A Trail of Rose Petals

*** Based on Christian Morals--Christian Romance ***

When Gretchen Blake saves famous lawyer Dean Hanselman from a bear in the Olympic National Forest, she's sure she'll never see him again. But her wealthy brother hires Dean to watch over Gretchen, since the press seems to consider them a couple. Gretchen just wants to take care of the family business, but Dean and her family have other ideas. Can Dean's college pact with his buddies save both families from superficial thoughts and material gain? The clock's ticking because Gretchen doesn't think it will.

Excerpt

Just as the forest ranger's door opened about 20 feet away, Gretchen Blake heard a noise to the right of the building. A huge black bear ran toward her from way out in the woods at the same time a good-looking man exited the building. He was oblivious to what was going on, since he was staring down at his cell phone.

Gretchen froze in place. "Bear!" She pointed to the animal heading toward them.

Once he saw her pointing, the man glanced over at the bear. He pocketed his phone and ran toward Gretchen.

"Run!" he shouted, and grabbed her hand.

As they ran into the woods, the bear was on their heels, snorting and growling behind them.

She gasped for air, the cold in her head making her cough slightly. "Don't let me go. I don't want to be bear food!" Once she glanced backward, she saw that the bear had narrowed the distance between them. It let out a fierce growl. Gretchen ran even faster, pulling the man with her. They must've run for another hundred yards before they came to a river.

Gretchen stopped short, shaking on the inside from the thought of the bear getting closer. She stared downward at the slight rapids, not sure she wanted to keep running. "That's cold water."

"It's either that or you'll be mauled." The man glanced over his shoulder, and in one pull, dragged them both into the river. Fish hit her legs as she tried to move faster, the water getting deeper and deeper with her feet sticking in the murk at the bottom. She didn't want to think what was down there.

Considering she'd had a head cold for a few days, this was horrible. The cold water was getting deeper, and she lifted her chin in anticipation of going under water. Goosebumps covered her skin, but she had to survive.

"He's coming." The man pulled her farther into the water, up to her neck. "Swim for it!"

Gretchen wasn't a good swimmer, but took off for the other side of the river, which seemed to be very wide and deep.

The man swam ahead and crawled up onto the other embankment. If he could do it, she could, too. She swam as fast as she could with her head under the cold water. When her hands hit rocks in front of her, she lifted her head and climbed out beside the man. Water dripped off her clothes and hair, giving her a chill. It was the worst possible combination with her cold, which wasn't getting any better.

She turned, staring at the other bank. "Where is he?"

"There," the man said, pointing.

Sure enough, the bear paced the other side of the river, seeming as if he was ready to swim for it. At least he hadn't followed them, which was quite amazing. But he might decide to go for it, so they kept running. They ran farther into the woods, until the river was out of sight.

As soon as they stopped, Gretchen bent over to catch her breath and peered down over her clothes. "I'm soaked." She wrung out her long hair, feeling the slime cover her hand. "Yuck."

"Quit whining. At least we're not hurt." The man turned away from her and headed farther into the forest. The day was overcast and threatened rain. Gretchen just wanted to go home.

He didn't sound like a very nice man, but she had to state the obvious. "Shouldn't we head back over there? That should be the way back to the forest ranger's building."

The man thrust his right hand into his pants pocket and pulled out his phone. "I have a cell phone." He pushed a few buttons. "It's wet and dead."

Gretchen had nothing—not her purse or cell phone. Those things were back in her car. "I think we're stuck." She turned back toward the wide river. "Help! We need help!"

The man moved closer. "Lady. Quit it. You'll alert the bears to dinner if you don't be quiet. I'm sure we'll find a way back. Just follow me."

She was surprised at how nasty this man was, realizing she'd gotten stuck in the forest with a jerk. Of all the people to get lost with, it seemed to go with her bad luck.