On the Wild Side

By Yvonne Harriott

Sparks fly when opposites attract ...

Not wanting to be in Boston on the weekend of her ex-fiancé’s wedding city girl Gillian St. James heads to a cabin on a lake in Maine. She didn’t bargain on getting stranded, or on her attraction to the cabin’s rugged caretaker.

At the height of his career, Devon Jackson walked away from his job as a detective with the NYPD. His wife’s murder had shattered his life, and he moved to a mountain retreat. When he’s left in charge of the family business, his quiet life is turned upside down and he just can’t seem to get the sexy weekend guest out of his mind.

She’s running from the present, he’s running from his past, and danger is nipping at their heels. Can they slow down long enough to think about a future together?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Yvonne Harriott
• Release date: Feb 13, 2014
• ISBN: 9781502224125

Book preview

Table of Contents

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Epilogue

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

ON THE WILD SIDE

By

Yvonne Harriott

Copyright @ 2014 Yvonne Harriott. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise without prior permission by the author.

This book is a work of fiction, the names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously. Any resemblance to persons living or dead is entirely coincidental.

Cover Design: www.bdsdesigns.net

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This book is dedicated to my sister, June my biggest fan. Thanks for all your love and support.

Titles by Yvonne Harriott

Short Story Collections

THE WEDDING AND OTHER SHORT ROMANTIC STORIES

THE INVITATION AND OTHER SHORT STORIES

Romantic Suspense

HIDE ‘N SEEK

CAT ‘N MOUSE

HIT ‘N RUN

Chapter One

Gillian turned the Range Rover onto the dark country road, slowing to a crawl. Gravel crunched beneath the tires. She pressed the button to activate the high beam. It extended the path in her line of vision, but she didn’t see the signage for the cabin, On the Wild Side.

The brochure indicated that after you turned onto the dirt road, you would see the sign. There was no sign. Just darkness and the sound of crickets and frogs and God knew what else hiding in the bushes.

She pressed the accelerator. The vehicle jumped forward and she dropped into a hole the size of China.

Just great. With everything else she would probably need new suspensions.

The GPS had given out on her. After she’d filled up at the gas station about ten miles back and turned on the engine, the GPS screen had gone blank. She’d tried to restart it and couldn’t. That should have been a clear warning sign. She should have turned around and headed back home. Not wanting to be in Boston for the wedding of her ex-fiancé, William, she had pressed on. He was getting married in two days. She wanted to forget him and his pending nuptials.

Swallowing the lump in her throat, she squinted and focused on the narrow road ahead. She had the next four days to relax and not think of anyone but herself. It was time to re-evaluate her life … a big part of which was her job. If the truth be known, she didn’t much care for her boss. He believed women had no place in a law firm, let alone a courtroom. But since he brought in the big bucks along with the high-end clients, the firm thought he was the Messiah, and the powers that be left him to his archaic thinking.

Gillian sighed, loosening her grip on the steering wheel as she searched for the sign. They must have painted it with invisible ink.

Her cousin was supposed to have made the trip with her but had cancelled at the last minute. Their conversation yesterday had further enhanced Gillian’s foul mood.

Sorry, girl, I can’t make it again, Sasha had said. Andrew sprained his ankle playing basketball. He’s driving me crazy. Men are such babies when they’re hurt. We’ll go next weekend.

I’m still going.

You know it’s a cabin, right? The sarcasm couldn’t be missed.

So?

Come on, Gillian, you’re not the outdoor type. You only jumped at the idea because you wanted to catch the first bus out of town.

I can adapt.

Please. Your idea of roughing it is staying at the Ritz Carlton without ordering room service. You’re as bougie as they come.

I’m still going, Gillian had said, not liking her cousin’s response. She didn’t appreciate being called bougie, either. Sasha thought Gillian’s taste in men was bougie as well. What was wrong with wanting a successful man? Or having high standards when it came to choosing a guy?

All right, Sasha said with a sigh. Leave by noon. Driving at night can be tricky when you’re not familiar with the area. Andrew and I got lost the first time we visited the cabin. Oh, and call me when you get there.

Sasha was the biggest mother hen God had created, but maybe she’d been on to something when she’d ordered Gillian to travel while the sun was shining.

But Gillian hadn’t given her instructions a second thought. She was heading to Ogunquit, a town in York County, Maine—a summer resort town, not a foreign destination. In the brochure they called it a beautiful place by the sea.

Okay, so she hadn’t followed her cousin’s instructions. Her last client meeting at the office ran late. Then one thing led to another, including a phone call from Pepper. Gillian hadn’t heard from her mother in months. She also put in her two cents’ worth—she thought Gillian was insane for taking off by herself—putting the fear of God in her.

Calm down, Gillian said aloud, gripping the steering wheel to shut out the voices in her head. She didn’t want to think about Pepper or Sasha. The cabin shouldn’t be much further.

The wind picked up, howling. At least she thought it was the wind. The trees on either side of the road began rocking back and forth as if someone was shaking them. Gillian felt like she was trapped in a horror movie. Any minute someone would jump out of the woods and haul her off, never to be seen again.

Something big and furry shot across the road and she jammed on the brakes. The rear end of the Range Rover skidded to one side. She turned the steering wheel sharply into the skid, and the vehicle did a half circle and slid sideways. The back end landed in the ditch and she banged the side of her head against the window.

Ouch! She massaged her head. No lump. No blood. That was a good sign.

The tires spun as she floored the accelerator, but it wasn’t enough to get the Range Rover out of the ditch. All she could smell was burnt rubber. She turned off the engine and sat back, rubbing her head. If she were in a spaceship and going to the moon, her current position would have been acceptable.

Just great.

She willed herself to calm down, counting slowly to twenty as she reached for her BlackBerry. Since she had programmed the number into her phone, she searched through the contact list. Trying to keep her hand from shaking, she pressed the button to make the call.

Hello? A male voice answered. He didn’t sound friendly at all. It sounded like she’d woken him up.

"Is this On the Wild Side?"

There was a brief pause before he answered, as if he was checking the clock or something.

Yes. His voice was brisk.

This is Gillian St. James. I was on my way to the cabin. She touched her head and winced. I slid off the road.

You should have arrived hours ago, the voice growled.

Are you kidding me? Even if he was ticked off because she’d woken him up, she didn’t deserve his anger. They were running a business. What if she had flown in and her plane was late?

I realize that, she said, trying not to lose her temper. I—

Where are you? he asked in the same cold manner.

She remained calm and gave him the general direction, somewhere between the row of fifty trees and where the fence ended along the road. She heard a dog bark in the background then a groan and silence.

Was he going to do something? He had to send help. Maybe he didn’t know how serious the situation was. She was stuck out in God’s country with wild animals the size of small babies.

Are you coming to—

Before she could finish her sentence, he hung up.

• • •

Another yuppie traveling at night, Devon grumbled under his breath.

If his sister, Whitney, hadn’t booked people into the cabin by the lake, he would have had a peaceful four days. The maintenance of the cabin was the responsibility of Whitney and her husband. Whitney met the guests to ensure they settled in. But her husband’s father had died, and they were off to a funeral in Philadelphia and Devon had to spend the weekend ensuring the guests didn’t get lost in the woods or drown in the lake.

His grandfather had left the family two cabins, one on the hill and the other a fifteen-minute drive down the mountain, along the water. He’d bought the one on the mountain for himself from the family. His sister, who had a place in town, had decided to rent out the one on the water to cottagers.

He had made the cabin on the mountain his home, enjoying the peace and tranquility, shutting out the outside world. Every now and again he had to allow the outside world to come in, on his terms. But now he was responsible for what he called unwanted guests.

Devon swung his leg off the bed, reached for his watch on the nightstand and slipped it on his wrist. Two thirty. She could have waited until morning. No. She had to arrive at two thirty in the middle of the night and slide off the road.

He got up from the bed, stepped into his jeans and pulled a wool sweater over his head.

Now you can go outside, he said to Samson. The German shepherd barked and ran toward the door, wagging its tail. All right, I’m coming, he said as he grabbed the keys to the pickup truck from the dresser and hurried from the bedroom.

Devon opened the front door and Samson shot out into the night. Devon waited by the passenger door then, when the dog trotted back to the pickup, opened the door. Samson jumped up onto the seat, panting.

As Devon started the engine, lightning danced across the sky and Samson began to bark. The dog climbed onto Devon’s lap and Devon eased him back onto the seat.

Settle down, boy. It’s only a little lightening. He stroked the dog’s head until he quieted down. The lightning always made him a bit crazy.

The wind rocked the pickup as it sped down the hill, and he eased off the gas. The last thing he wanted was to end up in the ditch.

Devon reached the bottom of the hill and turned onto the dirt road. He saw the SUV in the ditch and a woman walking toward the main road. Why didn’t she stay in the vehicle? The area was relatively safe, but at night it wasn’t unheard of to see wolves roaming around. It looked like she was trying to get a signal to the phone in her hand, totally oblivious to her surroundings.

Good luck with that, he mumbled to himself. She may have been lucky the first time, but with the wind kicking up and lightning streaking across the sky, she had a better chance of getting struck by lightning than gaining any type of signal again.

As he got closer, the headlights gave him a full view and he shook his head. She was dressed for the runway, not the weather. He slowed to a stop beside her and rolled down the window.

I called you half an hour ago, she said. "Is this how you treat paying guests staying at your establishment?"

You’re welcome.

• • •

You’re welcome!

Gillian should have asked who the man was before she let her wrath loose upon him. What if he wasn’t the person she was waiting for? But since he was coming from the direction of where the cabin was supposed to be, she’d made the assumption.

Your response, she said, implies that I should thank you for what, may I ask?

Her fear cloaked in anger, Gillian stared at the man. After she’d chided herself for not following instructions, she’d gotten out of her Range Rover trying to get her BlackBerry signal back. And all this man had to say was You’re welcome.

Half an hour. Half an hour in the cold, with creatures with shiny eyes the size of saucers glaring at her as if she was their next meal.

The fact that she’d gotten him out of his bed to help her hadn’t registered yet. It was the instant dislike he seemed to have for her that struck a nerve, and the feeling was mutual.

Are you done with your little temper tantrum? he said.

Excuse me?

It’s going to rain soon and I don’t want to be caught out in it.

She opened her mouth to respond then clamped it shut. His attitude said it all. She had woken him up out of his bed and he was far from happy. He couldn’t care less if some deranged animal ate her. He would probably welcome it.

The dog on the passenger seat started barking. Gillian stared at the dog, who stopped then looked at his owner. Reaching over, the man stroked the dog’s head then drove off toward the Range Rover, leaving her in the middle of the road.

By the time she reached his pickup, he was already kneeling in the dirt in the ditch, looking under the Range Rover with a big flashlight. He got up and dusted the dirt from the knees of his jeans. She was aware of his size as he turned and faced her. The way his eyes bore into hers unnerved her a little, which was odd because she could always hold her own with anyone.

He’d left the headlights of the pickup on and they lit up his face as he walked toward her, his boots crunching on the gravel beneath his feet. He had the faint outline of a beard around his mouth, eyes sharp as if they were seeing through to her soul. A winter vest jacket covered a heavy sweater and work gloves covered his hands.

The way he moved suggested he was a man of action, confident. She had watched him inspect the Range Rover and then nod when he was finished as if he had come to some conclusion.

You drove into the ditch, he said.

She had to bite her tongue to hold back a hot remark. Perhaps he’d said that to get a rise out of her. She wasn’t quite sure. If he was trying to annoy her, he was doing a fantastic job. Taking a deep, slow breath, she called on every ounce of patience she possessed to keep calm and reminded herself that he did come to help, albeit unwillingly.

He pulled the gloves off his hands and shoved them in the pocket of the winter vest. It happens around here when you’re not familiar with the area, he said. Grab your stuff and I’ll take you to your cabin.

He walked toward the pickup and tossed the flashlight into the back.

That’s it? No solution to her problem? She had one.

If you can please get it out of the ditch, I’ll be on my way.

Forget the cabin. She wanted to check into the nearest hotel and sink into a hot tub, away from this man’s disapproving gaze. It had been one hell of a week, and she could do without the drama.

There’s a storm brewing, he said looking up at the sky. I would advise against driving tonight. Grab your stuff and I’ll give you a lift to the cabin. He sounded almost annoyed. "I’ll call a tow truck in the morning and, by all means, English, you can be on your way then."

English?

He didn’t even offer to help her with the bags. He simply slid behind the wheel of the pickup, waiting for her to get in. When she made no move to get her bags, he started the engine and revved it. She wouldn’t put it past him to leave her there in the middle of the road.

William would never have treated her like that, at least not when they were together. He held every door and catered to her wishes … until he found someone else.

Rolling her shoulders to relieve some of the tension that had crept in all of a sudden, she carefully stepped down into the ditch. Her boots sunk into the mud as she opened the driver’s side door to get her bags. She should have entered from the passenger side, she realized now—less mud—but she hadn’t been thinking straight. As she pulled the small suitcase out and turned, she sank deeper into the mud, almost to her ankles. Then a pair of shiny eyes stared at her through the darkness between the trees and a scream tore from her lips. She lost her footing and fell backwards.

Are you all right?

Out of nowhere he appeared. Large hands reached down and pulled her out of the mud, lifting her up onto the road. As soon as he had retrieved her bag, the sky opened up and rain