Page 4 of Love Me In Misty Mountain
Those two words hung in the air. I thought he might say more, but he stood, brushing off his jeans.
“We’ll finish the beams tomorrow,” he said.
Just like that, the wall was back up. But I saw the crack. And I wanted more.
Chapter 4: Scott
Iwasn’t going to be able to keep my hands off her. I knew it the second she opened the door that morning, hair piled in a messy knot again, tank top stretched tight over her curves, and leggings that hugged every inch of those hips and thighs. Christ. My hands twitched at my sides. I had to focus on not staring over the way her chest pressed against the thin fabric, nipples peeking slightly from the chill in the air.
Jake would kill me. Hell, I’d kill me if I crossed that line. But she wasn’t sixteen anymore. She was a woman now, all softness and strength, with that sharp tongue that pushed every one of my buttons, and not just the ones that made me mad. She made me want things I had no business wanting.
As we started work, it got worse as her scent wrapped around me, something sweet and faintly floral, like honey and wildflowers. Every time she bent over, her ass stretched those leggings to the limit and my brain short-circuited. I had to bite the inside of my cheek to keep from groaning like a goddamn teenager.
There was a moment when she reached down to pick up a drill, and her backside pushed up in front of me, all round and perfect. My hand gripped the hammer so tightly I thought I might snap the handle.
Fuck me.
The more I tried to focus, the more she got under my skin. As she wiped sweat from her brow, her tank top rode up slightly, exposing a strip of soft skin above her hips. I had the insane urge to touch it, to swipe my tongue over it, to see if it was as smooth as it looked.
I forced my gaze back to the beam I was securing. This was why I lived up here, away from people, and away from distractions. I came back to Misty Mountain to find the peace I had before I joined the Marines. And now Bree Taylor was wrecking all of it, making me want things I had no business craving.
I found myself wondering what it would feel like to press her against the cabin wall, to claim those curves, to bury myself so deep inside her that I forgot my own name. I shook my head, trying to banish the image, but it was burned into my brain.
“Scott?” Her voice broke me out of my dark thoughts.
“What?” I barked, sharper than I intended.
She raised an eyebrow, hands on her hips. “Easy, mountain man. I just asked if you needed more nails.”
I exhaled slowly, trying to steady myself. “Yeah. Thanks.”
She handed me the nails, her fingers brushing mine. Even that small contact sent heat shooting through me, beelining to my dick. I yanked my hand back like I’d been burned.
The rest of the day went on like that, with me battling every primal instinct, trying not to look, trying not to touch, and failing miserably. By the time we called it quits, I was on edge. We sat on the porch again, like we had the day before. She stretched out her legs, wiggling her toes in her boots.
“You seem more grumpy than usual today,” she teased.
I grunted, avoiding her eyes. “Just tired.”
Liar. More like horny.
“Well, thanks for helping,” she said. “I know you don’t have to.”
I looked at her then, really looked. The sun was setting, casting a warm glow over her face, and for a second, I wanted to tell her everything. That I wasn’t here just because of Jake. That I wanted her. That every time she laughed, it chipped away at the walls I’d built around myself.
Friendship first.
I stood up, stretching my aching limbs. “See you tomorrow. Eight sharp.”
“Bossy,” she muttered with a grin.
I walked to my truck, not daring to look back. because if I did, I might not leave. I might drag her inside and show her exactly how bossy I could be. But that was a line I couldn’t cross.
Not yet.
Chapter 5: Bree
The storm had gathered quickly and hit harder than I expected. Rain lashed against the cabin windows, and the wind howled through the trees. I’d always loved storms when I was little, watching them from inside, tucked under a blanket with hot chocolate in hand.
