He straightened up when she came out, and watched unsmiling as she walked over to him, stopping close enough for a conversation, but far enough that she wouldn?
??t be able to feel the heat radiating from his body.
Who was she kidding? She’d felt it the second she stepped outside and saw him.
The silence stretched out as she looked at him, the light from the streetlights catching the silver in his eyes and making him look almost otherworldly.
“Hi,” she said finally. Stupidly.
“Hi.” Somehow his quiet, husky voice imbued the word with weight and substance. Like behind that single word was a deep well of passionate longing.
She tried to shake that idea off. Where was she coming up with this? “I said we could talk.” She kept her voice as steady as she could, but it still trembled a bit. “Here I am. So talk.”
Weirdly, he pulled out his phone. Ali frowned as he held it up, wondering what he was doing.
“I got a call this afternoon.” He pulled open the log and showed it to her. It said Cal Westland. “Cal is a ranger at Glacier National Park up in Montana.”
She had no idea where this was going. “Okay.”
“He offered me a job.” His eyes pinned her to the spot with their intensity. “I’ve been waiting for him to call for a long time, Alethia. I knew one of his colleagues was getting up there in age and was planning to retire soon. I knew Cal had put in a good word for me and heard a positive response from his boss. I knew I had a good shot of getting offered this job.”
He paused, and took a deep breath. “Will you come with me to Montana, Alethia?”
She was speechless.
“I know you don’t think that you’re really my mate,” he kept going when she didn’t answer. “From what little you’ve said about it, I understand why. But even if you don’t believe me about that, you know we have a connection. Last night was the most amazing experience of my life. I’m not just talking about in bed, I mean the whole night we spent together. I’ve never felt that way with another person, and I think you feel the same.”
Ali swallowed around a dry throat. She still couldn’t seem to speak.
“Come with me, and we can build on that connection. You can start somewhere else. With me.” For the first time, he looked uncertain. “Would you consider that?”
Ali found her voice somehow. “Why are you asking me this?”
He took a step forward. “Because you’re brave, and smart, and funny, and kind, and beautiful, and I would rather be with you than with any other woman I’ve ever met. Do you believe me?”
She blinked. What was going on with her? She was tearing up like a thirteen-year-old! “I….”
Grey’s face softened. “Alethia.” Slowly, he pulled her into his arms.
At first his hold was loose, like he expected her to draw back. But she buried her face in his shoulder instead, and he wrapped her up tightly and held her close while she fought back tears.
His body was solid and warm against her. His arms held her tight. But there was more than that. She felt like she could sense him, as well as feel him. As though the essence of Grey and the essence of Alethia were mingling.
Was this what being mates meant? Could it be real?
With a gasp, she tore herself away. He let go instantly, letting his arms fall away from her as she stepped back.
“I don’t know what to do,” she whispered. “This is too much.”
It seemed impossible, overwhelming. Grey was too good to be true. Men like him didn’t exist.
“I can give you some time, and come back to see you again later,” Grey said carefully, watching her. “Maybe you want to take a while and think.”
She thought about going home, seeing Molly and Paul, and either trying to explain what was happening, or hiding alone in her tiny room with nothing to do but think.
She didn’t want to.
Something in her face seemed to give Grey hope. His eyes widened, his lips parting, and he looked like he wanted to speak, but was keeping silent.