Page 2 of The Mountain Man's Flame

There’s a noise behind me, an animalistic groan. Chloe is forgetful and often leaves the back door open. Since I was in a hurry, I didn’t think to come through and check it.

The hairs on the back of my neck stand up and all I can think about is black bears.Do they eat people?

I don’t know if they eat people but if I were woken after sleeping for weeks, I’d want a fat juicy snack. With my curvy thighs and ample hips, I surely fit the bill.

Leaning over, I grab the heaviest book I can find. It’s some nine-hundred-page reference tome that no one has used in probably twenty years. Still, it makes for an effective weapon, I hope.

I close my eyes tightly and spin around. Then I smack the would-be bear with it as hard as I can. I pray I’ve stunned him long enough to get away.

As the heavy book collides with something solid, I hear a very loud, very masculine noise. It definitely doesn’t sound like a black bear.

I open my eyes to see a man swaying on his feet.

“Angel,” he says the word so softly that it feels like a caress. There’s blood on his forehead and he finally loses the battle with gravity, pitching toward the floor.

“No, no, no.” I do my best to stay upright as his body slumps onto mine. I half-carry, half-drag his very large frame to the fuchsia-colored couch that Mrs. Kay loves so much. She’s going to kill me for getting blood on it.

“You can’t be dead,” I hiss at the unconscious man.

Aiden

“You’re tellingme that when you meet the right woman you’re just going to know it?” Ben, my buddy and fellow firefighter, demands with disbelief dripping from his tone. He’s looking at me like I’m a few rungs short of the full ladder.

“Yes, it’s going to hit me,” I insist. Normally, I wouldn’t talk about shit like this with anyone. I’ve learned that for most people believing in the idea of soulmates is like being a teenager and still believing in Santa Claus. But despite the fact that I’ve only known him for a couple of weeks, Ben already feels like another one of my brothers.

“You ever been hit, like maybe in the head?” Ben teases.

I pick his pocket, stealing the basketball from him. Snow is already starting to cover the ground but inside the firehouse, the two of us are tossing hoops. I sink the ball into the net easily and turn to give him a cocky grin. “You don’t believe there’s someone out there for you?”

He shakes his head. “It just seems weird.”

I dribble the ball again, faking to my right and when Ben falls for it, I move to the left and shoot. Another perfect basket. “My woman is out there.”

As soon as I say the words, an image of the curvy librarian flashes in my mind. I saw her at the diner last night. But she left before I could get a chance to wade through the crowd and talk to her.

“Best two out of three?” Ben asks.

I glance toward the window and shake my head. “Nah, I’m going up the mountain before this mess rolls in.”

He can’t leave. He’s the man on duty during this snowstorm. He’ll call me if he needs backup, but I doubt it’ll be necessary. Most of the residents of Mount Bliss are familiar with the weather patterns here and they’ve already hunkered down with the supplies they’ll need to get through it.

“Keep me updated on how the soulmate search goes,” Ben says.

I flip him the bird as I grab my stuff and sling it into the cab of my truck. I’m not even close to my mountain when my vehicle hits black ice. I try to correct but as the truck begins to hydroplane, I already know it’s a lost cause.

I’m not sure how much later it is when I wake up, but the truck is in the ravine and my head is pounding. A little bit of blood drips from my forehead and the whole world is spinning.

There’s more snow on the ground than there was earlier, making me wonder how long I was out for. I know I’m on the edge of town. I just need to find somewhere to take shelter for a few hours until I feel better. Besides, there’s a shortcut around here. Somewhere.

The sky is too bright, and these damn trees all look alike. Somewhere in the back of my mind, it registers that leaving my truck may not have been my smartest move given how dizzy I am. But it’s too late now.

I’m tired enough that I want to lean against the nearest tree and take a nap. But then I spot her. An angel in the distance with red flaming hair in the middle of an empty parking lot. She jogs toward a big, brick building.

Still swaying, I force myself to keep putting one foot in front of the other. I have to see the angel again. There’s a force I’ve never felt before, one that’s compelling me to keep going.

I nearly sigh with relief when I make it through a doorway in the building. She was here. She has to still be here.

Before I can call out for her, something solid slams into my chest. The breath is knocked from my lungs and pain registers somewhere. Maybe everywhere.

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