Page 4 of When The Mountains Held Us

Levi

Don’t be a stranger.

Am I fucking serious? Did I really say that to easily the prettiest woman I’ve ever seen in this little town? Honestly, if I could punch myself in the face for that comment, I would.

If Justin had even tried to say anything remotely like that, I would have thrown him across the asphalt before the words could leave his mouth. As it was, it took all of my willpower not to knock him down a few pegs. It’s unlike him. His momma raised him better than that.

I groan at the thought of Justin and turn to see him standing exactly where I left him, a shit-eating grin taking up the entirety of his face. I stalk back over to him, mostly because I’m not about to be caught standing in the middle of the road drooling at the taillight of a fucking Toyota Camry. Isaac is already on his way over to demand we get our asses moving.

Justin’s grin widens as I draw closer, and it only serves to piss me off and deepen the scowl on my face.

“Not a fucking word,” I warn, pushing past him to head back towards the rest of the guys who are in the midst of cleaning up for the day. His raucous laugh follows me, but I ignore it as I stoop to pick up my hard hat from where I’d dropped it. I brush a bit of dirt off the side before securing it back on my head.

Justin jogs up beside me, his self-satisfied grin telling me he has no plans of dropping the topic. Rolling my eyes to the heavens, I send up a silent prayer to whoever is up there to “grant me the serenity” or whatever.

“She was gorgeous, wasn’t she, Levi? No wonder you shoved me out of the way. Eager to sink your teeth into something after all this time?”

My molars grind together, the noise in my skull from the motion grating to my own ears, while Justin grates on every last one of my nerves.

Justin’s my best friend and the closest thing to a brother I have. Like me, he was born and raised here in North Creek, and for the most part, really has the whole “honest country boy” thing down pat.

We were inseparable as boys to begin with, and then when shit hit the fan at home, he and his family welcomed me in with open arms. Sure, there’s a soft spot in my heart for the guy, but he could be downright annoying sometimes. Though honestly, my reaction to him talking with the woman in the car says more about my piss-poor mood than it does about him as a person.

Something about seeing him leaning through the window of that car, towards the woman who was so blatantly uncomfortable, didn’t sit right with me. There was no way I was going to stand by and let him turn on the charm in another attempt to bring home the shiny new toy.

Justin’s harmless, I know that, but she doesn’t, and the last thing we need is him running her out of town. It’s not often that we get newcomers in our quaint mountainside town, so when we do, it usually means they’re either on the run from the law or something else.

Something tells me it’s the latter with her.

If I’m being honest, something tells me that if anyone stands a chance against Justin once he turns on the charm, it’s this girl. There was a wariness about her, like she keeps herself guarded behind tall cement walls that she refuses to lower for anyone. I don’t know how I know it, but something in me screams that it’s the truth.

Or maybe I’m an idiot who got too lost in those blue-gray eyes, that I made up a story about the nameless girl with the golden blonde hair. But it was the haunted look in her eyes that truly captivated me, and I can’t help but be curious about who she is and what brought her to our tiny mountain town.

“Do you even realize how creepy you sound right now?” I mutter and pick up my pace, wanting to get back to the guys so I can cut the conversation short.

“What?” He throws both arms out to the side to emphasize how clearly ridiculous he finds my observation to be.

Pushing past him, I continue towards the group of guys standing around watching Isaac work the backhoe.

“Oh, come on! You know as well as I do how hot she was. Just cause you aren’t getting laid doesn’t mean the rest of us can’t shoot our shot.”

I whirl to face him, breathing deep to quench the frustration threatening to boil to the surface.

“First, it’s none of your damn business if or when I get laid. Second, a little respect goes a long way. You might want to try it sometime.”

“Geez, man. Lighten up. I’m just joking around.” Justin rolls his eyes, throwing his hands in the air again, clearly not pleased at being called out on his bullshit, but he doesn’t push me on it.

Usually, I can control my temper and my tongue, so maybe I’m taking things too far by voicing my clear annoyance with him today. There’s something about the way he’s speaking about the woman that rubs me the wrong way.

Hits a nerve.

It reminds me of the condescending tone my father used to take with my mother, his words a vicious promise wrapped in a seductive lilt. I know from experience how quickly that charm can turn into something venomous, the words poised and ready to strike like a rattlesnake hiding in the bushes waiting for an unsuspecting mouse to come along.

Even if, deep down, I know Justin doesn’t mean half of the shit that comes out of his mouth and would never pull the shit my father did. I know from growing up right alongside him that his mother would wash his mouth out with soap the first chance she got if she ever caught him talking like that.

Mine too, come to think of it.

I rub the bridge of my nose between my pointer and thumb, willing the building tension to dissipate before I say or do something I’ll regret and really get myself in trouble. From the outside looking in, our conversation is nothing out of the ordinary, just two guys shooting the shit, but I still find myself unreasonably irritated. Maybe Justin has a point about my dry spell.