Page 16 of Entranced in the Mountains
I have to see him again.
I can’t leave this town without seeing him one more time.
Tomorrow morning… I’ll go…
But for now…
I have this photo and my fingers to hold me over.
It’s no Mr. Sexy Sheriff, but it will have to do.
For now…
CHAPTER SIX
Ryland
“Damn, Sheriff,” Emmanuel says when I lay down on the bench press. “What’s gotten into you?”
Henry whistles as he comes over to watch. Cara too. Even Santino takes off his big noise-cancelling headphones and joins the group.
We’re all in the weight room in the back of the precinct for our traditional Monday morning workout. It’s something we’ve been doing for years. It was meant to be a team building exercise, but we usually just end up talking shit and making fun of each other.
“I didn’t know you could lift this heavy,” Santino says as I grip the bar.
“I’ve lifted heavier than that,” Henry says without a hint of irony in his voice. The man is a long way away from lifting this heavy with his beer gut and all that extra weight he’s carrying. Being married has made him soft.
Emmanuel snorts out a laugh. “Give me a break, Henry. You couldn’t even lift that bar if those weights were made of foam.”
“Guys,” Cara snaps. “Let the boss concentrate.”
Everyone watches as I lift the bar with a grunt. It bends under the tremendous weight, but it doesn’t break as I slowly raise it up and down.
My muscles are screaming. My heart is pounding. I just grit my teeth and focus on pushing this bar. Up. Down. Up. Down. Up. Down.
“Holy shit,” Santino whispers as he watches.
I was up all night. I don’t think I slept a wink.
That girl…
She did something to me.
Something I don’t quite understand. I’ve gone through five decades of life and met all kinds of girls. Every size, shape, and personality possible and I’venevereven been tempted. Not once.
But this girl… This angel… She’s imprinted herself on me. She’s under my skin and in my heart. She’s taken over every thought I have.
I’m…obsessedwith her.
My Ellie.
“Nine,” Cara counts as I lift the bar up and down. “Ten. Eleven.”
I have so much adrenaline coursing through me, I have to get it out somehow. I tried jerking off last night, but that just made it worse. After the third time, thinking of her, I realized it was pointless. It just made me feel more lonely. It just reminded me that she wasn’t there. That I’ll never be complete without her.
I do two more reps and then slam the bar down on the rack. The whole thing shakes as my squad erupts in cheers and exclaims of disbelief.
“Not bad for an old man,” Henry says, slapping my shoulder as I sit up.
