Page 4 of The Mountain Man's Girl

I grab my shotgun and head outside, taking the old miner’s tunnel so they don’t hear me coming. I want to put the fear of God in them, so they’ll never ignore another sign again. Had they kept going and wandered deeper onto my property, they would’ve found themselves caught up in one of my traps and could’ve gotten seriously hurt. Then I’d be having to haul their asses back down to a medic. And they’d probably try to claim a lawsuit on my ass. A headache I don’t need in my life.

I move quietly, knowing exactly where to walk so they don’t hear me coming. I like the element of surprise. I want to jolt them with fear so they remember this moment for the rest of their lives. A madman came after them with a gun, and they were almost killed. Little do they know I’m loaded with blanks.

“The legend is: the natives would trap their sacrifices. Catch them in nets and then offer them up to the gods on the full moon. That’s why it’s called Whispered Echoes. Because at night you can supposedly hear the whispers of the ones who lost their lives. Their ghosts still haunt these mountains.”

I shake my head. The kid is full of shit. It’s called “Whispered Echoes” because the winds get so heavy that it sounds like voices whispering on the ridge and echoing throughout the valley. Idon’t know where this kid heard that bullshit, but it’s probably just his way of scaring the girls so they’ll be more inclined to snuggle up for safety tonight.

“So, do we need to be worried, Carter? The natives may still live up here. They may be the ones who put up those signs.”

The girl’s voice is like a golden melody. Fluttering through the trees like a ray of light. Warm and cozy. Although, it’s twinged with fear. She’s probably terrified someone’s going to come out of the woods and she’s going to become the next sacrifice. Or that a ghost is going to haunt her in her sleep.

Guilt creeps into my good conscience at the thought, and I make the decision not to scare her further. It’s probably for the best anyway. If these kids go running off, they might end up hurting themselves on their way back down the mountain. Especially in the dark. Nah, these four aren’t going anywhere tonight. Come morning though, I’ll make sure they head back down the mountain to the public trail. There’s plenty of land for them to camp on that’s not private.

“No, Tarryn,” the other girl states with a voice that’s nowhere near as pretty and is dripping with annoyance. “No one’s going to come and rip you from your tent tonight and slit your throat. God, you’re so gullible.” Even I can hear the eye roll in the girl’s voice. But she shouldn’t be mocking her friend. It’s a natural response to be scared when you’re told a scary story.

“It’s an old legend,” says the guy who I now have locked in my scope. He looks like a pompous little shit. “No one lives up here anymore.” More lies. And it’s not just me up here in these parts. “The natives moved away.” Another lie. The mountain ridge is still home to many.

“But we saw the private property signs. Someone had to put them up, Carter.” The angelic voice flutters on the breeze, wrapping its soft tendrils around my nerves. I can only see the back of her head, but I can imagine the fear in her eyes. “I stilldon’t think it was a good idea to come up here. We should’ve turned around when we saw the first private property sign. This could still be their land, even if they don’t live out here anymore.”

At least one of them has a lick of sense. Her friends should’ve listened to her. Come tomorrow, they’re going to wish they had.

“Stop being so paranoid, Tarryn. God, it’s getting annoying,” says the smug little prick she calledCarter.He’s trying to look rugged and tough with his flannel shirt and his pitiful attempt at growing a beard, but he looks like he could barely hold an axe. The guy has no meat on his bones. And what the fuck is that on his head? Does he have a man bun? Damn. Maybe I’m just too damn old, but you’d never catch me dead with a freaking bun on my head. And let’s just say if there were a real threat up on this mountain, that guy wouldn’t be able to defend himself, let alone those two girls.

Not sure what the other guy looks like. He must’ve gone to bed because there’s a snore drifting out from one of the tents.

“I’m going to turn in,” says the sweet voice. The one with the pretty name:Tarryn. I wish I could see her face, though from the sound of her voice, I know she’s upset. One of my jobs as an investigator was to watch for tells through the surveillance feeds. A tick of a jaw muscle. A twitch of an eye. Different inflections in voices. I bet if I could see her face, I’d see the fake smile tipping down instead of up at the corners of her lips, and I know I’d see it in her eyes. The guy just called her annoying, but he’s one to talk. Everything about him is annoying right down to his knee-high wool socks with Scooby Doo on them.

Tarryn heads into the tent, and all I get to see is a glimpse of her figure. Though, the big, baggy sweatshirt is hiding most of her petite frame. The girl is definitely on the shorter side. A fact that’s bringing out my protective side. A big ol’ grizzly wouldmake a snack out of someone her size. And with those curves, they’d enjoy the feast. So would any hot-blooded male.

When the arrogant jerk rises and starts making his way to the same tent, I let out a low grumble. He whips his head around, his eyes scanning for the animal that just made the sound. I hear her nervous voice from within.

“What was that, you guys?”

Carter does one more scan around the woods and decides it’s nothing. If he were smart, which we’ve already established he’s not, he’d grab a flashlight and come and ensure there isn’t something—or someone—out here. There could be a mountain lion or a bear…or someone like me. A grumpy recluse with a gun who may be slightly unhinged. Especially when I know he’s sleeping in the same tent with the pretty girl, which means he has some kind of claim on her.

Thankfully, my good conscience is in control, but if it weren’t, I’d be slitting that tent and snatching that girl away from the idiots she’s with. I’d keep her safe.

“It’s probably just a raccoon. Nothing for us to worry about. Just stay close to me and you’ll be fine.”

He climbs into the tent, and I have to bite back another growl. Now, she’s going to snuggle up to the little prick.And what’s it to me?She’s young enough to be my daughter. They’re college kids, which means she’s probably not much older than twenty-one, and I’m forty. An old geezer compared to her. There’s not an ounce of me that should be jealous over the fact that she’s going to be sleeping in the same tent with that guy. And yet, I feel it racing right up my nerves and locking my jaw up.

As soon as the sun rises, I’ll be chasing them off my mountain. Breathing the calm back into my life and getting my sanity back on straight. The last thing I need is to be jealous over some young girl. I need to forget the voice that soundslike an angel, forget that delectable little morsel of a body, which is meant to be devoured. Shit. I’m going back inside. My surveillance alarm will ring once they get moving in the morning. Then I’ll make sure they get off my mountain and never come back.

5

Tarryn

Istart to crawl my way to the door of the tent, but Carter grabs my leg to stop me.

“Morning, babe. Don’t get up just yet. Something rose with the sun this morning.”

I look over my shoulder and see that his cock is standing straight up in his boxers. For the first time since dating him, I’m not turned on by the sight, nor am I pleased that he thinks I want to get frisky with him after the way he treated me last night. I’m annoyed. He was being such a jerk, acting like I’m an idiot. From putting the tent together to prepping dinner, and then after. All night he was treating me like I’m stupid, and he never once defended me when Kelsey chimed in with her snippy little comments.

If I’m honest with myself, I’m not sure how I even feel about him anymore, and I certainly don’t want to have sex with him.In fact, he’s giving me the ick. And the look on his face is kind of creepy.

“After hiking all day, we’re both dirty, Carter.” It’s a lame excuse considering we’ve had sex after a workout at the gym before, but I’m not touching him right now. Or maybe ever again based on the way I’m feeling.

“My dick is always clean, babe. Why don’t you give it a little taste and see for yourself?”

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