Page 10 of Single Mom’s Mountain Men (Mountain Men Reverse Harem #1)

Charlie

I ’m lulled out of my sleep by the sound of feminine laughter and the fresh aroma of cooked bacon. My stomach grumbles as I call out lightly, “Ma ?”

But then as my eyes flutter open to find the familiar ceiling of my own bedroom, I remember.

My mother is dead.

I sit up as the feminine laughter echoes again and I realize it doesn't sound like my mother’s laugh. It’s throatier, and it’s not followed by mom's country drawl. Instead, it’s a nearly unfamiliar voice that accompanies the laugh along with my brother’s much more familiar brogue.

The foreign voice suddenly awakens me truly and drags me back to the day before.

Patty. She’s in the kitchen right now, cooking bacon and the Lord knows what else.

And even as my stomach growls in hunger once more, my cock throbs. I stare down at the bulge in my boxers, noting that it’s larger than normal.

Then again, this isn't just normal morning wood.

It’s the effect of remembering Patty in that sundress, the way she smiled, looking delectable. Good enough to eat. Which brought me back to that wonderful smell of bacon cooking on the stove.

I get to my feet, padding over to the shower. I wash my face first and brush my teeth, then I shuck off the boxers and climb in. I clench my teeth as a fresh spray of cold water stings my skin.

Just what I need, a cold shower .

Unfortunately, while the cold makes me miserable for a couple of seconds until my body adjusts, it doesn’t do much to get rid of my erection.

Shit.

How on earth am I supposed to go out there and act like a decent human being and not a horndog, with this damn hard-on standing up in front of me like the figurehead on an olden days pirate ship?

I wrap my hand around my cock, and bite back a groan, as the image of Patty’s curvaceous body flows effortlessly and unbidden into my mind. Once again, she's in the sundress that shows off her sun-kissed skin and freckles. And those baby blue eyes...

"Fuck," I bite out as a tremble goes through my body.

It’s her hand I imagine wrapped around my cock now.

Closing my eyes I can almost see her leaning against the opposite wall, smiling as she works me slowly.

Naturally, she would be naked at this point, although clothes work for me too.

I watch the spray of water, sluice down her skin, sticking the fabric to her flesh and exposing the curves underneath. Good Lord.

Actually, on second thought I would rather have her naked, so I can see if the freckles are on any other part of her body. I’d want to kiss them, taste her skin, see if it was as sweet as I imagined. I would start by sucking on her nipples until she moans wildly for me.

And then I'll go lower, the smell of her essence beckoning me to taste.

She'll be wet at this point, but I’d lick her until she was flooding against my tongue.

Then after I straighten, she'd pump me harder, wanting me over the edge too.

She'll lick her lips, her eyes awash in desire.

Kiss me, Charlie. The phantom whisper is stronger than any temptation I've ever faced and I nod leaning in.

My hips jerk, shooting my load into the air.

“Fuck," I whisper shakily, shoulders sagging as I press my head against the cool tile. My body tremors and I try to climb down from my high. I can’t believe an imagined kiss was enough to set me off like that. I also can’t believe that I used the thought of a woman I just met to jerk off.

It feels wrong somehow, like I'm some creep, even though she will never know what I was thinking.

Nevertheless, I need to get it together. I can't let Patty know how much I want her. Something tells me that she has been through a lot and probably the last thing she needs is some guy drooling over her.

I take a few extra minutes to wash off before I step out of the spray and wipe my body with a towel.

Then I get dressed and emerge from my room.

By the time I reach the Kitchen, Mitchell is gone and it's just Patty and her little ones. Maddie, the youngest one, sees me first and she waves with a mouthful of Cocoa Krispies.

“Hello, Mister.” Her words sound garbled and milk dribbles down her chin. I can’t help but smile.

“Hey,” I say. Then to the older one who is staring at me wide-eyed, I try to soften my expression even more and say, “Hey to you too.”

“Hello.” She ducks her face away almost instantly. I sigh.

Hopefully, she’s just shy and not terrified of me. And then I switch my attention to her mother who is by the stove and turning around to beam at me.

“Hey, Charlie,” she says in that effortlessly husky tone. "How did you sleep?”

Fuck.

Now I’m all hard again.

I barely manage a nod, tongue-tied by her sunny smile.

She doesn't seem to notice as she continues talking, “I’m making some bacon and biscuits. Not sure how the biscuits will turn out since we ran out of milk halfway through, but I think they should be all right. Also, I’m going to the grocery store in a little bit to pick up ingredients for tonight's dinner and do the week’s shopping. Anything in particular you want?”

Yeah. I want you laid out on that table with your legs wide open for my tongue.

Jesus Charlie, what is wrong with you?

I close my eyes admonishing myself for that thought. I shake my head to answer her question and then decide to get the hell out of there before I make a complete fool of myself.

“Charlie?” She calls but I don’t turn back, letting the door swing shut behind me.

I inhale deeply, needing the fresh air to clear my head.

I try not to think of the fact that I probably made an ass of myself back there.

This is why I don’t talk to people. Because I apparently don’t know how to act like a normal human being, especially around pretty women like her.

I sigh.

I head down to one of our workshop sheds.

I see Mitch in the distance with the log loader.

He'll be transporting most of the recently cut timber to the lumber mill fifteen miles from here, for debarking and drying.

Today, I'll be planing and grading the prepared pile, by far my favorite part of woodworking.

To be honest, owning a timber business wasn't my dream, and it still isn't. It's not necessarily something I want to do forever, but any mention of me leaving drives Mitch up the wall, so I try to avoid talking about it.

Contrary to what Wes thinks, I'm not scared of my brother.

But I don't like upsetting him either.

When I reach the shed, I don my protective gear and grab my tools, getting to work with little hesitation.

I’m so deep in the zone that I don’t hear anyone coming until something touches my shoulder.

I spin around so fast that I hear her gasp as she backs up.

My heart is still stirring and her eyes are wide, her hands gripping a plate.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.” She holds up the plate of bacon and biscuits. "I just thought you might want some breakfast."

Shit. I barely hear what she's saying, my mind still swirling. I could have hurt her.

“Call out next time." My voice is tighter and gruff than normal, from the tension. “Don't just sneak up on me.”

I see a spark of anger or perhaps hurt in her eyes. Then she nods primly. “Noted.” She places the plate of food on a table and then walks away with her back straight.

Great, and now I’ve just made an ass of myself again.

I think about it the whole morning, about my mistake.

I don’t feel good about snapping at her even though it came about involuntarily. She’d already been stressed enough, and she was nice enough to make me breakfast this morning even after my weird behavior in the kitchen. And then I was short with her on top of it.

I should go and apologize. Make this right.

I sigh and drop my tools, taking off my apron and gloves and setting off back to the kitchen.

I know Patty's still in there because I see her through the windows, talking to someone.

And as I get closer, I see that the someone is Wes.

She smiles at something he says and it turns into a bright laugh.

I pause, green-eyed jealousy stirring its ugly head.

I suppose I should have expected this. Wes is a lady's man and he’s way better at talking to women than either Mitch or me.

Perhaps, it's better to let him handle it and let him smooth things over. I would probably just make it worse.