Page 1 of The Mountain Man's Girl

1

Tarryn

“Are you seriously packing heels?” Kelsey picks up my leopard print Jimmy Choos, giving me a look like I’m the most absurd person she’s ever met. “It’s a hiking trip, Tarryn. You bring hiking boots.”

“Obviously.” I roll my eyes. She’s acting like I’m an idiot with no common sense. Of course, I know that. “I wasn’t bringing those to hike in. I was…” I don’t even bother finishing my sentence as her brow rises in eager anticipation, loading up that tongue of hers to mock me further. It’s all she’s been doing lately. Ever since we planned this trip, she’s been making fun of me. She thinks it’s hilarious that I’ve never been camping before. But I didn’t grow up with a Boy Scout as a father like she did. My dad liked to spend his time on his yacht, not traipsing through the woods with bugs and wild animals. Although, the way some of the young girls acted when they were drunk, you’d think he was a zookeeper.

“I’m hiking in my sneakers.” I take my heels from her judgy hands, wrapping each one in its protective little bag before they get any more opinionated fingerprints on them.

“I guess you wouldn’t own a pair of hiking boots, would you?” She looks down at her feet, which are tucked into a big pair of muddy boots that look like they belong to a lumberjack. No, I definitely would never buy a pair of shoes that look like that. Pretty cowgirl boots with feather detailing are the types of boots I like. Or some black knee-highs with a stiletto heel. “You’re going to have to watch your step in those sneakers. It will be rocky terrain, and you don’t want to roll your ankle. Carter should’ve told you to order some.”

I’m surprised he didn’t since he told me to order just about everything else under the sun. I’ve spent a mini fortune on all the gear: the pack, the tent, the sleeping bag. Two air pad thingies for us to sleep on. A pillow that looks like a whoopee cushion. And a hammock. I spent so much money, and I doubt I’ll ever use any of it again. But Carter said he’ll gladly take it all off my hands if I’m not a fan of backpacking. He even made sure I got a pack that will fit him just in case.

I shove my heels into my bag, tucking them in between my sweatshirts.

“Why are you still packing the heels?” What’s with her and my shoes? Geez.

“I’m bringing them for when we go into town for dinner.” Your girl likes to look cute when she’s out in public. Plus, I want to look good for my boyfriend so that when we get back under our sleeping bags, he’ll be ready to rip my clothes off. If I were to wear the shoes she has on, he wouldn’t even want to touch me.

Again, her eyes are revealing exactly how naïve she thinks I am as they creep up to her hairline, wrinkles appearing across her brow.

“We aren’t going into town for dinner, Tarryn. We’re going to be eating at our campsite.”

We’re going to be eating in the woods? No one ever mentioned that.

“What exactly are we going to eat?” Because no one told me to pack any food. Maybe this is another one of those things I should’ve just known. Common sense camping 101. With the way she’s looking at me, I feel myself getting dumber with every twitch of her creased brow and shake of her head.

“We’re going to hunt for our food.”

I swallow down the horror that snakes its way into my stomach and makes it churn with disgusted dread. I don’t hunt. And I definitely don’t eat squirrel or raccoon or whatever other animals you find in the woods. That’s absolutely disgusting.

“Oh my God.” She busts out laughing. “You should see your face right now.” Her laugh almost sounds like a cackling witch. Shrill and evil, and laced with so much judgement. “I’m kidding, Tarr. God, you are so gullible. The guys planned the menu and are bringing everything we need. I picked up some granola bars and oatmeal for breakfast along with some gorp to snack on, and I know Jeff is bringing tuna, and peanut butter and jelly packets, so we’re all set for food.”

Oh, thank goodness. Not that I want to live off PB&J for five days or have any clue as to what gorp is, but it’s better than eating squirrel. But that means we’re going to be stuck in the woods for the entire time. I thought we’d at least get to have a little hiking reprieve every evening. Hike for a few hours, go back to our campground and shower, and then change into some normal clothes to go into the little mountain town for some dinner. Maybe do a little bit of shopping or go to a movie, something to break up the monotony. But it looks like we’ll be roughing it all week, doing who knows what out in the woods.

I guess I won’t be needing my heels after all. Nor will I need my flat iron or my cute skirts, but I’m not going to unpack all of it now. I’ll wait until Kelsey isn’t present or she’ll think I’m even more ridiculous than she already does. Although maybe I’ll still bring my flat iron. I hate when my hair gets frizzy after I wash it, and I read that campgrounds have electrical outlets.

That reminds me… “Will we need quarters for the showers?” It said online that some campgrounds have coin-operated showers. It’s like a quarter for a minute of water, and I don’t want to find myself stuck in the woods without enough money to wash away the grime.

“We aren’t staying at an official campground.” She shakes her head like I should know all this, but Carter didn’t give me any of the details. He just said all I have to do is show up and look pretty. “We’ll bebackpacking, hence that big pack.” She looks at it like it’s more than obvious and I’m a complete moron. “We’ll be staying along the trail, so there won’t be any showers. Just the lakes and springs to bathe in.”

Oh my God. Please tell me this is another one of her jokes. But she isn’t laughing. Her expression is flat, and I can tell by the twinkling gleam in her eye that she’s being completely serious.

Oh my freaking word. Whose idea was this?

It’s spring break. We’re supposed to be relaxing and having fun. What happened to lounging by the beach and drinking fruity cocktails? We could’ve rented a house and been partying poolside. But nope, ladies and gentlemen, we’ll be traipsing through the woods, sleeping on the ground, and bathing in dirty lakes, which could have leeches in them for all I know. I’d love to know if she’s researched that fact, but I’m not going to ask in case she starts mocking me again.

“You know, if you don’t want to come, you don’t have to.”

And let Carter down? No. He’s really excited about this. Ever since we first started dating, he’s been wanting to takeme camping. Although, I may have fibbed to him about being interested in the idea. I hate everything about this. The dark woods, the hiking, the dirt. Ugh… I should’ve told him I’m a glamping kind of girl. I’d be fine with a fancy trailer to stay in at night. A roof over our heads. A hot shower. An actual bed to sleep on, not something that looks as thin as a pancake. I’m sure I’ll feel every rock on the ground laying on that thing.

“No. I’m not backing out. It will be an adventure. It’s going to be fun.” I force my cheeks up, trying to think positive. After all, Carter loves backpacking so maybe it really won’t be that bad. And Kelsey is excited about it too. She’s been talking nonstop about the trip. She’s even been on the phone with Carter a few times planning. If I didn’t know she had a crush on Jeff and was trying to make things official between them on this trip, I’d be worried she was trying to move in on my boyfriend. But that’s never going to happen. I’m completely confident in what Carter and I have. Though, I’m not confident I’m going to survive for five days in the woods.

2

Traeger

My phone starts ringing in my back pocket, breaking the silence of the morning. Disturbing the peace up here on this mountain. Disrupting my calm. It’s my burner phone, which means whoever is calling needs something from me. Only a select few have the number, and if any one of them is calling, then shit is going down. Shit I don’t want to be a part of. I left that life behind for good reason and I’m not interested in going back.

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