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Merry heard it again and she eyed the pines warily. It sounded almost like something moving through the underbrush, breaking limbs, and it wouldn’t be the first time a bear wandered onto the farm. Her heart galloped rapidly and she felt the pulse on the side of her neck flutter. Any second she expected a large animal to burst through the trees and Merry was ready to drop the tote and curl her body around Daisy to protect her puppy. Her gaze darted every which way, searching for movement, but all was quiet. Merry sighed as she passed by Clark’s porch, relaxing as she turned to head up the hill.
Twack. Merry jumped, spinning toward the sound, but stilled when she heard a deep male grunt, followed by another crack. Curious now, Merry followed the noise around to the back of the house and the sight that greeted her stopped her in her tracks.
Holy hot lumberjack.
Despite the chill in the air, Clark stood with his back to her in a gray T-shirt and jeans, raising an axe over his head. Her gaze traveled over Clark’s shoulders and back as he swung the axe down, two halves of wood flying in opposite directions. The muscles of his arms bunched under his skin as he picked up the wood and tossed it onto a growing mound outside his workshop.
Clark leaned his axe against the stump and grabbed his water bottle off the ground near his shop opening. Merry’s mouth went dry as he took a long drink, his neck muscles working as he chugged, and little rivulets of water escaped his lips, racing along his jaw and down to soak the collar of his T-shirt. The temperature under her coat went up ten degrees and she set the container at her feet, about ready to shrug out of her jacket when Daisy barked, bouncing back on her haunches.
Clark twisted her way, and his eyes lit up. “Hey. How long have you been there?”
Merry cleared her throat. “I probably shouldn’t answer that, as I may incriminate myself.”
“Oh yeah?” He picked up his flannel shirt and wiped the sheen from his face, before tossing it to the side with a grin. “Now who’s spying.”
“Me, absolutely me, and I will do it again if you want to keep chopping, perhaps with your remaining clothes off?”
Clark chuckled. “I can imagine what my brother would say if he came out to see me swinging my axe naked. ‘Don’t cut off anything important.’”
“That is excellent advice, I suppose.” She cleared her throat, needing to get off the subject of nakedness and important body parts. “How’s Jace feeling?”
“His throat hurts still, but his fever broke this morning and he came out asking for a smoothie. He sucked down half of it, watched The Avengers, and went back to sleep.”
“He probably needed the rest. What about you? Did you sleep well?”
“I passed out as soon as you left, and only woke up once to get Jace some more Tylenol.” Clark stopped in front of her and kissed her cheek, his hand squeezing her hip. “I’m glad I got to see you before tonight. I was missing the sound of your voice.”
“Me too. I mean I was missing you, not my own voice.”
“I knew what you meant.” He knelt at her feet and rubbed all over a wiggling Daisy. “Hi, pain-in-the-ass dog. Are you out for a walk with Mommy?”
“Yes, and besides one trip-up, she’s not doing too bad on the leash. She’ll have this heeling thing down soon.”
“I know you’re talking about the other kind of healing, but how is your foot?”
She flexed her foot in the air, twirling it like she was ready to do the hokey pokey. “Stitches are gone and I’ve learned to stop chasing dogs while barefoot.”
“An important life lesson.” Clark stood up, his dark eyes locked on hers. “Where are you walking her to?”
“My parents’ to show my mother something. I took a detour when I heard you chopping wood, which I actually thought might be a bear stomping around in the trees.”
“Damn, was I making that much noise? I thought I’d kept my growling and snarling to a minimum.”
“It was my overactive imagination.” Merry eyed the fully stocked woodshed around Clark’s shoulder. “Why are you doing that? Are you a secret survivalist, preparing for the end of the world?”
“No, but I needed to work out some frustrations.”
“Oh?” Maybe he was confused too and wasn’t sure how to bring it up. “Why were you frustrated?”
“I’m only teasing.”
Clark stood back up, even as Daisy tried to jump for his hands. “Daisy, stop.”
The puppy flopped down with a disgruntled sigh.
“Maybe there’s hope for you yet, pup,” he said.
“You were telling me why you were frustrated?” she prodded.
