Page 39 of Saved By the Mountain Man

No matter how much it hurt.

When I looked up at Laken again, her eyes softened with sympathy. “Love can be a total bitch.”

I blinked at her before I laughed. “Very well said.”

“I don’t know what went on between you two in the past, and I’m not sure you’re telling me much about the past couple of days. I won’t push if you don’t want to talk about it. But you know I’m here for you, right? If you ever need to talk.”

“Thanks, Laken.” I leaned against her in a pseudo-hug while we both ate. “I just need some time to sort things out on my own.”

As the day wore on, I was just going through the motions without really being present. That was the beauty of such menial work—there was a lot of time to think. It was also my downfall when I didn’twantto think.

The store was busy, customers coming and going, but I felt disconnected, like I was watching everything from a distance.

Finally, the day came to an end. Hank paid me, and I pocketed the cash and headed out.

On my way home, the streets of Silver Ridge were quiet, the aftermath of the storm still evident in the muddy paths and fallen branches. When I looked up, the sky was dark and heavy with the promise of something more. Rain, snow…

I rounded a corner and caught a glimpse of someone familiar—a face that sent a chill down my spine. In a flash, he was gone, slipping around another corner.

It had been so quick. I wasn’t sure I’d seen it at all. My throat tightened, and my heart hammered against my chest.

It hadn’t been Jethro, that was for sure, but I knew his henchmen.

It had looked a lot like one of them…

I quickened my pace, trying to catch up. I had to know for sure if it had been real or just my imagination. The figure disappeared around another corner, so quick I still didn’t know who it was or where they were going.

The person was real, though. It hadn’t been just a fleeting moment of weakness, my mind taking over.

By the time I reached the spot, there was no sign of anyone. I looked around, breathing heavily. There wasn’t a single soul around, but my throat tightened more with paranoia rather than easing up.

“Get a grip, Rae,” I muttered to myself, shaking my head. “You’re being ridiculous.” It could have been anyone in town. Hell, it could have been no one at all.

It was now that I was alone again that I was seeing things. There was no way Jethro had found me here so quickly. Why would he think to look here at all?

I turned to head back to my cabin, trying to slow my breathing, but I kept feeling like I was being watched.

When I reached my cabin, I locked the door behind me and leaned against it. I let out a breath, but I didn’t feel relieved or safe.

The silence was overbearing, suffocating.

Usually, after work, I kept myself busy by reading. The cabin had a small bookshelf with a few novels, and I’d been working my way through them.

Tonight, I didn’t see a thing. I read the same page five times, and nothing.

My mind kept drifting back to Tanner.

I was furious with him. But at the same time, I missed his presence, his gruff kindness, and even our arguments. Being away from him was like a wound that refused to heal. I kept replaying our last conversation in my mind, his words cutting deeper each time.

He’d told me he didn’t care, that it was just a place to recover. He’d told me he’d left before, he hadn’t been on the same page, he hadn’t felt the same as I’d felt about him.

It had hurt me like a knife to the heart when he’d said it, but the way he had been with me, so loving and attentive, didn’t match up to his words.

There had to be more to it.

He was keeping me at arm’s length for a reason, and it was driving me crazy. I hated that he kept pushing me away.

I hated that I didn’t understand why.

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