Page 5 of Mountain Man’s Holiday Home (Wildwood Valley Christmas #1)

LAINEY

“What the fuck, Lowe?”

My oldest brother was walking toward us, looking like he was ready to fight. His full attention was on Hendrix.

“Luca,” I called out, stepping forward. I was fully prepared to get between them if necessary. “What are you doing here?”

“Looking for you two.” His jaw was tight, his hands clenched into fists. “You left a couple of hours ago to deliver one tree. Hours, Lainey.”

Heat flooded my cheeks. “We were going to lunch, but—”

“Don’t.” He held up a hand, still glaring at Hendrix. “Just don’t.”

Hendrix stepped slightly in front of me, his posture protective but non-threatening. “Luca, let’s talk about this.”

“Talk about what? How you took advantage of my sister?” Luca’s voice was getting louder. “She told me she’s never even had a serious boyfriend, and you—”

“Stop.” I pushed past Hendrix, fury replacing embarrassment. “Just stop right there.”

Both men looked at me in surprise.

“I’m twenty-three years old, Luca. I don’t need you protecting my virtue.” Crossing my arms, I stared my brother down. “And for your information, nothing happened that I didn’t want to happen.”

“Lainey—”

“No. You don’t get to do this. You don’t get to request I tag along with him on an errand, then get mad when we actually connect.”

Luca’s shoulders sagged. “Yeah. I guess I was pushing you two together a little.”

“Why?” Hendrix asked, and I could hear the confusion in his voice.

“Because…” Luca scrubbed his face with his hands. “Because you’ve been alone too long, both of you. Every time you come home, sis, you’re all work and no play. And Hendrix hasn’t settled anywhere in years.”

“But not this,” I said, understanding dawning.

“Not this.” He looked between us, his expression raw. “I didn’t expect you two to sleep together…and now he’s leaving Monday, and I just—”

“You just what?” Hendrix’s voice was quiet, but there was an edge to it.

“I don’t want to see her get hurt, okay? You’re a good guy, Hendrix, but you’re also a guy who never stays in one place longer than a few months. And she’s my baby sister.”

The words hung in the air between us. I felt something cold settle in my stomach as the reality of the situation hit me. Hendrix was leaving. I was leaving. What had happened between us in that old mill was beautiful, but it was also temporary.

“You’re right,” Hendrix said finally, and my heart cracked a little. “The plan was to leave Monday.”

Luca nodded, some of the fight going out of him. “I know. That’s why—”

“But not anymore.”

Both Luca and I stared at him.

“What?” I whispered.

“I’m not leaving Monday.” He turned to face me fully, his gray eyes intense. “I was supposed to head to Tennessee for a land development project, but I can push that back. Or find someone else to handle it.”

“Hendrix, you don’t have to—”

“Yes, I do.” He stepped closer, close enough that I had to tilt my head back to look at him. “Because what happened in there wasn’t just a hookup for me, Lainey. I need you to know that.”

My heart was pounding so hard, I was sure they could both hear it. “It wasn’t?”

“Hell no.” He glanced at Luca, then back at me. “I want to see where this goes. I want to spend time with you, get to know you better. Everything about you.”

“But I’m only here for two more weeks,” I said softly. “I have to get back to Charleston for work.”

Something shifted in his expression. “Two weeks?”

“I always come home to help with the Christmas tree lot. It’s our busiest time. But things slow down in mid-December, so I go back to my life in South Carolina.”

I watched him process this information, saw the moment he realized the complications we were facing. Two weeks wasn’t long enough to build anything real. Was it?

“What if…” He ran a hand through his hair. “What if I stayed a couple of weeks? Helped out at the lot?”

Luca’s eyebrows shot up. “You want to work the Christmas tree lot?”

“Why not? I’ve got the time, and you could probably use the extra hands.” He looked between us. “Besides, it would give Lainey and me a chance to figure out what this is.”

“You’d do that?” I asked, hardly daring to believe it. “Stay here longer?”

“I’d do that.” His voice was firm, certain. “If you want me to.”

Luca was looking between us like he was watching a tennis match. “Hold on. You’re talking about staying in Wildwood Valley for over a month. What about your job? Your life?”

“I’m an independent contractor now. Have been for the past year.” Hendrix shrugged. “I can work from anywhere, and honestly, I’ve been looking for a reason to slow down. To stop moving around so much.”

“And you think that reason is my sister?” There was something in Luca’s voice I couldn’t identify.

“I think your sister might be exactly what I’ve been looking for without knowing it.” Hendrix’s eyes never left mine. “If she’ll have me.”

The three of us stood there in the darkness beside the old mill, the weight of the moment settling around us. Luca was studying both of our faces, and I could see him making some kind of calculation.

Finally, he sighed. “You know what? Fine. But if you hurt her, Lowe, I will end you.”

“Fair enough,” Hendrix said, grinning.

“And you,” Luca pointed at me, “are going to help me understand what just happened here. Because a couple of days ago, you two barely knew each other.”

I felt my cheeks heat up again. “Some things don’t take long to figure out.”

“Apparently not.” Luca shook his head, but he was almost smiling now. “Come on, you two. Let’s head back. We’ve got trees to sell, and apparently I have a new employee to train.”

As we walked back to the trucks, Hendrix caught my hand, lacing our fingers together. The gesture was simple, but it sent warmth shooting through me.

“You sure about this?” I asked quietly. “Staying, I mean. It’s a big change.”

He stopped walking and turned to face me, his expression serious. “Lainey, I’ve been running from place to place for years, never finding anything worth staying in one place for. But you…” He squeezed my hand. “You make me want to stop running.”

I stood on my tiptoes and kissed him, right there in front of the old mill, with my brother pretending not to watch from beside his truck.

When we broke apart, I was breathless and grinning. “Well then, Hendrix Lowe, welcome to Wildwood Valley.”

“Thanks,” he said, his smile soft and genuine. “I think I’m going to like it here.”

As we drove back down the mountain in convoy—Luca leading in his truck, us following—I couldn’t stop smiling. Two weeks had suddenly become the beginning of something much bigger.

And for the first time in my life, I couldn’t wait to see what came next.