Page 15 of Backed By You (Montgomery Brothers of Montana #3)

“Well, now we’re bringing the party to you,” she announces, throwing her arms wide and nearly spilling her glass. “Bonfire time!”

I glance at Hulk, who’s watching the newcomers with mild interest, his tail giving a single weak thump against his blanket. This definitely wasn’t what I had planned for our quiet evening in.

Not really having much choice, the group of women are already arranging themselves around the fire pit. A few fetch chairs from their cars while others grab dining chairs from the cabin.

One of the women, a stout blonde I’ve never met, looks around. “We need marshmallows. Do you have marshmallows, Callie?” she asks, adding as an afterthought, “I’m Alison, by the way. Cassidy’s maid of honor.” She gestures proudly to her sash.

Before I can answer, more women emerge from next door, carrying folding chairs and bottles of wine. “I found more chairs,” one of them announces triumphantly.

Maci catches my eye and mouths ‘ sorry ’ with an apologetic smile.

I take a deep breath and look down at Hulk, who seems surprisingly unbothered by all the commotion. His eyes meet mine, and I swear I can see a glint of amusement there, as if to say, “ Well, this is different .”

As the women settle in, chattering excitedly about playing Cards Against Humanity by the fire, I lean over to scratch behind Hulk’s ears. Maybe this isn’t what we planned, but sometimes life’s interruptions are exactly what we need.

“Can I get you something to drink?” Maci asks. “We’ve got everything except tequila—we’re running low.”

“I’m okay, but thank you,” I say, smiling at the little naked men sitting on the rim of everyone’s drinks.

Conversation continues around me—laughter and stories, occasionally including me with a smile or question.

An hour passes, and I’m much more relaxed, even laughing at some of their wedding planning disaster stories.

Frankie sits at my feet, watching me eat a handful of pretzels someone brought out with big, greedy eyes.

“So, Callie,” Alison asks, setting up a card game, “how do you like living out here in the middle of nowhere?”

“I love it,” I answer honestly.

“And how’s having Beau Montgomery as your landlord?” Cassidy asks curiously, pouring herself another glass of red. “I swear he came back with the personality of a grizzly bear.”

Heat rushes to my cheeks as unwanted images flood my mind: Beau asleep with a towel draped low on his hips, his muscled chest rising and falling with each breath.

Beau walking around my cabin shirtless. Beau fetching me tea and rubbing my feet.

Beau smiling. Beau laughing. Beau carrying me and Hulk to safety like a true mountain man.

“We don’t really…interact much,” I say. Liar, liar .

Cassidy snorts, taking the five cards Alison hands her. “That’s Beau for you. The Montgomery brother who’s allergic to human interaction.”

My brow furrows. “Why do you say that?”

“It’s not that he’s allergic , Cass.” Maci sits beside me, handing me a set of cards. “We just haven’t gotten to know him much since he got home.”

“He’s always been that way,” Lily—introduced to me earlier as Beau’s sister—interjects. “He’s kind of the black sheep of the family. A bit of a loner, a bit of an asshole.”

Everyone laughs and the conversation shifts toward the card game, much to my relief, but I can’t shake my lingering questions about Beau.

Has he really always been this way? I understand the desire to be alone, but even a strong man like him would get lonely sometimes, right?

And the way he’s looked at me the last few days…

He cares. He has to.

The sound of multiple trucks pulling up out front catches everyone’s attention.

“Looks like the boys are here with our tequila ,” Cassidy sing-songs, standing with a shake of her hips. “It’s margarita time!”

My stomach drops. The boys?

Frankie yips and Hulk huffs, his big head lulling in my direction as the back door opens once again. Several men spill into the yard carrying bags and bottles, their laughter boisterous through the tree line. My breath catches when the last one exits—his tall, broad frame filling the doorway.

Beau .

Our eyes lock across the dimly lit night. His expression shifts from surprise to something unreadable. My heart may be racing at the mere sight of him.

He starts walking toward me, passing Cassidy drunkenly making out with her already-husband-but-soon-to-be-wedded-husband, but gets sidetracked by Duke asking for help grabbing more stuff from the truck

“Jesus, you two, get a room,” Levi—the youngest Montgomery brother, according to Lily earlier—burps out as he stumbles past carrying a…block of cheese?

“He eats cheese when he’s drunk,” Rhett says, plopping onto the empty dining chair beside me. “Or sad. He’ll eat that whole block if someone doesn’t stop him pretty soon.”

My brows raise, impressed. “I take it he’s not lactose intolerant.”

Rhett chuckles. “Thankfully, no.”

“So, which is he? Drunk or sad?” I ask, having a hard time looking away from the chaos of everyone. It’s hard to decide where to look; there’s so much going on. Like Duke and Maci slipping back inside and giggling like a couple of high schoolers.

“A bit of both,” he admits. “He used to boast that he’d be the first of the brothers to get married, and now…he’s not. I think it’s hitting him harder than he expected.”

That’s sad. “He should stop looking,” I murmur. Rhett turns to look at me with a raised brow. I blush, hurrying to add, “You know, that saying? The right person will come along when you least expect it.”

Rhett smirks. “Is that what’s happened with you and—”

“Callie,” Beau says, his voice low and gravelly and draws my attention straight to him. A stern sort of glare directed at his brother.

“On that note.” Rhett leaps to his feet with a grin, his elbow bumping Beau’s as he walks toward the cabin. “Told you.”

Beau huffs before returning his gaze to me. His hard exterior slips to something softer. He gestures to the spot Rhett just vacated. “You mind?”

I shake my head. “No, no. Sit.”

The silence between us is both awkward and comforting at once.

“So, you, uh…” he starts, but doesn’t finish.

I peer at him out of the corner of my eye and note the way his thumb picks at the label on his beer bottle. He looks tortured attempting to find the right words to say. It’s almost cute how hard he’s trying.

Okay, fine, it is cute.

Rhett calls out to a few of the girls still lingering by the fire and suddenly it’s just me, Beau, and the dogs sleeping soundly beside the dying fire.

I decide to break the silence first. “How was the bar?”

“Good,” he says with a slight nod. “How are you feeling?”

I bite my lip to keep from smiling at his concern. “Headache is gone. Ankle feels better. I might take the boot off tomorrow and see how I fare.”

“Doctor said to keep it on for a week minimum.”

I roll my eyes. “At my discretion.”

His grin is slow and wide as he looks at me. “Stubborn.”

I giggle. “You would know.”

He laughs, his gaze dancing over me. The glow of the fire illuminating his face in a way that reveals every hard angle I’ve come to memorize.

The flickering shadows play across his features, highlighting the small scar above his eyebrow and the slight curl at the corner of his mouth as he looks at me. “Hulk settling in okay?”

I shift my attention to the two sleeping boys beside us. “He’s doing okay, I think. I actually need to bring him in soon and give him his pain meds for the night.”

He nods, taking a swig of his beer as we fall into another amicable silence.

“Callie,” he starts. “I want—”

A loud whistle catches us off guard as one of the men Beau came in with puts his hands in the air. “Let’s go, kids! Bro night continues.”

“Bro night?” I say, laughing lightly.

“Cigars and poker, apparently,” Beau grumbles, pushing to stand with a bit more care on his left knee than I’ve seen from him.

The urge to ask him if he’s feeling okay teeters on the tip of my tongue. Instead, I say, “Have fun.”

He looks down at me. His eyes—a rich brown that reminds me of warm whiskey—hold mine with an intensity that makes my breath catch. The corner of his mouth twitches. Not quite a smile, but close.

“Yo, Beau, you coming or what?” Levi calls from the doorway, his words slightly slurred and only a third of the block of cheese remaining in his hand.

How the heck did he eat so much so fast?

“Yeah,” Beau responds, not taking his eyes off me. “I’ll see you in a few hours,” he tells me, his voice dropping low in a way I’m not prepared for.

My heart skips in my chest and heat flashes between my thighs. I will? “Okay,” I say, attempting lightness. “See you soon.”

This time, his smile transforms his stern face into something handsome and…boyish. He’d probably be mortified if he knew I thought he was puppy-dog-cute over anything rugged and manly. He joins his brothers, leaving me with a strange flutter in my chest.

He passes Cassidy and her group of girlfriends returning to the fire with cups and a bottle of tequila. Maci nowhere in sight.

“Well, that was interesting,” Lily says, dropping onto the chair opposite me with an eager expression.

Heat creeps up my neck. “What’s that?”

“My brother doesn’t look at people the way he was just looking at you.” Lily takes a sip of her drink, eyes twinkling.

“Oh my god .” Cassidy gasps, covering her mouth. “This explains why Butch was saying Beau’s been even more broody than usual today.”

I stand quickly and head for the woodpile to throw a few more pieces in the fire pit. “I don’t know what you’re getting at, but it’s not like that. He’s my landlord and, like you said, he’s an asshole.” Lies, lies, lies .

“I used to think Butch was an asshole once,” Cassidy says wistfully. “Now we’re married and I needed a c-section just to birth his big ass baby.”

The women laugh and continue their night unbothered.

Meanwhile, I can’t help wondering what Beau wanted to tell me before he was interrupted. And what time he’ll be back tonight. The thought of seeing him again sends a flutter through my stomach. Whatever this is between us, it’s becoming something I can’t ignore.