Her Mountain Hero

by Jaymes, Holly

  Of course, that wasn’t all I was doing with Hope. Although I let her work mostly on her own, I tried to help her when she needed advice on her business plan or feedback on something she was making. By the time Saturday rolled around, we had a comfortable schedule of a morning walk, breakfast, her working while I did whatever was on my agenda for the day, lunch and maybe I’d work with her, dinner, and in the evening we might take another walk or watch a movie.

  The best part had been going to bed and waking up with her by my side. It was strangely peaceful to wake up to someone other than Duke.

  “He’s here,” Hope said from the kitchen. “I’m going back to the extension.”

  We’d both hoped that he’d buy she was staying at my place but separate in the extension. I hoped he was okay with it.

  When there was a knock on the door, I answered. “Parker. How was the drive up?”

  “Beautiful. I picked a good day.” We clasped opposite hands and did a small hug using the other hand.

  “You did. We had a storm last week that took down some trees.” I opened the door for him to come in.

  “I saw Hope’s car,” he said, scanning the living area.

  “Yeah, she’s back in the extension.” I hoped I sound nonchalant.

  “Oh?”

  I swallowed. Good God, I hoped this worked. “The lodge lost her reservation, and then her car broke down, so I said she could stay there.”

  Parker looked at me. “Here? With you?”

  I nodded, hoping he couldn’t tell I was beginning to sweat.

  He patted me on the shoulder and smiled. “I knew I could count on you to look after her.”

  Ah fuck, that made me feel worse. “Of course.” I started toward the kitchen. “I’ll show you where she is. She’s the first one to use the room.”

  “I hope she’s not in the way.”

  “Nope.” I led him through the enclosed breezeway to the extension. The door was closed, so I knocked. “Hope. Parker is here.” I turned to him. “I’ll let you two visit while I get lunch ready.”

  The door opened. “Parker,” Hope exclaimed and held her arms out for a hug.

  “Hope.” He embraced her. “I didn’t know you were staying here.” Her eyes flitted to me, but I turned and headed back to the kitchen.

  “Ah yeah. The lodge couldn’t take me, and Mitch was kind enough to be my hero and save me. Literally. I was broken down on the side of the road.”

  That was the last I was able to hear before I made it to the kitchen. Then I went out the back to the deck where I kept my grill. I’d fired it up and then closed the lid to let it heat up. When I returned to the kitchen, Hope and Parker were coming in from the breezeway.

  “Beer?” I asked him.

  “Yeah great.”

  I grabbed him a beer from the fridge and pulled out a bottle of wine for Hope, as she didn’t much care for beer.

  “It’s nice on the deck,” I said, handing him the beer. Then I went to the cupboard to get a wine glass for Hope.

  “You’re spoiling her,” Parker said.

  I avoided looking at her as I poured her some wine. “No more than I spoil you.”

  “Ha, you got that right.”

  We headed out the deck where I grilled burgers and did my damnedest not to give away that I was sleeping with my friend’s sister.

  “You know, it’s good to be here with you two,” Parker said when he finished his burger. He’d moved from the table to a lounge chair. “It seemed like you two had a falling out or something, so it’s nice to see you two be friends again.”

  I glanced at Hope, deciding she could take the lead on that one.

  “Life is busy,” she said, moving from the table to a chair near Parker. “I’m just glad Mitch was there when I needed him. I’m getting so much done.”

  “You’re going to be a huge success, I know it,” Parker said. “If you need any legal advice, let me know.”

  “For a discount?” Hope asked.

  “We’ll see.” He looked at me. “Have you been helping her?”

  “I have,” I said opting not to elaborate. They were twins, but Parker had a way of treating Hope like she was younger. I didn’t want him thinking I was giving her too much.

  “She paying you?”

  I bit back a cough. “She’s paying like you did when I first helped you.”

  Parker laughed. “A case of beer?”

  Hope was showing her appreciation in another way, but of course, I couldn’t say that. “Wine.”

  We chatted for a while, discussed a computer issue Parker’s firm wanted advice about and talked about Hope’s business until Parker said he had to head back. “Hot date tonight.”

  “Oh?” Hope asked. “Finally come out from behind your paperwork to live a little?”

  He shrugged. “Maybe. Just don’t want to come near the end and have to struggle or be alone.”

  I frowned thinking that was a really depressing thought. “You alright, Parker?”

  “Yeah, yeah.” He waved my question away.

  “You sure? I’m here for you, man.”

  “I know it and appreciate it. You’re here for Hope and me.” He was standing to leave but took a moment to take in the view. “Maybe Hope told you, my dad is going through a rough patch.”

  She’d said she thought her dad was going to lose the business, but I simply nodded.

  “He made a few bad deals partly because he felt like he was getting estranged from mom, and he wanted to make up for that. He wanted to make a quick buck and retire.”

  I looked over at Hope who had an expression that suggested she was surprised by Parker’s candidness.

  “Anything I can do?” I asked.

  “Nah, man. Thanks. Helping Hope is enough. He’ll get through. It’s just that watching them go through that, I don’t want that to happen to me, you know?”

  I nodded. “Sure, I get it.”

  “Anyway, I’ve got to get out of here. Don’t want to be late for the first date.” He smiled, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Thanks for the lunch and brews, and looking out for my sister.”

  “You know I’m not a baby, right? We’re twins. You talk like I’m a child.” Hope rolled her eyes.

  Parker grinned as he pulled her in for a hug. “I was born first, that makes me the big brother.”

  “You were born first because you took cuts getting out of the womb.”

  I laughed. “You always did like to be first, Park.”

  He nodded in agreement. “Yeah, I did.” He looked at Hope. “Walk me out?”

  I took that to mean he wanted some alone time with her. “If you need a minute, I’ll go inside and work on the dishes.”

  “Don’t do them all,” Hope said. “I’ll help in a minute.”

  I gathered up the dishes and utensils and headed into the kitchen. I glanced out the window to see Hope and Parker talking. I could hear their voices but not make out what they were saying. I turned on the water to drown out their voices as I put the lunch dishes in the dishwasher.

  When I was done, I turned off the water.

  Duke was at my side. “Want a treat?” His tail wagged. I moved to the cupboard with the treats alongside the sink nearer the back door.

  “Did you get stranded on purpose? You’re not here trying to get money from him for dad, are you?”

  I stopped short at Parker’s words.

  “You think I’d do that?” Hope sounded indignant.

  “I think mom would ask you to. It’s quite a coincidence that after all this time, you end up here. You couldn’t even stand to hear me talk about Mitch, and now you’re living in his house? You don’t even like the outdoors, Hope.”

  I knew I needed to close the window or go in the other room, but I was bolted to where I was. Had Hope arranged all this? For what purpose? To help her dad? Her business?

  Duke barked, reminding me of what I was supposed to be doing. I got the treat and gave it to him, my mind reeling.

&nbs
p; But as I filtered through Hope’s and my situation, I couldn’t believe she orchestrated it. How would she have known I was passing by to find her stranded? Her car really had mechanical problems. I’d offered to help her father and her business, the former she refused and the latter, she accepted. But the business help was mostly information and support. She hadn’t asked for money or even tech help. I’d supplied that because I wanted to.

  “I’m being an idiot,” I said to Duke.

  As I went into the living area, Hope and Parker were making their way to the front door.

  “Thanks again, Mitch.” Parker gave me a hug.

  “Of course. Anytime.”

  Hope walked him to his car, while I went to change my clothes, deciding I needed to take a run. While I was pretty sure Hope wasn’t trying to take advantage of me, my guilt over sleeping with her had grown.

  When I came back out, Hope was in the living room lost in thought.

  “Everything okay with Parker?” I asked.

  “Yeah. He’s just a worrywart.” She looked at me, and her eyes narrowed. “What about you? You look like you’ve got the weight of the world on your shoulders.”

  I shook my head. “Just the guilt over lying to my friend.”

  Annoyance flashed in her eyes. “He doesn’t suspect anything. At least not between us.”

  “He thanked me for looking out for you.”

  “Yeah, so?”

  “He’s thanking me for doing his job. A brother’s job. He sees me as a surrogate brother to you. Siblings don’t fuck, Hope.” My tone got harsher than I’d have liked, but that’s what could happen when strong feelings built up.

  She laughed derisively. “Then stop fucking me.” She shook her head. “I’m not a child. I’m the same age as both of you, and yet you two treat me like I can’t make my own decisions. Parker doesn’t have a say in who I sleep with.”

  “This isn’t about your choice, it’s about mine, and the one I made to betray my friend.” My gut burned with the guilt.

  “So stop. I’ll move back to the extension. Or better yet, I’ll go see if there’s room at the lodge yet.”

  I wouldn’t say I felt panic, but I did have an overwhelming concern about her leaving. I let out a breath. “I don’t want you to go. I just feel guilty, Hope. Surely you can understand that.”

  Her anger dissipated slightly. “Yes, of course. But we’re all adults here. And for the record, I have no problem telling him even though he may be angry at me too for sleeping with his friend.” She looked down. “He’ll probably think I was trying to get something from you.”

  “What?”

  “Nothing. The point is, if you want this to stop, it can.”

  I tried not to be too bothered by how easily she seemed to be able to end our little affair. “I don’t want to stop, Hope. I just don’t want to feel guilty.”

  She shrugged. “I don’t think I can help you with that.” She moved to me, close enough so I could inhale her sweet scent. “I admire your loyalty to Parker. I really do. But you deserve to enjoy life. Do you enjoy being with me?”

  “You know I do,” I said, putting my hands on her waist and pulling her to me. The truth was, I hadn’t enjoyed life so much since I’d moved to the mountains. She’d brought new life into my home.

  “I know Parker wants you to be happy too. He worries about you out here all alone. I told him you’ve made friends and keep busy with all sorts of activities and volunteer work, but he doesn’t like that you’re alone.”

  “I like being alone.” At least I thought I did. With Hope around, it was hard to be sure anymore.

  “The point is, I think he’d be glad that you weren’t alone.”

  “If it wasn’t you.”

  “We don’t know that, Mitch. He could be thrilled that his favorite sister and friend were enjoying each other’s company.”

  I shook my head. “He’d get a picture of me touching you naked, and it would cause him to want to beat the shit out of me.”

  She laughed. “Maybe. At first. But then he’d be happy that we were happy. Of course, he never has to know either.”

  I nodded. “I would prefer that.”

  “Then it’s settled.”

  I wasn’t sure what was settled, but I knew I couldn’t stop being with her for the time she was here, so I’d have to live with the guilt.

  “By the way, now that I’ve endured a lunch with your brother pretending I haven’t seen you naked, I need to ask you to come to my family dinner tomorrow night and pretend the same.”

  She quirked a brow. “Why?”

  “Because my mother told me to invite you.”

  “So, you don’t want me to come, but your mother does?”

  I pulled her in closer. “I’d like you to come. I just worry that people will be able to tell what’s going on between us.”

  She looked down, and I got the feeling that I hurt her.

  “We both just agreed that this was a short-term deal between you and me. No one else needs to know,” I elaborated.

  She mustered a smile. “Yes, of course. I’d enjoy seeing your family.”

  I kissed her because I felt like I needed the contact to mend whatever tenuous thread was starting to fray between us.

  When I pulled back, I still felt like I saw a wedge between us.

  “I’m going to put in some more work. I’m finishing up the paperwork to form my business,” she said.

  “I’m going to take a run.”

  I watched as she made her way back up the stairs to the studio, kicking myself for mishandling things again. I had to hope that with a little time engaging in our own endeavors, that we could put this little kerfuffle behind us and enjoy the next two weeks we had together.

  Hope—Helplessly Falling

  Hope

  I watched from the upstairs window as Mitch headed out the back of the house toward the trail. He stretched, showing off the sculpted muscles of his strong back. Mitch had a perfect body. He also had such a good and loyal heart. I wished I could ease around his thoughts about betraying Parker. I hated that he felt so much guilt about being with me. To be honest, I hated that if push came to shove, he’d probably choose Parker’s friendship over me. That truth made the fact that I was falling for him all the more difficult.

  Then there was my brother accusing me of trying to worm my way into Mitch’s life to help my dad or myself. I was offended that he felt I was capable of such a thing. Yes, mom had asked me if Mitch could help, but I didn’t make the request. And I wasn’t in the mountains to see Mitch much less get myself stranded and saved by him. I was here to jump-start my own life and career.

  Why were two of the men I cared for the most so difficult? Why couldn’t they see me and accept me for who I was?

  I shook my head and pulled out the pattern for a dress I’d cut earlier to sew. There was no sense in ruminating over Mitch and Parker. Mitch’s guilt would be absolved in two weeks when I left, sooner if he decided, as it had nine years ago. My heart squeezed at that thought. The truth was, I would have enjoyed continuing to see him. But he was clear that he wouldn’t allow himself to be in a long-term committed relationship again, thanks to Gwen.

  I stayed up in the studio, sewing the dress, and then pinning and cutting other patterns I’d created for more outdoor wear I designed. Then I finished the paperwork to officially form my business and submitted it online to the Virginia corporation commission.

  When I finally came up for air, it was dark out. I looked at my watch, and it was nearly seven. Had Mitch let me work through dinner again?

  I went downstairs. The area was dark except for the flicker of candles and a fire in the hearth. Mitch sat in front of it, his gaze lost in the flames. When I hit the bottom step, his head turned, and he smiled. My heart rolled in my chest, making that final fall into love. Dammit.

  “I thought we could have a picnic dinner here. I even brought s’mores.” He held out a hand to show the food on the table. Then he stood, drawing me
to him and helping me get down on the floor next to him.

  It seemed like he wanted to recreate the first night we slept together. Perhaps he wanted to reconnect, and recreating a night in which we’d connected very well was an excellent way to do it.

  “It’s lovely, Mitch.” I straddled his thighs, loving the way his dark eyes flashed with fire as I cradled my cleft over his dick. “But first, dessert.”

  By the next morning, things between Mitch and I seemed to be back to where they’d been before Parker had come for lunch. The only problem I had was the certainty that I loved Mitch, and acceptance that in two weeks, my heart would be broken. I pushed that bit aside and decided to focus on the time I had with him, and the excitement at how close I was getting to starting my business.

  The drive to his mother’s house was beautiful until we hit civilization. The noise and traffic were glaring after two weeks in the mountains.

  “It’s like getting hit by a two-by-four, isn’t it?” Mitch said as he stopped for yet another stoplight.

  “It is a shock to the senses,” I agreed.

  A few minutes later, he pulled up in front of a traditional brick rancher and parked behind an SUV.

  “Gabe and Sam are here already. He’s always on time now that he has her to keep him in line.”

  I smiled. “Behind every great man is a woman who gets him to where he needs to go.”

  He grinned. “That about sums it up. You ready?”

  Mitch seemed more worried about this visit than I did. I wasn’t sure his family would care if they found out what he and I were doing nestled in his wooded home. But I supposed he was concerned it would get back to Parker.

  “Ready,” I responded.

  He led me up to the walkway and into the front door with Duke following. He’d clearly been here before as he quickly rushed off once the door opened.

  “He’s here to see his buddy, George. Mom’s dog,” Mitch said.

  “Oh good, Mitch, you brought Hope. It’s so good to see you,” Mitch’s mother greeted me with a hug. “It’s been too long.”

  “Hello Mrs. Sloane, thank you for having me.”