The sports bar was noisy and raucous, booze and talk flowed freely. The people here were mainly young and beautiful and at fifty-two; Lee was neither. When his son had suggested this place for a drink he had reservations; but he had finally acquiesced. To make matters worse David had been called into work on an emergency; so here he sat. He suddenly felt very old in a bar full of twenty-something's. Who was he kidding? He didn't belong here; he was a fish out of water. He would finish his drink and go back to his world, this wasn't him at all.
As he sat there and sipped his drink, he perused the place. The whole place had the air of organized chaos; multiple TV's vied with diners and drinkers. The place reminded him of a beehive and the low, insistent buzz was getting on his nerves. She first caught his eye because of her demeanor; it didn't fit with the place. Body language always gave one away, and hers fairly screamed out at him. She didn't want to be here anymore than he did and he wondered why. With him it was fairly obvious; he was too old and world weary for the live wire action here. The puzzle was her; she was young and pretty and fit in well with the scene. He smiled to himself; probably a fight with the boyfriend. He had been there once himself ages ago.
It should have ended there; he would have filed her away in his memories and left if it wasn't for the guy. Lee watched as the guy approached her table and spoke to her. He saw her smile and shake her head no; but the guy was insistent. He was clearly trying to pick her up and from her attitude it wasn't working. Lee grinned as the would-be Romeo tried schmoozing her. His grin faded as he saw the guy's hand on her wrist and her attempts to break free. In the crowded bar it was one small scene playing itself out among the hubbub of the place. Lee was old school; to him a woman was to be treated like a lady. He didn't hesitate and moved quickly to the table to confront the man. He reached out to shake the man's hand. The man released the young woman's wrist instinctively and accepted the hand shake. Instead of shaking hands Lee grasped the man's wrist and reached for his elbow. Applying pressure as he had been taught so many years ago the stranger was in instant agony and kneeled down involuntarily.
His voice was low and deadly, "She said let her go. She's said no, so shove off. That's after you apologize for bothering her."
He muttered something under his breath that Lee couldn't catch before slinking away. Her thank you was so soft he almost didn't hear it above the din of the crowd.
Lee smiled and said, "Not all young ladies want Sir Galahad coming to their rescue. I guess my southern upbringing is telling, huh?"
"I'm not like most young ladies, I know my limitations. Fighting off a man in a bar is never pleasant, thank you for coming to my rescue."
"I'm happy I could help," he said. "I was just getting ready to leave when I saw him pestering you. It was an automatic response for me; ladies deserve to be treated like ladies. I'm just thankful he left, I would have hated to make a scene. By the way, I'm Lee."
"Hi, I'm Tracey, and thanks again for the help" she said as he started for the door.
Lee turned to her and gave her a longing look and murmured under his breath, "I'm always ready to help protect a beautiful lady. Who knows you may need the use of my dented armor again in the future."
***
Tracey couldn't believe her luck. Here she was stranded who knows where with a flat tire and a missing jack. She had come to this logging road just to get away from the city. Someone had told her there was a lookout point down the road, but you had to walk. After parking and discovering she had a flat, she tried to use her cell phone to call for roadside assistance. Of all the luck; she kept getting the dreaded signal; not available. She decided that she would walk down to the lookout point and try her cell again; maybe it would work in a different location. She was mindful of the weather; vaguely remembering there was an approaching snow storm. As she walked down the road she suddenly realized she was getting colder and the sky was getting darker. She began to feel a light mist and discounted it as the elevation. Continuing on her way the mist seemed to thicken and soon it was a steady freezing rain. She had to be careful where she was walking now since the ground was getting slick. She was glad she had worn her hiking boots and dressed for cold weather. That was about the only thing that had gone right for her today.
The sky was getting darker and Tracey was getting more concerned for her safety. Her only choice was to find a spot that would give her a cell connection so she continued down the path. Picking her way carefully along the rutted trail she didn't see the broken limb loaded with the extra weight of the ice. She caught the shadow of it as it fell and only had time to look up and no time to react. The limb struck her solidly across the forehead and knocked her out immediately.
Lee wondered why the little car was parked at the entrance to his property and took note of the flat tire. He saw a trail of small footprints in the icy slush leading down the trail. Lee didn't like anyone intruding on his privacy, which was the reason he had worked so hard after retiring from the military. The only thing he wanted was a private place and to be left alone. He carried a lot of baggage in his life and though only fifty-two, he sometimes felt as though he had lived two lives already. He had survived a career as a Ranger, having to fight the Army itself to stay in after his wounds healed. Then there was the bitter divorce and loss of his children which had hardened Lee into stone. The only visitors he welcomed were his sons and they came less and less as they got older and had lives of their own.
Lee was lost in thought as he followed the small footprints. He was thinking that he needed to get more wood in before the storm fully developed and wondering if he had enough food in case he was snowed in. That was a joke; he could always spend a few hours in his paradise and come home with some type of game. Survival was his way of life and he let that idle thought pass. As he rounded the bend, he thought he saw something lying in the trail. Initially his thought was someone had been dumping trash up here again. He had solved that problem for good he thought.
As he drew nearer to the pile of rags he saw that it was a body. He rushed forward to find out what was wrong and saw that it was a young woman. He knelt over her and checked her vital signs and looked for injuries. The only thing he could find was a deep cut on her forehead. He looked around and saw the limb and knew instantly what had happened. Lee picked her up as gently as he could and started toward his cabin. He had to get her wound cleaned and the blood off her face then he would worry about who she was and why she was here.
Lee carried her as quickly as possible to his cabin. Living in the mountains the last three years had hardened his body back into shape and this young lady didn't slow him down at all. As soon as he got to the cabin he laid her on his bed and stoked the fire. He warmed some water and cleaned her wound. After getting the blood off her face he couldn't help but feel that he knew her. Being a gentleman he was hesitant to undress her but realized she had to get out of her wet clothes. Lee undressed her and covered her on his bed. Her face still bothered him; he knew her somehow but couldn't think of where it was.
After doing as much for her as he could for the time being he went back out to bring in more wood before the brunt of the storm hit. After making a couple of trips in and out with the firewood he decided to make coffee and warm himself by the fire. As Lee sipped his coffee he stared at the girl. She was beautiful and had been well dressed, but what had drawn him closer was her hair. The only way he could describe it was butterscotch, streaked with caramel. There was no doubt in his mind someone would be looking for her very soon and he didn't want to go through a lot of explanations about how she got here. He also didn't want a lot of people tromping around his little piece of paradise.
Tracey woke up confused and disoriented. Where was she? The last she remembered was the flat tire and her attempts at getting a signal for her phone. She sat up and her head throbbed making her lie back on the bed quickly. Touching her forehead, she felt the bandage and winced. The room was dark but gradually her eyes adjusted and she was able to make out objects in the small room. As the pounding in her head subsided, she realized she was naked. Someone had stripped her of her clothes and put her to bed. How had she got to this place? How long had she been out? Of course the big question was who had brought her here?
Sitting up gingerly, she placed her feet on the floor and stood slowly. The door seemed far away but she finally made it and laid her head against it to rest a moment. Her heart was pounding as she opened the door, and made her way into what appeared to be the living room. It was dark except for the fire blazing in the fireplace and she instinctively moved towards its heat. She started as she saw the man sleeping in the chair by the fire. The noise woke him and he stood quickly and turned on the lamp by his chair. Tracey squinted as light flooded her eyes and the pain in her head returned full force.
"Where am I?" she uttered, her voice sounded husky and raw and she realized how thirsty she was. "What happened?"
The man moved towards her and she backed away, stopping him in his tracks. He motioned for her to sit and answered, "You're in my little chunk of paradise. I found you lying in my path, you had been clobbered by a large branch. You have a large cut on your forehead and I'm worried you might have a concussion."
