Page 3 of Her Mountain Boss
I follow him onto the porch of my cabin, watching as he fishes a set of keys out of his pocket. He unlocks the door and then holds it open for me, gesturing for me to enter. He follows me in, my eyes widening as I take in the interior of the cabin. It’s small, sure, but it’s far nicer on the inside than I was expecting.The main room is open, with a small kitchenette tucked into one corner. A table with two chairs sits in front of the kitchen window that looks out over the apple orchard. A cozy seating area with a plush loveseat and a chunky, worn coffee table faces a stone fireplace, the mantle adorned with various nature themed knickknacks.
Ford sets my bags down with care by the front door and takes a few steps into the cabin, his expression difficult to read. He almost looks…wary?
I straighten my spine. I’ll show him that he has nothing to worry about. I’ll work my ass off, impress the hell out of him, and make him forget he ever had second thoughts about this internship.
“This is the main living area,” he says, then scrubs a hand over his mouth. “Obviously.” It’s difficult to tell because of his beard, but I think his cheeks have gone slightly pink. Is he…blushing?
No. That makes no sense. None whatsoever.
He clears his throat and points to a small hallway off the main room. “Bathroom and bedroom are down there.”
I nod, looking around the cabin again. I can feel the smile spreading across my face, my excitement for the next three months growing. I can see myself curled up on that loveseat, a book in my lap, a cup of tea on the table, a fire crackling in the hearth after a long day of impressing the hell out of Ford.
He walks over to the large window in the kitchen, and I follow him, feeling a bit like a puppy. “That’s the apple orchard,” he says, pointing out the window. I stand beside him, close enough that I can feel the heat radiating from his body. He smells like pine and cedar with a hint of woodsmoke. I want to rub myself on him. I want to bury my face in his flannel and inhale deeply.
Okay. It’s official. I most definitely have a raging crush on my boss, who is also technically my step-uncle and who is probably a million years older than me.
I need to keep it professional. The last thing I need is to embarrass myself before I’ve even unpacked my bags. Before I’ve even officially started this job.
“The trailhead for most of the hikes is just beyond the orchard. You’ll have easy access to the trails from here. You like hiking?” he asks, glancing down at me and then quickly away.
“I do. Especially in the fall.”
He grunts in response, and I feel that sound in my belly, little butterflies unfurling timid wings.
“Staff are allowed to use the facilities when they’re not on duty—the gym, the pool, the sauna, the hot tub. Just don’t annoy the guests.”
I look up at him and nod, drinking in his profile. He’s the epitome of a rugged mountain man. He’s not looking at me, his gaze fixed out the window and on the orchard beyond. I have the insane urge to reach out and touch him. What would his hair feel like between my fingers? What would his beard feel like against my neck?
Heat flushes across my face at the thoughts I’m having. I should probably not be fantasizing about my uncle. No. Definitely not. Bad. Bad Sophia. Stop it.
He turns to look at me, his blue eyes pinning me in place. “What do you think?” he asks, his voice low and rough.
I think I’m in a whole lot of trouble.
But I know he means the cabin, so I smile up at him. “It’s perfect,” I say softly. And I mean it. The cabin, the view, the job opportunity, and especially the man standing next to me. It’s perfect.
“So,” I say, turning my attention back to the view of the orchard. “What should I call you? Mr. Callahan? Uncle Ford?”
His body stiffens in my peripheral vision, and I look up at him. A muscle jumps in his jaw, his hands clenched into fists. “I’m not your uncle,” he growls, a sound so primal that it makes those little butterflies explode into flight in my stomach. His eyes meet mine, and the intensity there makes my breath stutter in my lungs.
“Right,” I say, my voice a bit shaky. “So…just Ford, then?”
He nods sharply, looking away from me. “That’ll do.”
I look back out the window. I notice the way his gaze flicks back the second my attention is elsewhere, and for one crazy second, I let myself imagine that it’s because he’s as drawn to me as I am to him. I sneak a sideways glance at him, and when our eyes meet, almost an accidental brushing of gazes, the hairs on the backs of my arms stand at attention. My heart is at a gallop, beating so fast and so hard that it’s making me feel a little dizzy.
He huffs out a breath and starts moving around the cabin, opening cabinets and drawers, as though he’s making sure everything’s in order for me. I watch him as he moves, enjoying the hell out of the way his muscles bunch and flex beneath his clothes as he does. But it’s not just the muscles. He has this…this presence to him. He’s so big. So sturdy and sure. So quiet and yet the air in here is full of him.
And I see it, the way he looks at me when I’m not looking right at him. I can feel his gaze like a touch, hot and tingly on my skin. Also, I have excellent peripheral vision. I let myself imagine that he’s trying so hard not to look at me and losing the battle bit by bit. The rational, non-horny part of my brain suggests that maybe he’s just curious about me. After all, we’re practically strangers and I’m now his newest employee.
But the rest of me, the part made up of my heart and my ladybits, wonders if he feels this pull between us, too.
I don’t know if this kind of instant chemistry and attraction is a normal thing. I don’t know anything at all. I’ve never doneanything more than kissing. I’ve never had a real boyfriend. At twenty-four, I’m still so very inexperienced, and I don’t know how to interpret this situation. All I know is what I wish to be true.
“The kitchen is stocked with the basics,” he says, drawing my attention back to him. “But you’re welcome to eat your meals at the main lodge.”
“Is that where you eat?” I blurt, heat rushing to my cheeks.
