Page 13 of When The Mountains Held Us

“Coming!” I call back as I make my way to the door, pushing a lock of frizzy blonde hair back from my face.

I yank open the door to see Levi, dressed in a pair of blue jeans and a black T-shirt that fits his broad chest so well it looks like it was spray-painted onto him. Jesus. As if the sight of him looking like every girl’s blue-collar wet dream isn’t enough, he holds a to-go cup of coffee out to me. The smell has me nearly whining in relief at the glorious offering of caffeine.

I don’t mean a to-go cup like one you’d get from a Starbucks or a Dunkin’ drive-through—not that there are any chain coffee shops around here that I’ve noticed. No. I mean an honest-to-God travel mug like the ones people keep in their homes for when they’re running late for work and need to take their liquid courage with them in a hurry.

“Good morning. I brought coffee.” He raises the cup in front of him, his warm smile encouraging a smile of my own as he holds it out to me.

Gently, I take it with a murmured thank you and take a grateful sip. I step aside and motion for him to come in. The coffee pools in my stomach and warms me from the inside out, already putting me in a good mood. It tastes divine. Way better than any drive-through coffee I’ve ever had.

There’s a slight chill in the morning mountain air, and it smells faintly of fresh pine and clean laundry as the sun shines through the trees with the promise of another beautiful summer day.

Levi watches me as I busy myself with cleaning up my few underwhelming belongings, and I flush pink when his gaze lands on my bare legs.

“I’ll just be a minute.” I excuse myself to duck into the bathroom, where I quickly do my business, brush my teeth, and get dressed. When I emerge from the bathroom a few minutes later, Levi is sitting on the edge of the sleep-rumpled bed, examining a stain on the carpet I hadn’t noticed the night before. I’m definitely not going to try to decipher its origins. I think I’m better off not knowing.

Clearing my throat, I say, “Thank you again for saving me from the mountain lions. And for the room. And for picking me up this morning. And the coffee. And⁠—”

“Oakley, it’s my pleasure. Consider it your welcome into town.” He smiles at me as he stands and moves to open the door for me, grabbing my bag along the way.

“I can carry that,” I protest, reaching out for the bag, but he pulls it away from my outstretched hand and motions me through the door.

“My mother would never let me live it down if she knew I let you carry your own bag or open your own doors.” His carefree chuckle follows me through the door and out into the open mountain air. Taking a deep inhale, I relish the cool air in my lungs. The smell of pine and laundry is stronger out here, but the air is also now tinged with the faint sweet smell of wildflowers.

For the first time since arriving in town, a flurry of excitement overwhelms me, the crisp air dripping with the potential of freedom and peace. All my worries from the night before drain from my body, leaving me feeling light on my feet as I follow Levi to his truck, taking another hasty sip of the coffee as I go.

I pout when he takes the coffee, but as promised, he holds the door open for me. I swing myself up into the seat with ease, exactly the way he taught me last night.

“Look at you. Already a pro.” Levi gestures to where I sit perched in his truck, and I flash him a genuine smile.

“I had a good teacher. Besides, if I can manage not to fall flat on my face climbing up in the dark, I’d say my odds are exponentially better in broad daylight.”

His eyes smile back at me as he hands me my coffee before closing the door and rounding the front of the truck.

I watch in rapt fascination at the way he moves, the languid and purposeful gait of a man who knows he looks good but doesn’t go out of his way to flaunt it. Every movement he makes exudes a simple confidence that I envy. I used to be that confident, once upon a time. Before…

The metallic clang of the driver’s side door closing effectively cuts off the mental cliff I’m barreling towards, and the tightening in my chest eases a fraction.

“Seatbelt.”

“Bossy,” I tease, but my expression falls a bit as his intense stare meets my own across the cab.

His eyes flick down pointedly to the seatbelt before returning to my own. “Seatbelt,” he repeats. His tone is firm, and I all but scramble to balance the travel mug between my thighs and click the seatbelt into place.

Once secure, his boyish grin returns, and he throws the truck into drive. He fiddles with the radio as he pulls out of the motel driveway until a staticky country station comes through.

“Figured I’d bring you to your car first, rather than the apartments, since I have to be at work in a little bit, and my boss will have my balls if I’m not on time.”

I let out a chuckle at the mental image. “That would be great. Seriously, thank you so much. Oh!” I exclaim as we approach a gas station. “Would you mind stopping at a gas station? I’ll be quick, I promise. Just need to grab some gas for my car.”

He continues driving, and I frown as the gas station whizzes past us on the right.

“Already taken care of.” His answer to my unasked question confuses me, and my brows knit as I look over at him. He’s relaxed in his seat, his left hand thrown haphazardly over the steering wheel while the other arm rests on the console between us. “I filled a gas can for you this morning before I picked you up. It’s in the back of the truck.”

Sure enough, when I turn in my seat to look out the rear window, a bright red gas can sits in the truck bed. With the way the sun is hitting it, I can see the liquid contents sloshing around within it, and my heart warms another fraction towards the man to my left.

“You didn’t have to do that. I can pay you back. Let me know how much I owe you. For the gas and the motel.” I don’t bother adding that whatever both of those costs would eat a good chunk out of my savings, but it’s the least I can offer after all the trouble he’s gone through to help me.

“Don’t worry about it. I told you. Consider it your welcome to town present.”