Page 19 of Backed By You (Montgomery Brothers of Montana #3)

Beau

The nail gun pops three times as I press the trigger, securing another section of wall framing into place. The rhythm of the work keeps my mind off this morning and the way Callie’s face went white when her father showed up. How quickly she reduced me to nothing more than a damn landlord .

Even if that is all I am to her. It shouldn’t have fucking hurt the way it did to hear her say it.

I step back to check the frame’s alignment, wiping sweat from my forehead with the back of my arm. The Montana sun beats down relentlessly. I pull my shirt over my head and toss it to the side. My boots crunch on wood shavings scattered across the foundation.

“Looking good, man.”

I turn. Rhett’s walking up the gravel path, his hands shoved in his jean pockets. I grunt, not in the mood for any brotherly banter. After the last week, I’ve had my fill for the rest of the fucking year. I shift my attention back to the frame and heft another two-by-four into position.

He stops a few feet away. “This place is coming along.”

I line up the board and reach for the nail gun. Pop, pop, pop .

“Everything okay?” he asks.

“I’m working.”

He’s quiet for a moment, likely waiting for me to entertain him or stop to chat. He’ll be here a while if that’s what he’s after. “Right. Well, I just stopped by to grab a few things from last night.”

“Door’s open,” I tell him.

He kicks at a wood scrap with the toe of his boot, continuing to linger and watch my every move. “You sure you’re good? You seem a little…”

“Fine,” I bite out, glaring at him over my shoulder as I reload the nail gun with another set.

“This wouldn’t have anything to do with the blonde next door, would it?”

My hand tightens on the nail gun. “Don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Duke told me about what happened. I guess Maci told him how you saved Callie on the trail,” he says cooly. When I ignore his obvious grab for my attention, he continues, “So the fact you’re out here building like your life depends on it at noon on a Sunday has nothing to do with her or…?”

I set down the nail gun and reach for my water bottle, taking a long swig to buy myself time. “Her father showed up this morning,” I say. I don’t know why the hell I tell him that. It’s none of his or anyone else’s business, but the words come out regardless.

“And?”

“She introduced me as her landlord.” The title spits between my lips and I realize the moment had a greater effect on me than I care to acknowledge. But what can I say? She was freaking out, begging me to leave out the back, and I refused. It’s my own damn fault. I asked for it.

Rhett’s quiet for a moment. “That sting a little?”

More than a little, but like everything, I brush it off. “It’s the truth.”

My brother looks at me with pity. “Man, I get—”

The crunch of tires on gravel cuts him off. A dark sedan pulls in. Through the windshield, I can make out two figures—Callie and her father.

The car idles for a moment before the passenger door opens and Callie steps out with a to-go bag in hand. She says something to her father through the open window, then steps back and waves as he pulls away. For a moment, she just stands there watching the car disappear down the road.

Then she turns and looks directly at me.

Even from this distance, I can see the hesitation in her posture before she starts walking toward me. Her gait is still slightly uneven from the walking boot.

“Shit,” I mutter under my breath.

Rhett crosses his arms like he’s settling in to watch the show.

She reaches the edge of the construction site and stops, her gaze shifting between Rhett and me. “Hi,” she says, uncertain. “Beau, can we talk?”

My shoulders lock up tight, every muscle in my back going rigid as I force myself to keep working. “Stove is in,” I grunt, deliberately turning my back to her as I set my water down to move the final pieces of frame where I’ll need them. “Works good. Might still be cooling down, so be careful.”

“Oh, um, awesome.” She smiles with tight lips, glancing at Rhett. “But that’s not what I need to talk about.”

“Nothing else to discuss,” I mutter, avoiding eye contact.

“Dammit, Beau,” she snaps, and I lift my gaze to find her glaring at me. When I do, her heated gaze softens. “I’m sorry, okay? I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

You did . The words hit like a punch to the gut. “You didn’t.”

She sighs. “Well, I’m sorry anyway. My dad can be…overbearing. And after last night, we didn’t have a chance to talk and… I’d really like to talk.”

“What happened last night?” Rhett chimes in as nonchalant and nosey as ever.

This fuckin’ family, I swear.

I scowl in his direction. “Don’t you have somewhere else to be?”

He grins. “Nope.”

I huff my frustration.

“Listen, I don’t know how to broach this subject with you, so I’ll just come right out and say it,” she says, grabbing my attention as she takes a deep breath.

My pulse jumps.

“I need you to come to California with me for two weeks, and you have to say yes because I already told my dad you’re coming, and I really don’t want to have to go with Justin. I’ll pay for everything. All you have to do is never leave my side. No orgasms required.”

Rhett coughs, seeming to choke on nothing but air.

Something claws at my chest, demanding I go to her. I fight to shut it down and stand firm.

“I leave for the premiere in less than three weeks,” she says, her lower lip wobbling. “Hulk might be walking fine by then, but he won’t be well enough to fly or handle the long days. I need backup. I need…you.”

“Callie.” I don’t know what she wants me to say here. To tell her that every word out of her mouth is making it harder to stay away—to protect myself.

“I’ll pay you,” she offers. “You’d be acting as my personal bodyguard and lead any security details attending my events. Name your price.”

You. You’re my price. I want you , lodges in my throat. I swallow them down. “I don’t want your money.”

Tears are welling in her eyes now. “Please, Beau.”

I run a hand over my face. The urge to say yes is overwhelming. Two weeks beside her, away from prying eyes and open ears. Just her and me. It could be exactly what I need to figure out what this is between us.

Or she’ll hate me by the end of it all .

“I’ll think about it.”

She sniffles, nodding quickly.

I watch her turn away and walk to her cabin. I take a half-step toward her before I force myself to stay put. The war between what I want and what I think I should do tears at my gut as her door closes behind her.

The moment it does, Rhett throws a hammer at my head.

I duck. “The fuck, Rhett!”

“What the fuck is wrong with you?” he growls.

His usual cool demeanor—gone. Replaced by a kind of frustration I’ve never seen from him before.

“You’ve been working yourself to the goddamn bone since you got back—not once taking a break to take care of yourself.

You’re fucking miserable. Go . Levi and I will work on the build while you’re away if that’s what you’re worried about. ”

I sneer at him. “Mind your fucking—”

“ You are my fucking business,” he barks.

“You think I keep showing up here for shits and giggles? No. You’re my brother and I love you, but fuck , man.

Everyone is worried about you and you couldn’t care less.

I’ve got Duke, Butch, Ma, Pop calling me every damn day asking how you are.

You want to push everyone away? Fine. You want to tell me to go fuck myself?

Wouldn’t be the first time.” His face reddens in anger.

“But don’t you fucking dare turn that woman away because you’re too goddamn proud to feel something for someone. ”

My jaw tightens as the truth of his words rains over me. He’s right, and I hate him for it. The armor I’ve built around myself to keep from getting too close to anyone isn’t protection any longer—it’s destruction. I’m pushing away the one person who makes me want to tear it all down.

Rhett shakes his head at me, and without another word, walks to his truck and leaves.

I know what I have to do. I’ve been so busy protecting my heart that I’ve forgotten what it feels like to actually use it.

It’s time I changed that.