“Do you find a lot of clients out here near Glacier?” he was saying.
“Some,” she said. “Like I said, I moved here to be close to my daughter, not for the client base. But the people around here are the independent type. They like having control over their own lives. A couple of businesses have even opened since I arrived, because word is getting around that I’ll help them get star
ted.”
A smile broke out on his face. “You’re helping build up the community. Making it possible for people to achieve their dreams.”
The familiar excitement rose inside her at the thought of all of these individuals realizing that they could make it on their own, rather than working for big corporations. “I’m trying. Most recently, I met a woman who’s setting up a guide business at Glacier. She’s a shifter—a lynx—and she’d just been taking little guide jobs here and there, but word got around and now she’s in demand.” She shook her head. “She’s going to have to hire some people soon, because she’s the best there is—has been for years and years—and people are finally starting to realize that. Because now she has an actual business plan, with marketing and so on.”
“And it would be more than worth it to hire someone who really knew the Park to show you around,” Wilson finished.
Mavis nodded. “I’ve gotten an unofficial tour from my daughter’s friends—they’re rangers, after all, so they know it better than anybody—but not everyone has those kinds of fancy connections.” She grinned.
He laughed. “Well, I see who I’m going to have to keep close to, if I want that kind of VIP treatment for myself.”
“I’m sure Cal would love to—well, maybe not on his wedding weekend. But any of the other young men: Grey, or Jeff, or Zach or my daughter’s mate Joel.”
Now Wilson was looking over at Cal. “I’m happy Cal found a pack,” he said. “He never talked much about his past—certainly not to me—but from his record, and his leave requests, it was clear that he’d gotten away from something he didn’t want to go back to. I always hoped he’d find somewhere to stay, and it looks like he has.”
There was that depth of feeling again. The words were restrained, but Mavis could hear the layers of concern, of relief, vibrating in that deep voice.
“Do you have a pack?” she asked tentatively, not sure if she was being rude.
He shook his head. “I’m a bit of a loner. The military’s always been enough pack for me.”
Mavis thought that sounded a little sad. But she didn’t really have room to talk, did she? She’d left all her friends, her husband, her hometown, everything. For the absolute best of reasons, of course, but she’d become a bit of a loner herself in the process.
“I hope you’re enjoying catching up with all your old friends, then,” she offered.
“What I’m most enjoying is making new ones,” was what he came back with. His smile was warm, and Mavis felt her cheeks flush with heat.
This was silly. She shouldn't be blushing like a schoolgirl over a man's smile. Fortunately, her skin was much too dark to show it.
In defiance of her own juvenile shyness, she lifted her chin and said, "Well, would you like a tour around the town? I'm afraid I'm not the expert in the Park that some of the shifters are, but I've been getting to know our little town over the last few months, and I could show you a few of the sights."
His smile widened. "I'd love that."
"Wonderful." Mavis kept her voice confident, but she suddenly wasn't sure what she'd gotten herself into. Showing this man around her small town? He lived in Washington, DC. He wasn't going to be interested in the diner where her daughter worked or the new clothing store Alethia, one of the leopards, had recently opened up.
But the way he was smiling suggested that she might be wrong about that.
***
Wilson hadn't expected to come to Glacier National Park for a wedding and meet a beautiful woman who wanted to show him around town.
Stunning mountain peaks, certainly. Beautiful flowers, perhaps a moose or a bear for excitement. But a lovely, kind, intelligent woman like Mavis, who was offering to spend time with him? He hadn't expected that at all.
Wilson hadn't made a habit of dating in the last several years. Back when he'd been an idiot twentysomething lieutenant, he'd enjoyed going out with girls, telling them fantastical stories about his time overseas—often with only the barest hint of truth in them—and showing them a good time at bars and clubs.
But he'd grown out of that phase, as most people did. And once he'd reached the point of shaking his head at the young Marines who went out with three different girls during a 48-hour leave, he'd started leaving dating behind entirely.
When he'd been deployed for long periods, it simply hadn't been an option. Nor had he wanted to come home to the States, start dating a woman, and then have to leave her behind again. Not to mention the real danger of serving in Iraq: no woman should have to deal with that kind of uncertainty in a new relationship.
Or ever. But certainly not when they'd only been together for a couple of months in the first place.
So he'd left dating behind, and become truly married to his job.
And now that he'd met a woman who interested him for the first time in long, long time, he was wondering what it was that was catching her attention.