Page 24 of Found By the Surly Ranger

Barrett snorts. "Do dirty boys deserve nice girls?"

I turn to him, raising an eyebrow. "Rude!"

"Just a fact, ma'am." It must be some sort of in-joke that I'm not getting.

Griffin rounds a corner, using the momentum to lean toward my ear. "My last name is Dirty."

"Seriously?"

"Yup. But trust me, there's no man on this mountain who wouldn't clean up for a nice girl."

We drop Barrett at his truck, then continue on to Jace's house. Barrett has a key, so we go in and I make us all coffee.

My mind races. Has Jace been up here on his mountain, hoping to find a woman? The insecure part of me wonders if he simply jumped at the first girl who wandered into his path. But I don't think so. It feels like we truly belong together. I just have to learn to trust him completely, and let go of my fears.

Because I want to be his girl. I want this crazy detour through the forest to end with the two of us together. Permanently.

16

JACE

My brother Jonah laughs at me at first for coming to his house with such slight scrapes. Then he takes a proper look, and sees they're much deeper than they first look. "Okay, fair, I guess you can't clean and tape these one-handed."

"Exactly. Thanks."

He doesn't even warn me before he douses my hand with stinging disinfectant. "How the hell did this happen?" he mutters gruffly as he patches me up. "Rescuing someone again?"

When I hesitate, he gives me a sharp look. He's always been able to see right through me. "Oh. Not just someone, I take it."

"Her name is Kara."

Jonah shakes his head as he wraps my cuts with pressure bandages. "Jeez, I can tell you're ass over applecart by the way you say her name."

I snort at his sad attempt at humor. "Ass over applecart? How old are you, eighty?"

"Shut it." Next he covers everything with waterproof bandages. "Keep this dry for forty-eight hours."

"Will do. Thanks."

He nods with a crooked grin. "Good luck with your girl. Glad you found someone."

"Thanks." For a split second, I see a flash of sadness in his eyes. I know Jonah has been wanting to find a good woman for a long time.

The thing is, Old Hemlock Valley is great, but it has far more men than women, since the terrain up here is so rough. I don't like thinking about my brothers and cousins living out their entire lives alone. It's depressing. I really do feel like I've won the lottery by finding Kara.

As I drive home, I start to think about the decision I have to make, even though in truth I've already decided. I need to formally ask Kara to stay with me. To live here with me on my mountain, in my town, so that I can keep her safe forever.

She obviously has a tough time trusting men, and I can't blame her. But I need her to trust me. She has to know by now that all I want is to make her happy.

Barrett and Griffin must hear my truck coming up the driveway, because they meet me on the porch. I get out of the truck awkwardly, trying not to rip the bandage open. The rain is still pelting down hard, and I rush to duck under the awning.

"Your girl makes better coffee than you do," Griffin chuckles. "All patched up?"

"Yeah, I'm good. Thanks so much for taking care of her."

I shake both of their hands, and Barrett nods. "Anytime you need us, Jace, just holler. You know that."

Kara comes to the door to wave as they call out their goodbyes. As they get into their trucks, Griffin flashes Kara a wink. "Don't forget – set me up with a nice friend who doesn't mind if her man is a little dirty. We need more women up on this mountain."

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