Page 3 of Claiming My Mountain Man

“No. I’m sure that’s not what her father expected. It won’t look right for her to stay here with me. People might get the wrong idea.”

“Getting kind of stuffy in your old age,” Gerdie snaps. “I think he expected you to watch out for and teach her the tools she’ll need to be safe and successful. But since you got your britches in a wad...,” She pulls out her phone. “Well, maybe she could bunk down with Beck or maybe that Haskel boy. They don’t know as much as you, but I’m sure they’d be willing to help⁠—”

“No! No, she stays here.” Fuck no, she ain’t staying with either of those randy assholes. I run a hand through my hair. What the hell am I gonna do? I can’t let her go to anyone else. I wouldn’t trust them to keep their hands to themselves. Or their dicks under wraps.

Surreptitiously, I run my gaze over her. God, she’s even more beautiful than the last time I saw her. We’ve talked and even face-timed at holidays, but I’ve stayed away. It’s been almost four years since I’ve been in the same room with her.

That was the day she walked into her father’s study unannounced. Her dark, almost sultry gaze met mine. Dressed in skintight jeans and a white blouse with way too many buttons undone, she gave me what felt like a woman’s once over. The way her eyes traveled up and down my body felt more like a caress than inspection. Like she was missing nothing and looking straight into me.

It was at that moment I realized she wasn’t a child anymore. Her innate sensuality slammed into me like a 9mm bullet. My cock jumped to attention before I knew what was happening. I shifted to stand behind her father’s high-backed chair and leaned my elbows on the top to hide my reaction. It took everything in me to keep the conversation simple.

What the hell had been wrong with me? Lusting after my best friend’s daughter? While she talked, I conjured up images of the little girl who used to hang onto my pant leg, then wrap her little fingers around mine as we walked the paths through the mountains. The child who rode on my shoulders when she was tired of hiking.

My best friend’s daughter. His little girl. I’d focused on her words, her goals. Her studies were going great and she was determined to become a ranger. She said she fell in love with the mountains when she and her parents would visit me in the summers.

Four years I’ve stayed away. Made excuses. Met with her dad alone, away from the family. Or went to visit when she was on vacation with her friends. I was afraid of my reaction, my need for her. Now, after all that effort she’ll be under my roof for the next three months.

“Is there more stuff?” I ask, accepting the inevitable.

“Yep. The folding bed, a bag of bedding, and two more bags of groceries. We’ll start putting this food away,” Gerdie says.

“Just give me a minute. Let me call JB.”

Junebug shakes her head. “Don’t bother. He and Mom are on a cruise. Not sure they’ll get your call. You haven’t been around much the last few years. Now that I’m grown and on my own, they’re finally taking the vacation trips they’ve always wanted. I think this month they’re in Egypt.”

“Junebug...”

“Juni. I go by Juni, now. I’m not a little girl anymore.” Doing a quick sweep of her body, I turn and head out for the rest of the supplies. No shit. She’s a fully grown woman who could bring better men than me to their knees.

That’s the problem. She’s grown into a fine-looking woman. I’ve struggled to keep my thoughts in check for the last few years. Stayed away as much as I could even though it meant missing my best friend.

She’s smart. Sexy. Kind. Thoughtful. Driven. She’d be a perfect partner.

Just not for the likes of me.

Yet for years I’ve longed for her. Dreamed and fantasied about her. Hungered for the woman she was becoming. It’s why I had to stay away. She deserves so much more. What was JB thinking letting her come to me?

Hefting the cot, I get it inside first then go back for the rest.

I learned young how to grow and hunt my own food knowing if I didn’t, I’d go hungry. “What is all this food, Gerdie? I’ve got plenty of meat in the freezer and a vegetable garden out back.”

Gerdie glances at Junebu— Juni in some silent communication.

Juni answers. “She wanted to make sure there would be enough food I could eat. I’m vegetarian, Micha.”

“What? Last time I saw you we all went for burgers.”

“Micha, I haven’t seen you in person for years. You’ve been too busy to visit during the holidays. When you did come to see Dad, I was usually away at college.

“I promise I won’t cramp your style while I’m here. I’m ovo-lacto vegetarian. So I’ll eat your chickens’ eggs. Just not the chicken. I also do dairy. I can make my own meals as long as you don’t mind sharing the kitchen. If you do, I’ll just eat before or after you.”

“No. I mean that’s not a problem, it’s just, well, I want you to be healthy.”

She smiles. “I am. Don’t worry. I know how to make a nutritious meal out of most anything. And there’s always pasta. We picked up plenty of things to last a while. Gerdie said you’d have a fall garden. That will be perfect.”

“What do you want me to do?”

Gerdie cuts in, “I know you installed your washer and dryer last weekend. They working?”