Page 9 of How The Mountain Man Stole Christmas
“I would hope not. I wouldn’t accept it anyway. I wanted that just as much as I think you did.”
“Oh, I definitely did. I’m only sorry Kaleb interrupted when he did and ruined the mood.”
She kissed him tenderly but only once and pulled away. “Maybe this time it was for the best. I just met you yesterday Fin and while I’m sure I’ll be cursing myself in about an hour, maybe it was a sign to take things slow?”
“You’re right.” He averted his gaze briefly. “I don’t know what came over me, well I do know but I need to control it.” His face reddened a little from embarrassment. “There’s just something about you that makes me crazy. You’re ridiculously beautiful, all over, but you’re also a genuinely nice person. I also like yours sense of humor and I swear your smile lights up the entire room.”
Harper smacked at Fin. “Stop it, you’re embarrassing me,” but she was grinning proudly. “One last kiss then you’re leaving. I need my beauty sleep.” She grabbed him around the neck and planted a doozy on him then pushed him out and shut the door.
“Good night, Harper,” she heard him call out. Harper leaned against the door until she couldn’t hear him anymore. She folded the clothes she’d left lying on the bed, shut off thelamp and crawled in between the cold sheets. “How the heck am I supposed to sleep now?”
***
Fin blinked, clearing sleep from his eyes, having woken from the best dream he’d ever had. When he turned to the clock, he shook his head.
“Great, are you kidding me? No power. Happens like clockwork, I swear.”
Sometime during the night, the storm must have gotten too bad and coated the transformers with ice. Electricity doesn’t stand a chance against mother nature. He should be used to it after living here off and on for so many years. Good thing his internal clock was set to 5:30 in the morning regardless of the weather. The room was a little cold, which meant so was the rest of the house, so he got dressed and went to start a fire in the living room.
By the time Harper made it to the kitchen, the girls were dressed and eating breakfast with Kaleb.
“Morning everybody.”
Fin met her at the table, kissing her softly. “Morning, you look refreshed. Did you sleep well?”
“I swear I had the best night of sleep in I don’t even know how long. What happened to the power? I was hoping to watch the weather channel this morning after I slept in much later than this.”
Kaleb grabbed some more coffee and handed Harper a mug while Fin went back to cooking eggs on the wood stove. “Typical winter here in Montana. I caught the tail end of it last night and the thermal maps didn’t look promising.”
Fin set a plate full of food in front of Harper’s seat, motioning for her to sit.“Sorry for dragging you all the way out here and getting you stuck.”
“It’s okay, really.” Harper smiled sweetly at him. “I have nothing to go home to anyway so it’s like a mini vacation.”
I only wish I could make myself feel as relaxed as I just made it all sound.
Anytime she was in the same room as Fin, her insides went haywire. Last night had been a close call. She didn’t want to come off as desperate, but it was a good thing Kaleb interrupted last night when he did because it’d been a long while since she’d been with anyone.
“Maybe I can show you around the farm today? The tractor shouldn’t have any problem getting through the fields if they’re all frozen. Looks like the freezing sleet has taken a break at least for a little while but it is still cold.”
“Oh okay, sounds like fun. I don’t think I really have the clothes to be outside though.”
“I’m sure there’s something around here that’ll fit you.” Kaleb added that he’d be right back with some things and headed upstairs with the twins.
Fin joined Harper at the table to finish his breakfast. Each time she caught Fin looking her way, she could feel her face heat up.Lord I’m acting like a giddy schoolgirl. He is a great kisser though.
“So how did you sleep Fin?” She tried to get her brain away from thinking about his kisses.
“Well for being alone, not bad. I guess the same as I always do. You know if you get lonely or too cold and need someone to warm you, my door is always open.” He tried to keepa serious face, but she knew he was as affected by what happened between them last night as she was. She’d like nothing more than to let her guard down and give in to him.Maybe I’m being a little overly cautious, but I just think it’s still a little soon, I haven’t even known him for two days yet.
“I’ll keep that in mind, thanks. So, what’s on the agenda for the day besides sightseeing?”
“Whatever you wanna do as long as it doesn’t involve traveling anywhere the tractor can’t take us or using electricity. Not sure when we’ll getthatback. Good thing we have a fireplace and a wood burning stove. We’ve definitely had to resort to using them a time or two.”
A few minutes later Kaleb came into the room with a box marked winter. “Here ya go Harper, see if any of this will fit you.”
“Thanks Kaleb, I’ll take good care of it.”
“No worries. You can have it if anything fits you. Maddie would be happy knowing its getting used.” With a somber face, Kaleb set the box on the table and left the room again.
