Page 3 of Challenged By the Mountain Man

“You taking her for a ride?” Colin teased.

Colin and I were perpetual bachelors. We’d both sworn off marriage long ago, preferring our carefree Friday night hangouts at the Thirsty Lizard, the town’s most popular bar.

Unlike me, though, Colin was newish to town, having moved here just a few months ago. He hadn’t even been around during the years my daughter was young, so he only knew the bachelor side of me. Now that daughter was grown, freshly tattooed, and living right under my roof while dating one of my buddies, I’d just learned.

It might be a while before I could come to terms with that.

“What are you talking about?” I asked Colin, shaking my head. “I just wanted to rattle her a little. I doubt I’ll even take her up on that ride.”

I’d moved my bike as promised. I would have done it even without getting her to promise to hop on my motorcycle later.

But Colin shook his head, looking around. We’d separated from the rest of the group, who’d moved down the row of bikes to look at some guy’s storage compartment.

“Just live a little.” Colin turned his attention back to me. “You don’t have to marry her or even see her after tonight.”

“Rosewood Ridge is a small town,” I pointed out.

“But you’ve never seen her before in all the time you’ve lived here, right? Is she new to town?”

I thought about that a moment. She’d mentioned this bookstore was her hangout when she was a teenager, so no, she wasn’t new to town.

“Rosewood Ridge isn’t all that small,” I said.

“Exactly. Show her a good time, then head back up the mountain and stay to yourself until next year at this time. All you have to do is make sure you’re not set up here.”

Colin pointed downward to indicate the property where we stood at that very minute. That wouldn’t be all that tough. Before today, I’d whizzed past this building thousands of times and never stopped. There was no reason why that couldn’t continue.

“You’re right.” I smiled and cast my gaze toward the bookstore again. “I’ll take her for a ride.”

“That’s my guy.” Colin clapped me on the shoulder. “And report back. Meanwhile, I’m going to hit the road. I assume you’ll be at the dinner tonight.”

The dinner tonight. I’d almost forgotten about that. I had to be there. I was the head of the Rosewood Ridge Riders. It was my job to represent, which made me the host whether I wanted to be or not.

Maybe Terra would agree to be my date. I could even take her back to my cabin afterward. No, that would be too much like making a commitment. The goal was to ensure a good time—maybe get her out of that cardigan and the rest of her clothes. I just had to make sure our motorcycle ride took us to a romantic location—one that would encourage her to let down that guard of hers.

As soon as Colin fired up his motorcycle, the event was pretty much over. Other bikers seemed to assume we were quitting early. But when I looked at the time on my phone, I was surprised to see it was already 1:30. We’d advertised this event as running from ten to two, but the continental breakfast everyone had at the retreat center was probably wearing off.

As I waved goodbye to everyone, I looked around the lot. There was one car—the same one that had been here when we pulled in. In fact, I’d seen very few customers come and go during the time we’d been out here. I’d kept an eye on it because I was worried someone would hit my bike parked at the very edge of that entrance.

I whipped off my sunglasses, tucked them into the neck of my T-shirt, and strode confidently toward the building. May as well go for it.

The blast of cold air as I stepped inside reminded me just how hot it was in the parking lot. I wore a T-shirt and jeans—my usual attire—but in this weather, shorts would have been a better option.

“Hello?” I called out, even though the chime had announced my entrance.

The place was silent—dead silent—and the beautiful brunette I’d seen earlier seemed to have fled the scene at some point. No, I definitely would have noticed her leaving.

I got no response, so I started walking. Rows of shelves lined either side of me, each shelf covered in books. It made me nostalgic for my elementary school days when I’d spend hours at the Rosewood Ridge Library, reading books while waiting for my mom to finally come get me.

“Hello?” I called out again as I neared the back of the place.

I didn’t want to sneak into some employees-only area, but there was a sign pointing to the restrooms. Going down that hallway at the back of the store wouldn’t be that out of line, right?

Before I could force a word out, a large box emerged in front of me—a box that seemed to have legs and arms. Oh yeah, and a woman behind it, carrying it.

“Whoa,” I called out.

I extended my hand, palm toward her, but it was too late. The box slammed right into my hand, books squirting out of the top like it was a tube of toothpaste. As the books hit the floor with a series of thumps, the woman stepped back.

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