Neanderthal Next Door: Enemies to Lovers, Mountain Man Next-Door, Halloween Romance

by K. C. Crowne

  But the more I’d thought about it, the more I realized Hugh had a point. As much as I wanted to hole up in my place and not talk to a soul, it just wasn’t possible. People would start talking, and God only knew what kinds of crazy rumors they’d cook up behind my back. I didn’t hold it against them – it was just how people were. Being a somewhat familiar face in town would give me a chance to dispel rumors before they had a chance to start. And it would quell curiosity as well, giving me a chance to live in the peace and quiet I sought.

  A soft rain pattered on the windshield as I drove to the local grocer. I glanced at door, the interior of where the woman had hit me as mangled inside as it was out. At the nearest red light I reached over and tried to open it. No dice. It was stuck, likely needing to be replaced. Last fucking thing I needed to deal with.

  Fixing the truck wasn’t a problem – I’d replaced doors before. But as stupid as I knew it was, the truck was the last bit of her I had in my life.

  I pushed that thought out of my head, flicking the wipers on as I drove through town. A few minutes later I was parked at the grocery store. I picked up only a few things, making sure to get a bottle of whiskey for the night. As I made my way through the Halloween aisle, bag after bag of candy on display, I said a silent thanks that I wouldn’t need to stock up on any of that.

  After paying, and ignoring attempts at small talk, I headed back to the truck and drove home. Try as I might’ve, however, I couldn’t stop thinking about the woman who’d hit my truck.

  As furious as I’d been, as much as I’d lost my temper with her, she was still gorgeous enough to give me pause. Her hair was brown and wavy, framing her features, which were mousey in a sexy kind of way, perfect. Her body was something else, and I could tell she was all kinds of full and curvy under those warm clothes. Just the thought of her was enough to make my cock shift in my jeans.

  But I put her out of my mind as quickly as she appeared. I knew it wouldn’t be the last I saw of her. After all, we drove past one another on our way into town that morning. That meant she likely wasn’t just someone who also lived in town with me, but a neighbor – a neighbor with California plates.

  Had she just moved into town, too? Was she running from something just like I’d been? Didn’t matter. I wasn’t there to make friends.

  I drove up the winding road toward my place, and as I arrived at my cabin, I spotted a big orange delivery van parked out front, a pair of men setting a large package on my porch. They climbed back into their van as I pulled up, and I didn’t get a chance to stop them before the package was delivered and they were already driving off.

  “Hey!” I stuck my head out the window, trying to call after them. But it didn’t do me any good – the van trundled down the road, vanishing among the trees.

  I parked in front of my cabin, the rain coming down in sheets by this point. After gathering the few groceries I’d purchased, I rushed to the porch and laid eyes on the box. It was huge, and a light shove to the side let me know that whatever was inside, it was heavy as hell.

  Rain dripped through the porch roof. My place was a fixer-upper, and the leaks were something I needed to get to sooner rather than later. But for the time being, I stepped inside and dropped the groceries on the sofa, then returned and grabbed the box and dragged it inside, not wanting it to get soaked.

  Once inside, the door shut, I looked over the box. The first thing I noticed was the name – Mandy Davis. Then I noticed the name of the shop it’d been sent from – The Little Shop on the Corner. I scanned my memory, trying to find out why that name sounded so familiar. Then it hit me – it was the name of the shop that the woman who’d hit me had pulled out from earlier that day.

  The box, whatever it was, had been meant for her. The address on the packing sticker was wrong – my address, not hers.

  Sighing with irritation, I grabbed the groceries and headed to the kitchen to put them away. After, I opened the bottle and took a swig. The whiskey was just what I needed, the sharp sting taking the edge off the frustration that’d been running through me since the accident.

  Now I had a new source of annoyance to deal with – the fact that this Mandy chick had ordered a giant, heavy piece of furniture and sent it to my house. And I had to figure out what the hell to do with it.

  Before I could put too much thought into the matter, the rain outside died down. It was pure Washington weather – pouring rain that started one second and was done in the next. But I knew there was a good chance it’d recommence.

  Better to deal with this problem sooner than later, I figured. I took one more swig of the whiskey before recapping it and setting the bottle on the counter. I opened the door and propped it so I could walk through easily with the giant box. I wrapped my arms around it and lifted with my legs.

  “Ah, hell!”

  The box was heavy, but more than that, it was awkward to carry. Once I had my bearings, however, it wasn’t too bad. I carried the damn thing outside, my boots sloshing in the wet dirt. With a heave, I set the box in the bed of my truck and dusted my hands. The sky was still gray, the clouds roiling above. No doubt the rain would start again soon.

  I hurried into the house and grabbed my keys, striding out to the truck once I had them in hand. After securing the box with the straps on my truck bed, I closed the back and got inside, turning over the engine and driving off.

  It was a real pain in my ass. All I wanted to do was stay inside, polish off the bottle of whiskey, and do some repairs around the house, get the stove going so I could have some heat in the place. Barely even a couple days in the town and I was already dealing with other people’s bullshit.

  The cabins in the mountains were connected by a main road, smaller roads branching off that led to the houses. Mandy’s was just my house number flipped around, so it wasn’t hard to find. I pulled onto her road and spotted her little cabin only a few minutes later.

  I noticed that, while the place was in slightly better shape than mine, there were more than a few things that needed to get sorted out before the place was completely livable. None of my concern, I reminded myself as I parked and got out.

  At the front door, I raised my fist to knock, but right before I made impact, something strange happened – my stomach tensed. Was I nervous? No, couldn’t be. Was I…excited?

  I put all that bullshit out of my head and knocked.

  She peered through the curtain, her eyes widening when she saw me. “Yes?”

  I could tell she was leery. Couldn’t blame her. She was a woman living alone, I assumed. And strange men coming to your front door unannounced didn’t exactly go over well. A strange man she’s had an altercation with earlier in the day was probably even more cause for concern.

  “I’m your neighbor. I got a package that was meant for you. I’m gonna leave it on your porch and take off, if it’s all the same to you.” I didn’t wait for her answer. I turned and started toward my truck, glancing up one more time at clouds. I opened up the truck bed and undid the straps.

  “Hold on!”

  I glanced over my shoulder and saw her standing at the entrance to her home. And damn, did she look as hot as she had before.

  “I’ve got a dolly in here from when I moved,” she said. “Let me go grab it.”

  Patters of rain fell on my hands, and the trees swayed in the increasing wind. “Don’t worry about it.” I wrapped my arms around the package and pulled it off the truck bed.

  “How the hell are you lifting that thing all by yourself?” she asked, surprised.

  “Just tell me where to put it.”

  “Um, inside. Follow me.”

  She went into the house, and I heard her frantically move things out of the way. I carried the box into the living room and set it on the floor, my muscles crying out in relief the moment it was out of my hands.

  “What the heck is this?” she asked, gazing at the giant box.

  I glanced at her and tried not to stare. Mandy was dressed in some comfy sweats t
hat hugged her curvy figure. God, she looked good. I was still steamed at her from the stunt she’d pulled, but a woman as good-looking as her had a way of making a man want to bury the hatchet, so to speak.

  “How should I know? It was meant for you, ended up at my place. You buy something earlier from that shop where you smacked into my truck?”

  Her face reddened, as if she’d gotten caught up in the surprise of me showing up and had forgotten all about what had happened earlier. Silence passed, rain splattering on the windows, drumming lightly on the roof.

  “Little Shop on the Corner,” she said, reading the label. “Lizzie must have sent me something.”

  “That’s between you and Lizzie,” I said, my voice gruff. I couldn’t help but glance around the cabin, noticing school supplies, children’s books, and toys. She was a mom.

  “Let me,” she said, grabbing a knife from the kitchen and approaching the box. “Let me just see what this is.”

  “All the same to you,” I said. “I’m going to head—”

  Before I could finish, she sliced open the box and let the cardboard sides fall to the ground. Mandy yanked away the Styrofoam, and once it was all gone, we were able to see a beautiful antique cupboard.

  “Oh, Lizzie!” She smiled, putting her hands on her ample hips and stepping back. “But…” She stepped up to the thing and pressed her shoulder into it. She was trying to move the piece of furniture, but only succeeded at tilting it and making it nearly fall onto its side.

  I rushed in and grabbed it, steadying the thing and putting it upright. “Hell!” I said, scolding her. “Be careful with something like this – you want it to crush you flat?”

  Her gorgeous features, her deep green eyes that were the same color as the rain-soaked Firs outside, sparked. “Yeah, that’s exactly what I wanted. I wanted to be crushed. How did you know?”

  I sighed, frustrated, but also a bit turned on by her spunk. “Where do you want this thing?”

  She pointed to an empty spot on the wall. “I was planning on putting it right there. But I don’t need you to help.”

  I wasn’t interested in arguing. I lifted the cupboard off the ground, carrying it over to the spot she’d pointed at. I set it down and stepped back, adjusting it a bit so it was flush against the wall.

  “There,” I said. “Done.”

  “I said you didn’t need to do that.” There was frustration in her voice, as if I’d done something wrong.

  “Well it’s done now. I’ll be going.” I turned and headed for the door. I was eager to get away from Mandy Davis and her sparking green eyes.

  But something told me my plans for solitude had just gotten thrown for a hell of a loop.

  Mandy

  It was Friday, and the drive home with Parker was one of total, icy silence. I was furious. The school had called, asking me to come pick him up early. And when I’d asked why, there’d been silence, followed by a ‘we should talk about that when you get here’.

  “I’m hungry,” he said. “Can we get hamburgers?” We passed the Red Kettle, Parker’s fingertip on the window pointing to it as we drove.

  “You’re in serious trouble, you know,” I said. “You think someone who’s been acting like you gets rewarded?”

  He didn’t seem to give a damn about what had happened, the kind of trouble he’d gotten into at school.

  “You’re new in town,” I continued. “We’re both new in town. Do you really think the best way to make friends here is by being a little bully?”

  “I wasn’t being a bully,” he countered, his face angry. “And I don’t care if anyone here likes me.”

  “Yeah, I can tell. If you did give a darn, you wouldn’t be picking fights with other students. Is that how I raised you? To be a mean little brat?”

  “But they started it!” he griped loudly, his eyes widening as he looked over at me, indignation in his voice.

  “You don’t fight! It’s just that simple!”

  “But he hit me first!” he continued, indignant.

  “I don’t care. You don’t hit. You walk away and go find a teacher.”

  He opened his mouth to say something, and I could already tell it wasn’t going to be anything good.

  “You’re already banned from anything with a screen, kiddo,” I reminded him. “Unless you want to be screenless and shut in your room for the weekend, you’d better be really, really smart about what you say next.”

  He closed his mouth into a hard line, a scowl on his face.

  “Good move,” I said.

  As I made the turn toward our place, the phone rang. It was Lizzie, and I put the call on speaker. “What’s up?” I asked as the sun beamed through the branches of the trees overhead.

  “Hey! We still on for dinner tonight? I was going to go by the Red Kettle and get some burgers and peach pie.”

  Parker’s eyes lit up, and he looked at me with an expression of silent eagerness. I should’ve told her to pick up a salad and no dessert for the little troublemaker. But it was hard to go that far, knowing how difficult everything had been for him since the move.

  “Sounds good,” I said. “But we’ve got someone here who’s on my bad guy list. And if he doesn’t clean up his act, you and I might be having some seconds.”

  He gasped, as if the thought of not getting his burger and pie was totally unacceptable.

  Lizzie laughed quietly. “Okay, fair enough. Be on your best behavior, got it little dude?”

  “I will, Aunt Lizzie.”

  “Alright,” Lizzie said. “I’ll be there around five.”

  “See you then.”

  We made the rest of the drive back to the house, and on the way there, we passed Hunter’s place. For a moment I could see his black truck through the trunks of the trees. But there was no sight of him.

  It was strange. The guy was a jerk, rude and gruff. But he was nice enough to bring over the piece of furniture Lizzie had accidentally sent to him. Not to mention setting it up when I was struggling.

  Who was this guy?

  “Mom!”

  Parker’s voice snapped me out of my thoughts. I glanced ahead to see I’d nearly missed the turnoff to the house. “Thanks, bud,” I said, slowing down and steering in the right direction.

  I pulled in front of the house and came to a stop. The car was off for less than a second before Parker opened the door and ran in, his backpack hanging off one shoulder.

  “Hey!” I called. “Do what you need to do, and I’d better see you at that table with your homework in ten minutes.”

  “I will!” His tone was chipper, and I suspected the idea of missing out on pie was doing some heavy lifting when it came to him getting his act together – at least for the moment.

  I glanced over my shoulder as I followed Parker into the house, as if I might look and see Hunter standing in our yard. Why would I even want to talk to him? The guy was a jerk. Maybe a sexy jerk, but a jerk all the same.

  I scolded myself for the thought, frustrated that I’d even let myself look at him like that. But there was something about him, something that made me feel like he was more than just some cranky loner living in the woods.

  When I stepped inside, Parker was already seated at the table, his bookbag open in front of him as he pulled out his weekend’s work.

  “Can I get a new PlayStation game this weekend?” he asked. “If I do all my homework?”

  “First of all,” I said, going over to the coffeemaker and starting a pot. “You’re in no position to ask for new video games. Second, we’re going to Grandma’s tomorrow. Maybe if you’re good I’ll think about it.”

  That was enough to put a big grin on his face. I set to work getting the place tidied up for the evening. And around five when Lizzie showed up, I was more than ready for a big glass from the bottle of wine she’d brought.

  “Hey!” she greeted, sauntering into the house like she lived there.

  “Hi, Aunt Lizzie!” Parker called with a big smile.

 
“Hey, P-Man!” she said, mussing Parker’s hair as she walked past him and setting the bags of food on the kitchen counter. She stopped in the middle of the living room to look at the cupboard. “I knew you’d find a place for that,” she said, looking at me with a smile. “Do you like it?”

  “I do,” I said. “And thanks again. But I would’ve appreciated a little warning before you sent it.”

  “Come on,” she said, waving her hand through the air dismissively. “I wouldn’t have been a surprise if I’d told you.”

  “But I could’ve made sure you’d sent it to the right house.”

  She flashed me a sly grin. “But then you wouldn’t have had an unexpected guest.” She winked, as if it were the funniest thing in the world.

  “You know how weird that was when he came by?” I asked. “Driving that big truck onto my property and hauling that thing into the house like it was nothing?”

  She stepped over to the cupboard, pushing it slightly. “He lifted this thing? It’s gotta weigh, like, two hundred pounds.”

  “Well, Mr. Mountain Hermit is pretty big, in case you hadn’t noticed.”

  “That he is,” Lizzie said with a wistful smile. “That he most definitely is. And I bet he is in all the ways that matter.”

  “Liz!” I scolded, trying to hold back my laugh. “Come on!” I nodded my head toward Parker, but he didn’t seem to get her innuendo.

  “Just saying,” Lizzie shrugged. “You’ve both been here for about the same amount of time, but he’s the one everyone’s talking about, sorry to say. Everyone wants to know just who the handsome mountain man is.”

  “Anyone find anything out?”

  She raised her eyebrows. “Oh, so one minute you’re mad he was in your house, and the next you’re just as curious as everyone else in Silver Pines?”

  “I mean, he is my neighbor. I think it’s in my best interest to know at least a little about him.”

  “You’re not wrong. But the thing is, no one knows anything. He’s super gruff and unfriendly. All I know is that he’s working at Sam’s auto shop, but that’s it.”