Page 10 of Her Mountain Man Rescuer

“I like being here,” she says softly.

It happens again—the tension in the air—the crackling atmosphere, just like at dinner. My skin seems to sizzle, the world narrowing around us until all I can see is Audrey, beautiful Audrey, with her shiny black hair and eyes like the summer sky…

Fuck, what is happening to me?

“I’ll go get everything ready,” I say.

Audrey nods, thanking me again, and I turn around and head to the guest bedroom, changing the sheets and starting a fire in the small hearth in the corner. An ache is growing inside me. It throbs beneath my boxers as I touch the covers that will soon be wrapped around Audrey’s body, hugging her curves. Iwish like hell I could carry her to my bed instead. It’s wrong—not something I should think about. But I can’t help the heat that burns through my veins when I imagine her sprawled out beneath me, cheeks flushed with pleasure, eyes rolling back as I fuck her tight, wet?—

“Anything I can help with?”

My heart leaps into my throat as I turn to see Audrey standing in the doorway. My cock twitches, and I pray she can’t see the bulge in my jeans.

“No,” I say. “It’s all ready for you.”

“Awesome. Thanks.”

She joins me in the cozy bedroom, the fire casting a warm glow on the bed between us. I’ve never felt this way before. I want her so fucking badly it hurts. I want to taste her, claim her, make her mine in every way. But I can’t. She’s so damn young: a sweet and pretty city girl, way too perfect for a grizzled old mountain man like me. And although I’ve managed to stretch out our time together a little, there will be no more excuses in the morning. She’ll continue on her way to see her friend, then return to her life in Denver.

I round the bed, passing Audrey as I head for the door, gritting my teeth as our sides brush.

“Goodnight, Weston,” she says, her sweet voice tugging at my heart, begging me to turn around and look at her. But I don’t dare. My resolve is hanging by a thread. If I look, I’ll have to kiss her. I won’t be able to help myself.

“Goodnight, Audrey.”

I close the door behind me without looking back.

5

AUDREY

Sleep doesn’t comeeasy in the guestroom. The bed is comfortable, the fire warm, and even the pain in my wrist has subsided a little—but I can’t stop thinking about Weston. I can hear the occasional creaking of bedsprings from across the hall as he turns in his sleep, and knowing he’s so close keeps me stubbornly awake, blinking up at the ceiling.

I seriously need to get a grip.

This man is making me feel like a blushing schoolgirl. I’ve always been confident—never the type to be shy—but whenever Weston looks at me, I feel like a quivering mess. Now it turns out he was in the Navy, too. I mean, seriously, why does everything about this man have to be so hot? Why couldn’t I have been rescued by an elderly couple on an evening stroll or something?

The thoughts swirl around my mind for over an hour before the crackling fire finally lulls me to sleep. It feels like I’ve barely just drifted off when I jerk awake, sucking in a breath.

What was that?

Something woke me up. A sound. I stay very still, my ears straining to hear it again. There’s a noise outside my window…the sound of something scrabbling at the wall.

Or someone?

My airway suddenly feels too narrow, and I lie frozen, unable to move.

Somebody is trying to get in.

Fear bubbles in my veins until I can’t bear it a second longer. I push myself out of bed and hurry toward Weston’s room, ignoring the twinge in my knees. His door is slightly ajar, and I tiptoe into the darkness.

“Weston,” I whisper, my fear overcoming my awkwardness about intruding on him. “Are you awake?”

In a flash, he sits up. “Audrey?”

I hear the click of a lamp, and the room is lit up to reveal Weston in bed, his naked torso rising beneath the covers.

“Are you okay?” he asks, his voice even more gravelly than normal, tinged with sleep. “What happened?”

---