Page 86 of Grumpy on the Mountain

"Beau just... shut down. Complete breakdown. Had to be physically removed from the operations center."

Oh God. Poor thing.

"Before you came along," Jamie continues quietly, "I was genuinely worried about him. The isolation, the way he'd withdraw whenever anyone tried to include him in anything... I've seen what happens to guys who can't find their way back from that kind of trauma."

"But?" I prompt, because there's definitely a 'but' coming.

"But then you two helped that family on the ridge." Jamie's expression brightens, and he leans closer, lowering his voice. "Want to know a secret, Molly?"

I nod, my heart already racing from his previous story.

"I could have organized someone else to handle that rescue. We had other trucks, other teams available." His eyes twinkle with something that looks like pride. "But I didn't tell him that. Because I knew with Beau's truck, in his own environment... it was a small enough job that he could handle it. And I knew he was already with you…"

I smile. "That lovely small town gossip chain at work."

Jamie smiles a toothy grin. "Exactly. And I had a feeling that with you there..."

"You set it up," I breathe, the pieces clicking together.

"Sort of. It was a legitimate rescue, but I gave him an opportunity," Jamie corrects gently. "He made the choice to take it. And more importantly, he succeeded. That was the moment I knew."

"Knew what?"

Jamie smiles and leans back, looking mightily pleased with himself. "You'll see."

The cryptic comment sends a chill down my spine, but before I can ask what he means, another emergency call comes in and Jamie's attention shifts to coordinating the response.

I stare at my computer screen, trying to process all of that.

Beau tried to work here before and couldn't handle it. The radios, the chaos, the pressure—it triggered something in him so severe that he had a complete breakdown.

But with me there, during that rescue on our first night together, he'd been completely steady. Calm. In control.

He belongs here.

I can see it as clearly as Jamie does.

So how can I help Beau to recover from his trauma in the same way he has helped me get my life back on track?

Chapter Twenty

Beau

After two weeks of dropping Molly at Mountain Rescue every morning, and Jamie's still giving me that look.

Not the casual nod most people get. Not even the friendly wave.

It'sthe look.

The one that says he's got something to say and he's waiting for me to be ready to hear it.

Every day, it gets a little more intense. A little more insistent. Like he's physically restraining himself from grabbing my arm and dragging me inside himself.

But I think I've gotten good at avoiding it.

Drop off in the parking lot, quick kiss goodbye, and I'm out of there before he can corner me with whatever speech he's been rehearsing for years.

Instead, I've been channeling all that nervous energy into my workshop.