Page 167 of Rough and Rugged

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Battle For Love

SHELLY SMALL

Tropes

MF, romantic thriller

Blurb

Some stories are just that… stories. This tale will cover a legend, if you believe in them.

As well as a love for the ages.

What will happen when the two collide?

Read on if you dare…

Author’s Note

This is a portion of the book. The rest is coming soon.

I do hope you enjoy the teaser and want to read the finished story.

BATTLE FOR LOVE

Copyright 2024 by Shelly Small

All rights reserved. No part of this may be reproduced, stored, or transmitted in any form, by any means without written consent from Shelly Small.

This novel is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or deceased is coincidental. The characters, names, plots, or incidents within are the product of the author’s imagination. References to actual events or locations are included to give the fiction a sense of reality. No AI was used in creating this book.

Chapter One

Vincentstoodontheporch of his cabin, leaning on a rail, while he looked up at the bright full moon. He enjoyed the peacefulness of the mountains, where the cabin was located, as it was far away from the town and close to the lake. Vincent had come here to gather his thoughts about what to do with regards to his ranch. He enjoyed being in the mountains more as he got older, and thought maybe it was time to allow someone else to manage the ranch while he could live here in the cabin. Those were just a few things he had running around in his mind.

He looked out toward the lake which had the reflection of the moon. It looked like a painting with how calm the lake waters were. He took in a deep breath and loved the smell of the clean air, the aroma of the wild flowers along with the different trees all around.

“AAAAHHHHH!”

Vincent jolted upright from his leaning position when he heard a woman scream. The sound stopped suddenly and he ran down the steps and toward where he thought the scream came from.

He ran through the trees making sure he was careful not to injure himself in the process. Vincent had made it over a fallen tree when he saw a woman laying on the ground next to a few boulders. He ran toward her then fell to his knees to make sure she was alright.

He checked for a pulse and found one. Vincent let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding. Vincent noticed a gash on her forehead and it was bleeding badly. He tore a piece of his shirt to apply pressure to her head wound. After attempting to wake her up to no avail, Vincent got up from his knees so he could pick the woman up and get her back to his cabin to treat her wound.

He made sure to position the woman against his chest to keep pressure on the gash when he lifted her up so that when he made it back to the cabin, the bleeding would have hopefully stopped. It took a lot longer to make his way back as he had to walk slower and walk around fallen limbs or trees.

Once he saw the clearing in front of him, Vincent pushed himself more to get inside as the night air held a chill in it and it looked like the woman in his arms was only wearing some thin night clothes.

Vincent felt grateful for not shutting the front door all the way before he’d stepped out to enjoy the night air. He kicked open the door with more force than he intended too. It slammed against the wall. He winced at the sound but kept moving toward the couch where he placed the woman in his arms down.

He turned the lamp on for more light so he could see what he needed to do. With the light on, he saw the gash on the woman’s head had stopped bleeding, he noticed some scrapes on her knees as well as small cuts to her arms and legs.

Vincent stood up to head to the bathroom to gather his first-aid kit. Once inside with the light on he caught himself in the mirror and stood frozen for a moment. He had a lot of blood on him and couldn’t figure out where it all came from. He bent down to open the cabinet door to grab the kit and other things he may need.

He stood up, turned the light off before making his way toward the couch. He placed all the items in his hands down on the coffee table, when he heard a moan. Vincent took a look at the woman and saw movement from her. He sat on the table in front of her as she started to open her eyes.

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