Page 1 of Single Mom for the Mountain Men (Mountain Men Why Choose #3)

T his is it. This is the beginning of the rest of our lives.

I feel the weight of the steering wheel beneath my hands, the car’s engine humming quietly as I drive through the winding, snow-dusted roads of Whitefish, Montana.

My fingers are gripping tighter than necessary, but I can’t bring myself to loosen my hold.

We’re on the last stretch of the journey, heading toward the place where I hope to start fresh, to leave everything behind.

Sophie, bundled up beside me in the passenger seat, hums softly to herself, oblivious to the tension tightening in my chest. I want to be calm for her, but it's hard to ignore the gnawing sense of fear, reminding me of why we’re here in the first place.

I glance out the window. The mountains rise ahead of us, massive and silent, the kind of landscape that feels untouchable. For a moment, it seems like a dream, or a fantasy. Is this really happening? Am I really doing this?

We reach the edge of a small, isolated town after driving for hours.

I don’t even have to check the map anymore.

I know that I’ve arrived. The cabin I rented is just up ahead, and it looks just like the picture in the listing.

The one I’ve never seen in person, the one that was supposed to be a safe haven. Our safe haven. Or so I hope.

The driveway to the cabin is long and unkempt, the snow having piled up along the edges. I drive slowly while Sophie taps her fingers against the window, watching the passing trees with wide eyes.

When we pull up, an older man is waiting for us, his face creased with lines from years spent in the harsh mountain air. He looks at me, his gaze lingering just a little too long before he nods toward the cabin.

“I’m Jack. This is a good place to enjoy peace and quiet,” he says, his voice gruff, like the words have been said a hundred times before. “Just so you’re aware there are three men in the woods. Mountain men. They keep to themselves, mostly. They won’t bother you.”

I blink at him, unsure if I heard him correctly. “Mountain men?”

His lips twitch in what might be a smirk, or a warning. I can’t tell which. “You’ll see.”

Feeling a knot tighten in my stomach, I nod because I’m not sure what else to say.

Three strange men, with no other neighbors around?

I force a smile, trying to shake off the unease I feel at the thought.

He turns and walks away before I can ask more questions, leaving me standing on the porch. The air is cold against my skin.

I look over at Sophie, who’s all ready to explore our new home, and I’m envious of the way she seems to bounce back so quickly. She has no idea how much I’m trying to hold it all together. “Come on, sweetie. Let’s get inside.”

The cabin is small but charming, and for a moment, I let myself relax.

Sophie runs ahead to claim the first room she finds, throwing herself on the bed with a giggle.

I start to unpack, but the back of my mind keeps returning to the landlord’s warning.

What kind of mountain men are we talking about here?

The shoot-first-ask-questions-later kind, or do they just prefer being left alone?

And why are they the only other ones to live here?

I tell myself that it’s nothing—just paranoia on my end. For a while, I’m able to push my doubts away, but when I take Sophie for a walk later, I notice something that sends a chill down my spine.

There’s only one other cabin close by, tucked back against the trees.

A man is standing just outside the front door.

He’s tall and broad-shouldered, and he’s looking right at me.

His eyes are sharp, cold, and for a second, I freeze.

It’s like he’s been waiting for me. Watching our cabin until I walked out.

My stomach flips, and I instinctively pull Sophie closer, taking a sharp step backward. But the man doesn’t move. He just stands there, staring.

I don’t know what to do.

Should I wave? Should I ignore him?

The silence between us feels thick, almost suffocating. His gaze is intense, like he’s trying to figure me out. And I, in turn, am doing the same to him.

As hard as I try to ignore it, the creeping tendrils of fear make themselves known at the base of my throat. No matter how hard I try to outrun my past, the stain it’s left behind is not one that can be so easily washed away.

Sophie, unaware of the apprehension morphing into trepidation within me, hums as she tries to tug away from me.

“What’s the matter, Mom?”

The stranger’s eyes stare at me unwaveringly. He has wide shoulders, which are made even more massive by the thick coat wrapped around them.

The alarm bells in my mind grow louder and louder the longer our gazes collide.

This is a mistake, Lena, you know better .

Preservation wins over the need to intimidate him into backing down, and I whip around with my hand on my daughter’s shoulder as I scurry toward the cabin.

Back to safety.

Once I’m back inside, I try to wipe my mind clean of any thoughts about strange men with glittering eyes. God knows that I have had to deal with enough strange men in my life.

My hands busy themselves with chopping the fresh produce the old man left behind. Jack might be grumpy enough to be unpleasant, judging by his moue when we got here, but there sure is a hidden heart in that man’s chest.

“Mom, Mom, why are there so many sleeping curses in these princess books?” Sophie turns up her nose as she flips through the new, pink storybook that I got her just before we left for Whitefish. Her long, brown hair spills over her back as she lies on her stomach in the living room.

“So many? There’s just two: Sleeping Beauty and Snow White ,” I reply, amused, as I toss in the carrots and radishes.

“Two is too many,” she grumbles, flipping disinterestedly through the book again and again. “I would never sleep for that long, doesn’t matter what witch curses me.”

I breathe out a small laugh. Sophie always seems to have a strong opinion about every fairy tale. It truly is one of the most endearing habits she has. How I have managed to raise a little feminist, I don’t quite know, but it gives me hope that she will grow up to be tougher than I’ve been.

Right as I’m about to reply to her, the lights flicker out completely, leaving us in an abrupt darkness. The bubbling of the soup in the pot and Sophie’s squawk of surprise are the only sounds in the dark room.

“Stay where you are, Soph,” I warn her while gesturing to the stove. “The stove is on.”

“I don’t like this,” she whines, “we were supposed to have fun here. How will I read my book now?”

Normally, seeing her pout would fill me with affectionate exasperation, but now, under these circumstances, it makes me want to hold her close.

“Don’t whine, baby. It’ll be okay soon, I promise,” I console her.

It doesn’t seem to work, as she continues complaining about being here.

Grabbing her in the dark and pulling her along with me, I turn off the stove, dismissing what little illumination the blue flame provided me with.

“I’m gonna call old man Jack, and he’ll fix this. ”

“He’s so old, he won’t be able to fix anything,” she says disdainfully. I hush her in a reprimanding tone.

I call Jack, but his line seems to be dead. I text him a desperate message, then call again when he doesn’t respond, but to no avail. Tension familiarizes itself with my body again, and I hear Sophie’s feet tap softly against the wooden floor as she comes to stand beside me.

Irrationally, I feel like throwing a tantrum the exact way Sophie does sometimes. We were supposed to be safe here, so why is the first night going this badly?

“Is old man Jack coming?” Sophie asks me.

Holding back my frustrated sigh, I pat her twice on the head. “He isn’t picking up, Soph, but maybe he’ll call back soon. I’ll go outside and check if there is anything I can do in the meantime.”

Jack didn’t tell me anything about power outages when we discussed our rental agreement. He assured me, in fact, that those were a myth, even here in the rural mountainside. This is what I get for trusting a man’s word yet again.

I make my way outside, the frigid air biting my nose and the tip of my ears as I leave Sophie in the warm, but dark, cabin.

I’m not prepared to deal with this type of situation at all. Feeling an intense surge of helplessness, I stand still for a moment, just looking up at the stars. I stomp my foot and curse loudly, wishing that I knew what to do.

The tall and menacing trees remain indifferent to my presence, not moving even in the slightest.

Titling my head back down, I try to decide what I should do next. Suddenly, three tall and imposing silhouettes emerge a few feet from the boundary of my cabin.

Fear, unfiltered and raw, creeps down my spine at the sight of them. My throat dries, and I’m unable to do anything except gape at them the longer they stand there.

“Hey, there! We heard you shouting. Mind if we help you?” a voice bellows, gruff and thunderous as it reaches me.

“Stay away from me!” I shout while backing toward the front door, hoping I don’t trip over something and fall down.

One of the men moves, not toward me, but closer toward the other men next to him.

“Tanner, Aiden, stay here,” he says. He has a quiet, yet most commanding voice I think I’ve ever heard.

It has a soothing quality, even if his presence still fills me with dread.

“Sorry for sneaking up on you,” he calls to me in that same soft but firm tone.

“We just figured that you might need help.”

Swallowing drily, my throat clicks as I croak out an affirmative. I’m not sure it even reaches their ears.

“Is it the power outage?”

“Yeah,” I call back, this time in a louder and surer voice. “The power just randomly went out, even though the landlord said that power outages aren’t an issue up here.”

“Ah. Would you mind if we came inside? It’s completely fine if you don’t need help, but we’re used to this kind of thing. We’re basically experts at this point.” There’s a smile in his tone, even though I can’t really see his face in the dark.

I ponder the situation. If they wanted to, they could have already overwhelmed me. Asking for permission and actually waiting for my answer…that’s not what I’m used to. I don’t quite know how to handle men who ask and don’t take.

“Sure,” I say finally, relenting in spite of my lingering worry. “I’d appreciate the help.”

The men appear before me in a few quick strides, their bodies appearing even more huge and menacing the closer they get. My feet scuttle backward on their own, and the trio stops as they see my hesitant movement.

“Whip out the lantern, won’t you, slowpoke?” the sharp-tongued one says. He’s a tad thinner than the other two, but he’s clearly the most impatient.

“Lantern? This isn’t the eighteen hundreds, dumbass. I gave Brody the flashlight I had on me.”

“Shit, yeah, wait.”

A button clicks, and a ray of light appears a few steps from my feet.

The light illuminates the three men’s faces.

The man holding the light, Brody, stands well above six feet, with dark hair that falls charmingly over his eyes.

He is the broadest and tallest out of the three, with the most intimidating stature.

The one on his right stands with eyes full of mirth, a buzzed haircut, and facial stubble.

His arms are crossed, but even so, his stance is loose and carefree.

The third member of the trio stands with his head turned away from me, his blond hair sitting messily atop his head.

His body language is slightly wary, maybe even indifferent, as his expression portrays boredom.

He is the wiry one of the group with lean muscles lurking beneath his ratty sweatshirt.

“I’m sorry, I forgot to introduce myself and these other two assholes. I’m Brody, and this is Tanner.” He points to the man with the buzzcut. “And this is Aiden,” he finishes by nodding toward the blond man. “I guess you’re new here?”

Blinking, I nod slowly. “Yeah, uh, I’m Lena Sanders. I just moved to Whitefish today. The city was getting a bit too hectic for me, so…”

“Lovely to make your acquaintance, Lena,” Tanner says smoothly, extending his hand toward me. As I give him mine, he flips it around and presses his lips to the back of it.

Flustered, I pull it back, just as Brody smacks the back of Tanner’s head. The sound is loud, and the thwack tells me that Brody didn’t hold back at all.

For a minute, I fear that Tanner will retaliate and it’ll turn into a bloody brawl in my front yard. After all, Jack did warn me that these are mountain men.

But Tanner only winks at me and rubs the back of his head sheepishly.

“So, power outage?” Aiden asks.

I nod like a bobblehead, stepping back and gesturing toward the cabin. “Yeah, the lights randomly cut out. I don’t know anything about the power supply, so–”

“Don’t worry, Lena, we got you,” Tanner reassures me with a lopsided grin on his face as Brody steps toward my home.

Aiden and Tanner follow closely behind, their movements purposeful and strangely synchronized.

I lead them inside, my pulse quickening, despite their calm demeanor.

The wary, distrustful part of me says that I’m making a big mistake, but the more logical part knows that they’re my best shot at restoring the power now, instead of waiting to see when—or if—Jack ever gets back to me.

Hopefully letting them in won’t come back to bite me in the ass.