." He set down his plate with deliberate care. "You're going back. I'm staying here. That's reality."
"Sam, please—"
"Finish your breakfast, Jess. We need to go."
He walked away, heading to the mudroom to prep his gear, and I sat there feeling like I was drowning all over again.
Except this time, there was no one to pull me out.
THE ATV RIDE BACK TObase camp was torture.
I held onto Sam because I had to, my arms wrapped around his waist, my body pressed against his back. But he was rigid under my touch, his muscles tense, and the warmth that had been there yesterday was gone.
The landscape blurred past—snow and trees and mountain beauty that I could barely see through my tears. I pressed my face against his back, trying to memorize his scent before I lost it forever.
Before I lost him forever. He said I was his. He said he had claimed me. Why was he giving up on us at this first hurdle?
Too soon, we emerged from the trees and I could see the base camp lodge ahead. ATVs and vehicles clustered in the parking area. People moving around, packing up, preparing to return to civilization.
My coworkers. My boss. My real life.
Sam pulled up to the lodge and killed the engine. For a moment, neither of us moved. Then he was climbing off, holding out a hand to help me down with impersonal courtesy.
"Thanks for the ride," I said stupidly.
He nodded once. "Take care of yourself, counselor."
Then he was walking away, heading toward where his brothers were clustered by their vehicles, and I stood there watching him go.
"Ms. Madison."
I turned to find Belinda standing in the lodge doorway, her expression cold and assessing.
"Ms. Sorento," I said, straightening my shoulders. Putting on my professional mask even though it felt like my face would crack.
"Inside. Now. We need to talk."
THE "TALK" WAS EVERYTHINGI'd expected and worse.
Belinda sat across from me in a corner of the lodge, her perfectly manicured hands folded on the table, her eyes calculating.
"I'm going to be direct," she said. "There's been talk about your behavior during the storm. Specifically, your relationship with our wilderness guide."
"I don't know what you've heard, but—"
"I heard that you spent two nights alone with him." Her lips thinned.
Anger sparked through my mortification. "I got separated in the storm. Sam found me and kept me alive. We sheltered together because that was the safest option.”
"What you do on your personal time is your business," Belinda interrupted. "But it’s not a good look to have a fling on a corporate retreat.”
I stared at her, understanding crystallizing. "You're using this to tank my partnership chances."
