Page 3 of Her Mountain Boss (Honey Ridge #3)

Heat flushes across my face at the thoughts I’m having. I should probably not be fantasizing about my uncle. No. Definitely not. Bad. Bad Sophia. Stop it.

He turns to look at me, his blue eyes pinning me in place. “What do you think?” he asks, his voice low and rough.

I think I’m in a whole lot of trouble.

But I know he means the cabin, so I smile up at him. “It’s perfect,” I say softly. And I mean it. The cabin, the view, the job opportunity, and especially the man standing next to me. It’s perfect.

“So,” I say, turning my attention back to the view of the orchard. “What should I call you? Mr. Callahan? Uncle Ford?”

His body stiffens in my peripheral vision, and I look up at him.

A muscle jumps in his jaw, his hands clenched into fists.

“I’m not your uncle,” he growls, a sound so primal that it makes those little butterflies explode into flight in my stomach.

His eyes meet mine, and the intensity there makes my breath stutter in my lungs.

“Right,” I say, my voice a bit shaky. “So…just Ford, then?”

He nods sharply, looking away from me. “That’ll do.”

I look back out the window. I notice the way his gaze flicks back the second my attention is elsewhere, and for one crazy second, I let myself imagine that it’s because he’s as drawn to me as I am to him.

I sneak a sideways glance at him, and when our eyes meet, almost an accidental brushing of gazes, the hairs on the backs of my arms stand at attention.

My heart is at a gallop, beating so fast and so hard that it’s making me feel a little dizzy.

He huffs out a breath and starts moving around the cabin, opening cabinets and drawers, as though he’s making sure everything’s in order for me.

I watch him as he moves, enjoying the hell out of the way his muscles bunch and flex beneath his clothes as he does.

But it’s not just the muscles. He has this…

this presence to him. He’s so big. So sturdy and sure.

So quiet and yet the air in here is full of him.

And I see it, the way he looks at me when I’m not looking right at him.

I can feel his gaze like a touch, hot and tingly on my skin.

Also, I have excellent peripheral vision.

I let myself imagine that he’s trying so hard not to look at me and losing the battle bit by bit.

The rational, non-horny part of my brain suggests that maybe he’s just curious about me.

After all, we’re practically strangers and I’m now his newest employee.

But the rest of me, the part made up of my heart and my ladybits, wonders if he feels this pull between us, too.

I don’t know if this kind of instant chemistry and attraction is a normal thing.

I don’t know anything at all. I’ve never done anything more than kissing.

I’ve never had a real boyfriend. At twenty-four, I’m still so very inexperienced, and I don’t know how to interpret this situation. All I know is what I wish to be true.

“The kitchen is stocked with the basics,” he says, drawing my attention back to him. “But you’re welcome to eat your meals at the main lodge.”

“Is that where you eat?” I blurt, heat rushing to my cheeks.

His eyes take a slow walk down my body, lingering on my hips and thighs. “Sometimes.”

“Okay,” I say, biting my lip. “Sounds good. Thank you.”

He clears his throat, looking everywhere in the cabin but at me. He’s leaning against the kitchen counter, and I notice that his fingers are curled around the edge, gripping so tightly his knuckles are white. I shift slightly, seeing if movement will draw his attention back to me.

I like his attention on me. A lot.

What can I do to get more of it?

He doesn’t look at me. Not directly. Not when he knows I’m looking at him. But the second I glance away, I can feel his eyes on me, my skin prickling, tingling with awareness.

I really don’t understand what’s happening between us, but I know I like it. I want more of it, even though I know I shouldn’t.

What is he thinking right now? What does he think of me? Is he curious? Annoyed?

Attracted? I wish I had more experience in reading situations like this.

He sighs, his chest heaving, drawing my attention to the outline of his pecs pushing against the white T-shirt beneath his open flannel. Maybe…maybe he’s not anything. Maybe he’s just quiet. A little grumpy.

What would it take to make him smile?

My mind is whirring as I stare at Ford. Just Ford.

Not Uncle Ford . Despite his ruggedness, the utter masculinity dripping off of him, he’s beautiful.

The way his thick, dark hair is shot through with copious amounts of silver.

His blue eyes that would make a glacier jealous.

His perfect beard. His muscled frame, strong hands, inked skin… he’s a work of art.

He pushes away from the counter in a sudden movement, as though the silence stretching out between us has suddenly become too much for him.

“Dinner’s at the lodge at six.” His eyes skim over my body.

“There’s a jacket with the resort’s logo on it in the closet.

In case you’re cold.” He reaches into his pocket and fishes out the key to my cabin, holding it out for me.

I take it with slightly trembling fingers, and when our hands brush, he pulls back quickly, like he’s been burned.

The key falls to the floor with a metallic ping.

“Sorry,” I say, bending down and quickly scooping it up.

I’m not even fully upright before he starts to head for the door.

He brushes past me, a hint of that warm cedar smell making my stomach dip and swirl.

“Wait,” I say hastily. He pauses by the door, the knob already in his huge hand.

“I…” I struggle to come up with something to say.

Something to keep him here for just another few seconds.

“Thank you. For this opportunity, and for taking a chance on me.”

He doesn’t turn around. A beat passes, and I hear him exhale. “You’re welcome, Sophia.”

The way he says my name does something to me. He sounds like he’s in pain, like he’s gritting it out, and I want to know why. I’ve known him for less than an hour and I want to know everything about this man.

He opens the door and steps out, closing it gently behind him without a backwards glance. But I’m not ready to let him go yet, so I race to the window, watching his broad back as he walks down the path toward the lodge.

Watching until I can’t see him anymore.

It’s only when I turn away from the window that I realize my cheeks hurt from grinning like an absolute fool.