Page 4 of Jealous Mountain Man (Seduction Summit Trails #5)

ENZO

I t had been a long time since I’d brought a woman back to my place. Actually, I’d never had one at this cabin, which was weird—but maybe not so much, considering the way I’d been run out of my hometown.

It wasn’t that much of a surprise. I had other things on my mind—like staying alive. Getting laid was the last thing I was thinking about.

Until today. Suddenly, that was all I was thinking about.

It wasn’t even three o’clock in the afternoon, and I was firing up the grill and waiting for steaks to defrost in the sink. Larsen was going through my pantry and preparing side items. I had no idea what the result would be, but whatever it was, it would be delicious.

Larsen was at the counter when I went inside to grab the steaks, slicing potatoes on a cutting board I didn’t even realize I owned.

This cabin had come completely stocked. Turnkey, the real estate agent had called it.

That worked fine for me since I’d only packed up as much as I could carry in the back of my pickup when I moved here.

“How’s it going out there?” she asked, pausing her humming to look back over her shoulder at me. She didn’t stop chopping. That could be dangerous.

“Great. How’s it going in here?”

“Perfect,” she said. “You’re going to love this. Do you have any sour cream?”

Sour cream. That would not have been the request I would have expected. She was making potatoes, but they wouldn’t be baked—at least not judging by the way she was chopping them up.

“Can’t say I do,” I said. “I could run to the market and grab some.”

“Oh no. It was just a thought. They’ll be fine without it.”

Something was bugging me as I headed back outside to throw the steaks onto the grill. It was an unsettled feeling. Halfway through cooking, I figured it out.

The coziness I’d felt inside had taken me by surprise.

It was something I’d looked for all my life.

A warm, loving home filled with family members who cared about each other, parents who cooked for their kids and made sure they got off to school with a packed lunch and everything they needed…

In just a few minutes in the kitchen, I felt more of that than I had in all my years growing up with parents and two siblings.

What the fuck was that all about?

When I finally headed back inside with a platter full of steaks, I found things had gotten warmer and cozier. Larsen was in the process of setting the table. She’d set a big plate of potatoes in the center and, next to it, a bowl of green beans she’d pulled out of the pantry.

I’d forgotten those were in there. Hell, I hoped they hadn’t expired. That would be my luck—give both of us food poisoning at our first meal together.

“They smell delicious,” she said as I set the steaks next to the potatoes.

“Thanks.”

I headed into the kitchen and opened the fridge and paused, surveying its contents. The last thing I would have expected was company today, so I had absolutely nothing to drink but beer.

“I poured a glass of ice water,” she said, coming back into the kitchen. She snatched up a glass that was next to the stove and headed to the table.

I grabbed a beer and followed her. A smile threatened to shove away my frown.

Frowning was my go-to expression. I’d been told I didn’t smile enough, although not in those exact words.

People would jokingly call me a grump or ask me if I ever smiled.

That had very little to do with my recent past. I’d simply grown up in a household where smiling wasn’t an everyday thing.

Larsen was still standing as I approached, waiting for me, I assumed. It was nice of her, but it was more of a gentleman’s move. I definitely would’ve wanted her to sit without me.

We both settled into our chairs, and I waited for the uncomfortable silence to stretch between us. We’d have to make small talk, like on a date. I hated small talk.

But instead, she spoke, surprising me with her bluntness. “So I guess you’re probably used to women ogling you.”

My eyebrows shot up. “Ogling?”

I reached for my knife and fork and began slicing off a piece of steak. She was doing the same. I held my breath, hoping she’d like the results of my hard work.

“Weird word, I guess,” she said. “I just mean…you know, the whole eye candy thing. I didn’t mean to objectify you. But women were going a little bananas over you in the comments.”

Bananas. Interesting way of putting it.

“I don’t pay much attention to that stuff,” I said. “I keep my head down and live my life.”

“This is amazing,” she said after swallowing the bite she’d just taken. “Maybe I should shoot some video of you cooking.”

Oh, hell no. I wasn’t going to shoot a video in the privacy of my own home. That would be like inviting the world into my kitchen.

Before I could come up with a response, she blurted out a question. “So, do you date?”

Wait, what? We were actually discussing my sex life—or lack of one? No, sex hadn’t come into the conversation. This was about dating, and if this beautiful woman wanted to know my relationship status, was I really going to complain?

“Not recently, no,” I said. “This town isn’t exactly full of eligible women my age.”

“Plenty of people my age, though,” she said.

I’d stepped right into that. She was not my age. She was younger than me. In fact, her uncle was my age.

I shrugged and said, “I haven’t met anybody that interested me until now.”

Her expression told me I’d slipped up. I winced inwardly at the “until now” part. I’d basically just blurted out that I was interested in her.

“Until meeting me?” she asked.

I could deny it. I could backtrack. But no, I didn’t want to do that. I wanted to be honest with her.

“Meeting you showed me that my libido is still alive and well,” I said. “Most women I’ve met just haven’t sparked my interest.”

Maybe that was too honest, but I couldn’t remember the last time I’d felt this kind of attraction toward a woman. Had I ever?

No, definitely not. I was battling the urge to go around this table, pick her up, and kiss her until both of us were out of breath.

My hands would start wandering—as would hers.

Maybe we’d shove all these dishes aside and do it right here on the table.

I had to suppress a groan at the image of her naked, legs spread, as I thrust into her, sliding inside that wet pussy like my life depended on it.

“It’s the same for me,” she said. “I’ve had that issue all my life. I’d meet a guy and something just wouldn’t be right. I even had a couple of kisses, but I couldn’t let it go any further because I wasn’t feeling it, you know?”

“Wait a second, what are you saying? You never let it go further than a kiss with anyone?”

“I’m twenty-three years old and still a virgin,” she said. “Is that weird? I feel like it is. You probably think something’s wrong with me.”

“Nothing’s wrong with you,” I managed to choke out. “You’re perfect.”

This wasn’t the first time a woman had told me she was a virgin. It was, however, the first time someone told me that and I didn’t look for a way out. In fact, I didn’t want to go anywhere.

“I’d assume you’d been fending off guys for years,” I said.

She laughed heartily, then paused to slide a bite of potatoes into her mouth and swallow before continuing. “All I have to do is tell a guy I’m a virgin and he runs.”

She was looking at me point blank as she said that, as though daring me to do exactly what other guys had done. I returned her stare, unblinking. I could lie to her and say I’d never be the type of man who would run from that. Maybe even call those other guys wusses.

But that would be a lie. For some reason, I couldn’t bring myself to lie to this woman.

“Yeah, I’ve been that guy,” I said. “Total chickenshit move. It’s a lot of responsibility, you know.”

Judging by her narrowed eyes, she didn’t know. She didn’t know at all.

“No one wants to give a woman a horrible first time,” I rushed to explain. “It has to be really, really good.”

She shook her head. “A woman’s first time is awful. Horrible. You just push past the pain and hope the next time is better. Everyone knows that.”

I shook my head. “No guy will believe that. We’re all sure we can be the exception.”

I hesitated, but once again I had this unexplainable urge to be honest. “It’s more than that. It’s the pressure of being the first man a woman’s been with. The playing field isn’t level.”

Now her entire face scrunched up. She was frowning at me. She didn’t get it.

“Romantically,” I added. “You can’t exactly have a one-night stand with a virgin.”

“Why not?”

“Well, if it was a one-night stand, you probably wouldn’t reveal your status to the guy. So just telling him that sets up the expectation that it’ll be more than once.”

“What if I wanted a one-night stand with a hot mountain man? Would that be so bad?”

I didn’t answer right away. I was gawking at her again, trying to understand these feelings I was having. The more I was around her, the stronger they got. It was like nothing I’d ever experienced.

“What if I don’t want a one-night stand?” I asked. “Not with you, anyway.”

Her eyebrows arched. “You want one with someone else?”

Crap. I’d just stuck my foot in it again. I was far from the smooth talker I’d prided myself on being when I was younger.

“There’s no way I could, you know, with you, and walk away,” I said. “I’d rather not do anything at all.”

Was I actually saying that I’d give up the opportunity to have sex with this amazing woman—the hottest woman I’d ever met—because she didn’t want more than a one-night stand? That was definitely not like me. Not any version of me, going all the way back to my teen years.

She shrugged. “I don’t want a one-night stand with you. I’m not going anywhere. I live here, remember?”

She said that as though distance would be the only issue in our relationship.

She had no idea what I was dealing with.

I might be fairly safe here, but having my image plastered all over the internet, even briefly, had me remembering how quickly that could change.

And bringing a woman like her into it would be a huge mistake.

I’d never forgive myself if something happened to her because of my past.

No, I had to distance myself from her. We’d finish up this meal, and I’d find a way to get her on the road back home—no matter how hard it would be.

I took a deep breath and prepared to tell her we couldn’t sleep together. But before I could get the words out, she said something that stopped me dead in my tracks.

“I want you to do something about it,” she said. “Tonight. I want to get naked and hop in that pond and lose my virginity. And I want you to be the man who helps me with that.”