Page 11 of Taming the Wild Mountain Man

"I am. My twin sister recently had a baby, which has kicked my own biological clock into overdrive. I think part of the reason why I accepted this job offer was to live in Cedar Crest Hollow. The pace of life here is slower, and it's an ideal place to raise a family. But…"

"But what?"

"First I need to find someone."

Belle cracks a wide grin. "Sounds to me like maybe you have."

"Your mom warned me about Hume."

Belle rolls her eyes. "Mom is old school and super protective. She's all about risk and analysis and doesn't like to take chances."

"Until recently, neither did I."

"Could've fooled me," Belle says, sounding surprised. "I realize we're only new friends, but let's review what I know about you. You quit your job. Moved to the other side of the country to take this one. And you bought a house online, without seeing it in person. That doesn't exactly screamcareful and calculatedto me."

"But that's the thing, for the first time ever, I took a chance, and look what happened."

"What exactly has happened? From what you've told me, you love being closer to your family. You like working here…" A frown creases her brow. "Wait. You do like working here, don't you?"

"Of course, I do. I love it."

She lets out a happy sounding sigh, likely relieved I'll be staying in my job and not having it fall back to her. She has plans to leave town as soon as I'm on my feet with the lodge.

"So what's the problem?" she presses.

"My house is falling apart, and my next door neighbor is…"

"Insanely hot? Wild, but in a good way? Older, but also in a good way?" she chimes in when I trail off.

"Well…"

She's kinda right on all three fronts, not leaving me much wiggle room for a comeback.

"Yes, your house is an issue, but it's a solvable one. And your super sexy, wild mountain man neighbor is an equally solvable issue. It sounds to me like taking a chance for the first time is actually paying off nicely for you."

"Huh." When she puts it like that.

"What is it that's really bothering you about Hume? Is it the age gap?"

"No, I mean. It's notthatbig of a gap. He'd be, what, early forties?"

She chokes out a surprise laugh. "Are you joking?"

"About what?"

"About Hume's age."

"No. Why? What, is he, like, forty-four, or something?"

"Oh, boy." Belle lowers the pile of papers in her hands onto the floor and makes her way over, sitting down cross-legged in front of me. She takes my hands in hers. "Tenley…" She blinks a few times. "He's fifty-two."

"No way."

"Afraid so." She waits a beat. "Doesthatbother you?"

"I…I don't know." I slip my hands out of hers and stand. It's a little hard to pace back and forth with my entire office floor is a metropolis of paper towers, so I zig and zag around them, trying to process that there's atwenty-freaking-twoyear age gap between us.

Belle folds her legs and rests her arms over knees. "Well?" she asks, after a few minutes pass. "What are you thinking?"

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