The good, reliable Honda pulled up to the end of the short gravel driveway. My heart gave out a feeble thump in my chest, knowing that I shouldn't be so excited for something I called a distraction but unable to help it. I might have wanted to be the cool girl in a leather jacket, rolling her eyes behind sunglasses, but to be that girl, I probably shouldn't have been giddy just thinking about hearing his voice, watching his eyes glow. Playing it cool and distant went out the window as I all but skipped to the car and pulled the door open.

"Nice place you got," Ryder commented and his voice was certainly as perfect as I remembered it.

I glanced out the window at the little house. Behind it towered a mountain and it was tucked in a little pocket of trees, like the world was bending to welcome it. Blue siding the colour of an angry sea and a little bird feeder hanging off the porch. Somewhere that many people would call paradise.

And it could have been mine if I wasn't the only one footing the bill for my parents' expensive care facility. Milo was fortunate that his extended family had banded together and was taking care of their own. All I had left of my pay cheques was enough to pay for the little shanty I rented and insurance.

"It's not mine," I admitted, though some part of me begged my mouth to form a lie. It would have been so easy to paint a perfect portrait for him. I think he would like that girl, the one that could own a house like that.

"Ah, I guess I couldn't expect any less." When I raised an eyebrow at him, he added, "You refuse to tell me your name, why would you show me where you live? It would be tragically out of character for you."

It was just a tease. I knew it was from the way his eyes danced and the corners of his mouth tugged upward.

"Georgia."

"What?" Ryder murmured, all trace of his humor gone.

"My name is Georgia." And I wanted someone to remember me when I didn't come back. Someone who didn't know me with a bow and arrow. Someone who wouldn't wonder how the great Huntress went down, which wolf had taken her out. Just a guy, remembering the way I laughed or how quickly I had fallen in love with a kitten that could never be mine.

Ryder's fingers fluttered off the steering wheel. For a moment, I thought he was going to touch me. my mind flashed to an image of him caressing my jaw in his palm and slowly drawing my lips towards his. I would lean in, we would share the same air.

The hand fell on the shifter between us. I stayed right where I was, cursing myself for thinking that anything would even happen. We left Milo's house behind, but the wanting stayed in the backseat of the car, coming right along with me.

"So, do you have a plan?" I asked to break the silence. I so desperately wanted to be the indifferent girl who gave cold shoulders without even knowing it. Then I feared that he could somehow hear the desperate thoughts in my head or he could see it all written so clearly on my face.

"Of course, I have a plan. There is a hike around here that I thought you might like. Easy, mostly flat, but ends at a nice little waterfall. Fairy Creek Falls is the name—"

"No," I blurted before I could stop myself. I knew that hike. And I knew there was a werewolf pack circling it every hour of every day. It was a miracle that more people in this town weren't riddled with wolf-drain considering the popularity of the hike and proximity to the pack. There was no way I was setting foot in that area without a dozen arrows and a couple of knives. God forbid one of them knew my scent. I would be pulled limb from limb.

"Oh, do you not like hiking?" he asked. There was still kindness in his voice, but a slight furrow in his brow now.

"I do, I just have done that hike a million times. Sorry, is there something else you would like to do?"

"To be honest, I'm not super familiar with this area yet and I do spend most of my time working or crammed in a hotel room."

"There's a local brewery," I suggested.

His fingers tightened on the steering wheel. "I don't really drink."

I felt like my mind was scrambled. This was a mountain town. People came here to be outside. But the reason I was here was because the surrounding areas were filled with werewolves. I couldn't just stroll around a lake at my leisure or scramble up a mountain side without feeling like something was watching my every breath. So few people came here to stay indoors, there weren't many amenities or attractions.

"How do you feel about bagels?" I asked, feeling rather stupid.

"I am always down for a bagel."

I can admit to being a terrible navigator as we drove through the town. I used abstract directions and often was too busy babbling about random facts or scenes passing by to notice an upcoming turn. Thankfully, we made it in one piece and whatever mood I had thrust upon Ryder had vanished by the time we arrived. If he thought my idea was silly, he didn't show it while he studied the dozens of bagel flavors, all made in house, and seemed genuinely pleased at the sandwich that was prepared for him.

"So this is what you wear to work or did you go home and change so you could take me hiking?" I asked, gesturing to his outfit.

Only he could look that good in crewneck and top-quality hiking pants. It wasn't fair.

"This is my work attire."

"Huh, I pictured security being more about clean suits and high tech devices. Or, at the very least, a black shirt that says 'security' on it."

"Not me. Never been a really formal guy."

I sipped my matcha as I pondered what to say next. I hadn't been on a real date – or even a fake date for that matter – in years. Small talk eluded me. and all I really wanted was to crack him open, to learn every secret, every tick he had. I wanted to know what drove him to success, what caused him to break down into tears. I didn't want the beginning stages of a relationship, the careful acting that kept the truth behind tightly sealed doors.

But we weren't dating. We might never date. And I had no right to the depths of his mind. I tried my best to appreciate my drink and snack instead, tried to be pleased that I was finally consuming something I hadn't prepped.

"So, what do you do for fun?" he said after a moment of silence.

Should have been an easy question. Turns out, it wasn't. I couldn't even remember the last time I had fun.

"What does anyone do for fun?" I sputtered back.

"I should have expected an answer like that from a girl who wouldn't tell me her name," Ryder teased, leaning back in his chair. "Fine. I'll go first. I usually spend the majority of my time in towns like this. It has impacted my interests, you could say. I like hiking, mountain biking, skiing in the winter. You know, all the usual things."

"Did you grow up in a town like this?"

"Not quite. We were in Saskatchewan. A little too flat for mountains for the most part."

"But your work brought you out here?"

"Mountains are more suited to my clients."

I snorted and shook my head. "Are you going to tell me who your clients are?"

There was fluidity to the movement as he ran a hand through his dark hair. For a brief second, I thought I felt the silken strands pulling through my own fingers, thought of the way his eyes would close and his lips would part at the touch. I immediately sat on my hands, blinking myself back into reality.

"I wouldn't be very good at my job if I just spilled secrets left and right."

I gave him a tense smile. My heart wished this get together would last forever. My mind wanted it to end before I could do anything else to embarrass myself.

"You're turn. What do you do for fun?"

"Video games, mostly. Sometimes movies too." The truth was bleak, but at least it was honest. While at home, before everything fell apart, I used to make fun of my brother for being so obsessed with his games. Then, when it was just me, I became so lonely that I wanted something, anything, to remind me of the life I had. I bought a console and some games. Whatever time I had to myself was usually spent like that now.

"You any good?" Ryder wondered.

"Not particularly. I love games with good stories that I can really get into. Games with fantasy like dragons and vampires are always good too. There's one game that I really like where you're trying to learn secrets of a dragon people and defending villages and going on quests."

My tongue was suddenly tied in my mouth. I was rambling. This man who scaled mountains for fun certainly didn't care about my fascination with fictional worlds.

But when I peered up at him through my eyelashes, I saw that steady stare and a half smile. "What I was hoping for was something like Mario Kart. It would make me feel a little more accomplished."

"I have that too, of course," I added a little shyly.

"Well, next time I get off work early, we'll play a couple rounds, see who is actually better."

I felt twin blotches of warmth on my cheeks. "I would like that very much." 

~~~Question of the Day~~~

What is the last photo you took?