Page 1 of Mail Order Mountain Man

Chapter One

Junie

“What?”

“What do you mean, what?” My friend Maggie is a spitfire of honest energy that I don’t need today. Today, I need an agreeable bestie. One that goes along with everything I say and makes me feel like a genius for thinking of it.

She tosses her long blonde hair back over her shoulder and looks toward me with a downturned gaze that just might set me on fire. “Be honest! The last three guys were all duds, because you—”

“Because they were jerks! The first one stole money from his parents to travel up the mountain, the second lived in the city, and the third guy was younger than me. None of that is my fault!”

She glares down at my application, then back up at me. “Really?”

“What?”

She yanks my laptop from my lap and stares at me while holding down the delete button. “You’re not a veterinarian. You’re a ranch hand. You haven’t traveled the world. You’ve literally not left the mountain. And you’re clearly only twenty-four, not thirty-six.” She shrugs. “Who lies about being older?”

I suck in a deep breath and count slowly as I release it. I’ve been working on that in therapy. I’m not sure if it’s making much of a difference.

“I’m studying to be a veterinarian, and if Iwerethirty-six, I’d already be there… with a few vacations under my belt. So, I figure why not talk like I’ve made it? I want to attract older men, anyway. I don’t want some young guy who can’t handle a woman.”

“Okay.” She scrolls down the page to the boxes where I appoint my desired age range in men. “Then check one of these.”

I tilt my head to the side, unamused by herhonesty,and do-gooder attitude. “Trust me, I’ve checked it, and still, I only get young guys pretending to be mature. If I’m a young girl pretending to be old, maybe I’ll get guys that are older.”

I expect her to laugh, but instead, she shakes her head back and forth, checks the box, and presses send on my revised application before getting my approval.

“So pushy! What about you? You’re judging me, but you haven’t been on a date in months.”

Her eyes roll. “I don’t need a date. What I need is a dog. Do you think you could help me fill out an animal shelter application next?”

I grin. “Sure, but I’m not going to let you lie about your yard size.”

Finally, we laughtogether,about the same thing. It’s good timing, too. I was starting to wonder if I was going to have to excuse her from her best friend duties.

“Anyway,” she says, standing from the couch, “I’ll see you at Waylon’s? I’ve got sheep duty all week. I’m not a fancy trainer like you.”

“I’ll be in around one. I promised him I’d grab lunch for the office on my way.”

She takes off, and I busy myself with a bit of the homework I need to get done before work. I could call myself a veterinarian. I only have a year left of school. That’s nothing compared to the years I’ve been working toward the degree. I was earning college credits in high school, for God's sakes.

As I’m finishing up the last paragraph on my personal statement essay, I get an alert on my phone from the matching agency.

The first time I was matched, I’d got really excited. After all, the man of my dreams was about to ride up the mountain on his white horse, marry me, and give me all his babies. Turns out, even a mail order mountain man isn’t a sure-fire thing. Maggie’s probably right. The other guys lasted less than twenty-four hours and none of them even made it to my cabin. This one will be a nightmare, too. Maybe more so.

I click the link, which leads me to a message.Cole will meet you at the bakery in eight hours.

Eight hours!

That’s one thing I don’t care for about this app. There’re no photos and you get no real information. You get a first name and a time to meet. The agency says it keeps folks from being superficial and matching based on soul mate status rather than their body, but still, it’s a little annoying when you’re on‘soul mate’number three.

Just tell me he chews with his mouth open and has four ex-wives so I can give him a pass and move on. I guess if I wanted that, I could go to the array of other matching agencies online.

I suck in a deep breath and let it out slowly, practicing my box breathing as I read the email. I’m not sure if seven o’clock tonight works. I have an exam tomorrow online and I haven’t studied at all for it. Besides, I have to work all day and by the time I get home and get changed, it will be late and—

The sound of Maggie’s voice hits me hard, like she’s in the room. “You’re going to this date!” I guess we’ve been friends long enough that the ghost of her comments are here whenever she isn’t. Truth is, even her ghost is right.

Who knows? Cole could be the mail order mountain man I’ve been dreaming of. Or at the very least, he could be another hilarious story to tell the real man of my dreams someday… if I ever find him.

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