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Grizz took his spot on the ATV, Dani wrapped her arms around his waist, and he hit the button on the remote control to raise the door.

The crack of a rifle indicated that Saxon was laying some cover for them to escape. Grizz whipped his head around, looking for any signs of danger, but with the fighting and fire closer to his cabin, the outhouse remained unscathed.

He followed the dirt path through the woods until he hit the gravel path that would traverse the side of the mountain toward Mike Grizz’s cabin.

“How far away is this place?” Dani asked over the rush of wind whipping in his ear.

“About a fifteen-minute ride.”

Sunlight streaked through the clouds in the sky. This would have been a beautiful day for hiking. Dani would love his favorite lookout spot that ran along a ridge over a valley. Maybe he could take her after this was all over?—

Was he making plans in his head that extended beyond their current situation? Dani’s Alaskan adventure wasn’t permanent. She’d return to her big-city digs the second this story closed. She’d be on to the next big thing.

Which left no room for Grizz.

Loose gravel crunched under the tires. The motor revved as they climbed a steep hill.

Click. Click.

“No, no, no.” Grizz hit the throttle, but their vehicle chugged to a stop.

“What’s wrong, Grizz?” They both jumped off. Grizz walked around the stalled vehicle and checked the engine.

He groaned. “Fuel line has a leak. I don’t have any tools with me to fix it, and I don’t like being out in the open like this.”

Grizz turned in a circle. Nothing but trees and mountain peaks all around. “This path leads to my cousin’s place. I think we should walk. It’s probably only another two miles.”

“I’m up for another adventure. Walking it is.” Dani tightened the backpack straps around her shoulders. She was still wearing his sister’s gray sweatshirt.

“You’re not cold?”

She shrugged. “I seem to be getting used to the weather. At least I packed water and food for us. Good thinking, since we broke down.”

“Well, let’s hit the road.” Grizz’s eyes roamed the area, and he occasionally checked behind them. If the men had heard the engine rumble, they could have followed. But hopefully Saxon was keeping them busy.

“Where exactly are we going? You said your cousin has a cabin?”

“My definition of cabin and Mike’s are very different. Mike and his wife Seraphina bought the place and renovated it. It’s more like a resort than a cabin. But he’s working in Montana, so he won’t mind us crashing there while we hide out from deranged gunmen.”

Dani stopped short. “Wait. Mike Grizz? As in the television producer? Go Wild with Grizz ? Survivor Quest ? That Mike Grizz?”

Grizz nodded. “That’s my cousin.”

“I love that show.”

He started walking again. “You’re living that show. You’ve got way more survival instincts than you give yourself credit for.”

She shrugged off the compliment and changed the subject. “I can see why you love living in the mountains. It’s beautiful. But if we have two more miles to walk, I need a distraction. Mind if I ask you a personal question?”

Warning bells clanged in Grizz’s mind. He needed to tread carefully when it came to this reporter. She had a way of getting to the heart of the matter. “I’m not telling you my first name.”

“Yeah, I know. You don’t trust me enough to reveal your biggest secret. But what I want to know is whether you trust me. After all we’ve been through, do you really think I’d sell you out the first chance I get so I can land a big story?”

Grizz ran a hand through his hair. “I jumped to the wrong conclusion. But it’s hard to trust anyone after you’ve been betrayed as many times as I have. You learn who you can count on. It’s hard to blindly accept that others will be there for you in the end.”

“I get what it’s like to have people stab you in the back.” She moved a tree branch out of her way like it was second nature for her to be traipsing through the woods of Alaska.

“I’ve got my team. I know they’ll be there for me. That’s all I need.”

“But isn’t it lonely living in the woods by yourself? I know you live on base most of the time. But in the offseason? It’s so remote that your team doesn’t even visit. What about your family?”

“My sister visits with her kids, but I like having my own space. My mom moved to Anchorage after my dad passed away. I don’t see her as much as I should.

Once Grandpa was gone, my family scattered.

” He kicked a pebble. His grandfather had been his rock.

“When I was ten, my grandfather promised to always be there for me, whenever I needed him. I loved visiting the cabin in the summer. But then cancer made him renege on his promise.”

Dani swiped her face. Tears or dirt? He couldn’t tell. Maybe a mix of both.

“That’s so hard to process when you’re young. But you’ve kept his legacy alive by keeping his cabin.”

A hawk screeched in the distance. He knew Dani was gearing up for more personal questions, and he really had nowhere to go.

She cleared her throat. “Anyone else in your life? A girlfriend, perhaps?”

A name popped into his head. Candice Jackson.

He looked at the ground and watched his feet stir up dust from the gravel. “I did have a relationship that ended badly. Things were great at first, but then she decided she wanted more. I had even agreed to move to the Lower 48 with her. Give her everything she wanted. But?—”

But what? He would have given up his life for her. And she’d taken everything he had offered and wanted more.

He ran a hand through his hair. “Let’s just say I wasn’t enough for Candice.

She wanted to live in a big city, with all the action and excitement.

I was a little too woodsy for her tastes.

I discovered that she’d been seeing a good friend of mine from high school.

A friend that had gone to law school and made a name for himself in Miami, Florida. She left without even a goodbye.”

Dani grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze. “Thank you for sharing your story. I understand why you have a hard time trusting people after someone like Candice stomps on your heart.”

She paused, as if gathering her words. “I guess I can see why you misjudged me. I’m from the city, and you were burned by someone who didn’t appreciate you for who you are.

And maybe I’m a little like her, but I don’t think you should have to give up everything for someone you care about. There has to be some compromise.”

Grizz zeroed in on the fact that Dani hadn’t let his hand go. They looked like school kids, skipping through the woods hand in hand. But he didn’t hate it.

What would she think of him if she knew the truth—how he’d trusted the wrong person, putting his Army teammates in direct danger? He’d told her that Josh’s death wasn’t on her, but it was hard to get over Kyle’s death when Grizz’s orders had ended his life.

A twig snapped behind them. Grizz turned and saw the source of the noise. “Time to pick up the pace.”