Page 17 of Fearless Mountain Man

But the other mountain men weren’t by themselves anymore. They started that way, and then they met a woman. A woman like me.

“Most of the mountain men are around Carter’s age?” I asked.

“Mid-thirties.” She nodded. “Good-looking.” She sighed. “I don’t get why it can’t happen to me. I’ve lived here long enough.”

That made me want to help her find her own mountain man. But you couldn’t just manufacture what I’d found with Carter. It came to you when you least expected it. And it completely changed your life.

“I can’t leave,” I said.

“You’re in love.” She smiled. “See, I knew it. I saw it the second you mentioned Carter’s name. It was in your eyes.”

I’d always worn my heart on my sleeve, so of course, once I found my dream guy, that wouldn’t change. Everyone would be able to tell how I felt.

“It’s a great town, you know,” Violet said.

I snapped back to the present, to the woman seated across from me with the big smile and bright blue eyes.

“Sorry?” I asked, trying to put her words into context.

“Seduction Summit. It’s a great town. Not many places like it. It’d be well worth settling down with a guy like Carter. I mean, he has a pool in his backyard and a beautiful view.”

Yeah, he did have all that, but I didn’t care about his view. What I cared about was the man living in that house.

But Violet was right. I could do far worse than settle down in this mountain town with its breathtaking views and friendly locals. In fact, I couldn’t think of a single reason not to move here.

“You should tell him how you feel,” Violet said. “That’s all I’m saying. And if you do decide to move here…” She reached for her phone, which she’d held in her hand throughout the conversation, and snapped open the case on the back. Sliding a card from the compartment inside, she handed it to me. “That has my personal cell and my email address. Let me know if you decide to move here. We can help you get established and take you out for margaritas and tacos every now and then.”

As I watched my new friend return to her table, it hit me that I’d just found another reason to move to Seduction Summit. A ready-made friend group. That was something I didn’t even have at home.

With a nod, I snatched up my phone and asked the server to bring my coffee to go. I had a lot to do if I was going to relocate—including finding a way to tell the man of my dreams that he was stuck with me.

10

CARTER

Come home.

That two-word message was waiting for me when I checked my phone once I got to my truck at the end of the workday. It had taken Ana a full six hours to respond to my text. Not that I was counting.

Okay, I was counting every second. All day, I’d been aware of my phone in that truck—wanting to check it but holding myself back. But she’d told me to come home, so home was exactly where I went.

As I neared my house, I saw a very familiar SUV. Ana’s SUV. A goofy grin spread across my face. I was not the type to walk around wearing a goofy grin. It just wasn’t me. But it had become me over the past twenty-four hours…and all because of this woman who’d waltzed into my life like she’d been drawn there.

My grin turned to a frown, though, as I pulled into my garage. The front door would’ve been locked—this wasn’t a town where people locked doors, but old habits died hard, and locking up was an old habit.

A locked house meant Ana couldn’t be inside, though. She wasn’t on the front porch, either. Maybe she’d hopped the fence and decided to take a few laps in the pool. Or she could be lounging on one of the cushioned patio chairs, maybe even watching some TV on the big screen I’d installed out there.

I didn’t mind. My home was her home.

When I climbed out of my truck, I listened for signs she might be at the back of the house, but nothing. I passed Ana’s vehicle and continued toward my backyard, ready to greet her with a smile.

Once I came around the back corner of my house, I saw that she wasn’t in my back yard. Instead, she was on the other side of the fence, where I’d first met her yesterday around this time. She was standing, hair in a ponytail, wearing a T-shirt and shorts and waving at me.

“Get over here,” she said. “We’re having a picnic.”

A picnic? I’d planned to take her to the next town over for a fancy dinner for our first date, but maybe last night at the lodge counted as a first date. At the time, we’d both thought of it as a business meeting, but I was already interested in her.

I went around the front of my house and headed over to the neighboring lot—a lot she’d come to town to buy. She’d lain out a big blanket, and as I drew closer, I saw the food she’d spread out over it. A basket was in the center. The top was open, and on the blanket was a big bowl of grapes, a platter stacked with fried chicken, and small containers all around. She’d also set out a bottle of beer and a very small bottle of wine.

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