Your Wild Heart (4 page)

They checked the campsite but, other than the table being knocked over, only a can of fruit had been damaged. Everything else was just scattered and dirty. Even her laptop had been spared.

“I should head to the park office. I’d like to check the area to see if I can figure out what triggered the herd to run like that.”

“Let me know what you find out. And don’t worry about this.” She gestured to the mess around them. “Nothing was damaged.”

“I’m glad, but I need to find out if there is a predator we’re unaware of.”

“I suppose that is part of your job, huh?”

Without giving her time to rethink anything, he swept in and gave her a very thorough kiss. Enough to leave his own lips tingling. “I’ll check on you later. But call me if you have any more problems.”

The dazed look on her face pleased him.

“Okay,” she murmured.

He released her before he gave into the temptation to drag her into her trailer for the rest of the day. The supports under the mattress probably wouldn’t hold up to the strain if he did.

On the way to his truck, he sacked up the used condom so he could dispose of it at the first available trash can. Instead of heading to the park office, he turned north so he could search for the twins. He needed to have a talk with them before they went too far.

Isabelle stomped around her camp, fussing about wild animals. But every five minutes, her mind flitted back to Wyatt.

What the hell had come over her? He was good-looking, intelligent, loved animals as much as she did, and yes, his jeans did fit his ass just right. But she looked for more qualities than that in men she dated, much less slept with.

Granted, he had saved her from being trampled. And he did chase off the bear.

But they hadn’t even been out on a date!

The sex had been off the charts, though. She couldn’t remember ever letting loose like that. She always maintained an awareness of her surroundings. With Wyatt, she had surrendered to the moment.

She huffed her bangs away from her face and gathered up the things that needed to be washed.

It was odd to have so many animal problems. Normally when she camped, wildlife avoided her area. She allowed herself until noon to clean and put her camp to rights and then grabbed a quick lunch. After locking her laptop in her Jeep, she set out to explore.

The beauty of the area and the weather made her trek ideal. Warm, but not blistering hot. The variation in the landscape made her think she could stay a month and not get bored with the views.

Surprisingly, though, she hadn’t found any evidence of wolves in the area even though her tracking software said one had come here from Georgia. Then again, anything could have happened to the chip she had implanted in the wolf to make it stop working. She just prayed nothing had happened to the wolf.

When she returned later that afternoon she found a note attached to her trailer from Wyatt.

Sorry I missed you when I came by. I had planned to take you to see the buffalo, but I got pulled into a couple things and couldn’t get away. To make up for it, I left a slice of homemade apple pie in your cooler. Sharon, one of the ladies in the park office, made it. You won’t want to waste a crumb. Tomorrow should be a lighter day, so I could run you up to see the buffalo. And if you need a break from sandwiches and granola, I’ll take you out for real food. I’ll come by in the morning.

Wyatt

Isabelle’s insides did somersaults. Part of her was annoyed he assumed she’d want to go. She did, and not just so she could have, as he put it, a real meal. Some of the butterflies in her belly were because she’d be seeing Wyatt. Knowing it was useless to stall, she went looking for his business card so she could send a text message accepting his offer.

She couldn’t face him again without having a real shower. After grabbing her bathroom supplies, her hot water container, some clean underwear, and a towel, she climbed into her Jeep. The sun would set soon, and the showers would be busy around dinnertime, but she wasn’t willing to pass up even a cold shower. Sure enough there were several people coming and going from the structure in the center of the camping area.

She made fast work of the cold water provided by the facilities and gave thanks she remembered to bring her solar-heated water bag for a couple of overall rinses.

Feeling a bit more refreshed, she returned to her trailer for a sandwich and fruit and then crawled onto her mattress and pulled out a book. The breeze blowing through the screens kept the temperature pleasant, but her light would attract far too many insects to allow her to sit outside and read.

Like earlier in the day, her mind strayed to Wyatt and their heated encounter. After rereading the same page three times, she set the book aside and turned out her lamp.

She was anxious to see him again even though she knew she wouldn’t after this week. She needed to remember it was pointless to become attached.

But that didn’t mean she couldn’t enjoy the sex.

It was nice being away from men who were as interested in her father—and in some cases, more—as they were in her. Out here, she was merely Isabelle. Not Scott Acker’s daughter. Maybe that was the reason she had never met a man she could open up to.

Despite her mother’s reassurances there was one man meant for her and she’d know him in an instant, she was losing hope of ever finding him. So, why shouldn’t she enjoy Wyatt’s company while she could?

With thoughts of all the naughty things she could do with Wyatt on the way to or during dinner dancing through her head, she fell into a restless sleep.

Sometime during the night, her dreams changed. She ran through field after field following something, but she couldn’t see what. Fields turned into hills, then into rocky cliffs. Still she followed. The path led her to a cave at the top.

“Hello?” she shouted, her voice echoing off the cavern walls.

She made her way deeper into the cave until she found a large open chamber. It occurred to her she could see in the darkened passages but didn’t. Looking around the chamber, she noticed crystals in the walls emitting a pale blue light.

Off to the right, a dark figure moved. It crept forward until it became illuminated in the dim cavern.

The black form was a large wolf with dark fur and glowing amber eyes.

As it drew closer, a sense of familiarity washed over her. Somehow she knew this wolf.

She sank to her knees and ran her hands through his thick fur. He made low growls of approval and nudged her chin with his nose. When their eyes met, she knew she had found an old friend.

As she stared into its eyes, she felt herself being forced back to the real world.

She came awake with a start. Sitting up in bed, she clutched at the sheet wrapped around her and tried to gain her bearings.

The first rays of dawn lit the other end of her camper. Cool morning air filtered through the screens. There was a distinct smell to the first hours of the morning, and she breathed it in, trying to catch the smallest whiff.

Her sense of smell had been off ever since she had volunteered to take part in the testing of one of her mother’s new drugs. As luck would have it, she had not been a placebo recipient. But it was a small price to pay if it meant helping hundreds. Maybe even thousands.

Over time, her mother hoped it would wear off and her sense of smell would return.

Pushing that thought aside, she focused on what she hoped the day would bring. Seeing the buffalo would be a treat. Having Wyatt as a tour guide would be a bonus.

What should she wear?

She hadn’t packed any nice clothes. At the bottom of her bag, she found a pair of jeans she hadn’t worn yet. There were a couple of clean T-shirts also. It may be a good time to break into her emergency concealer and mascara stashed in the glove box.

Each time Wyatt had seen her, she had been without makeup and a tad grungy, so today she wanted to look nice.

Before she forgot, she pulled out the clothes she wanted to wear and hung them over one of the canopy support beams. The breeze would shake a few wrinkles loose while she ate breakfast.

She went through her morning rituals. It took some time to brush all the tangles out of her hair and work it into a single braid so her breakfast had to be something quick and easy. After loading her pack with what she needed for the day, she then pulled out her laptop so she could work on her journal while she waited for Wyatt.

Her entry hadn’t yet been saved when he arrived.

“Good morning,” he called out.

She drank in the view of him in yet another pair of well-worn jeans and a T-shirt that fit him like a second skin. The rugged-ranger look was becoming one of her favorites. “Good morning to you. Coffee is ready if you want some.”

“I filled up before I left the house. But thank you.” He walked up to her, tipped her head backward, and dropped a leisurely kiss on her lips.

A slow sizzle began at the base of her spine and spread to all of her body parts. When he lifted his head, she could almost see sparks arcing between them.

She could kiss those lips for hours.

“Sleep well?” he murmured.

“I, uh…yes. Mostly.” She shook herself free of the sensual haze he’d created. “How about you?”

“About the same.” He straightened from his hunched position. “Are you anxious to see the buffalo? I assume you don’t have any of those in Georgia either.”

“No, we don’t and yes, I am anxious.”

“I thought we could get an early start, so you could see all you wanted before lunch.”

She cocked her head to the side. “Are you sure you have time?”

“I wouldn’t have offered if I didn’t.”

“I suppose that’s true,” she mumbled. “So, how are we going to get there?”

“We’ll drive to George’s stables and borrow a couple of four-wheelers.” He narrowed his gaze at her. “Have you ever driven one before? I didn’t think to ask beforehand.”

She smiled. “I’m not an expert, but yes, I have driven one.”

“Good.”

Isabelle gathered her things and stood. “Let me change into my jeans, and I’ll be ready to go.”

“Need help with that?” he said with a boyish grin.

She gave him a sassy look over her shoulder. “Depends on how soon you planned to get to the stables.”

He growled low in his throat. The sound sent chills down her spine and her extremities. She stopped at the door of her trailer and debated dragging him inside. It might be fun to waste an entire morning doing naughty things to each other. However, the scientist in her protested.

“Go get dressed. We’ll have time later,” he told her, reading her thoughts.

The smoldering look in his eye was almost her undoing despite his words. But she continued into the tiny space. She put her laptop away and grabbed her backpack along with a couple bottles of water. When she set those outside, she pulled her jeans off the beam where she’d left them and shook them out.

In less than a minute, she was dressed and working to secure the trailer. Wyatt helped with the latches then took her pack and led the way to his truck.

“You’re not much of a talker, are you?” she asked as she climbed into the cab of his pickup.

“Not particularly, no.” He started the ignition. “You’re not one of those people who feels compelled to fill every minute with conversation, are you?”

She chuckled. “No.”

“Good. Then we’ll get along great.” He managed to turn the truck around, despite all of the trees.

Once they were on the road, Isabelle drank in the scenery she had not been able to enjoy while she drove. The park had a wonderfully varied landscape that took her breath away. “It’s beautiful here.” She looked at Wyatt. “You’re lucky to have a job that lets you see this”—she gestured to the window—“every day.”

He shrugged. “It certainly has its moments. Good and bad.”

“You could say that about any job though.”

“I suppose.”

“Did you tell me that you were from this area?”

“Yes. I grew up on a reservation east of here.”

“Reservation, as in Native American land?”

“Yes.” His tone went flat as if waiting for some kind of insult or criticism.

“I’ve never been on a reservation.”

“I am not surprised.”

“Did you like growing up there?”

The look on his face made her think he was surprised by her interest.

“I—” He turned his attention to the road. “Yes and no,” he finally answered. “As a child I hated it. There was a lot of stigma attached to those of us who lived on tribal lands. Everyone thought we were poor and lazy. But after I left home and joined the Army, the things I had learned from my grandfather served me well, and I have a much greater appreciation for my heritage. And my home.”

“Your grandfather is a Native American, I take it?”

“Yes. Full-blood Sioux.”

“Is that your mother or your father’s side?”

Once again he seemed surprised she had asked. “My mother’s.”

“If he has always lived within the tribe, I bet he has some interesting stories.”

“Yes, he does,” he murmured.

She returned to watching the scenery but couldn’t help but add, “If someone hasn’t done it already, you should write those stories down.”

“Actually, some of the elders are working on that.”

“Good. You should always know where you came from. No matter how ugly you may think it is.”

She felt his gaze, but didn’t look at him.

Her own history wasn’t all that pretty, and to people outside her family, difficult to understand. One day, she hoped to have someone in her life that she could share all of those unpleasant details with. But until then, she’d keep them close to her chest.

“Would you mind telling me some of the stories your grandfather shared with you? I’m sure you have legends and myths and things.”

He had enough time to tell her two short stories before they reached their destination. One about the Thunderbird and the other about the White Buffalo Calf Woman. Isabelle was charmed by them.

She was even more charmed by the man. He probably didn’t realize it, but his entire demeanor relaxed as he recited the tales. She didn’t think it possible for him to be more handsome than she already found him, but, in those moments, he was.