Page 15 of Engaged to the Mountain Man

“When I was thirteen. Sometimes, I can’t believe that it’s been so long. It doesn’t feel that way. It feels like I was talking to her yesterday and today, I woke up and she’s not there anymore.”

He makes a consoling noise. It’s a soft rumble that I feel through his chest into mine.

I look up at him, seeing all the pity and sorrow in his gaze. “I wish she could meet you.”

“She already has. She’s looking down from Heaven and watching over you, which means she watched you stumble into my cabin and march around like you own the place.”

I chuckle. How could that have been yesterday? How could this man now feel like an essential part of my heart, like the part of me that I’ll never be able to let go?

“Do you remember your mom?” I ask, my voice hesitant. I’m afraid to broach the subject for fear of pushing at old wounds. There’s still so much I want to know about this mountain man, and I only have a week to convince him to come back with me.

He’s quiet for so long that I don’t think he’s going to answer the question. Then he says, “I don’t really remember anything before five. Sometimes, I don’t know if that’s bad or good.”

“So, you have no memories of your mom.” Even if she did pass away, he should remember something before he was five. It’s strange that he can’t.

He hesitates before admitting, “Sometimes in my mind’s eye, I see a woman with dark hair and gray eyes. She’s hugging me and telling me she loves me and reading bedtime stories.”

“Do you think that’s her?” I wonder if I could find her for him. The palace has plenty of resources, and Violet has connections everywhere. She could help me.

“I think that was a scared little boy’s way of coping with the fact that he was an orphan,” he answers, his voice dejected.

“What if it wasn’t? What if that’s really a memory of her?”

His expression falls and I know it was the wrong thing to say. “If that’s true, then why did she leave me all alone, letting me be passed from strange house to strange house while I wondered where she was?”

I don’t have a good answer for that. I don’t know what to say to comfort him. I lost my mother at thirteen, but it’s not the same, and we both know it. I have memories of a woman who loved me and cared for me. Rafael has nothing but vague recollections.

“Doesn’t matter,” he says softly. “All that matters now is that we found our way to each other.”

His words give me a little bit of hope that maybe we’ll find a way to make this work. Even if it’s a long-distance relationship, and we don’t get to see each other much, that would be OK.

As long as he marries me, all will be well. We can do that, can’t we? We can love each other across the oceans. Even as I think the thought, my heart fills with sorrow. I want to be with Rafael every day for the rest of my life.

If he asks me to choose between my duty and my heart, I’m not sure which one will win.

8

AURORA

The next morning,I wake up on fire. When I open my eyes, I realize I’m not actually burning up. It’s the warmth coming from Rafe’s big body.

Last night after we made love two more times, he climbed into my sleeping bag with me. I don’t know how the both of us managed to make it work, but we did. He’s a restless sleeper who kept snoring. I may haveaccidentallyelbowed him in the ribs once or twice to stop him from doing that. But each time I woke him, he gave me a soft smile and hugged me close.

I lean over and brush a strand of hair from his forehead. He stirs and murmurs sleepily, “Good morning.”

Neither of us can hide the dopey grins on our faces. I’ve never felt like this before. I’m pretty sure I’ve fallen in love with the grumpy mountain man, and I think it’s possible that he even loves me back.

My stomach growls, and he says, “I’ll get breakfast going while you wash up.”

I wash up and make a quick check-in call with Violet. I’m sure she hears the giddiness in my voice, but she doesn’t comment on it. In fact, she barely asks me any questions. She’s more distracted than usual and ends the conversation quickly.

After our call, I eat a quiet breakfast over the fire with Rafael. The entire time we’re sitting side by side, and he’s touching me in some small way. Whether it’s putting his hand on my back or pressing his thigh against mine, he can’t keep his hands off of me. I wonder if there was ever a point in my parents’ marriage where they were like this. But I can’t imagine Rafe is anything like my father.

“The lake here is so clear, so still,” I tell him after we’ve finished our breakfast. “It reminds me of the one behind Father’s castle.”

“Do you go swimming in it often?”

I shake my head. “Oh no, it’s not proper for a princess.”

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