Untamed Mountain Man (Seduction Summit Lumberjacks #4)

Chapter 1

1

MACY

I ’d stressed for weeks about this international baking competition, and now I’d made it. I was in the top three. After weeks of practicing and stressing and worrying, I at least knew I’d gotten that far.

But the grand prize wasn’t won yet. Not by a long shot. And that was my overriding thought as I stepped out of the elevator into the Seduction Summit Lodge lobby and looked around.

It was mostly empty. No surprise, considering dinner wasn’t for a couple of hours. I was restless, though. Keyed up. No way could I hang out in my room, and that was exactly why I was wearing my coat. I had no plans to stay in this building until dinner.

I hesitated a moment, weighing my options. It was still snowing outside, but it had lightened up considerably. The roads would probably be a little treacherous, though, and I wasn’t going to risk them, so a drive was out of the question. It was too chilly for a walk. I could go to the bar and order a drink, but other bakers might show up early too, and I’d be stuck awkwardly talking to them.

A couple crossed the lobby wearing ski attire. As they passed through the front door, skis in hand, I decided to follow them. I had no idea what I was going to do from here, but trailing them would at least help me work out some of the energy that was buzzing through me.

They took a left out the front door and headed straight toward the area where the ski gondola started its path up the mountain. I could take a ride, but then what? I’d get to the top of the mountain and come right back down, freezing my ass off along the way. No, thank you.

Instead, my gaze landed on a building next to it. Lift tickets , a sign above the door read. Near the lift ticket building was the tent where our baking competition was being held. The baking competition that had chosen me as one of the three finalists.

I smiled as, once again, that realization hit me. I was a finalist in a baking competition. Everyone in my hometown who thought I was a loser could suck it.

I started walking toward the building, the chilly air cutting right through my thick puffer jacket. It was hot pink and matched the fur-lined boots I wore with my skirt. A bit much for dinner, but the boots would keep my legs warm if I decided to traipse through the snow.

The couple stepped on the gondola, skis and all, and the door shut behind them. I watched, wondering if anybody ever had sex in that gondola. It seemed like something someone would do. Not me—I was a virgin—but someone who was a little more adventurous and experienced.

The fantasy kept me warm as I started toward the lift ticket building. I imagined meeting one of the hunky mountain men I’d seen sitting at the bar. There was one in particular who’d caught my eye, and I’d swear he was checking me out too.

At the time, I told myself I was dreaming. He was probably looking at Willow or Emmy, the other two finalists, or one of the other bakers. I was still getting used to guys paying me attention, but someone like him couldn’t possibly be interested in me, right?

My boots sank into the snow as I neared the small brick building. It looked ancient, like those buildings that everyone was forced to use at rest areas and welcome centers. I assumed the inside would be similar. Cheap flooring, wood panel walls straight out of the late nineteen hundreds, maybe even one of those plastic wall-hanging things with pockets for all the tourism brochures.

I just thanked God I had boots that kept the snow from getting to my feet. I was starting to warm up, thanks to the walk…and to thinking about the hot mountain man I’d seen at the bar. Water inside my boots would have me shivering all over again.

When I arrived at the building, I stopped to look back over my shoulder. Nobody was around. Did people enter this building to buy lift tickets? I had no idea. Maybe they bought them online or at the front desk of the lodge. But this building wouldn’t be here if that were the case.

I took a deep breath and pulled the door handle, bracing myself for a packed building. A building full of the same kind of people I’d seen in the lobby—couples and big groups of friends in winter wear, holding skis.

But instead, I entered to find an interior that wasn’t at all like I expected. It was a big, open room, and the walls were drywall. The floors were hardwood. There weren’t many windows, which made me think this building had been redone and had possibly looked like I’d expected not so long ago. But now it had a fireplace over to the right and a counter in front of me.

“Hello?” I called out in case anyone was here.

I didn’t see anything but restrooms to my left. One was marked Women , and one was marked Men . Each had doorknobs side by side.

Shrugging, I walked over to the area with the sofa and plopped down on it, staring at the fireplace. If I was going to do this, I could just go back to the lobby. Someone from my group would show up eventually and want to chat.

But that was the problem. I didn’t want to talk to the other finalists or the many contestants who hadn’t made the finals. They’d be forced to sit and watch us tomorrow unless they snuck out of town tonight. I sure as heck would have been tempted to do that if I hadn’t made the final three.

A sound behind me made me jump. Literally. I jumped to my feet and turned, staring at the door. But the noise hadn’t come from there. No, the men’s room door had opened, and a man was exiting.

Not just any man. The man. The one I’d been thinking about since I first saw him Thursday night after check-in. He was tall and broad-shouldered, with a build that would rival any professional bodybuilder’s.

He came to a stop, staring right at me, and I had a feeling the expression on his face mirrored mine. We both looked like we’d seen a ghost.

“Sorry,” I said.

Why was I apologizing? I hadn’t done anything wrong. But this was likely his building. He worked the counter, or he’d remodeled the place. I might be hanging out somewhere that was off limits to non-skiers.

“Where did you come from?” he asked. “Have you been here the whole time?”

I didn’t know what “whole time” meant. I looked around, as if there might be some clue in my surroundings. There wasn’t.

“I just got here,” I said. “I was going for a walk and figured this building would be heated.”

“It isn’t,” he said. “Not very well, anyway.”

It sure felt warm, but that was probably because I came from much cooler temperatures. That brought my next question.

“Do you work here?”

He laughed. “I guess you could say that.”

He stepped away from the bathroom, moving to the center of the room. He was still a good twenty or so feet away from me, but he was close enough for me to get a better view of his face. I’d only given him glances before.

He had an intense stare and a strong jaw. There was something hardened about his features too. He hadn’t led an easy life. And something about his skin told me he worked outside. He had the permanent tan of someone who rarely spent time indoors.

“I’m part of the logging crew.” He gestured toward the front of the building. I assumed that was meant to indicate the immediate world outside this building. “We’re clearing away some property for chalets.”

I raised my eyebrows. “Chalets.”

“Little cabins,” he said.

I held back my amusement. I knew what a chalet was. I was impressed that this place was putting them in. I’d lived in nearby Boone all my life and had never been to this particular area of the mountains.

I’d heard good things about Seduction Summit, though. My middle school friends traveled here on a church trip. I definitely remembered the lack of places for them to stay. They’d all crammed into a couple of rooms. It sounded fun to me, but I had a feeling it wasn’t nearly as fun for the people who went through it.

“Anyway, I just use this building for the bathroom,” he said. “The lift ticket salesperson is only here in the mornings and early afternoons.”

Yeah, it was late in the day. I hadn’t even thought to wonder why nobody was here selling tickets. I found it interesting more than anything else.

“I’m not trying to buy a lift ticket.” I gestured to indicate my skirt, visible beneath the thigh-length jacket I wore. “Just getting away from…”

This time I gestured in the same direction he had seconds earlier. Even I wasn’t sure what I was trying to say. The lodge? The chaos? The women who’d pasted on smiles as we’d all filed out of the tent after the finalists were announced?

I’d felt the silent daggers they’d shot at me with their stares, and I had a feeling tonight was going to be more of the same. Everyone putting on an act, pretending they were happy for us while we acted humble and gracious over something we’d worked our butts off to achieve. Okay, so they’d worked their butts off too, but I was annoyed at myself for feeling guilty about being a finalist, even though that was why I was here in the first place.

“You’re part of that baking competition, right?” he asked. “I’ve seen you in the restaurant.”

He’d noticed me? My heart sped up a little at hearing that. I’d noticed him looking in my direction, but I hadn’t imagined…

It felt awkward standing here, facing each other across the room. But he hadn’t made a move to head out yet, and I could only assume that meant he wanted to keep talking to me.

And I definitely wanted to keep talking to him.

“I’m a finalist,” I said.

His eyes widened. “Congratulations.”

There wasn’t much emotion in his voice, but I got the feeling that was a normal thing with him. This was about as animated as he got.

He’d stopped to talk to me. Not because he was a polite guy, but because he’d been watching me. He found me attractive?

That was something that was hard for me to get used to. In my younger years, all my bony friends had gotten the attention. I had curves for days, but for some reason, the guys in my school didn’t like that. Maybe because I looked like a woman long before I was supposed to.

But now that I was in my early twenties, things had shifted. I’d walk down the street and guys would smile at me. I’d enter a room and men would stare. At first, I’d assumed something was wrong. Like I had toilet paper trailing out of my waistband or food stuck in my teeth, but I was coming to realize they were looking at me for other reasons altogether.

And this guy was definitely looking at me for those reasons.

As the silence stretched between us, I told myself I should say something. Maybe I should just excuse myself, let him know I needed to get back to the lodge. Dinnertime was fast approaching. Everyone would be in the lobby by now, some holding cocktails they’d grabbed from the bar because they showed up early, just as I was thinking of doing.

I could go grab a glass of wine and chug it, then start on my second glass during dinner. That would at least help me get through what was sure to be a challenging evening.

I opened my mouth with plans to drop a goodbye. I was even gearing my body up to head toward the door.

Instead, though, when I opened my mouth, what came out was, “Can you get me out of here? Just for a few hours. I need a break.”