The Mighty Quinns: Eli

She nodded, then pushed to her feet. “Is there anything else I can get you?”

He wanted to ask if she’d let him run his fingers through her hair, or smooth his hand over her cheek. He wanted to stare into her eyes and memorize the color so he might recall it later. Most of all, he wanted to kiss her and see if the attraction he felt was mutual or just some silly fantasy that he was experiencing on his own.

“Get me your rifle,” he said. “And bring a box of ammunition.”

“What are you going to shoot?” she said, glancing around. “Is there a bear?”

“No. We’re just going to have a little target practice,” he said. “Humor me. I want to be sure you could shoot a bear if you had to.”

Lucy grudgingly produced the rifle. She was clearly not happy with him for forcing the issue but she was smart enough to realize that a little extra instruction with the rifle could save her life if she did encounter a bear or some other wild animal.

Over the next half hour, they set up targets in the meadow, nailing flattened tin cans to the trunks of aspen trees.

“I am curious about that pile of logs over there,” Eli said, nodding to the west of the cabin. “I notice you’ve been stripping them. They’ll burn fine with the bark.”

“Those aren’t for the fire. I’m building a cabin.”

Eli chuckled. “No, really.”

“Really,” she said. “Your grandmother built this cabin all on her own. I want to do the same.”

“Yes, she built it. Over the course of two or three summers. With the help of friends and two horses.”

“I don’t have any horses,” she said. “And I don’t have friends. But that doesn’t mean I’m not going to try.”

Eli tacked a tin can to the tree trunk, shaking his head. “Do you have any idea what you’re doing out here? You seem to have some kind of delusion—or maybe it’s a fantasy—of what wilderness life is like.” He continued on to the next tree.

“I have your grandmother’s books,” she said, hurrying after him. “And I’ve done my homework. I know it’s difficult, but that only makes me more determined to do it.”

“To what end? Trudie already proved that it was possible. Why do you need to build a cabin all over again? Is it meant to make you famous?” He held out his hand and she gave him another tin can. “How the hell did you get these logs here?”

“I dragged them,” she said.

He stared at her in disbelief.

“I have to find just the right circumference and length. I was going to make a fourteen-by-fourteen cabin like your grandmother, but those logs are too heavy. So I’ve reduced it to ten-by-ten and I’m using six-inch diameter logs.” She held up her hand. “I know. It’ll take more logs, but I’m going to do it. And for your information, it has nothing to do with being famous. I’m doing this for myself.”

Eli couldn’t help but admire her tenacity. The process she described was brutal and backbreaking. He grabbed her hands and turned them over, only to see the shadows of healed blisters and new calluses. He ran his thumbs over the rough surface and he heard her take a ragged breath.

“You need a pair of gloves,” he said.

She nodded. “I have a pair but they don’t fit very well. And I accidentally left them out in the rain.”

Eli gently massaged her palm and his blood warmed. When he looked up and met her wide-eyed gaze, he realized what he was doing and dropped her hand. “You have a lot of work to do if you’re going to finish it before the first snow,” he said

“I can do it,” Lucy said. “I’m learning more every day and getting better at each of the tasks.”

“Can I give you some advice?” he asked.

She shook her head. “No. You can’t. It would be...cheating.”

“This isn’t a game, princess,” he said. “I don’t see any referees around here.”

“I am going to do this on my own. I want the project to have integrity. I need to make my own mistakes.”

“It will be a costly mistake when you drag logs through thick underbrush because you didn’t want to let me tell you to get your logs cut and hauled early.”

She clapped her hands to her ears and shook her head, sending him an angry glare. “No!”

He cursed softly and shook his head. “Listen, I’m dead serious. The last thing I want to do is hike up here and find the vultures picking at your carcass. I know that’s crude, but it’s a reality in the mountains, especially when you’re alone.”

“I’m careful. And prepared.”

“Then let’s see it.” He strode over to where he’d left the rifle and shells and walked back to her. “Pace it off. We’ll start with twenty paces.”

He followed her as she did as he ordered, then stood behind her. “If you come across a bear, stop and keep your eyes on the ground. Slowly bring your gun around, but keep it pointed down. Do that for me now.”

He placed his hands on her shoulders, squaring her body to the target. But the moment he touched her, he realized his mistake. Suddenly, he couldn’t focus on the shooting lesson. Instead, he was fascinated by the warm flesh beneath the fabric of her shirt and the gentle curve between her shoulder and neck. The scent of her hair drifted on the breeze and he closed his eyes for a moment, trying to identify the floral variety.

“When you bring your rifle up, it’s important to stabilize it by pulling the butt into your shoulder with your cheek against the stock. Same place every time, nice and solid. If you do that, sighting your target shouldn’t take long.”

He reached around her and showed her how to hold the gun. His blood surged and his pulse quickened, but he forced himself to ignore the reaction and focus on the job at hand.

“Now, sight the target and when you have it, squeeze the trigger.”

A few seconds later, a shot exploded out of the muzzle and Lucy winced. “Did I hit it?”

“Nope.”

“But I always hit the target at the range.”

“Shooting at the range is a lot different than shooting when a bear is charging you. Or even with the wind blowing and the trees rustling. That can is about the size of the spot you need to hit to down a bear.”

“But it’s so small from back here.”

“Any closer to the target, you won’t have time to get a shot off.”

Eli glanced at his watch. It was almost three. The hike out would be quicker as it was downhill and he’d have an empty pack, but it would still be tight. And he hadn’t brought along a headlamp, so he had to reach the ATV before sunset. “I have to get going. But I want you to practice this after I leave. Every day. Until you can hit those cans in the blink of an eye.”

Lucy slowly turned. “Thank you,” she said.

His gaze fell to her lips and he fought the urge to lean forward and take a taste. “No problem. I wish we could work on it some more, but then I’d have to spend the night. I’m sure that’s against the rules.” He wasn’t sure what had possessed him to practically beg for an invitation, and he wanted to take the words back the moment he said them.

“Guidelines,” she corrected. “They’re really just guidelines. But I plan to follow them as if they were laws.”

They walked back to the cabin together and Eli retrieved his pack and slipped the straps over his shoulders. “Well, Lucy Parker, I guess this is goodbye, then. Have a great year and stay safe.”

“Won’t I see you next month?” she asked.