Page 4 of Entangled with a Mountain Man

"God, I've missed you," he breathes, pulling me into a crushing hug.

I go rigid in his arms, unable to reciprocate. This isn't right. This isn't how it was supposed to be. We were supposed to have a quiet reunion, a chance to reconnect after all those months of letters and phone calls. Not... whatever this is.

"Ian, I..." My voice is barely above a whisper, but he doesn't seem to notice my discomfort.

"Missed this," he murmurs, and before I can react, his lips crash into mine with a desperation that steals my breath away.

It's harsh and demanding, unlike the gentle first kisses I'd imagined sharing with him so many times. My hands fly to his chest, pushing him away as I gasp for air.

"What the hell?" I croak out, panic and shame roiling through me in equal measure.

"You lying, cheating bastard!"

A collective gasp passes over the bus station, and suddenly, the small-town hustle stops.

I turn to the voice and see a woman standing near the Benz, hands planted on her hips and eyes blazing with fury... Her model-like beauty could grace the cover of any magazine.

"Paige, baby, calm down." Ian holds up his hands placatingly, but there's no mistaking the panic in his eyes now.

"You told me she was just a friend, someone from your past! You never said?—"

The woman shrieks, her voice slicing through my shocked silence.

"It's not what it looks like, I swear!" He moves closer to her, and I take a step back.

"Not what it looks like? Like your tongue wasn’t down her throat?" She lets out a harsh laugh, her glare swinging back to me. "Is this why you've been so distracted lately? Working late, my ass! You've been carrying on with this... this bitch behind my back!"

“Bitch? Look, I don’t—” I start to explain, and I think about the girls.

My face flames with humiliation. This can't be happening, not here, not in front of Harper and Hazel and their father?—

Their father.

Oh Lord, I turn to look at Everett, half-expecting to see disgust and judgment written across his chiseled features.

What I find is... worse, somehow.

His expression is carefully blank, that earlier wariness now shuttered behind an impassive mask. But his eyes... those eyes bore into me with such disdain that I want to shrivel up and disappear.

"Dad?" Harper's trembling voice shatters the awful silence. "What's going on?"

"Nothing, honey," Everett says, his deep voice gentler than I expected. "Why don't you and Hazel wait in the truck? I'll be there in a minute."

The girls hesitate, clearly torn between curiosity and obedience. But one stern look from their father has them hurrying off toward the pickup.

As soon as they're out of earshot, Paige rounds on me, her face contorted with rage. "Who the fuck do you think you are? Like you can just waltz into our town and steal my husband?"

Husband? I cringe at her words.

"I’m sorry. But…," I stammer, hating how small and pathetic I sound. "He never told me he was married."

"Oh, please," Paige scoffs, her laugh bitter and cutting. "Like I'd believe anything that comes out of your lying mouth. That you didn’t board a fucking bus to try to steal my man!"

Her words echo through the bus station, and I'm acutely aware of every eye fixed on us. Whispers ripple through the small crowd gathered, and I want nothing more than to disappear into thin air.

"Paige, stop. This ain’t the place or time," Ian pleads, reaching for her arm.

She wrenches away from him, her eyes flashing dangerously. "Don't you dare touch me! I trusted you! And you keep breaking my fucking heart!"

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