Page 6 of Tormented Mountain Man

As I sat watching Hunter climb the stairs toward his balconied room, I couldn’t help but think of those books I’d read as a kid. The ones where you got to a certain point and had to choose what the character would do next. Would you, as the character, take this adventure or that?

In the books, no matter which choice you made, you were in for an adventure. The path was never “go to bed, sleep eight hours, and get up to watch your friends get married, then go back to your boring life.”

But that was exactly what would happen if I chose path B. Path A was following this gorgeous, hot-as-heck mountain man up the stairs to his room.

Of course, we’d just talk. I had no plans to lose my virginity tonight. But at least if I followed him, I wouldn’t have to spend the rest of my life wondering what would have happened if I’d just taken option A.

I downed the rest of my wine in a few gulps, took the glass to the kitchen, along with a couple of others I grabbed from the coffee table, and placed them in the sink. As I washed my hands and wiped them on my jeans, my gaze slid to the stairs.

I’d go up either way. The question was, did I stop at the door to my room or continue to the end of the hall where Hunter was staying? We basically had our own separate wing, which made me wonder if my best friend had something in mind when she made the room arrangements.

Probably not. She wouldn’t play matchmaker, would she? She just might, actually, considering the fact that if I fell in love with a mountain man, I very well might move here.

I wiped my palms on my jeans. They felt sweaty, which was ridiculous. I never sweated. But there was a first time for everything. Maybe it was the wine. Maybe it was just that it was well past time I did something adventurous. Turned out, even if you took a huge leap—moved to a big city after college graduation—you could still shy away from adventure. It was all too easy to slip into the comfort zone that was my apartment.

The choice was easy. I was going straight to Hunter’s room. There was no other option, really. I realized that as I climbed the stairs. No way would I have been able to go to my room and sit in there alone all night, wondering what he was doing. The very least I could do was check out his balcony. That didn’t mean it had to lead to anything.

When I reached the top of the steps, my heart was pounding, and I was having a tough time catching my breath. I was so nervous—more nervous than I’d ever been over a guy. It was weird too. I should have been more confident and comfortable around men than I was in my younger years.

I realized the difference now, though. Hunter was a man. A real man. Someone who’d been with women and knew what he wanted. The guys I’d dated before had basically still been in that barely-escaped-boyhood phase. Even the ones I’d dated in college were into video games and showing off for their friends. Their idea of a nice date was fast food and making out in the back seat of their car.

I passed my room. The door was still closed. My suitcase was in there, as was my laptop. I could do a little work before bed, maybe even get caught up on a show I’d been streaming. That had been my original plan if I had downtime this weekend.

But I didn’t open that door. Instead, I kept walking all the way to the end of the hallway. I stopped in front of Hunter’s door. Light streamed underneath. Should I knock? Probably so.

I tapped three times with my knuckles and stepped back, like that would calm me down any. Instead, my heart was racing like crazy.

Deep breaths, I told myself. In, out. In, out.

Suddenly, the door burst open, and I gasped. Yeah, I was definitely on edge.

“Come on in,” Hunter said.

He’d taken off his shoes. He wore socks, and somehow, the sight of him in his socked feet startled me a little. It was only natural—I would have done the same thing if I’d gone to my room. Except I probably would have taken off everything and put on the sweatpants and the T-shirt I’d sleep in.

But the sight of him in his socked feet comforted me somehow. Assured me that he was letting down his guard around me.

“There’s no minibar,” he said. “I’d offer you a drink, but…”

I smiled and stepped inside. I would have shut the door behind me, but I didn’t feel right going in any farther. This wasn’t a hotel room. Maybe that would have made it easier. Not because of the minibar, but because I wouldn’t have been intruding on what felt like a personal bedroom.

“I could go down and grab a bottle of wine if you want,” he said. “We could sit on the balcony and drink while we enjoy the view.”

I shook my head. “I think I’ve had all the wine I can handle for one night.”

“Go on out. I wiped down the chairs. I’ll meet you out there.”

He headed into the bathroom, closing the door, and I closed the bedroom door before crossing the room to the patio. I stepped out, inhaling the fresh mountain air. Yes, I already felt better.

A sudden noise behind me reminded me I’d left the door wide open. I turned to find Hunter setting two cups of water on the table between the chairs.

“You set all this up for me?” I asked.

“Of course.”

“How did you know I’d come?”

He straightened and looked at me, and his attention on me made my insides all melty again. Yeah, this guy definitely knew the effect he had on women. I just hoped he wasn’t playing me.

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