Chapter 2
CHAPTER TWO
Mia
It all happens so fast, my head is spinning. The massive mountain man comes out of nowhere, pulls the greasy man with the leering grin off me, and punches him in the jaw all in a matter of seconds.
“Come with me.”
The hulking man doesn’t give me a chance to protest, not that I would, before he takes my hand and pulls me after him down the sidewalk.
He drags me right past a pregnant woman standing next to a car, who shakes her head and laughs as we pass.
I’m rushing to keep up with his huge strides in my stupid high heels.
I knew they were a bad idea when I put them on this morning.
But they make my legs look amazing with this skirt I just bought and I just thought…
well, I guess I thought I could handle it.
It’s clear now, I can’t.
The man finally pushes open a large wooden door, and we step inside a dimly lit room that looks like a combination of a bar and a restaurant and smells amazing. The sweet scent of cinnamon buns washes over me.
“Where are—”
“What were you thinking?” The man spins on me. His face is lined with frustration. He’s at least ten years, maybe more, older than me, but he’s incredibly sexy. Even with the scowl on his lips that disappears into a scruff of beard, he is easily the sexiest man I’ve ever laid eyes on.
“What?” I shake my head and blink as my eyes start to adjust to the dim light.
When they do, I can see how bright his blue eyes are.
They’re locked on me, and I watch while his gaze slowly moves to take in all of me—from the high heels to the micro short skirt, to my bare midriff and ample cleavage.
He exhales a slow breath and his pupils dilate, his eyes growing darker the longer he looks at me.
I’m not an expert in men, far from it, but something about the way this man is looking at me sends a shiver of desire racing through me, directly to my core, where it turns into a dull ache between my legs.
“Dressing like that in a town like this,” the man says. “You’re asking for trouble.”
I’m feeling braver now that the sleazy man is gone—which is crazy, because I don’t know this man any better. Yet, there’s something about him. I feel like I can trust him.
I thrust my breasts out until I almost bump his chest. “Maybe it’s trouble that I’m looking for.”
His nostrils flare…and is that a growl I hear?
Again, the shiver of desire flies through me as he backs me up against the wall and leans in close. His breath is hot on my lips as he murmurs, “And what kind of trouble is it that you are—”
“Briggs?”
An older woman wearing an apron with a towel in her hand joins us where we’re standing, still by the front door.
He lurches backward, putting space between us. “Hi, Ma.”
Ma?
I can’t keep the smile off my face while I watch this hulk of a man soften in front of his mother. He gives her a kiss on her cheek, but never takes his eyes off me.
“What a nice surprise,” she says. “Are you going to introduce me to your friend?”
She has such a kind smile when she turns to face me, I know instantly that I can trust this woman and in turn, any of her offspring. Including this incredibly sexy mountain man who still has a hold on my hand.
“Hi.” I thrust my free hand out. “I’m Mia.”
“Well, hello there, Mia.” She pulls me into a hug and away from her son. “My name is Kimberly but everyone calls me Ma. Welcome to Rock Creek. You must be starving.”
“You think everyone is starving, Ma.”
She ignores him. “Come and sit. I’ll get the two of you a couple of bowls of chili.”
Briggs
This is a bad idea. Everything about this woman is a bad idea. I can feel it like a sixth sense. Yet I can’t stay away from her. Besides, I do want a bowl of chili. And I know better than to argue with my mother. If she wants to feed us, that’s exactly what she’s going to do.
I lead Mia to a booth in the back of the Den and have her sit with her back to the door. It’s best if I keep an eye on anyone coming and going. The last thing I need is Joey Cartwright looking for round two and taking me off guard.
“Why are you here?” I feel like an asshole the second the question is out of my mouth. I’m not usually such a dick. That’s my older brother Maverick’s role as the grump in the family.
“Sorry.” I try again. “I meant to say, what brings you to Rock Creek, Mia?”
She straightens her shoulders and tosses her hair back while thrusting her tits out in a way that gives me no choice but to stare at them, which I’m sure is exactly what she wants from me. “What makes you think I’m not from around here?”
She’s so full of bravado that I almost laugh, but I catch myself instead.
“Honey, I know everyone who is from around here.” I emphasize her choice of words.
“And even if I didn’t, it doesn’t take any special sleuthing skills to know that, dressed like that, you are definitely not from anywhere close to here. ”
“And what am I dressed like?” She bites the corner of her lip and flutters her long eyelashes at me.
If I didn’t know better, I’d think that I was being punked.
“You are dressed like trouble, honey.” I tilt my head and raise an eyebrow at her. “And if I hadn’t come along to rescue you, that’s exactly what you would have found with Joey Cartwright back there.”
“How do you know I didn’t want—”
“I’m not even going to let you finish that sentence because you and I both know that’s not the kind of trouble you’re looking for.”
She looks like she’s going to disagree with me, but finally, she closes her plump, glossy lips and swallows hard, the argument over.
We fall into silence for a few minutes, each of us staring, daring the other to speak first. She’s feisty with a spark in her eyes that challenges me to break, and I’m just about to give her what she wants when Ma shows up with the chili.
“Here you go.” She slides two heaping bowls in front of us, and we both sit back. “Now, if there’s anything else I can get you two, you just let me know.”
She gives me a kiss on the top of my head as if I’m a little boy instead of her thirty-six-year-old, six-five son.
Mia doesn’t even bother to hide her giggle.
“He’ll always be my baby boy,” Ma says with a wink before leaving us alone.
“Baby boy, huh?”
I shrug. It is what it is. “I’m the youngest of five brothers.”
“There are five of you?”
“Sure are.” I take a scoop of chili and blow on it, watching her over my spoon.
She looks wistful, but just for a moment.
“I bet it was nice growing up with so many siblings. It was just me and my brother, and he’s a lot older than me.
” I watch while she swirls her spoon in the chili.
“In a lot of ways, he’s more like a father to me than anything.
Our parents died when I was pretty young. ”
Something deep in my brain pings. It’s a familiar story. Where have I heard it before?
But I don’t have to wonder for long, because a moment later, she finally takes a bite of her lunch and says, “That’s actually why I’m here. To visit my big brother.”
And that’s when the alarm bells start full-on ringing.