Kate Hoffmann - Dodging Cupid's Arrow

She waited for him to say something, but he didn't. He just pulled her into the curve of his body and wrapped his arms around her, so tight that she wondered how he'd ever let her go.

It was as if he were waiting for her to speak, to tell him what she felt. Perrie closed her eyes and slowed her breathing, pretending to sleep in the hopes that she might stave off any passionate declarations. But that was not to be, for a long while later, in the silence of the night, Joe drew her closer.

"I love you, Perrie," he murmured, his warm lips pressed against her shoulder. "And I know you love me."

Hours later, long after Joe had drifted into sleep, Perrie still lay awake. Though morning approached, the room was dark. She slipped out of bed and gathered her clothes, then silently dressed. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't draw her gaze away from him. He looked so sweet, so vulnerable, the sheets twisted through his limbs, his hair mussed.

But this was all a dream. That's what she had to keep reminding herself. For the past two weeks, she'd lived someone else's life, a woman she barely knew. With a man she barely knew. She couldn't change the rest of her life just because she had let herself get lost in a fantasy for a short time.

With all the courage she possessed, Perrie took one last look at Joe, then turned and walked to the door. Everything would be all right. She would be able to put this all behind her once she got back to Seattle.

When Joe woke up the next morning, she was gone. He had almost expected her to stay. But then, what had passed between them probably had meant even less to her than he had imagined. Like a fool, he had waited around at the resort until noon, hoping that she would return. But by then she was halfway to Seattle, and he knew the odds were not in his favor.

He'd seen the last of Perrie Kincaid. In a few days she'd be happily back in the midst of Seattle's underworld, chasing wise guys and dodging bullets. Hell, how could he blame her? Muleshoe must have seemed as dull as dust in comparison. Spaghetti feeds, dogsled races, endless cold and snow. There were times when the place drove him a little crazy, too.

He had packed his bags and left for the small airstrip on the west side of Cooper shortly after noon. As soon as he'd gotten up in the air, he'd turned the plane toward Muleshoe. But he'd known there would be no relief at home, for everywhere he'd turned he would see Perrie-in her cabin, with the dogs, trudging through the woods on a pair of old snowshoes. And later, when he finally put an end to this day, when he lay in bed alone, he would see her in different ways, naked in his arms, her body flushed with passion, her eyes filled with need.

The fire snapped, sending a shower of sparks over the hearth and bringing Joe back to the present. He slouched down on the sofa and turned his attention to his flight log. Now that he was back at the lodge, the reminders seemed almost overwhelming. Nothing he did could put her out of his head.

He had been a fool to fall in love with her. In all the time he'd lived in Alaska, he'd never once allowed himself to need a woman. And then Perrie was dropped on his doorstep, and within days he'd fallen, and fallen hard. Yet through it all, he'd ignored one basic fact. She never wanted to be in Alaska. Perrie Kincaid belonged in Seattle.

Odd how the cards fell. Until five years ago, Joe had lived in the same city, had driven on the same streets and dined at the same restaurants. And then he had decided to change his life, to look for new adventures in the Alaskan wilderness. Only to fall in love with a woman from a life he'd left behind.

"Hey, what are you doing back here? I thought you and Perrie were spending the weekend at the Hot Springs."

Joe twisted on the sofa and saw Tanner standing in the middle of the great room, a power drill in his hand. "Well, things don't always go as planned."

Tanner crossed the room and sat down on the end of the coffee table. "Is she gone?"

Joe nodded.

"You told her about her boss's call?"

A cynical chuckle was all he could manage. "I didn't have to. She left on her own. Hired a pilot within an hour of our arrival at Cooper and then took off the next morning. No goodbyes, no 'see you soon,' nothing."

Tanner sighed and rubbed his palms on his knees. "Hey, buddy, I'm sorry."

The flight log snapped shut and Joe straightened.

"Well, don't be. I should have known better. I mean, it's not like she chose to come up here. She was forced into it."

"And she didn't choose to fall in love with you?"

"She wasn't in love with me," Joe replied, shaking his head. "If she were, she would have stayed."

"Not necessarily. Julia didn't."

"Julia's different. She's not as… difficult."

Tanner laughed. "You don't know the half of it, Brennan."

"There just wasn't much chance for Perrie and me. I should have realized that, but I got caught up in something neither one of us really thought out."

"So, you're just going to let it go?"

Joe considered Tanner's question for a long moment, then nodded once. "Yep." He got up from the sofa and gathered the papers he'd spread around him on the cushions. "I've got to make a run up to Fort Yukon. I think I'll spend the night there."

"What if she calls?" Tanner asked.

"She won't call." Joe grabbed his jacket from the back of the sofa, tucked the flight log under his arm and headed for the door.

When he reached the solitude of the outdoors, he drew a deep breath and looked up at the sky. But against his will, his gaze was drawn to Perrie's cabin. A vision of her flashed in his mind and he pushed it aside with a soft oath. He needed to get back up in the air. Once he was flying, he could clear his thoughts.

But something pulled him toward her cabin and he slowly trudged up the hill, knowing that he'd only revive more memories. He stopped once at the bottom of the steps, then continued to the door and walked inside.

The cabin was just as she'd left it. Julia hadn't known that Perrie wasn't returning, so she hadn't called Edna to clean it. He crossed to the kitchen and picked up a coffee mug, running his fingers over the handle as if he might still feel the warmth of her hand, but it was as cold as the air that filled the room.

He set the cup down, then wandered over to the bed. The pillow still smelled of her shampoo, sweet and fruity. He could almost feel her hair between his fingers, silken strands of fiery auburn. And they'd slept in this bed just two nights ago and-Joe cursed softly. Was it necessary to torture himself? There were plenty of regrets to go around. He didn't have to dredge them up.

"I have to get out of here," he muttered, throwing the pillow back on the bed.

He strode from the cabin and headed toward the shed. As requested, Burdy had loaded five crates of building supplies into the back of the pickup, supplies that had been delivered from Fairbanks by another bush pilot. Joe had planned to fly them up to Fort Yukon after he and Perrie returned from Cooper Hot Springs. But now he could make his delivery early and have an excuse to get away from the lodge.

Hell, maybe he'd just keep flying, hopping from airstrip to airstrip until he managed to purge Perrie Kincaid from his head. He'd go south or east. Maybe he'd find a warm place, an island somewhere, with beautiful women and endless bottles of rum. Or he could fly to a city and lose himself in the midst of crowds, of people and concrete buildings.

Joe jumped in the truck and started the engine, then carefully wove through the trees on the narrow, snow-packed drive. He sped through Muleshoe and headed out of town for the airstrip, ignoring the flood of memories that came with each familiar landmark in town.

The Super Cub was still warm from his trip back from Cooper. He loaded the crates, then glanced at his watch. He had plenty of time to make Fort Yukon before dark.