Page 28 of Single Mom’s Mountain Men (Mountain Men Reverse Harem #1)

Mitch

I t’s an unusually quiet night.

I can’t hear so much as a cricket chirping, yet I can't sleep. I feel restless. Probably because I’ve been sitting at my desk for hours already going through a marketing proposal that the agency sent me.

Their given budget has way too many zeroes at the end for my liking but at the end of the day, I know I'll probably have to spend money to make money as they say. We’ve been doing okay so far, but word of mouth can only get you so far.

We need to reach more customers out of state to finally blossom onto the next stage of our shining success story.

And then after that...

I turn in bed and consider the full moon outside my window. And then what?

Truthfully I haven’t considered that question all too much.

I haven’t thought beyond what would happen after our business thrives.

I suppose not much would change for me. I'll continue to work on the land and even with hired help, I doubt I’ll slow down much.

Not just because I enjoy what I do, but also because there really isn’t anything to slow down for.

I don't know what to do with myself if I'm not working. My life is dreadfully bare without work, it’s always been that way.

Before I left for the military, I worked multiple jobs and also helped dad with the logging.

I took that dogged focus on work into the Marines with me, and spent most of my time training and readying myself for what was to come, never letting loose like some of the other cadets did.

And then on tour, no matter how quiet and peaceful it got sometimes, I never lost sight that we were in enemy territory and absolutely anything could happen at any point.

And it did. Once we were at a campfire shooting the shit and the next second all hell was breaking fucking loose.

I close my eyes, holding back the memories.

It doesn't do any good to go back there. It will only trigger another fucking nightmare, which is the last thing I need. I also don’t need to sit here feeling sorry for myself when I’m one of the lucky ones who made it out.

Plus, I had a home to come back to, and a family of sorts.

I had work that was giving me a steady income.

I am a lot fucking luckier than most and it’s enough.

So what if I don’t have a wife or any prospects of finding one out here in the middle of a timber forest, halfway up a mountain in the depths of Montana?

I doubted something like marriage would fit into my life anyway.

In my experience, women typically don't like it when you ignore them because you’re hard at work.

I learned that from every relationship I’ve ever had.

Sure, at first they were fascinated or excited by the idea of dating someone like me.

A man who had his shit together. A man who never cheated, didn’t go out and party, and didn’t know or care about who the latest celebrity was. It was a novelty to some of them .

Until the reality hit. Having my shit together meant that I rarely had time for anything other than my work. And eventually, that became a bigger and bigger problem until it was a deal breaker.

My mom loved my dad, but I saw how his workaholic nature strained their relationship, how many arguments they had.

He would forget birthdays, and anniversaries or miss special moments because his entire being was consumed by work.

I’m probably going to be the same way. So there’s no point in putting some poor woman through that.

Let my brothers be the ones to get married and have kids. Let them carry on the family name.

Besides, Patty and her daughters are here, and they might not like another woman sniffing around.

I pause on that thought.

It's not a thought I should have. Patty is just a guest here, one who won't be here long.

Even if she hadn't assured me that this arrangement would be short-term I knew she would leave eventually.

The woman had 'city girl' written all over her, and while living in this rural outpost might seem romantic in the short term, once the novelty wore off, she would head back to the city where she came from. Where she belonged.

So then why did I keep thinking of her as a permanent member of the family? Why did I accept a dog into my home simply because I thought it would make her and the girls happy?

I'm getting way too attached to those little girls. So much so that I agreed to take in that mangy animal for their sake.

Heck, when I picked them up from the grocery store today and saw the swing set in the daycare across the fence, I actually considered buying one for the kids.

And then that led to thoughts of building a fence around the property so that they would be safer from coyotes and other wild animals, and maybe even expanding the main house to create more space for them.

And perhaps constructing a treehouse for them to play in.

And making them a sandpit of course, and what about a swimming pool?

If that didn’t tell that I was probably going off the deep end here, then I didn’t know what would. I knew women tended to experience maternal instincts when they reached a certain age, but could the same thing happen to men with paternal instincts unexpectedly kicking in?

I get out of bed and decide to take a walk outside. Maybe some fresh air will clear my head. The air's nice and cool, the night silent.

The hallway is dark, but the kitchen is still lit up, with a rag resting in the sink and a towel on the table. Did Patty forget to turn the light off before she left?

It was surprising that one of my brothers hadn’t noticed and switched the light off.

But as I pass by Wes’ room, a feminine moan stops me in my tracks.

What the fuck?

I listen for it again, hearing the unmistakable sound of bodies moving on the fabric along with a bitten-out masculine curse. Anger brims under the surface.

It’s been less than an hour since dinner.

When did he have time to go out and pick someone up?

Did he get her off the street or something?

And did Patty see him bring her in? Was she upset?

It's only normal for a woman to be upset when the man she hooked up with casually brings another woman around?

I'm going to kick his ass for this.

But the thought is doused when Wes groans louder and says, “Fuck Patty. ”

My stomach clenches hard with my fist.

Something coils inside me a mess of emotions so hard to identify but it renders me tense. Some of it is anger because this is the exact thing that led to a fight between Wes and Charlie. Why the fuck would Patty and Wes start this up again? Did they not even stop to think about Charlie’s feelings?

I feel like breaking the door in to give them a piece of my mind, but I don't want to embarrass Patty.

I tell myself my tension is simply because I’m annoyed. I’m annoyed that their actions will cause me more problems.

But at the end of the day, it’s none of my business. My brothers are grown up, and so is Patty. They can do whatever they want as long as it doesn’t affect anyone else.

If Patty chooses Wes, then Charlie will just have to understand and get over it. And so will I.

But as I walk away, the strain remains in my gut.

The thought of Patty and Wes continues to bother me the next day as I fell some more trees up in the northwest section of our land, where thirty years ago, dad had planted a large mixed stand of Englemann Spruce, Douglas Fir, and Lodgepole Pine that now needs thinning in order to promote faster growth.

The sound of her moans tormented me throughout the night and I woke up this morning with a raging hard on.

When I let myself, I imagine why she was moaning. Did Wes have his tongue on her clit, was he licking it so delicately? Or did she like things rough? Did she enjoy being choked and forced to take her pleasure?

Fuck, this is such a fucked-up thing to think, I realize and I deliberately change the topic of my internal monolog back to planning the work ahead of me.

But I can't completely exorcize the thought so much that this morning I didn't pass by the kitchen to say hi to her like I usually do. Instead, I’d headed out before the sun broke so I could avoid the conversation and any awkwardness that might arise from it.

I remind myself over and over that it's not my fucking business, but I can't help but be indignant. I feel betrayed on Charlie’s behalf, and I tell myself that’s why I can't let this go.

I wait till mid-afternoon before I decide to go get some coffee. At this point, she should be out with either Wes or Charlie, dropping off the girls. The coast should be clear.

But I have miscalculated. By the time I get up the stairs, a sigh reaches me too late. I stop at the door staring.

The sight hits me right in the solar plexus, tightening my body to epic proportions. Furious lust erupts, chugging through my brain refusing to let me so much as breathe through the passion choking in my throat.

Charlie is eating her out on the dining table.

Her thighs are on either side of his head and his large hands are holding her open.

As she gasps and slowly undulates against his face, one of her hands is buried in his hair, and the other is at her own breasts. She’s holding her breast, plucking her nipples through the fabric and moaning into the air.

The sheer eroticism has me hard and aching in seconds.

I should leave, I need to leave but for the life of me, I can't get my body to move away.

I would have to chop off my legs for that to happen.

Instead, I grip the door jamb so hard that the splinters dig through my calloused palms. I watch Patty, the glorious goddess, unable to look away as she takes her pleasure from my giant brother.

And as she bites off a moan as Charlie groans, red-hot jealousy burns through me.

I can't even deny it anymore.

I'm jealous that it's his tongue inside her and not mine .

It takes me a second to realize that I’m hard. My hand moved of its own volition, gripping the front of my jeans.

A whistle pierces through the air from the opposite hallway, and I freeze.

Wes emerges, smiling deviously.

“So, you two were over here starting without me huh?” Wes says, sauntering in. “I’m hurt. I thought you would at least give me a warning.”

Charlie doesn’t respond but Patty reaches for him.

He walks across to them and kisses her, sending shockwaves rippling through me.

What the actual fuck is going on?