Page 9 of Infatuated with the Mountain Man

I ran a hand through my long, wavy hair and walked out to the kitchen where Caden was fixing sandwiches. He looked at me with surprise. “Hey, you. You’re dressed. And out of bed.”

I wrung my hands together as I slid onto a barstool. “Look, Caden, I?—”

He held his hand up. “It’s fine, Veda, really. You don’t have to explain. We made a mistake, got caught up in the moment. I know the whole spiel.”

I sighed. I could see the hurt and disappointment in his eyes. “It would be silly to start anything. I live over an hour away. I’m only here until Sunday morning.”

Caden walked over to the bar with two plates and set one down in front of me and one across. Then he set down two glasses of water and took a seat. “I’m not looking to start anything.”

“So you just wanted a hookup?”

“Yeah, isn’t that what you wanted?”

I shrugged. Inside, I hated it, hated that he only wanted me for sex when it felt like so much more. But I couldn’t show him my hand; I needed to keep my cards close to my chest. I forced a smile. “Yes, perfect. Great, glad we worked that out.”

But nothing felt worked out.

Not one bit.

We spentthe night in his bed, but hardly any sleep happened. Between talking about everything from our childhood to our dreams and passions, and the rounds of sex, the hours passed by quickly. Neither of us could keep our hands to ourselves, and Caden’s stamina was unmatched. I could definitely get used to those perks of a younger man.

The storm continued well into the morning, and when we finally emerged after a little bit of sleep, Caden said he had to hurry and get me home to start on storm cleanup. He seemed distracted when he ushered me into the car, and I wondered what had happened in the short time from when we fell asleep to now.

I figured he was stressed from the storm, and we rode in silence to the orchard, Sir Barksalot slobbering all over the back seat and my ear.

“Thanks again for everything,” I said as he pulled up next to my parked car. “I’ll see you around.”

He nodded curtly, the warmth from before gone. Was this how he treated the women he had one-night stands with? A cold shoulder and a curt nod were all I got, with a nicer goodbye from his dog. “See ya.”

I watched as he drove off and pulled into Cash’s driveway without a single glance back. I shook my head, disappointment and anger filling me from head to toe.

When will I learn my damn lesson?

CHAPTER SIX

Caden

I rakedthe dirt with more force than needed. It was too rough, but I didn’t care. I was stupid and fucked shit up. Just like Jolene warned me not to do. But here I was, fucking it up.

Thankfully, I didn’t let it interfere with the party planning. After the storm cleared and the rest of the week passed by, I kept to myself in the orchard, avoiding Cash and Leighton’s cabin backyard at all costs.

Veda and my sister worked back there. The party was coming to life more and more every day, but I couldn’t bring myself to face either of them. I treated Veda like a jackass, like she meant nothing to me.

When, in reality, she meant everything.

I might have invited her into my bed, but I never expected her to claim my heart.

I raked the dirt hard again, pissed off that I cared. Pissed off that I let a girl get to me. I didn’t open my heart to love. Not after how I saw a marriage crumble and destroy lives, break up a family, and cause permanent damage. I couldn’t do it.

“What the hell did that dirt do to you?” Jolene appeared, hands on her hips, one knee popped out.Uh-oh. That’s her mad stance.

I stood tall and wiped my brow with the back of my gloved hand. “What’s it to you?”

“Okay, what the hell is going on with you? And what did you do to Veda? Her sparkle is dimmer.”

“What the hell does that mean?”

Jolene rolled her eyes. “Dude, what’s going on? You’ve been moping ever since the storm, and you won’t even look at Veda. She insists nothing happened, but somethingdefinitelydid. I can tell.”

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