Page 26 of My Wild Mountain Man

“What?” we both simultaneously asked, but the jerk just chuckled.

“Raven loves to read in between the trees, and honestly, Rave, Bash knows all the great hidden parts of Moonlit Pines.”

“You want me to take your sister on a hike?” I asked incredulously. Raven looked at both of us, but I couldn’t read her thoughts. I just needed to be honest with Onyx. “Actually, Onyx, I need to talk to you,” I started to say, and Raven’s alarm went off.

“Shit! I gotta go and get ready, or I’ll be late for my appointment. It was… nice to see you guys.” She went and hugged her brother before turning, and just as she was about to hug me, she stepped back. “Bye. Thanks again for breakfast.”

“Right.” My voice sounded scratchy. I hated to watch her leave, but fuck me, it was a fucking show to watch her go.

“What did you need to talk to me about?” Onyx asked, and I turned to look at him.

“Umm…” I swallowed. “I think I’m going to do an early inventory today. You know, to close out the month, get shit ordered. That way, nothing’s delayed.”

“Cool.” He scratched the back of his neck, glancing towards the hardware store. “That’s cool.”

“You good, man?” I asked. He muttered something incoherent under his breath.

“You and Raven,” he said, pinning me with his eyes. “You guys good?”

“What?”

“I don’t know. Maybe I sensed something off, and the way she rushed away right now…”

“She has to get ready for work,” I pointed out.

“Hmm,” he grunted. “Right. Well, if you end up changing your mind about taking time off this weekend, I’ll swap with you for next weekend.” The three of us had decided we deserved some time off and each were taking turns to take our own three-day weekend off.

“Something going on?” When he wouldn’t meet my eyes, I had a feeling something was up. “Big plans?”

“Na,” he chuckled, his attention wavering once again to the shop at the end of the street. “Nothing like that.” He shook his head.

“You sure, Onyx?” I asked, and he frowned. His eyes met mine. We were about the same height and weight.

“I’m sure. I’ll see you later?”

“Yeah, I’m just going to go shower and get ready for the day.”

“Cool. I better get going,” he muttered, already moving to head to the hardware store.

Whatever was going on with him was going to be interesting to watch unfold. If he was talking to me at the time. Because I knew I was going to need to have a serious conversation with my best friend.

It wasn’t if but when we got together. Raven was mine. I didn’t want whatever friendship I had with her brother to blow up in my face, but And even if that was the only option, I’d still take a go at things with Raven.

She was right.

My pretty girl deserved someone who would chase and fight for her. And I was more than ready to go ten rounds if it meant spending the rest of my life with her.

raven

. . .

My feet were achingby the end of my day as I worked on Olive’s hair. She’d surprised me by calling me a couple of hours ago to see if I could fit her in for a blowout. Since she’s my sister, I would have squeezed her in even if I didn’t have time.

Oli was the closest to me age-wise and a wild card. You never knew what she was going to say. A wild child out of the five of us, and that was saying something because as the only boy, Onyx gave her a run for her money.

“Are you okay?” my sister asked, her voice snapping me out of my Bash-induced thoughts over the noise from the blow dryer.

“Yeah, why?” I asked, somehow pretending like I wasn’t keeping a secret.

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