Page 140 of Ten Mountain Men

She nods.

“You’ve outdone yourself. These’ll sell in no time. Owls are popular.”

“With whoooo?” I joke, but it’s half-heartedly. And my jokes suck, anyway. I’m no Clay.

Her proud smile fades as she studies me for a moment, her eyes sharper now. Those eyes see everything, I swear they do. “I get the feeling you didn’t just come down on business. What’s going on?”

I sigh, rubbing the back of my neck.

“It’s Luke,” I admit. “He’s locked himself in the attic. Won’t come out, won’t talk to anybody. She’s gone and he’s…he’s the saddest of us all, Ma. And I don’t get it. He didn’t want her there in the first place, so why’s he acting like this?”

Ma narrows her eyes slightly, confusion mixing with concern. “Her? Who are you talking about, Hunter? Why are you all sad?”

I hesitate. Of course she doesn’t know. Goldie was only a part of our lives for a few days. But it seems like she’s been with us forever, so I was just blabbing away, taking for granted that Ma would know all about her.

But how do I explain everything?

“Goldie,” I say. “This woman who came up the mountain. Wound up staying with us for a bit.”

Ma’s eyebrows shoot up. “She what? She stayed with you boys? For how long?”

“A few days,” I answer. “It just kind of…happened.”

“What else just kind of happened?”

“Ma.”

Her lips press into a thin line, and I can tell she’s holding back a whole slew of questions. “You talk. I’ll listen.”

The words spill out. “Luke didn’t want her there. He fought it from the start. But the rest of us, well…we liked having her around. Hell, I liked having her around more than I should’ve. She got under all our skin in one way or another. But now she’s gone, and Luke’s the one who’s taking it the hardest. He won’t come out of the attic, won’t talk to anybody. I don’t get it, Ma. He couldn’t stand her.”

I don’t get into the nitty-gritty. How she betrayed us. How we made her leave. It’s still too raw.

Ma crosses her arms, leaning on the counter as she studies me. “Come on, my boy. You’re smarter than that. Luke’s got a lot of walls up, has for a long time. He didn’t want to get close to her because he didn’t want to get hurt. But now that she’s gone, he’s realizing he might’ve missed out on something. And regret is a hard pill to swallow.”

Ma tilts her head, her gaze soft but firm. “Is this woman the reason you cut your hair and trimmed your beard?”

I grin, despite everything. “And here I thought you didn’t notice.”

“Why did she leave?”

“It’s a long story,” I say. “And it’s late.”

“But between the coming and the going, she did a number on you all, didn’t she?” Ma shakes her head. “Give him time, Hunter. Let him come to terms with it in his own way. But make sure he knows he’s not alone. He might act like he doesn’t need any of you, but he does. You’ve got to let him know you’re there for him when he’s ready.”

I nod, though it feels like a tall order.

“Thanks, Ma,” I say, turning to leave.

She calls after me. “Hunter?” I glance back. “You fell in love with that girl, didn’t you?”

I nod, the lump in my throat making it hard to speak. “Yeah. I did. We all did.”

Ma gives me a sad smile, one that tugs at something deep inside me. “You’ll figure it out. Just don’t let your heart harden like Luke’s. Once you get those walls up, well…they’re hard to tear down.”

I know Ma is right. And I know that Goldie could’ve been the one to tear those walls of Luke’s down, if only we hadn’t run her off.

But she’s gone now and she’s not coming back and there’s nothing I can do but get over it, which seems like a hell of an impossible task, but I guess I need to give myself time too.

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