“You’re not going to win over a lumberhottie with zucchinis,” Alana said. “You’ve got to give him something sweet and sugary, Eden. Trust me on this one.”
“I don’t want to win him over,” I argued. “I just don’t want him to hate me.”
“Bake the brown sugar bread. It’s a sure thing.”
“I thought you said there was no such thing as a sure thing.”
“That was before I tasted your brown sugar bread. Do I have to come out there and bake it myself?”
“Please don’t.” Alana might be a genius with numbers, but she didn’t belong anywhere near a kitchen. I’d learned that the hard way when I tried to teach her how to make my three-ingredient peanut butter cookies once.
She snort-laughed again, making me erupt into a fit of giggles. I knew she’d be able to get me out of my funk.
“You’ve got to let me come visit you, eventually. I need to meet this grumpasaurus for myself. Once you’ve had a chance to de-grumpify him, of course.”
“If you wait that long, you might as well never come.”
“It’s going to be fine. We both know there’s nothing for you back here. Go take your forest, nature, creek bath. You’ll feel better afterward. Call me after you take him the bread?”
“Fine. Thanks for cheering me up.” We said our goodbyes and ended the call. Alana was right, as always. Going back to Asheville wasn’t an option. The only thing waiting for me there was a reminder of how I’d failed to stand up for myself. I wouldn’t let that happen again.
I’d feel better after a quick dip in the creek, especially once I’d had a chance to wash my hair. I grabbed a bar of my favorite soap, a thick towel, and my bathrobe. Then I slid my feet into my waterproof hiking sandals and headed toward the creek a couple hundred yards from my back door.
I set my towel and robe on a large flat rock at the edge of the water. The sun was on its way down, but still sat high enough in the western sky that I wasn’t too chilled when I lifted my shirt up and over my head. I tossed it onto the rock, then kicked off my sandals so I could slip off my pants. My undies followed, then finally my bra.
With my bar of soap in hand, I stepped into the creek. The water was cold, but refreshing. At least that’s what I told myself as I moved to the middle. I gasped and let out a shriek as it reached the apex of my thighs. Then I took another step. The creek wasn’t deep, but my foot landed on a rock that shifted out from under me. I lost my balance and screamed as I went under.
It only took a second to regain my footing. At least I hadn’t dropped the soap. It was my last bar of vanilla-almond, my favorite. I rubbed the bar between my hands to lather it up before swiping it over my hair.
It felt so good to be submerged in the water instead of taking sponge baths like I had over the past couple of days. The scent of almonds and vanilla filled my nose, and I laid back to rinse my hair.
“What the hell are you doing?” A deep, gruff voice echoed from the bank of the creek.
I immediately ducked under the water, then poked my head up to see who had called out. Shaw stood on the bank. He was shirtless, and based on the way his chest heaved, also out of breath. Hot prickles danced across my cheeks. Had he seen me floating on my back? The thought made my stomach bottom out.
“Eden, are you okay?” He stepped closer to the water, like he was about to dive in and rescue me.
“Of course, I’m okay. What are you doing here?”
“I was chopping wood when I heard you scream.” He tilted his head back and looked up at the sky. “I thought you were hurt or in trouble.”
“I’m just taking a bath.” A shiver ran through me. Even though I was ninety-nine percent sure he couldn’t see me under the water, being this close to him with no clothes on made me jumpy.
“Do you always bathe outside?” He squinted, making him look even grumpier than usual.
“What is this, twenty questions?” The moment had lost its magic when Shaw burst onto the scene. I’d felt daring before. Now I felt silly for standing in the middle of the ice-cold creek naked.
“Is there a reason you can’t take a bath inside?” He crossed his arms over the expanse of his bare chest like he wouldn’t even think of budging until I answered his question.
With my lower legs going numb from the cold water, I was eager to climb out and wrap up in my towel. There was no way I’d be brave enough to do it with Shaw watching. Since he showed no signs of leaving, I figured it would be better to answer his question than to try to wait him out.
“My water doesn’t work,” I finally said. “It comes out like a trickle, so I haven’t been able to take a shower since I got here. All I wanted to do was wash my hair.”
He lowered his chin. “Did you turn on the pump?”
“What pump?”
“Leroy had a pump for the well. You have to make sure it’s on or there won’t be enough pressure to get the water to the house.” He shook his head as he walked over to where I’d left my towel and robe. “Come on, I’ll show you where it is.”
“I’m not getting out until you go.” Shaw didn’t strike me as the type to take advantage of a naked woman in the woods, but I wasn’t about to put him to the test.
He stared at me for a long moment, then turned his back. “Fine. I’m not looking. I’ve got my eyes closed and promise not to move unless you need help. Be careful, though. The rocks are slippery when they’re wet.”
They weren’t the only things that were slippery. As I moved toward the bank, the soap slid from my hand. I reached for it, but the current caught it and carried it too far away. It probably wasn’t fair to blame Shaw, but I added “responsible for losing my favorite soap” to the growing list of reasons not to like him that I had stacking up against him.
CHAPTER 5
SHAW
I waited, my back to Eden, while she splashed through the water to get to the edge of the creek. Why the fuck had I dropped everything to come to her rescue? I thought something bad had happened to her. Then I found her floating on her back, naked, her tits pointed toward the sky. I swiped my hand over the scruff on my jaw. If I lived to be a hundred, I’d never get that image of her out of my head… her dark hair floating around her head, her body relaxed in the water, her curves tempting me to reach out and skim my palm over her skin.
“You can look now,” she said.
I turned around slowly, my breath catching at the sight of her wrapped up in her robe. The tie knotted at her waist, and she rubbed the towel over her hair. Knowing she didn’t have anything on underneath made my cock twitch. The woman might get on my nerves, but there was no denying how stunning she was.
“You sure you’re okay?”
“I’m fine. What were you saying about a pump?” She bent to pick up the clothes she’d discarded.
Watching her pick up her panties and bra sent blood racing toward my dick. The urge to draw her into my arms and kiss her washed over me. I fought it, taking in deep breaths through my nose until I could look at her without wanting to shred her robe and run my rough hands over every inch of her.