Page 20 of Romanced By the Mountain Man

Tears prick behind my eyelids, but I refuse to let them fall.

He makes a pained noise when he sees them, as if it’s hurting him to know I’m in pain. But that can’t be right. That just has to be my wishful thinking. I’ve spent so long waiting to be loved that I was willing to accept scraps of affection. Dammit, I really am pathetic. “Did your book club have a good laugh at me? Your friends too?”

“What? No—” He tries to take a step toward me, to do what I don’t know.

But I step back. I can’t stand the idea that he would touch me now. “It’s time for me to go.”

“No, I’m not letting you.” He shakes his head. “We can talk about this. Yeah, I didn’t admit who I was, and that was—”

“Wrong and cowardly,” I answer and duck by him. I slip out the door of the office easily. He must have been laughing too. They all must have thought it was funny.Look at the pitiful little romance writer who just wants to be loved.

He grabs my arm as I step into the hall. He could overpower me. He could keep me here. Zoey is the only one who knows where I am. But I know instinctively that Blade won’t do that. He’s a good man, even if he doesn’t think so.

I push back the thought. “I gave you my virginity. I trusted you with my body. I gave you everything, and you lied to me.”

“And you have every right to be mad as hell about it. But don’t walk away from this, from us. You’re mine. You’re my meant to be.”

“Yeah, I thought you were my soulmate. Turns out, I was wrong.” I swipe at my face and manage to hold it together. “And you have no idea how disappointed I am.”

Blade drops my arm and staggers back as if he’s been hit.

I can’t believe I did this. I can’t believe I fell in love with a mountain man and thought I’d found my forever. I really am naïve.

I move to the bedroom and gather my things. It takes me a few minutes because I’ve strewn my stuff everywhere. It’s all mixed in with his, like I was planning on staying forever. Like I was living some damn fairytale.

Blade watches me the entire time, but he doesn’t try to convince me to stay anymore. He doesn’t say anything at all.

I help Alvin into the kitty carrier. He makes a mournful noise as he climbs inside, as if he understands that we’re never coming back again. This is the last time we’ll ever see this cabin. I glance around it a final time, my gaze landing on Blade. His shoulders have slumped and his head is down. Part of me wants to go to him, to comfort him.

But I fight back against the urge. He’s not interested in forever. He would have told me his real identity sooner if he’d wanted me. No, it’s better if I just leave.

* * *

Blade

Waking up on my couch,I stumble toward the bathroom. I reach for the door and scowl when the knob is locked. I jiggle it at the same time a deep voice asks, “What the fuck are you doing?”

I turn and spot Roman.

“Can’t a guy take a piss?” My voice comes out belligerent and slow. My whole brain feels muddy, and my mouth is dry as cotton. Fuck, what did I do last night?

“Not when he’s trying to piss on my front porch. Bathroom is that way.” He points down his hallway. That’s when I realize I’m not in my house at all. I’m at Roman’s place.

I move to the bathroom and take care of my business before I splash cold water on my face. I press a hand to my forehead as the events of last night come back to me in pieces. When I stumble into Roman’s living room, he passes me a cup of coffee and pain relievers.

“Are you ready now to tell me why you showed up at my house at midnight screaming like a banshee, drunk off your ass?”

I try to remember if I actually did that as I swallow the pills. Fuck, I think I did. I think I was an asshole to him. “She found out. She left. You were right. You happy?”

“Fuck, you cared about her. I saw it on your face, and I knew it’d be a problem.” He moves to the stove to make scrambled eggs. He swears when he drops two of the eggs with his swollen hands. The steroid shots don’t work very well for him, and I hate that he’s in pain.

Of course, he knew it’d be a problem. Roman is the one that reads all the guys. Maybe it was prison that made him good at reading people. “You didn’t hear me. She left. I’m a disappointment. I’m always a disappointment.”

He stops cleaning up the messy eggs on the floor and raises to his full height. His voice is tinged with anger. Big brother bear wants to defend me. “She called you a disappointment?”

I down the hot coffee that burns like acid and set my mug on the counter. “Doesn’t matter. I disappointed her. Rain check on the eggs for me.”

He stops me before I can leave the kitchen, stepping into my path. “No, what did she say?”

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