Page 2 of Kidnapped By the Mountain Man

I’m making no sense. I know it. “Oh, well… what’s your name? You sound familiar.” I reach my palm out toward him.

He crinkles his brow and takes my hand in his, swallowing it up. “Austin. You?”

“Cora. You’re Austin? Austin from Waylon’s farm?”

He nods, and that grin comes back again. “And you’re Cora.”

Oh God. Maybe he doesn’t remember me. We’ve talked at work once or twice, and I accidentally dialed him that one time, which resulted in a weird call back.

I laugh. “Yeah. How have you been?”

“Good.” He nods back toward the trailer. “Gotta stud in the trailer, though. He’s pretty worked up. He might knock out a hip if I don’t get him moving soon.”

The second he says it, my ears perk to things other than the sound of his voice. Things like the sides of a horse trailer being kicked and a huffing, unhappy horse.

Could this be any more embarrassing?

“Yeah! Let me walk you to the pasture. I know where Dad wants him.”

Austin nods and guides me toward the horse trailer, where his stud is for sure losing his shit.

“Stand back.” His big arm stretches out in front of me, protecting me from the giant Clydesdale about to burst from the trailer. “He doesn’t always act like this, but when he’s ready to go, he—”

“Oh, trust me, I know. I’ve been around horses my entire life. We talked about that before, remember?”

Oh wow. Could I be more awkward?Maybe I should lay down right here and let the horse trample me. At this point, that option seems better than the alternative of my mouth continuing to run.

He doesn’t answer me right away. Instead, he straightens the reins on his stud and walks out of the trailer. Finally, he looks toward me. “How could I forget the girl who burst into tears about the unethical treatment of pigs?”

Okay, he does remember… for all the wrong reasons. “To be fair, I have a lot of other things going on.”

“So you don’t care about the treatment of pigs?”

“No! I mean… yes. I care a lot. I just mean… the crying part. I’ve been kind of a mess lately.”

Austin holds the reins of the excited horse at his side, and we move down the hill and toward the far left pasture where Dad moved Mindy, another Clydesdale, for thisappointment.

“You would think I’d have run into you more often at Waylon’s ranch,” Austin says, opening the pasture gate. He unlatches the horse from his reins and shuts the gate behind him. “But it looks like you have your hands full. It’s gotta be exhausting working here and up at Waylon’s.”

“It’s a long story.” I smile softly and grab a weed from beside the gate post and pull it apart as I talk. “I was studying to be a veterinarian, then everything got complicated here, and I need the extra money.”

Austin rakes his gaze over me. “Farm vet?”

I nod and brush a strand of hair from my vision, and the glimmer of the giant stone on my hand catches my attention. I don’t usually wear it, but Rick is coming over later, and he likes to see it on me.

“Engaged, huh?” Austin grabs my hand in his, rubbing his calloused finger over the stone. “Fuck. Looks like some rich boy is about to be a lucky guy.”

I stare at the ring, trying not to look disappointed… because I’m not. At least that’s what I keep telling myself. “Yeah.” I look down at the ground and scuff my boot through the dirt. “I suppose he is. You married?”

Austin shakes his head. “Never been, and don’t think I’ll ever be. The way I figure it, relationships are best served with an escape clause.” He clears his throat. “No offense or anything. I’m sure you and Mr…”

“Altmire. Rick Altmire.”

Austin’s eyes narrow. “TheRick Altmire? The one from Colorado Springs that owns all those condos near the ski resorts outside of town?”

I nod. “That’s the one.”

“Fuck.Maybe I was wrong. You’re the lucky one. You’re about to be set for life. Why can’t Richie Rich pay for your vet school?”

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