Forever Wild Read online

  Dax’s spine snapped as rigid as rebar. “‘One of us’? What does that mean?”

  Jesse pulled his mug of coffee to rest in front of him and stared into it. “Christian has made me an offer on Off-Road, too. Because your meeting with the bank fell through, I told him that I’d consider his offer, you know, as a backup. If you can’t get the loan.”

  “Cheer up,” Christian said. He slid his hands in his pockets and rolled onto the balls of his feet. “I’m sure you have plenty saved up for a sizable down payment. That makes a difference with the banks. And you have a good credit history, right? Getting the loan should be a slam dunk for you.”

  Son of a … Christian knew Dax wasn’t rolling in dough. Before Dax had found out what a weasel his coworker was, he’d commiserated with him over a beer about cash being tight. Dax loved what he did, but being a guide wasn’t going to make him a millionaire. And his income depended on how many tours he could guide. Ever since he’d been sentenced to volunteering at Forever Friends for his probation, he’d guided fewer jobs.

  But his probation was almost up. Then he’d be able to devote 100 percent of his time to Off-Road. Hopefully, as its owner.

  Acid churned in his gut. Damn. If Christian bought the company, Dax would have to find a new job. No way would he work for that POS. His temple throbbed. He needed to get this loan locked down.

  “I’m seeing Ted Cooke at Crook County United next Thursday,” he told Jesse. “I’ll have good news for you very soon.”

  Christian patted the doorjamb as he turned to leave. “Huh. I’m meeting Teddy Wednesday. I guess we’ll see.” He swaggered into the hallway and disappeared.

  Dax spun to face Jesse. “Are you actually considering his offer?”

  His boss scraped at an invisible mark on his desk. “Look, I like you, Dax. And I think you’d be good for my company. But I have to be realistic. You’re twenty-nine years old and live in a one-bedroom apartment. There’s a good chance you won’t get the loan. I need to have options.”

  “I’m going to get the loan.”

  Jesse puffed out his lips. “I hope so, son.”

  Dax picked up his bag and strode out of the office. He dumped his gear in the back seat of his Jeep and floored it out of the parking lot. He needed to get home, try to come up with some fancy charts and shit for Jesse like Christian had.

  He turned toward Forever Friends instead.

  It had been two days since he’d slapped a paintbrush in Lissa’s hand and given her ten gallons of industrial gray paint. He might have taken a little too much pleasure in his joke, but something about bringing the spitfire back down to earth appealed to him. If someone didn’t keep her grounded, who knew what kind of trouble she’d get in?

  He did admire her spirit. She was sweet, and silly, and fun, and if anyone could improve his mood, it would be Lissa. But he worried about her, too. The woman needed some sense drilled into her.

  He flipped his sunglasses down from his head to his eyes as the afternoon sun slanted through the windshield. Cranking up the radio, he tried to get over his irritation with Christian. The guy had every right to make an offer, too. Dax just had to make a sweeter one.

  He almost didn’t see it. Dax squinted as he rolled into the shelter’s parking lot. The top of the building had been painted a soothing blue to merge into the sky, but the lower three fourths …

  “What the hell?” Slamming the Jeep into park, Dax hopped out and stood, gaping at Forever Friends. Slowly, he circled the corner of the building, but the vision didn’t change.

  He wasn’t the only one gaping. Brad and Gabe were staring at the shelter’s side wall, with Brad’s wife, Izzy, and Gabe’s girlfriend, Marla, beside them.

  Gabe took a step to the left, leaning his body, then came back to center. “It’s like that dog is watching me. How did she make it do that?”

  Dax wasn’t sure which dog Gabe was referring to. The wall was covered with them, painted in an array of unrealistic colors. It looked like a rainbow had thrown up on the building. And they weren’t normal dogs, just sitting or running. One was boxing a large bunch of grapes, another was in a tutu spinning a pirouette. And dogs weren’t the only animals taking center stage in the mural.

  “I think it’s amazing,” Marla said. She leased the building and land to Forever Friends for pennies on the dollar, so it was a good thing she liked it. The blue of her expensive silk sheath dress was almost a perfect match to the paint on the top of the wall. Dax breathed a little easier knowing that she, now the owner of this horrifying mural, liked the painting. Marla was a class act, and he wouldn’t necessarily have thought a wall of bizarre animals on her mill was something she’d enjoy. But, then, her professionally highlighted peach, apricot, and strawberry hair was almost as colorful as the shelter now was. It figured she’d like it.

  “It’s creepy.” Gabe rubbed his jaw. “And what’s with the unicorn?”

  Brad pursed his lips and tilted his head. “I like the unicorn.”

  “It’s twenty feet tall!” Gabe threw a hand in the general direction of the mythical animal. “And why is its horn red? Was it stabbing something?”

  Izzy leaned into Brad’s side. Her long dark hair brushed her husband’s shoulder. “You would like the imaginary animal,” she said with a fond smile.

  Dax went up and kissed Izzy and Marla on their cheeks. Both Gabe and Brad had gotten lucky with the women they’d found to put up with their BS. He turned to Brad. “I swear. I only told her to give the walls a new coat. I even brought her the paint. And it wasn’t those crazy colors.” He flapped a hand at the wall.

  “I believe you.” Brad hooked his thumbs in his jeans pockets. “In the two days she’s been here, I’ve found your Lissa to be quite unpredictable.”

  “You say unpredictable; I say crazy,” Dax muttered. “And she’s not my Lissa.”

  Izzy and Marla exchanged looks. “Hmm.” Marla raised an eyebrow. “Methinks he doth protest too much?”

  “That’s what I’ve been saying,” Brad agreed. “He hasn’t been able to stop talking about her, even if it is just to pretend to complain.”

  “You know how you’re always saying we’re family here at Forever Friends?” Dax asked him.

  Brad nodded.

  “Well, I want a divorce.” Dax poked his finger at them. “You are all too damn nosy. And completely wrong about me and Lissa.”

  “Don’t include me in that whine fest,” Gabe said. “I don’t care who you do or don’t have a thing for.” He leaned down and placed a kiss on the edge of Marla’s mouth. “I’ve got to get back to work, babe. I’ll bring home dinner tonight?”

  “Sounds good.”

  Gabe stepped past Dax, knocking his shoulder. “Thanks for the new artwork. Every time my eyes bleed, I’ll think of you.” He opened the side door to the shelter and quickly sidestepped as Lissa barreled through.

  “Thanks!” she said. She held a pint-size paint can in one hand and a sponge in the other. “Dax!” Her eyes lit up when she caught sight of him, and Dax’s stomach did a slow somersault. “I didn’t think you were getting back from your trip for another three days.”

  “Yeah, what are you doing here?” Brad asked.

  “Trip was cut short. Medical emergency.” He held up a hand when everyone started asking questions at once. “Everything’s fine. Let’s just say I left with two passengers and came back with three.” He rubbed the heels of his hands into his eye sockets. “I saw things I never want to see again. I don’t know how women do it.”

  Izzy linked her fingers through Brad’s. “It’s too bad you’re so squeamish. I guess that means Uncle Dax won’t be in the birthing room with me and Brad.”

  Dax blinked. And blinked again. Realization slowly dawned. And from the smug smiles on Marla’s and Lissa’s faces, Dax was the last damn person to know.

  He swooped down on Izzy a
nd swung her in a circle. When he brought her down, he planted a sloppy kiss on her cheek. “Congratulations!”

  Brad wedged his body between his wife and Dax. “Easy there, handsy. Spinning and morning sickness might not be a winning combination.”

  Dax ignored that and threw his arms around Brad as well. “You lucky bastard.” He stepped back and pounded him on the shoulder. “You should have called me.”

  “Last I heard, Isle Royale doesn’t have the best cell reception,” Brad said dryly. “And knowing my luck, you’d see the news and crash the damn plane trying to do a loop the loop.”

  Dax shook his head and sighed. “I can’t believe you’re going to allow his DNA to mix with yours,” he told Izzy. “Ana is so perfect. This next child won’t stand a chance in comparison.”

  Brad narrowed his eyes, but any response was cut off by Lissa.

  “You’re a pilot?” she asked.

  “Yeah. It’s no big deal. Just part of my job. Getting people to remote spots to begin their adventures.”

  “Oh please,” Marla said. “Don’t let his newfound modesty fool you. He’s licensed to fly helicopters, regular airplanes, and seaplanes.” She held up her hand and ticked off her fingers as she spoke. “Motorcycle, ATV, speedboats, race cars… If it’s got a motor, this boy can drive it.”

  “Reeaally.” Lissa dipped her chin and looked up at him. “Those sound like fairly high-risk activities. Not something someone who professes a love of safety and common sense would do.”

  Brad snorted. “Safety? Common sense? Dax? You do know why he volunteers at this shelter, right?”

  “Because he likes dogs?”

  The back of Dax’s neck prickled. “Brad—”

  “No.” An evil grin spread over Brad’s usually innocent face. “I mean, he does like dogs. But we’re his probation. He had to volunteer here as community service or else go to jail.”

  Lissa raised one perfectly arched dark eyebrow. “Fascinating.” Amusement lit her eyes, making them look as blue as the Caribbean. “Why, Dax? Whatever did you do? It sounds like it must have been very irresponsible.”

  He set his jaw. Fine. She had a right to throw his words back at him. But his actions didn’t at all compare to hers. “I got caught making a climb in an unauthorized location. It wasn’t a big deal. And it was completely safe.”

  “I’ve got to call bullshit on that.” Marla crossed her arms over her chest. “He free-climbed the two-story county courthouse. No safety equipment. And he was carrying a pirate flag, which he planted on top of the building. Nothing about that screams safe to me.”

  “And that was just his latest offense.” Brad wrapped an arm around Izzy. “Judge Nichols was at his wit’s end with him.” Bending over, he put his face close to his wife’s stomach. “Uncle Dax isn’t a good role model. You won’t be following in his footsteps.”

  “Hey!” Dax rubbed the back of his neck. That one hurt. He’d make a hell of a role model for whatever little monster popped out of Izzy. “I’ll be a great uncle. I’ll teach the little bugger how to scuba dive and orient with the stars. How to start a fire with nothing but two sticks and some Vaseline. And if the little guy has any sort of hand-eye coordination, I’ll teach him to fly in fake dogfights.”

  Izzy went pale and pressed her palms into her abdomen.

  Lissa’s eyes lit up. “You fly those World War Two dogfights where you’re shooting at other planes with lasers? I’ve always wanted to do that.”

  Marla shook her head, her strawberry-blond hair cascading over one shoulder. “Two peas in a pod.” Before Dax could contradict that, because he and Lissa darn well weren’t alike, she continued. “So, we’ll see you for lunch tomorrow?” she asked Lissa.

  Lissa nodded. “Sounds great.”

  The side door to the shelter swung open and Gabe poked his head out. “Hey, babe,” he said to Marla, “do you want—”

  Loud barking interrupted, and Gabe turned his head to look back into the building. His eyes flew wide a second before he stumbled outside and fell on his back.

  William stood on his chest. He wasted a moment giving Gabe some inappropriate kisses before tearing across the shelter’s back field. He disappeared from sight behind a small rise.

  Marla hurried to Gabe. “Are you all right?”

  He rubbed his sleeve over his mouth. “I just got tongued by a dog. Nothing about that’s right.”

  Marla’s shoulders sagged with relief, and she reached down to give him a hand up.

  Brad shielded his eyes from the sun. “How did that dog get out of the playroom?”

  Dax started after William. “He knows how to open doors. It’s the only explanation. I’ll get him.” There went his plans for a nap that afternoon.

  A cute butt in tight jeans and a stream of long ombré curls flew past him.

  “William!” Lissa called. She looked over her shoulder as she ran, giving Dax a smile that froze his lungs. She made it seem like rounding up a runaway dog was the most exciting game she’d ever played.

  He couldn’t deny the lure she held for him. He picked up his pace, her excitement filling his own veins. He wasn’t bad at tracking, but it wasn’t the dog he wanted to catch.

  Chasing down Lissa was fast becoming his favorite game to play.

  * * * *

  Breathless, Lissa came to a stop on the sandy bank of a small river. The sun cast dappled patterns of light and shade on the water as its beams filtered through the leaves on the trees overhead. She stretched out her arms and slowly twirled in a circle, her face raised to catch the dancing light.

  A branch cracked next to her and a woodsy scent teased her nose. Dax.

  Opening her eyes, she drank in the sight of him. His T-shirt, damp from running, clung to his chest and flat belly. The faded beaver logo under the words Oregon State almost seemed painted to his skin. He was all lean muscle and taut sinew. Defined pecs and narrow hips. The longer she knew him, the more he went from delightfully cute to drop-dead sexy. She wanted to build a fort with the Boy Scout in him, then drag him inside and do naughty, naughty things with the wolf hiding deep within those sheep’s clothes.

  “Do you see him?” he asked.

  Lissa nodded, her head toward a boulder wedged halfway in the bank and halfway in the river. William lay stretched out on the ground next to it. “He’s decided to get a bit of sun.”

  Dax lifted his shirt, exposing a strip of firm skin, and worked off his canvas web belt. “I need to start carrying a leash around with me for this guy.”

  She placed her hand on his forearm and felt his muscles twitch beneath her touch. “Leave him be for a moment longer. He just wanted to run free for a bit. Not be cooped up.”

  “The property isn’t fenced here. If he decides to run away again, he could get hurt. Highway 24 isn’t far.”

  “You worry too much.” But it was sweet he cared about William. Such a good heart deserved a reward.

  The river sparkled in invitation. With a smile dancing about her lips, she reached for the sky, stretching. “Let’s unwind for a minute and then we’ll take him back to the shelter.”

  Dax rested his hands on his hips. “Okay. But what should we do ….”

  Lissa lost sight of Dax’s slack face as she pulled her shirt over her head. When she could see again, he was still wearing the same stunned expression.

  “Uh …” He gripped the back of his neck, his biceps bulging under the edge of the sleeve of his tee. “What are you doing?”

  “Going swimming.” She kicked off her paint-spattered canvas sneakers and wiggled her peacock-patterned harem pants over her hips. She stepped out of them when they hit the ground. The rough earth dug into her bare feet, and she minced her way to the edge of the river. She stuck her toe in the water, and a shiver kissed her skin.

  She glanced over her shoulder. Dax hadn’t moved. “Are you goi
ng to come in with me or just enjoy the show?” Without waiting for an answer, Lissa waded in to her calves and then dove into the river.

  The frigid water was a delicious shock to the senses. She surfaced with a sharp shout. “Wow, that’s cold.” Resting her head back on the surface of the water, she let the meandering current caress her body.

  William panted softly, and a crow cawed overhead, but all else was silent. Lissa peeled open one eye. Dax hadn’t moved from his spot. He stared up into the ceiling of the boughs above him, his Adam’s apple bobbing.

  “What are you waiting for?” She splashed water toward the bank, earning a twitching eyebrow from William but nothing from Dax. “It feels great.”

  “You just said it was cold,” he said without looking down.

  “Invigorating. Besides, I’m already getting used to it.”

  “You’re not in a bathing suit.” Dax gripped his lean hips, his knuckles turning white.

  “My underwear covers just as much as a bathing suit and so will yours.” She eyed his cargo pants. “Unless you’re going commando …?” That could open up all sorts of interesting possibilities.

  “I’m not—” He dropped his head, his gaze locking onto hers like a heat-seeking missile. “Why would you jump in the river?”

  She paddled her way closer, the water level dropping to her shoulders. “I had paint on me. I was sticky from running after William. Why wouldn’t I? Why wouldn’t you?”

  “It’s a work day.”

  Lissa snorted. “You’ll have to do better than that. Come on, Dax. It’s a beautiful day. There’s a girl in her underwear right in front of you.” She scraped her teeth over her lower lip. “Show me a little of that wild side you like to keep buttoned up.”

  “I don’t have to prove I’m fun, Liss.”

  The abbreviation of her name on his lips warmed her right through, even in the cool water. It wasn’t a cutesy nickname, but it still implied intimacy, something she thought she’d like to share with Dax, very much. “I guess the judicial system won.” She sighed dramatically. “You get arrested once, and now you’ve been tamed. Scared straight into staid and boring. The sad part is, you don’t even see it.”