Scarred: A Mountain Man Romance

by J. R. Ryder

  Her eyes were wide and innocent. “Jasper… I…” She wet her lips, trying to speak but her words failed her. Unable to explain her situation, she held out her phone. “Read the texts.” She said in a choked whisper.

  I ground my teeth in pure anger. Who did this guy think he was? How dare he threaten Mandy? I didn’t even know this man and already I wanted to bash his head in. He had no right to speak to a woman in such a way. “Who is he?” I finally asked, voice eerily calm despite the rage that coursed through my every vein.

  She bit her bottom lip, shaking her head.

  I grabbed her by the arms, holding her a little tighter than necessary.

  She flinched, eyes widening with a flash of fear. “Jasper…”

  “Sorry.” I immediately let go and stepped back. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to do that. Just, the thought that someone would speak to you like that makes me so angry.” I took a deep breath before folding her into my arms once more. “You know, I don’t even care who he is. I’ll keep you safe. I promise.”

  Chapter 17 (Mandy)

  Just the feeling of Jasper’s strong arms wrapped tight around my body was enough to melt away most of my worries. How could anything bad happen to me while I was with him?

  With a sigh, I rested my head on his shoulder and closed my eyes.

  I just needed to forget about Keith.

  He was in the past. And, I had gotten over him. Besides, as a special detective, I knew how to protect myself. There was nothing for me to be afraid of.

  Still, the threat of Keith lingered in my mind. If he really wanted to, he could find more than one way to hurt me. He could make my life a living nightmare and no restraining order was ever going to stop him.

  “Mandy…” Jasper continued to run his fingers through my hair, comforting me with his embrace.

  I smiled.

  Now, this man was different. He was strong yet gentle. Respectful. Attentive. Handsome and intelligent. He was everything I ever wanted in a man. The more time I spent with him, the harder it became for me to keep a distance. I couldn’t stay with him. He lived alone in the woods. My life was in the city. It would never work.

  Yet, I knew, deep down that I was falling for him.

  Maybe, I already loved him.

  Slowly, I looked up into his eyes. “Thank you…”

  “Don’t thank me.” He whispered, pinning a strand of my hair behind my ear. “I haven’t done anything yet.”

  “Yes, you have. Being here with me is enough.”

  He shook his head. “I should be able to keep you safe. To make you feel like you have nothing to worry about.”

  “You do.”

  “You don’t have to lie for my sake, Mandy. I know that this man terrifies you. If you would only tell me who he is, I could find some way to deal with him.”

  “No.” I pressed my hands on his chest, creating some distance between us. “I don’t want you to get involved. He’s my problem and I want to keep it that way.”

  “You shouldn’t have to deal with this on your own. I want to help you.”

  “You’ve helped me in more ways that you could imagine,” I whispered, placing my hand on his cheek. I pulled him in for a kiss, letting it last a little longer than a peck. When I finally broke away from his lips, I smiled. “Now, stop worrying about me.”

  “That’s not possible. So long as we’re together, I’ll always worry about you.”

  My heart quickened at his words. Just the thought that we could be together excited me. I wanted nothing more than for things to work out between us but I knew it was just a foolish dream. He was a man who lived in the mountains and I was just a girl who lived in the city. It wouldn’t work.

  Still, I wanted it to – more than anything. Jasper made me feel like no one else ever had. With him, I felt alive.

  “Are you sure you’re okay?” He asked, studying my face, noses almost touching.

  “I’m sure.”

  With a bit of reluctance, he let me go. “How about we watch a movie?”

  “That sounds nice.”

  I grabbed my mug of tea and followed him into the living room. He booted up his DVD player while I settled myself into the couch, all cuddled up in the blankets.

  “What are we watching?” I asked.

  “I thought you could help me decide.” He brought over a few discs. “I thought something a bit more… romantic?”

  “Sure. you don’t have to watch anything romantic for my sake. I’m not your typical girl in that sense. I don’t mind action movies.”

  “Well, you see, I own all of these movies which means I’ve watched and enjoyed most of them.”

  I raised an eyebrow in question. “ that means you’re a fan of the notebook.”

  “Yes.” He admitted with a bashful look on his face. “It’s a cute love story.”

  I giggled. “I can’t believe it.”

  “Why not?”

  “Well, you’re a big, strong man. I can’t really imagine you sitting here and watching the Notebook.”

  He chuckled. “I guess you’re right. Still, doesn’t change the fact that I like the movie.”

  “Did you want to watch it?”

  “We can. if there’s something else you want to watch, we can do that too.” He said.

  I browsed through the rest of his selection. In the end, we settled on an older world war II inspired film with a gripping love story weaved into all the violence. The movie was beautifully scripted, and the acting was phenomenal. It was difficult for me to look away, so enthralled by what was happening on the screen.

  about halfway through, I heard Jasper snoring. I looked over to see him knocked out, head slumped against his chest.

  I paused the movie, about to wake him up but I just couldn’t bring myself to do it. I placed my head on his chest and closed my eyes as well. Soon enough, we were both fast asleep with all the worries of the world washing away. Nothing could hurt us as long as we stayed together.

  ***

  In the morning, I woke up in Jasper’s bed. Slowly, I moved my arm along his side of the mattress to find it empty and cold.

  Huh?

  Where was he?

  “There’s no point trying to find him.”

  I was about to get up when that voice sent a shiver running through my spine. The blood in my veins froze into pure ice.

  No.

  It couldn’t be him.

  How had he found me?

  Where was Jasper?

  I stared in horror at my ex-boyfriend.

  What was I supposed to do?

  “Not so tough without your badge and gun, are you? I always knew you were a coward, running away from your problems. Just like the little billionaire you’ve been playing house with.”

  “Billionaire? What are you talking about?” I blurted out.

  He laughed. “Oh, that’s precious. You don’t know, do you? He hasn’t told you. I guess I’m not the only one who kept secrets from you.”

  “What are you –” Before I could ask the question, I felt something sharp pierce into the side of my neck.

  I reached up, pulling out a dart-like object.

  My eyes widened.

  Had he just…?

  Before I could finish my thought, my eyes grew heavy and all energy melted from my body.

  And, I fell into a deep, dark unconsciousness.

  Chapter 18 (Jasper)

  Fuck.

  I struggled to open my eyes. They were heavy, and my temples kept throbbing like someone had taken a baseball bat to the side of my head. My stomach churched as soon as I sat up.

  This was not my bed. This was not my home.

  Cold concrete lay underneath me.

  Where was I?

  Finally, I managed to open my eyes. A bright light made it impossible to see for the first few moments but eventually, they began to adjust.

  This was strange. Very strange.

  Slowly, I got to my feet, steadying myself despite the dizziness that I felt. T
he whole world looked like it was spinning around me, faster and faster every time I blinked.

  What happened?

  I tried to remember. The last thing I could recall was falling asleep on the couch while watching the Notebook. At one point, I woke up and carried Mandy to bed. I joined her shortly after. From there, I could remember nothing else.

  Maybe this was just a dream.

  the pain coursing through my skull was too real to be fake.

  Someone had done this to me. that’s not what I cared about. The only thing that mattered to me at that moment was Mandy. If they had taken me to this strange place, then I could only imagine what they had done to her. Just thinking about it caused a fury to run through my soul.

  I needed to find her.

  Now.

  The room I was in was bare. The walls were made of stone. There were no windows. The only way out seemed to be the large metal door located on the back wall.

  I ran my hands along the frame, but this was one heavy-duty door. Whoever had put me here, didn’t want me to leave.

  Think, Jasper. Who would want to do this to you? Of course, as a once-wealthy businessman, I had my fair share of enemies, but I had a hunch that all this was related to Mandy. Perhaps it was the man who had threatened her. how had I been so careless as to let him break into my home?

  It became hard for me to focus on these thoughts running through my head, so I took a deep breath.

  This wasn’t anything I couldn’t handle. I had served as a Navy SEAL and survived everything the enemy threw my way. I had made my way up the corporate ladder and still managed to make a success of myself. This was just another challenge I was bound to overcome.

  “Okay… let’s see. No windows. Steal door. this must be a safe room of sorts. And, every safe room usually has a secondary entrance…” I spoke to myself, trying to think through the situation.

  I narrowed my eyes and scanned the room, looking for clues. Usually, the trap door was well-hidden but everything that was once hidden could certainly be found.

  Carefully, I shuffled my feet against the ground, trying to pick up on anything unusual. When I reached the middle of the room, my steps suddenly sounded hollow.

  Bingo.

  I smirked.

  This had to be it.

  I kneeled on the ground and started to scrape away at the dirt floor. Eventually, I encountered something wooden. “Gotcha!” My smirk deepened when I saw the circular handle.

  Thinking I was as good as free, I wrapped my fingers around the cold metal and gave it a firm tug.

  It did not budge.

  I pulled once more, rattling the wooden door.

  Locked.

  “Fuck!”

  I ran my fingers through my hair, growing frustrated. The more time I spent locked up in this room, then the less time I had to find Mandy before something terrible happened. A growing sense of anxiety was already building in the pit of my stomach. I knew I had to save her. I had to make sure she was okay. She was counting on me and I couldn’t let her down. I didn’t care what it took, I would protect her.

  With this newfound ambition, I got up and slammed my heel against the door. The wood cracked and splintered but it did not budge. I kicked it again and again and again until my whole leg became numb.

  And then, finally, it gave way. I nearly lost my balance, stumbling forward and crashing into the wall. My already aching head throbbed with a jolt of pain upon impact. I blinked, seeing stars.

  “Ugh.” I steadied myself.

  I couldn’t let a little headache stop me from saving her.

  I pushed aside the pain and returned to the door, swinging it back. Underneath me was a dark shaft that led to god knows where.

  For all I knew, this could be a trap. This tunnel could lead me straight to the enemy and I’d be defenseless to stop them. Still, it was my only way out of this room and it was worth a shot.

  I had to find Mandy.

  Driven by this need to protect her, I jumped down.

  The ground was muddy underneath my feet. The gloom was so thick that I could barely see even as I waited for my vision to adjust.

  With no other choice, I placed my hands on the wall and started forward, taking each step with caution.

  Hang on, Mandy. I’m going to get you.

  Chapter 19 (Mandy)

  I was cold. Very cold. It felt like my skin had been covered by a thick layer of ice.

  Countless times, I had tried to open my eyes and see but everything was dark. Had I grown blind?

  No.

  Don’t be ridiculous, Mandy, I chastised myself for jumping to such conclusions. Of course, I wasn’t blind. I was simply in a dark place. That’s all.

  that thought wasn’t very comforting either. I knew, without a doubt, that Keith had kidnapped me. He had broken into Jasper’s house, drugged me, and brought me to some unknown place.

  What worried me the most was Jasper. What had happened to him?

  For the millionth time, I struggled against my bonds but all I managed to do was rattle the chair I was sitting in. Already, the rope around my wrists was starting to chaff around my skin.

  Tears stung my eyes.

  This couldn’t be happening.

  Every day at work, I placed myself in direct threat of dying. I did the dangerous job that many others would never think of doing. But this uncertainty was worse. Much worse. I had dragged someone else into my problems. I had put Jasper in jeopardy. For all I knew, he was already dead…

  No.

  He couldn’t be.

  I refused to believe that.

  He had to be alive. He just had to.

  Just thinking about it made my heart hurt to the point of pure agony. Even though I barely knew the man, I could not picture a world without him. I needed him.

  I loved him.

  Just then, a loud creak sounded, making me flinch.

  I held my breath, muscles tensing in preparation for what was to come. During my detective training, I had gone through plenty of kidnapping simulations. I had learned how to negotiate my way out of one. How to free myself from most bindings. Despite all my training, I could not think straight.

  My heart was beating a mile a minute.

  Was it Keith? What was he going to do to me?

  Flashbacks from our relationship came charging into my mind. I was paralyzed. Keith terrified me. He was the monster underneath my bed that I just couldn’t quite face. I wanted nothing more than to tear him apart – to remove him from my life once and for all – but he was my kryptonite – the one thing that made me weak.

  “I see you’re awake. Good.” His voice sounded right in my ear.

  I tensed, skin crawling. The taste of disgust formed in my mouth. There were a million things I wanted to say to him but with my mouth gagged, I decided to save my breath. He wouldn’t listen to me anyway. He never did.

  Suddenly, he ripped the blindfold from my eyes.

  I blinked but still, I could not see.

  He snapped.

  Overhead, a light flickered to life.

  I gulped.

  Keith was standing right in front of me, a smug look on his face, arms crossed over his chest, wearing nothing but a pair of jeans and his favorite leather jacket. I hated that jacket. He was always such an asshole whenever he put it on. Like it turned him into an entirely different person.

  “You look just as gorgeous as I remember you.” He whispered, running his finger along my cheek.

  Unable to stand his touch, I squirmed, trying to get away from him.

  Roughly, he grabbed me by the chin, grip so tight that it hurt.

  “Keith!” I mumbled into my gag.

  He chuckled. “You’re cute when you struggle. I can only imagine the fun I’ll have with you tonight. Did you really think you could get rid of me?” He asked. “Did you really think you could dump me without facing the consequences.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a switchblade.