Chapter 2
Molly cut up a potato and put the chunks on to boil as she salted and peppered a rib eye for the barbeque. She was hungry and had been looking forward to steak and mashed potatoes for dinner. Shadow was eating her nightly bowl.
Well, that was interesting. Looks like she saved a breeding fee.
Nice. She’d get Kitty’s email in the morning just in case the match was successful.
She didn’t have any doubt that Bear had good heritage.
She knew dogs, and Bear was a stunning animal.
Bart could have made that all up, but she didn’t think so.
She believed every word of it. Bart, Brett, Kitty, and Cheyenne.
You can’t make that stuff up. It made her laugh again.
He was from a western family, raised on a Montana ranch, knew horses, and lived off the grid.
She kicked herself for not learning more about his history, but that would be the priority in the morning.
Speaking of stunningly beautiful animals, what a hunk!
She couldn’t stop thinking about the moment during the third beer when she’d commented on Bear’s recharge rate and he’d given her that look.
She’d felt that in every part of her body.
An authentic stud cowboy. She’d learn more about the mountain man tomorrow.
Where’d he live? Why was he off the grid?
What was the backstory? How did the western rugged cowboy stud get refined?
Or was he refined from the outset, then bailed out, and became a recluse later? And what would cause that?
She put the steak on the barbeque and went to check on the potatoes.
So far, so good. Back to the barbeque, a fourth beer opened.
She usually didn’t drink this much, but she was in the mood, and it was a beautiful night.
Shadow had settled by the barbeque. She couldn’t imagine how intense sizzling meat smelled to a German Shepherd.
She’d read that a male dog could pick up the scent of a female in heat up to three miles away.
She’d been careless letting Shadow get away like that.
She knew Shadow was in deep heat and that her biology would cause her to be on the prowl.
How far away could she pick up Bear’s scent?
They’d met in the woods and got it done.
Bear’s father was an award winner and his mother was purebred.
Kitty had the papers. Okay, then. That might work out just fine.
A promising day on more than one front.
Molly awoke early and showered, giving her body an extra scrub.
She was having company for breakfast. Very sexy company.
He’d been very subtle looking at her yesterday, but she’d caught him at least a half dozen times checking her out.
Well, she’d be disappointed if he hadn’t.
That’s what men had been doing to her since she was twelve.
Tall, lean, slender, muscled, and with slightly larger than average breasts, men looked.
There was nothing she could do about it.
It didn’t matter what she wore. They looked.
Everywhere she went. They looked. She was used to it, and didn’t really care anymore, as long as they stuck to window shopping.
When she’d first come out on the porch, she watched him survey her top to bottom then back to the top.
Well, she was doing exactly the same thing with him.
How could she criticize a man for doing exactly what she was doing?
And sitting by the lake, she’d caught him several times checking out her breasts.
Nothing special there, but something about decent breasts on a slender woman made men crazy.
After her shower, she studied herself in the mirror as she dried her back with the towel.
At thirty-five, she still had muscle tone.
No fat on this body, lean top to bottom.
The breasts were a little fuller and a little lower but still had the right shape.
Genetics mostly, but the morning workout helped.
Twenty five pushups, one hundred sit ups, and ten chin ups.
Every morning, even if she was hung over.
She’d promised that to her father, and she was committed to it for as long as she was capable.
She didn’t fret much about what to wear.
She pulled on a clean pair of tight, high-waist blue jeans.
She liked the fit and knew they gave the best presentation from behind.
She’d been thinking about the top since she’d invited him for breakfast and decided on a tight tee with western bling.
No need for a push up bra. She liked soft and natural, and that looked good with this top.
She stood in front of the mirror, turning side to side, before she gave it the final approval.
She put on light eyeliner and an invisible lip gloss.
Makeup was not her style. She was all about natural.
Her reddish brown, auburn hair came from her Scottish ancestry.
Well, nothing much she could do there. It was wild and wavy and all over the place.
She’d always wanted to be prettier, but what girl didn’t?
She had a long, strong face and never had problems finding boyfriends, but she also knew that was about the body.
Men liked her body. They were okay with the face. But it was about the body.
She stepped back from the mirror. Okay, that’s the best she could do for a cabin breakfast with a hunky mountain man.
Shadow picked up Bear’s scent and took off like a shot. In a few minutes, they appeared from around the bend. Bart was taking long, easy strides, both dogs walking briskly behind. Molly came out to the front porch to watch.
What a sight! She liked watching him walk toward her with the dogs in tow.
Freshly shaven, he was in blue jeans, a long sleeve white shirt, a beautiful leather vest, and, of course, that hat and those moccasins.
An authentic cowboy. Or was he a mountain man?
She’d learn more today. He had a big smile and was carrying something in his hand.
Hmm, the very best men showed up with a hostess gift. His mother raised him right.
She’d debated hug or no hug and had decided against it, but when he approached, she basically lost her mind, walked right up and gave a modest hug, pressing her breasts into his chest and feeling the tight muscles in his back.
He looked a little surprised, but was still smiling.
The dogs were gone in a flash, headed for the woods, their masters chuckling at the scene. Those dogs had some important business.
Bart tendered a small handmade leather pouch. She took it and studied it carefully before opening it.
“Did you make this?”
“Last night.”
“It’s beautiful.” She gently pulled the tiny leather strings and the pouch opened. She looked inside and pulled out a tiny woven leather bracelet. She was enthralled. “You made this, too?”
“Last night. I wanted to bring you something for the nice evening and today’s breakfast and didn’t have much. Kind of fashioned that together.”
“You’re a leather worker?”
“Lifelong hobby, the kind of thing you learn growing up on a ranch.”
He took the bracelet back, wrapped it around her wrist, and tied it, testing to see that she could slip it off with a little pressure. “There, you won’t have to tie it again. It should just slide off and on.”
“Where’d you get the beads?”
“Oh, I have a little kit I carry with me. Just happened to have some beads. It adds some color and a Native American influence.”
“It’s beautiful, and thoughtful.”
She couldn’t help herself; she leaned forward and gave him a light kiss on the cheek, then gently pushed back, keeping her face close, looking in his eyes. Molly felt the blood rushing up her neck into her fair Scottish face that flushed too easily.
The heat felt good in her face, and below.
They walked together to the kitchen.
“Have a seat while I put the finishing touches on breakfast. Coffee?”
“Sure.”
“A little nudge?”
“Sure.”
She poured two cups of black coffee and added a shot of bourbon to both.
She poured half a dozen scrambled eggs into a sizzling cast iron skillet. The bacon and sausages had been cooked and were under cover on the stove. The biscuits were browning in the oven.
“And how does a man fresh out of the mountains who’s staying in a tent at the campground show up freshly shaved and in nice, clean clothes?”
“They do have a shower there, and I always bring fresh clothes for business in town. But this is it. One pair of jeans and a white shirt.”
“The shirt looks pressed.”
“I have my systems.”
“So did you make the hat, vest, and moccasins?”
“Yes, how’d you guess?”
“I can tell homemade. You can’t buy stuff like that in a store. It’s really beautiful and authentic. You know what you’re doing.”
“In the mountains, I’m head to toe in leather, but when I come to town I wear jeans, mainly to fit in. I’m not into drawing attention to myself. A pure mountain man draws attention.”
“You’re an interesting mix of cowboy and mountain man.”
“I grew up cowboy. Mountain man has evolved.”
She lightly stirred the eggs and checked on the biscuits.
“Are you really not going to tell me where you live?”
“It’s possible I might share that at some point. If it helps, I’m the only person who knows that and I pride myself in privacy.”
“Without prying, can I ask how often you come to civilization?”
“Depends on the season. Usually once a month. Sometimes in winter, a couple months can go by. It’s a tougher trip in winter.”
“Your mule?”
“I use Beryl eight months a year and keep her with me in the mountains, but I board her for the winter here. Yes, I’m a customer of yours.”
“Thanks for the business. So, you use Beryl for carrying supplies back and forth.”
“Yes.”