Page 3 of My Boyfriends Are All Monsters (Scared Sexy Collection #6)

Lucy: Got caught in a rockslide but it’s fine. I just twisted my ankle. One of the locals showed up like a knight in shining armor, complete with the white horse and all.

Kira: What, girl where are you?

Lucy: A small town called Duskpetal. Been here five minutes and I’ve already been saved by Mr. Romance Novel Hero, got invited on a date and I think offered a job at a bakery?

Either I’ve stumbled across a storybook town, or I’m about to be abducted into a cult.

I’m gonna wait until I’ve tried the bakery to figure out if I care which one.

Kira: How hot is the cult leader?

Before I could answer, the horse came to a stop in front of our destination, and Noah held out his hand. I took it and maneuvered my good leg to sit sidesaddle to slide down, but Noah took me in his arms once again and carried me into the clinic.

Inside, it had more of that classic small-town charm.

Potted plants decorated the windowsill, while a few painted pumpkins rested on the nurse’s desk.

The scent of antiseptic mingled with the faint smell of apple pie.

A golden retriever lay sprawled out on the area rug next to the front desk.

The nurse raised her brow in that way old folks did when they discovered a juicy bit of gossip before the rest of the bingo club.

Barely trying to hide her smirk, she nodded toward the back room.

“Dr. Crane’s in,” she said, her tone just short of a warning.

Noah grimaced and nodded his thanks. Instead of setting me down so I could sign in, he walked into the back room and gently placed me on an exam table, brushing a braid behind my ear before stepping away.

“I’ll need to get back to my animals before they lay waste to the jack-o’-lanterns,” he murmured, giving me an apologetic smile.

“When you’re done here, Evangeline can get you a room to rest in at the inn.

I’ll bring you something to eat once I’ve finished my work for the day. ”

“Oh, you don’t have to do that.”

“I know.” He stuffed a pillow under my calf to elevate my ankle. “Now do what the doctor says and let me take care of you.”

I could only stare, tongue-tied, as he left. Which was probably a good thing, because the next words that came out of my mouth were, “What are we?”

The door creaked open, and in walked Dr. Crane. He looked about as approachable as a brick wall but twice as rugged and oddly ... familiar. His dark eyes met mine for a split second before casting a glance at my ankle; then he pushed up his sleeves with efficient annoyance.

“Had a run-in with the rockslide, did you?” he muttered.

Warm, calloused hands slid over my ankle with surprising gentleness.

With his body so close to mine, his masculine scent wreaked havoc on my heartbeat.

It was no wonder the dating scene was so abysmal.

All the hot men had been hiding from us in the mountains.

I looked away from him and cleared my throat. “How did you know it was the rockslide?” The realization gave me pause, and I cast a suspicious glance at the doctor.

Crane’s jaw tightened just a fraction; then he waved off my suspicions with a shake of his head and replied, “There’s no secrets in this town.

Doesn’t help that Noah found you first. The only thing that man loves more than his horse is to be the first to report news to the grapevine.

Ms. Evangeline out front has undoubtedly already informed half the populace about a young woman being carried in by our resident gossip.

” He reached into a drawer for an elastic bandage and began wrapping my ankle.

“So there is some truth to that saying about no privacy in small towns? I always thought that was an exaggeration.”

“It’s as real as a rockslide, ma’am,” he said.

I couldn’t help but watch his face; there was just something so familiar about him.

Yes, he was handsome, but it was more than that.

A well-trimmed beard framed his lips, and his long lashes cast shadows over a smoldering gaze.

I held my hand up to block out the top of his head.

If I pictured him in a black cowboy hat, then . ..

Dr. Crane met my hard stare with a raised brow. “If you’re aiming to ruffle my hair, I’m afraid there ain’t much of it left,” he said, referring to the short, clean fade he kept it in.

“Has anyone ever told you that you look like the cover model from Night Hawk by Beverly Jenkins?”

He blinked once, then twice, like he was processing my words, then let out a small, forced laugh.

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” he managed, and quickly finished off my bandage.

“Keep this wrapped up so you’re not hobbling around on it.

When you get to wherever it is you are staying for the night, be sure to ice it for about twenty minutes.

That’ll help with the swelling. You’re welcome to stay here and ice it if you like, but selfishly, I don’t want half the town loitering around my waiting room, trying to get details on the newcomer. So get.”

“Oh, I’m not staying. I’ll just call an Uber to take me back to the city. Not that your town isn’t lovely, but I think I’ve had enough of nature for now.”

“You can’t!” he barked. Dr. Crane looked more surprised than I did at his outburst. He paused at the doorway and nervously rubbed at the nape of his neck before looking back at me.

“You think that trail you were on was the only thing affected by the rockslide? The whole main road is under a pile of rubble. It’s going to take a few days at least for it to clear.

There’s a bed-and-breakfast just a block down.

Talk to Ms. Evangeline out front; she’ll set you up with a wheelchair or a set of crutches.

Dealer’s choice.” With that he left, closing the door behind him.

“Well, guess he doesn’t like compliments.

” I gathered my things and slung my heavy backpack over my shoulder, carefully avoiding putting too much weight on my bad ankle.

When I returned to the front desk, Ms. Evangeline was nowhere in sight.

I called for her and waited a few minutes, but she never returned. “Maybe she went on break?”

I took a note card from the counter and wrote down my information so she could contact me for the bill later.

Unfortunately for me, there was no wheelchair or crutches to be seen in the waiting room, and I wasn’t about to raid the doctor’s office myself, which meant I’d just have to suck it up and hobble my way to the inn.

With my backpack slung across my shoulder and my ankle throbbing, I pushed through the clinic door; the door chime let off a little jingle as it closed behind me.

I stepped out into the town’s main street only to be greeted .

.. by nothing. Empty sidewalk stretched in both directions.

The charming hustle and bustle that were here earlier when I first arrived were entirely gone.

I paused, leaning slightly against the clinic’s doorway as goose bumps rose along my skin.

Maybe it was more of that small-town quirkiness, or maybe I was just too paranoid for my own good.

Still, it was odd. In the city, you’d never see the streets this deserted.

Pulling out my phone, I sent a quick update to the chat.

Lucy: Everyone is just gone. Do small towns take group wide tea breaks or something?

Jess: You said the town’s name is Duskpetal right? I can’t find it online.

Lucy: I think it was. Wasn’t really focusing on anything other than Noah’s hair blowing in the wind to tell the truth.

Kira: What’s the decoration situation? Any effigies of giant owls or men with overly elaborate hats?

I looked around for any questionable lawn ornaments or punch bowls with suspicious contents.

Lucy: None spotted, but that might be because they’ve outlawed decorations that don’t have anything to do with pumpkins or scarecrows.

Jess: My god. It Is a cult!

A chill ran up my spine, and I glanced around, half expecting a guy in a robe to pop out and force-feed me Kool-Aid.

Scarlett: Don’t scare her! But Lucy, baby, you’re gonna be fine. Can you catch a ride back to civilization?

I cast a glance over my shoulder at the clinic window, hoping that maybe Ms. Evangeline or Dr. Crane had reappeared, just to reassure me that other people still existed in this world.

Yet the clinic was still empty. Taking a shaky breath, I relayed the info about the rockslide into the chat and made my way down the street, trying not to think about how the sounds of my footsteps echoed in the quiet stillness.

The scent of fresh cookies wafted through the air, and I noticed yet another bakery on the corner.

Wild to think this town ate enough sweets to support two bakeries.

Beside it, a sign for Honeybee Inn swung gently in the breeze.

I breathed a sigh of relief for at least having shelter I could duck into.

Once I got inside, I could grab myself a room and hide away until morning.

Despite the fact that the streets were completely empty, I couldn’t help but feel like something was watching me.