Page 9 of Loved By the Mountain Man

My mind’s racing, imagining petty crime or some small town drug situation.

“Babies.” She says it with her nose wrinkled up, as if the thought of babies is something disgusting to her. “Literally every single one of my friends, and now my sister, are having babies. I’ve got nothing against babies, but there’s got to be more to life, right?”

A pang of disappointment hits me. I’ve been thinking about Hailey having my babies ever since she walked into my cabin and made it feel like a home for the first time.

“You never want babies?”

She doesn’t notice the way I’m hanging on her answer.

“Eventually, but I’m only twenty-two. I’m not ready for that yet.”

Relief floods me as she keeps talking.

“My sister is with this guy who grew up on the next street over from us. He doesn’t treat her well. I wanted her to come travelling with me. I thought if she got out and saw the world, she might see that there are other men out there who would appreciate her more. But now she’s pregnant, so…”

Hailey shakes her head, and there’s sadness in her eyes as if her sister being pregnant is the worst thing in the world.

“Isn’t it something to celebrate?”

“You’d think so. I just wish her boyfriend wasn’t such a douchebag.”

She’s obviously anxious about her sister, and I hate seeing the worry that creases her forehead.

“You want something better for her?”

“I want something better for all of them.”

She must see my confusion.

“I mean the girls back home. It’s like that was what was expected of us, to get knocked up young and have babies. I just wanted to get out and see the world.”

“That’s fair enough.” I remember that same feeling when I joined the military. I hated growing up in a small mountain town. “Joining the Marines felt the same way. I wanted an adventure.”

Her voice goes quiet.

“How long we did you serve?”

I hate talking about the military. It drags up a lot of stuff for me, not all of it good. Instinctually, my hand goes to my scar, and I pull it away before I can touch it.

“Too long,” I tell her. “I made the spare room up for you.”

She looks at me for a long time but doesn’t challenge the subject change.

“Thank you. I appreciate it.”

As we’ve been talking, Hailey put her feet up on the couch. Now she slides them along the couch so that her toes wiggle against my leg. I put my hand around her sock clad feet and start massaging.

I can’t help myself; I need to touch her.

She looks at me shyly and doesn’t pull back, which makes me think she likes it. She sets her cocoa down on the table and scoots up so that she’s next to me.

“Thank you for your service.”

Her face is close to mine and I take her cheeks in my hands, feeling her hot breath on my skin. She’s stirring up feelings inside of me, desire, need, and longing. A deep longing to have a woman in my life, to havethiswoman in my life. I’m not sure what she sees in a man like me, but she’s here letting me touch her with her lips parted in anticipation.

I press my mouth against hers, pulling her into a kiss. She tastes like cocoa and cheese, sweetness and light and all the things I fought for during those long, hard years. All the goodness that I came home for but never found until now, with this woman.

Hailey pulls away from the kiss, and her green eyes are sparkling with emotion. Her hand runs up to my face, and before I can stop it, her fingers trace the line of my scar.

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