Page 5 of Fall Wedding With the Mountain Man
He was jaw-jacking with one of the shelter staff while he held a gray kitten in his hands, stroking it lightly behind the ear. The kitten was soaking up the attention.
Hudson had brought in seven loads of donations from his truck, and the shelter staff seemed overjoyed to see both him and the stuff.
They knew him by name, and it was obvious he was a regular here.
“You want to hold a kitten?” he asked as he handed it to me.
“Oh, uh, yeah?”
I didn’t know what to do with the squirming ball of fur, but the kitten figured it out for me. It climbed onto my shoulder and started batting at my hair while I tried to keep a grip on it.
My dad had been allergic to cats and dogs, so I’d grown up without them.
I’d never understood the draw until this moment.
The tiny gray tabby started purring and licking my neck. And I felt like my heart melted on the spot.
The last twenty minutes of my life had been a complete departure from everything I knew. Somehow I’d been whisked into a fantasy world where hot, burly men played with kittens and saved plus-size princesses like me.
This would never have happened in New York City.
It was too big. Too fast. Everyone was a stranger there.
But I could already tell the Ozarks were different. And Hudson was different, too.
I stared up at him while he finished talking to the shelter staff. His hair stuck out in every direction, but it was his beard that made him look feral. It was thick and full of curls, framing his gorgeous lips perfectly.
He looked like he could be in an ad for outdoor living. Every woman I knew would sign up for whatever he was selling.
What’s his story?
He hadn’t said much about his life. Just that he was from somewhere called Red Oak Mountain. I didn’t know anything about him other than the fact that he had a cute, oversized dog named Frankie, and a giant black pickup truck.
The kitten meowed and nestled on my chest, and something shifted inside me.
Up until this moment, I’d been laser-focused on getting to the wedding and trying to repair my relationship with Shelby. I’d been on a mission.
And when that mission was done, my next mission would start. Just like always.
I was a list-driven human. I liked to have my life planned out on paper so I always knew what was coming next. No surprises.
After the wedding, I’d drive myself to the nearest airport and take the next flight back home. Then I’d prepare a microwave dinner for myself, do my laundry, and prepare to go back towork. My job as a lawyer didn’t leave much room for frivolous details like living a life.
It definitely didn’t include meeting hot, country men or holding furry fluff balls.
Hudson rumbled, “I think she likes you.”
The kitten had gone to sleep, somehow still purring, the vibration doing something strange to my heart.
“I think I might be in love,” I whispered.
He laughed. “You want a kitten? I hear they’re having a sale today. This one can be yours for the low price offree.”
“Oh. I couldn’t. I mean, Ishouldn’t. What would I do with a kitten? I don’t even know how to take care of one.”
“Kittens are simple. They want love. A warm spot in the sun. And more love. They also benefit from food and water. Done.”
Hudson made things feel possible, even though I knew they weren’t.
