Page 3 of Designing with the Mountain Man
All it took to confirm I was still madly in love with her.
CHAPTER TWO
Marlowe
“Oh shit.”My best friend and business partner, Genevieve, whispered from beside me and when I looked at her, she was as white as a ghost. A hot flash of panic ran through me from head to toe.
I turned my head in the direction she was looking and suddenly, my legs felt like spaghetti. My mouth went dry, and blood rushed through my ears as they flushed hot along with the rest of my face.
Steeler stood in the doorway of my bakery, taking up the entire frame with his large self, and I couldn’t believe my eyes. I blinked again and again but he was still there, standing tall and staring at me. His face gave away nothing and I could no longer read his mood, his body language chiller than before.
No longer a boy, begging me to stay while telling me not to give up my dreams at the same time, but a man now, beefy and fit, and still so devastatingly handsome.
While I told the world I didn’t love him anymore, the truth was, I never stopped loving Steeler. Not for one second. He wasalways on my mind, tucked away safely in the back, on pause until I got myself together, followed my dreams, and made a life for myself.
I’d kept tabs on him while I was gone, my mother striking up conversation in passing to keep us in the loop. Knowing he was doing good and praying he stayed single got me through.
“Do you want me to go talk to him?” Genevieve asked as she turned towards me, always in protective mode at a moment’s notice. “I’ll tell him to leave, or stay, whatever you want. Whatever you’re comfortable with.”
I shook my head. “No, it’s okay. I knew I’d see him eventually.”
“Okay, good luck. I’ll be in the office if you need anything.” Genevieve walked out of the front and into the back, leaving me alone with Steeler.
Glancing around nervously, I wondered where the other maintenance men went. Why were we suddenly alone?
Steeler pushed open the door gently and walked in. “Forget to tell me you were back in town? Good thing the apple gossip chain is as strong as ever.” He crossed his arms and huffed.
His gruff voice sent chills down my body in the best way possible.
My eyes widened and my mouth fell open. “Steeler.” I choked out.
When the door closed behind him, my body froze in place.
When he stepped closer, I gulped down air.
And when he stood mere inches from me, I couldn’t help but stare.
He was all man. A man I loved and craved with every fiber of my being.
“Wereyou going to tell me, Mar? Or were you going to wait until I found you?”
I sighed. I didn’t know the answer, because I avoided the questions since they first popped into my head. When Genevieve and I decided to come back home to Apple Falls and open our own bakery, the questions floated around my brain constantly and I did my best to push them aside and ignore. But ignoring them didn’t make them go away. If anything, they got louder.
Yet I still didn’t know the answer.
“I don’t know, Steeler. I knew you’d find me one way or the other.”
“You’re damn right I would. But it would’ve been nice to know, so my heart could stop hurting for once.”
I swallowed over the sudden lump in my throat. “I’ve had a lot going on. With the bakery and moving home, I’ve barely had a minute to catch my breath.” The real truth was, I couldn’t bear the pain of losing him again. It was pure fucking misery. Night after night I cried into Genevieve’s arms, afraid I’d made a mistake. Yet I kept going. The pain dulled. But the love never wavered.
But now my heart had a locked cage around it. Afraid to open and really let him in. I could love him from afar, right?
No.
It would never be enough.
For either of you.
