Page 6
Story: Mountain Man Defender
Within our Ranger unit, he’d been the master at developing out-of-the box solutions for complicated entries into enemy strongholds. A born adrenaline junkie, his crazy physical strength and acrobatic skills had saved each of us at least once. Kane hadn’t stayed on through retirement like us. He decided to take his skills to Hollywood and became a highly sought after stuntman.
That was until he’d shattered his knee last year. Now, after finishing intensive rehab, he was finding his way once again, determined to assist those that came to the Triple R to discover a new skill and purpose. He just hadn’t figured out yet how to turn his stuntman skills into real-world applications. But he would. And now that I knew he wasn’t after Dylan for anything more than friendship, he was off my shitlist.
Somehow, he’d picked up on my interest in her. He’d always been good at reading people, but more likely Ridge had said something to him. The one time I open up about my feelings and it’s used it against me. Lesson learned. Just because they’d found women here on the mountain didn’t mean I had to.
I told him that as much as I wanted her, Dylan and I were too different to make anything between us work. The sex part would be simple, and probably beyond great. And yeah, I could admit shemight beattracted to me and might not turn me down for some fun between the sheets. But someone like Dylan wasn’t looking for simple. Deep down, I knew she was the type of woman who’d want more. Deserved more than just a hook-up.
But then what? We had nothing to talk about. No similar interests that I’d discovered. And she was young enough to want kids, and I wasn’t sure I did. Having five younger siblings had just about cured me of that.
Kane was still waiting for a reaction out of me, but all I gave him was a grunt and a not too gentle shove as I placed another one of Dylan’s boxes full of her personal items on the kitchen table. Spinning on my heel, Kane’s laughter followed me out onto the staircase landing. So distracted by his comment, I collided with Dylan, her arms full of clothing.
Grasping her arms, I pulled her into me so she wouldn’t go flying backward. Damn. This is what I’d been avoiding for months. Having my hands on her. And although there were layers of clothing between us, with her tits pressed into my chest, I swore I felt her body heat as if neither one of us wore a stitch of clothing.
Wide-eyed, and out of breath, I guided her inside as gently as I could. My hands looked like oven mitts against her bare arms. Clenching my teeth together, furious at myself that I’d made marks on her delicate skin.
“Whoa. Easy there, handsome. If you wanted me in your arms, all you had to do was ask.” Dylan’s breathy words sent a bolt of electricity straight to my cock. Her eyes were no longer rounded but heavy lidded, a hopeful look replacing surprise. I was losing ground here, and if I didn’t move now, I was going to kiss her.
Hard. And in front of everyone. My body’s reaction couldn’t be explained away as anything other than what it truly was. What I had truly become. Gone. Truly. Forever. Under Dylan’s spell. Her special brand of witchcraft zeroed in on me and I was ninety-nine-point-five percent ready for it.
For her.
In that moment, all my reasons for avoiding Dylan, my body’s desperate need for hers, and the desire to be in her world every waking moment, soaking in her positivity and joy at just being, became hard to ignore.
But not here. Later. When I could be alone with her.
But later that evening, as much as I wanted to track Dylan down, I had something equally important to do. Most of my contribution to the lodge had been through physical labor. I wasn’t great at the touchy-feely stuff, but I had attended every fire pit get-together since we’d officially opened.
Our primary goal had been to make these gatherings less like a therapy session. That was Addy’s specialty, and more like a bro night. And we kept the conversations as casual or as in depth as our client-guests wanted.
Tonight was no different. Okay, one thing was different. Paxton Hart was here for a week. A local firefighter/EMT whose text to Dylan the other day had done the impossible. Made me jealous. Woke me up and made me re-evaluate and question every interaction I’d had with Dylan since her arrival.
I’d been ready to stake my claim if he so much as uttered her name. Instead, he’d shared what had brought him to the Triple R. Torn up over the death of a fellow firefighter, something he’d witnessed, had haunted him for months. He’d questioned his ability to continue doing his job. And in his position, he needed to be all in.
His was the exact situation we wanted to be here for, to provide comfort, to listen without judgement, and offer brotherhood when hope and purpose had become a distant memory.
West, Ridge and the other four men in attendance contributed to the conversation without taking away from Pax’ situation. I offered nods of encouragement, and what I hoped was empathy. I knew what it was like to lose a friend, a fellow soldier. Too many. And sometimes just being present to listen to someone’s story was enough.
In times like these, just being there mattered.
Guidance and solutions were only offered when asked. We weren’t professionals or doctors, but we’d lived our own versionsof horror, and sometimes, heck, most of the time, that’s what mattered to men like Pax.
I went to bed that night, no longer wanting to smash his pretty face in. Like anyone who came to our mountain for help, I saw him as a friend. I spent the rest of my night tossing and turning, working out why I’d thought of Dylan as mine when I’d done nothing to tell her how I felt.
Because after having her soft curves smashed against me today, that was going to change.
FIVE
DYLAN
Mondays weren’t typically consideredprime date nights, but tonight would, hopefully, be my first and last one. Lauren cautioned me after my failed attempt,okay attempts, at seducing Lars. “Don’t poke the bear, okay? I don’t want to see you disappointed.” Oh, no, I was done with that. I was going on full offense, no more hit and run, no more passive, all aggressive, leaving no doubt what I wanted.
Lars wouldn’t see me coming. Okay, wait. Yes, he’ll see me coming, have me coming, have me screaming his name, but he won’t know what hit him and darn it all. My brain was fried from too much thinking, planning, wanting. I’m so over metaphors, analogies and motivational quotes.
Tonight, I’m channeling my inner temptress and bagging myself a burly mountain man.
The possibility he’d turn me down only nagged at me a little. After our painting party, and the clinch on move-in day, I felt my odds were high. According to his friends, he’d never discussed any of the women he’d dated. Not in any meaningful way. They may have been telling tales out of school, but it was encouragingto know that at least at the mention of my name, he did more than grunt and glare when they teased him about me.
And according to Addy, he even blushed once when they’d been discussing me. That little tidbit had kept me going for days.
That was until he’d shattered his knee last year. Now, after finishing intensive rehab, he was finding his way once again, determined to assist those that came to the Triple R to discover a new skill and purpose. He just hadn’t figured out yet how to turn his stuntman skills into real-world applications. But he would. And now that I knew he wasn’t after Dylan for anything more than friendship, he was off my shitlist.
Somehow, he’d picked up on my interest in her. He’d always been good at reading people, but more likely Ridge had said something to him. The one time I open up about my feelings and it’s used it against me. Lesson learned. Just because they’d found women here on the mountain didn’t mean I had to.
I told him that as much as I wanted her, Dylan and I were too different to make anything between us work. The sex part would be simple, and probably beyond great. And yeah, I could admit shemight beattracted to me and might not turn me down for some fun between the sheets. But someone like Dylan wasn’t looking for simple. Deep down, I knew she was the type of woman who’d want more. Deserved more than just a hook-up.
But then what? We had nothing to talk about. No similar interests that I’d discovered. And she was young enough to want kids, and I wasn’t sure I did. Having five younger siblings had just about cured me of that.
Kane was still waiting for a reaction out of me, but all I gave him was a grunt and a not too gentle shove as I placed another one of Dylan’s boxes full of her personal items on the kitchen table. Spinning on my heel, Kane’s laughter followed me out onto the staircase landing. So distracted by his comment, I collided with Dylan, her arms full of clothing.
Grasping her arms, I pulled her into me so she wouldn’t go flying backward. Damn. This is what I’d been avoiding for months. Having my hands on her. And although there were layers of clothing between us, with her tits pressed into my chest, I swore I felt her body heat as if neither one of us wore a stitch of clothing.
Wide-eyed, and out of breath, I guided her inside as gently as I could. My hands looked like oven mitts against her bare arms. Clenching my teeth together, furious at myself that I’d made marks on her delicate skin.
“Whoa. Easy there, handsome. If you wanted me in your arms, all you had to do was ask.” Dylan’s breathy words sent a bolt of electricity straight to my cock. Her eyes were no longer rounded but heavy lidded, a hopeful look replacing surprise. I was losing ground here, and if I didn’t move now, I was going to kiss her.
Hard. And in front of everyone. My body’s reaction couldn’t be explained away as anything other than what it truly was. What I had truly become. Gone. Truly. Forever. Under Dylan’s spell. Her special brand of witchcraft zeroed in on me and I was ninety-nine-point-five percent ready for it.
For her.
In that moment, all my reasons for avoiding Dylan, my body’s desperate need for hers, and the desire to be in her world every waking moment, soaking in her positivity and joy at just being, became hard to ignore.
But not here. Later. When I could be alone with her.
But later that evening, as much as I wanted to track Dylan down, I had something equally important to do. Most of my contribution to the lodge had been through physical labor. I wasn’t great at the touchy-feely stuff, but I had attended every fire pit get-together since we’d officially opened.
Our primary goal had been to make these gatherings less like a therapy session. That was Addy’s specialty, and more like a bro night. And we kept the conversations as casual or as in depth as our client-guests wanted.
Tonight was no different. Okay, one thing was different. Paxton Hart was here for a week. A local firefighter/EMT whose text to Dylan the other day had done the impossible. Made me jealous. Woke me up and made me re-evaluate and question every interaction I’d had with Dylan since her arrival.
I’d been ready to stake my claim if he so much as uttered her name. Instead, he’d shared what had brought him to the Triple R. Torn up over the death of a fellow firefighter, something he’d witnessed, had haunted him for months. He’d questioned his ability to continue doing his job. And in his position, he needed to be all in.
His was the exact situation we wanted to be here for, to provide comfort, to listen without judgement, and offer brotherhood when hope and purpose had become a distant memory.
West, Ridge and the other four men in attendance contributed to the conversation without taking away from Pax’ situation. I offered nods of encouragement, and what I hoped was empathy. I knew what it was like to lose a friend, a fellow soldier. Too many. And sometimes just being present to listen to someone’s story was enough.
In times like these, just being there mattered.
Guidance and solutions were only offered when asked. We weren’t professionals or doctors, but we’d lived our own versionsof horror, and sometimes, heck, most of the time, that’s what mattered to men like Pax.
I went to bed that night, no longer wanting to smash his pretty face in. Like anyone who came to our mountain for help, I saw him as a friend. I spent the rest of my night tossing and turning, working out why I’d thought of Dylan as mine when I’d done nothing to tell her how I felt.
Because after having her soft curves smashed against me today, that was going to change.
FIVE
DYLAN
Mondays weren’t typically consideredprime date nights, but tonight would, hopefully, be my first and last one. Lauren cautioned me after my failed attempt,okay attempts, at seducing Lars. “Don’t poke the bear, okay? I don’t want to see you disappointed.” Oh, no, I was done with that. I was going on full offense, no more hit and run, no more passive, all aggressive, leaving no doubt what I wanted.
Lars wouldn’t see me coming. Okay, wait. Yes, he’ll see me coming, have me coming, have me screaming his name, but he won’t know what hit him and darn it all. My brain was fried from too much thinking, planning, wanting. I’m so over metaphors, analogies and motivational quotes.
Tonight, I’m channeling my inner temptress and bagging myself a burly mountain man.
The possibility he’d turn me down only nagged at me a little. After our painting party, and the clinch on move-in day, I felt my odds were high. According to his friends, he’d never discussed any of the women he’d dated. Not in any meaningful way. They may have been telling tales out of school, but it was encouragingto know that at least at the mention of my name, he did more than grunt and glare when they teased him about me.
And according to Addy, he even blushed once when they’d been discussing me. That little tidbit had kept me going for days.