Page 3 of The Mountain Man's Sweet Treat
“How could I possibly know who you are? I’ve never met you!” I exclaim, cuddling Tobias closer as he lets out a soft sound. I lower my voice, not wanting to scare my fur baby. “Look, if you have an issue with me, take it up with the owner. He rented me this cabin.”
He frowns, irritation replacing the attraction in his gaze. “That’s impossible. This is my cabin, and I didn’t rent it to a curvy witch with a cat.”
Chapter 2
Sophie
“I’m not a witch,” I scowl at him, feeling my cheeks heat. It’s nothing new to hear. All those years in high school as the weird goth girl taught me not to show weakness. I don’t know why I thought there was something different about this mountain of a man.
“Look, I don’t care where you hang your broom tonight, but it’s not going to be here. Now, take your kitty and your caldron and get gone.”
“I have a legal right to be here. I can prove it,” I answer, remembering that my mom made me print everything for this trip.
She insisted I print the contract, the welcome packet, and even the map. I couldn’t do it at my apartment because I don’t have a printer. I had to go to her place. I thought it was just her way of spending time with me the night before I left.
He rakes his hand through the top of his hair, tugging on the longer strands. “One and only chance. Get out of here, and I won’t call the cops.”
“Go ahead. The law will be on my side,” I insist and stomp out of the kitchen, my boots clicking with every step I take into the living room. I dumped my overnight bag on the floor when I came inside. I bend over and unzip it at the same moment that I hear a sharp inhale.
A second later, there’s the unmistakable tinny sound of a phone ringing. “Hey, Deputy. It’s Whiskey. Yeah, it’s really me. This isn’t a prank. Listen, are you still in the area? I’ve got an intruder. I don’t know. Some lunatic that thinks she’s a witch. Probably drunk. Just come get her. Let her dry out in a cell.”
“I’m not drunk,” I call over my shoulder and set Tobias in my bra. He often sleeps on my chest when I’m streaming TV at night.
I yank all of my clothes out of the bag, plopping them on the floor beside me. I have to find that paperwork. It’s crumpled at the very bottom of my bag, underneath my G-cup bras. Yeah, high school was a nightmare for more than one reason.
I produce the paperwork after he ends the call, clutching it tightly. The mountain man crosses the floor in three strides. “Give it to me.”
I hold it out of reach even though that’s useless. He could take it from me if he really wanted to. He’s huge, the kind of guy that could pin a girl up against the wall and make her forget her nightmares. “No, I’ll show the deputy then you can apologize and leave.”
“Apologize for what?” He gestures his thumb toward himself, outrage coloring his tone. “This is my cabin on my land on my mountain. Everything on this mountain belongs to me.”
“You can’t own a mountain. A mountain belongs to the earth. Besides, I have paperwork to show I have the right to be here. What do you have?” I demand, refusing to back down. I have a right to be here. Why is he acting so strange?
“The start of a migraine,” he mutters. Suddenly, for the first time, I notice the dark circles under his eyes as if he has just as much trouble getting a good night’s sleep as I do. Could he be so sleep-deprived that he forgot renting his cabin to me?
Tobias meows again, reminding me he hasn’t had dinner. “I’m going to feed my cat while we wait for the deputy.”
I’ve just settled Tobias with his food, pausing to scratch him behind the ears when there’s a knock on the door. That should be the deputy. He can clear this up and then the sleep-deprived mountain man can leave. I rented the cabin for myself. There was no mention of a roommate I’d have to share it with.
When the mountain man opens the door and steps back, another large, bearded man comes through the cabin. Are all the men in town this huge?
He takes off his hat, revealing wavy dark hair that’s the same color as his beard. “Whiskey, I haven’t seen you in…what’s it been? Years, now? I didn’t know you were back.”
Whiskey crosses his arms over his chest. “Most folks don’t know. Try not to spread it around.”
The deputy nods and seems to switch back to business mode. “What seems to be the problem tonight?”
He grunts. “She thinks it’s OK to freeload.”
My mouth drops open before I quickly snap it closed again. “I am not a freeloader.”
“And she’s a witch. Possibly,” Whiskey adds.
“You know what? I give up. You’re going in my next caldron. I’ve been looking for eye of the asshole for a month, and I finally found it.”
He arches an eyebrow at the other man like I’ve just proved his point. OK, so we know the hot mountain man doesn’t know how to take a joke. Big surprise there.
“But first, detective?—”
