Page 6 of Heart of the Mountain
Peering into the living room, I see the man himself pacing back and forth in front of the fireplace. I make a note of the gorgeous red-brick fireplace with a live-edge oak mantle. That’s a huge selling point, especially considering how well-maintained it is. Everything in this cabin is pristine.
“Sit,” the man barks out, startling me from my thoughts. I snap my head in his direction, taken aback by the intensity in his deep blue eyes.
Coupled with dark hair, sharp features, a trimmed beard, and intricate tattoos crawling up his arms, the man is lethal. I don’t think he intends to come across so harshly. His tone isn’t mean or impatient, it’s more… unpracticed. Like he hasn’t held a conversation with another living soul in a long time.
I make my way further into the living room, but am quickly joined by my rescuer. He loops an arm around my waist and half-carries me over to the couch. Being this close to him again has my skin prickling with awareness. A dull, throbbing ache blooms between my thighs, and my nipples tighten beneath the baggy sweatshirt I’m wearing.
Get ahold of yourself, Sadie! Yes, he’s the sexiest man ever to grace the planet, but you’re here under false pretenses, and he’s a million miles out of your league.
Despite the running monologue in my brain, my body is becoming increasingly wound up. I’m thankful when we reach the couch and he guides me to sit down with my legs stretched out on the cushions. At least when he’s not touching me, I’m not as tempted to do something stupid like run my hands over his chest and abs and ask if he has more tattoos under his shirt.
“Lift,” he instructs, pointing at my foot. I do as he says, watching as he tucks a pillow under my sore ankle. The man carefully places an ice pack wrapped in a dish towel over my swollen joint, and I wince at the contact. He grunts and looks over at me, his brow furrowed. “Hurts?”
Even though a sharp pain is shooting up my leg, I manage to grin at his monosyllabic growls. I meant what I told him earlier - I think he’s kind of adorable.
“I’m fine,” I tell him. “Really, this is too much. I’ll just rest up for half an hour, an hour tops, then I can wrap up my ankle if you have the supplies and be out of your way.” When he doesn’t respond or even blink an eye, I do what I do best: ramble. “You’re probably itching to have me out of your space. I see you’re a pretty private person. I get that. If I lived all the way up here, surrounded by nature, with a perfect view of the sunset from the west-facing porch, I’d keep this place all to myself, too.”
Guilt stabs my already confused and fragile heart. I’ve spent less than an hour in this man’s presence and even less time inhis home, but I know he’s not interested in selling. He’ll never leave this land. It was a fool’s errand to try to convince him otherwise, which sounds about right. My boss loves making me look foolish.
“Why were you on my property?” he asks instead of addressing anything I said.
I was expecting this question, but I’m still nervous about giving him my prepared response. “I got lost,” I admit, rolling my eyes at myself.
It’s not a total lie, it’s just not the whole truth. Still, being dishonest sits in my stomach like a rock. I don’t like deceiving anyone, let alone the person who saved me from a potentially fatal situation.
He’s mulling over my response, those sapphire eyes locked on mine as he digs his way down into my very soul. I can tell he’s about to ask more questions, so I cut him off before he can pick apart my excuse any further.
“I’m Sadie, by the way,” I announce, holding my hand out for him to shake. The enormous man stares at my hand, then back at my face. “This is the part where you take my hand and move it up and down in the customary greeting most people use when introducing themselves,” I whisper.
He narrows his eyes at me, scrutinizing everything from my facial features to my outstretched hand. When he makes no motion to reciprocate, I forge ahead.
“Are you like Rumpelstiltskin? Do I have to guess your name?” I swear his upper lip twitches in the barest hint of amusement. “Can we at least play Wheel of Fortune rules? I’d like to buy a vowel, please!”
This time, the corner of his lips pull into a reluctant smirk, but I can tell he’s fighting it every step of the way. I hope to see his real, unfiltered smile sometime.
“Cutter,” the man says, though he doesn’t shake my hand.
“That’s not a vowel,” I point out. He lifts a thick eyebrow at me, and god.Swoon.How is even that small motion the sexiest thing ever? “Anyway, Cutter. Thank you for not letting me plunge to my death back there. And thank you for the chance to clean up before heading back home. Like I said, I’m sure I’ll be all good in an hour.”
“No.”
“No? Are you kidnapping me?”
“What? No. No, I…”
“Kidding,” I tell him with my hands up in a sign of surrender. The panic in his features strangely settles something in the pit of my stomach. He’s not onlynotkidnapping me, but he seems horrified at the accusation. Like he never wants me to fear him. “If you wanted to do me harm, you would have left me in the woods.”
“I’d never harm you.” His deep blue eyes pierce right through me, refusing to let me go. Cutter is possibly the most intense person I’ve ever met.
“I believe you,” I whisper.
He grunts in approval, making me grin once more. This man is fiercely protective, adorably awkward, and unfathomably hot. More than that, I can see the weight of guilt and loneliness he carries around with him like a lead weight. I’m not sure what drove him into a solitary existence in the mountains, but something tells me Cutter is resigned to a life of penance.
It’s insane and intense, but I wish I knew his secrets so I could tell him he doesn’t have to be alone anymore. Whatever he did in the past doesn’t have to define his future. I understand the need for a fresh start more than most, but it doesn’t have to be so incredibly lonely.
“Good,” he says, nodding his head once. “It’s settled.” Cutter turns on his heel and stomps toward a hallway closet, coming back a moment later with blankets and more pillows.
“Um, what’s settled? I talked about leaving, and here you are with more blankets.”
