Page 19 of Devoted Mountain Man

“What did your friend say?” he asked as I settled my purse strap onto my shoulder.

“She was a little skeptical. She probably thinks you’re an axe murderer.”

“Well, I do carry an axe, but I’d never hurt anyone. Well, I might use it on anybody who tried to harm you. I’d start off with a strongly worded warning, though.”

I smiled. “That’s good to know.”

“Don’t worry.” He took several steps toward me and put a hand on each of my shoulders. “I’ll win over your friend.”

I put my hands on his sides and moved in closer. “I know you will. But you might have to do it sooner than you expect. She mentioned hopping in her car and coming up here tonight.” His eyebrows rose and I shook my head. “I told her we had a hot date.”

“Our first date. But it’s not the date as much as what I want to do afterward.”

I tilted my head slightly and gave him my most flirtatious smile. “And what’s that exactly?”

“I gave you three orgasms this morning, I want to give you at least three more before the day’s over.”

“That’s a challenge I can get excited about,” I said. “But first, I’m starving.”

“I’ll take you to dinner. There’s a charming place in the next town over. I wouldn’t call it fine dining, but it’s about as fancy as you get up here in the mountains.”

I didn’t care about fancy or fine dining. I just wanted to be with my man.

And as we exited the rental cabin, hand in hand, I knew this was only the first of many date nights we’d have over the course of our lifetime together. And I couldn’t be happier about it.

Yes, I’d finally come home.

EPILOGUE

DAYTON

“It’s impossible to sit here without remembering our first time,” Vanessa said.

We were seated on our covered patio on the cushy loveseat that sat butted up against the windows. The kids would be in deep sleep by now. Once they’d had their bedtime story, they were usually out like lights.

“I think about it every time I step out here,” I said.

I reached over and took her hand. We’d gotten married ten years ago, and we’d only spent the occasional night apart since. Every now and then, Vanessa had to travel for writing conferences and author retreats, but for the most part, we were inseparable.

“I don’t think I could have ever imagined when I came up here to write that I’d end up married to the neighbor,” she said.

We were married with two beautiful kids. Our sons were eight and five, and they kept us on our toes. I never imagined fatherhood would be so exhausting and rewarding.

“We’re all alone out here, you know,” she said, unclasping her hand from mine and settling it on my thigh.

I was well aware of that. I was also aware of her fingers on the seam of my jeans—moving up, up, up. She skimmed my cock, and it jumped to attention, pressing urgently against my fly. My erection seemed to have gone from zero to one hundred in a split second.

“I’m well aware,” I said. “What do you want to do about it?”

She looked up at me, and I shifted to meet her stare. At the same time, her fingers boldly stroked my shaft through the thick fabric of my jeans. She knew I had a bulge, and she definitely wanted to do something about it.

“I want to fuck you,” she said.

I groaned. She knew I loved it when she talked dirty.

“I had no idea meeting you would be my lucky charm.” She lowered her gaze to her hand, watching her fingers trail a path up and down the fly of my jeans. “I started writing that second book the next day. I’ve never written anything that fast.”

“And that’s the book that put you on the map.”

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