Page 3 of Single Mom for the Mountain Men (Mountain Men Why Choose #3)
T he mountains are a strange place. So mighty and majestic, yet so cold and indifferent. You truly realize how little you matter when you look up to see the clouds brushing past the peaks of these huge hills.
It’s getting colder in Whitefish. During the mornings, I can barely push myself to get out of bed, let alone convince Sophie to follow suit.
But she needs to do her homeschool program, and I need to get going on my day.
The crisp air floods the house, and the underfloor heating is the only thing that makes the cabin survivable.
The number of missed calls on my phone from unknown numbers won’t really let me relax, either. No matter how far I get away from my past, these lingering reminders always keep me on edge.
I often go on early morning walks to catch the fresh morning air.
Sometimes, I see Aiden out on the porch, or sometimes Brody.
The latter is often chopping up a block of wood, grunting quietly.
Even in such cold, he’s down to a mere sweatshirt, with sweat stains around his abdomen.
Aiden will occasionally be standing by the huge oak tree they have in their garden, lost in thought.
If they see me, they toss me a nod, which is now beginning to be accompanied by the smallest tilt of their lips.
Aiden doesn’t say much; even when he came over that night with his brothers, he was the quietest out of his brothers.
Still, there’s a certain charm to him. He’s resourceful and pretty skilled, evidenced by how quickly he seemed to repair the wire in my kitchen—which he only had to do because Jack was still not replying to my texts.
I find him more attractive than I would like to admit. I like the quiet atmosphere we share the most, not to mention this silly, high school method of greeting each other as I walk by.
I wonder if he’ll be outside this morning when I go for my walk, and a part of me can’t wait to find out. Will I actually get a full-blown smile this time? Or maybe even a hello?
Some sort of higher power must be listening to my thoughts, because right as I am walking to the kitchen to make some coffee, there’s a knock on the front door. Through the peephole, I see Aiden standing there with a large tray in his hands.
Unlocking the door, I greet him, though my confusion is obvious by my tone. His blond hair is tousled, his chiseled cheekbones standing out clearly due to the flushing of his skin. His lips curl into a tiny smile, and I feel my lips stretch into a mirroring expression.
He’s wearing a thick, brown, suede coat, and he has a scarf wrapped thickly around his neck. The wind blows inside, leaving me shivering. His hair flutters over his eyes, and I guide him inside quickly.
“Here, let me get that for you,” I tell him, placing my hands over his shoulders as I wait for him to take off his coat.
He stills the tiniest amount, his brown eyes flitting to look at me.
The moment, which must have been no longer than a second or two, feels like it lasts two whole minutes instead.
A strange kind of tension envelopes us, and I jerk out of it once I realize how close we are, moving my hands away from his body.
“Yeah, here,” he says roughly, but not in a mean kind of way, before shrugging off his coat. I take it gingerly without looking at him.
Hanging it on the coat rack, I finally take the tray from him as well.
“We made a lot of breakfast this morning. Had too much to drink last night, and Tanner always makes more than our hungover asses really need. Would you and Sophie like to share it with me?”
My lips part in surprise. Aiden wants to have breakfast with Sophie and I.
For some reason, that fact makes me feel stupidly giddy. I never took Aiden to be the type to reach out or initiate anything, so him being here right now makes me feel even more special.
“Yes, of course. Thank you so much. You didn’t have to do that,” I babble the entire time as we walk to the kitchen.
“Don’t thank me, Lena, it’s my pleasure,” he rumbles in response, the bass of his voice making my heart flipflop in my chest.
I put the tray down and whip off the cloth, revealing hashbrowns, strips of deliciously fried bacon, and toast with some kind of spread on it. There are some pancakes, too, that are almost drenched with maple syrup.
“That’s Tanner’s famous shrimp spread. You’ll fall in love with it at the first bite,” Aiden explains when he sees me eyeing the toast.
“Honestly, everything looks too appetizing to taste bad,” I admit, and Aiden laughs.
His laugh is husky and low, a bark at first that fades into a bass note.
It’s the first time he has laughed in front of me.
I feel a sense of accomplishment and giddiness override everything else.
Unable to stop feeling like a teenage girl interacting with her crush for the first time, I bring out the plates and start plating portions.
“Where’s Sophie?” he asks as I sit down beside him.
“She’s sleeping in today. I’m sure she’ll wake up in a bit. This food smells amazing.”
“I’m glad you think so,” he admits, a softer smile on his face. I feel the blood rush to my face as I look at his expression, and I clear my throat.
“Let’s dig in.”
He shakes his head. “You go ahead, I already ate with the boys. I brought this over for you and Sophie.”
No matter how much I try to convince him otherwise, he resists, so I shrug and dig in. I’m unable to control the moan that makes its way out of my mouth at the taste of the delicately balanced shrimp and cream. Aiden eyes me with intensity in his gaze.
I avert my eyes as my cheeks warm with color.
“So, uh,” I begin once I’ve scarfed down the toast, “why do you guys live in the mountains? Isn’t it a bit too secluded?”
“That’s how all three of us prefer it. I’d always liked the mountains as a kid, and ever since Brody gave up on the Navy life, he agrees with me, more or less.
Tanner is a survivalist, and a good one at that, so living here was right up his alley, too.
It’s really the only place we’ve found the peace we had been desperately searching for,” he responds quietly.
“Oh,” I say, not very eloquently.
He opens his mouth to say something else, but that’s the moment Sophie walks in, rubbing a fist against her left eye, her beloved teddy bear clutched tightly in her right hand.
“Good morning, baby. Sleep well?” I coo at her. She looks so cute every time she wakes up. Aiden seems to agree with me, if the fond smile that takes over his face when his eyes land on her is any indication. “Say hi to Aiden.”
She pushes out something that is a mix of gibberish and groaning.
“You’ll only get the lovely breakfast he brought over for us if you greet him properly.”
“Good morning, Aiden,” she responds obediently, and I push her plate toward her as she hops onto her stool.
Aiden chuckles. “Good morning to you, too, Sophie. Seems you slept well.”
Sophie doesn’t respond, lost to the toast and the pancakes she’s devouring. I shake my head, grinning.
“She’s not a morning person, I take it?” Aiden observes.
I only chuckle at his remark.
“So, what brings you to the mountains of Whitefish, Lena?”
The question surprises me, even though it shouldn’t.
I search for words, but they escape me. My body tenses as the ugly memories try to wriggle to the surface like disgusting worms at the bottom of a pond.
Trying to push my emotions down, I will my body to relax and try not to make my discomfort obvious to Aiden, even though I’m sure he has already noticed my severe reaction.
Right then, my phone begins vibrating on the counter. A quick glance at it reveals that a random number is calling. Turning on the silent mode, I look back at Aiden, trying to get my body to relax. Tension has locked my body completely, and I’m trying to keep my breathing stable and slow.
“Life here is more difficult than I thought it would be, you know. Finding the nearest convenience store is my newest nightmare,” I manage to joke after a moment, hoping he’ll accept me diverting the topic.
He eyes me with worry, lips parting as if to ask me something, but nothing escapes for a few moments.
He seems to rethink his next words and says, “Tanner can help you.” He leans back in the chair. His biceps flex against the sleeve of his sweatshirt as he does so. “He’s a trained survivalist, after all. He’ll make you fall in love with the mountains like nothing else.”
I purse my lips a little at that. “I like the mountains just fine already. I don’t need to be convinced to fall in love with them.”
“Can’t hurt to learn a little more about them. Being ready for anything is important up here,” Aiden says. “Come on. You guys need to bundle up. We’re going to have fun.”