The Mountain Man’s Babies: Books 1-5

by Love, Frankie

  I look around Harper’s living room. It looks like a daycare threw up. Harper’s best friends, Rosie and Stella, were over all day with their kids. While it was nice to spend more time with Harper’s girlfriends, I felt myself withdraw more and more as the afternoon passed.

  I miss my sister-wives. Not in a way that would make sense to anyone else... not because they are friendly—no; they are quick to judge, sneer, and raise an eyebrow —but they are the only family I know.

  Listening to Rosie moan about her husband Buck’s dirty clothes on the bedroom floor or Stella telling us how her man Wilder is on diaper duty every day between seven p.m. and midnight, makes me think how I left my family. And sure, Harper and Jaxon are family... but they also have each other. Me? I have to figure out how to make a life for myself.

  “I should stay and clean up,” I tell her. The debris from a family dinner is all over the place. There are so many food crumbs on the floor that even Jaxon’s dog, Jameson, can’t eat them all.

  “No way,” Jaxon says, walking in with a fussing toddler in his arms. Cedar is flat out refusing to toilet train and has insisted on throwing a fit every time it’s mentioned. Precious little lamb.

  (Said no parent ever.)

  “Seriously,” Jaxon continues. “Luke is all talk right now. He’s angry, but I can tell he won’t come around here. You can have peace of mind over that.”

  Luke has been calling Jaxon almost daily, shouting at him, all the while condemning me. Jax isn’t having any of it. Last night, he told Luke that he has no problem filing a restraining order himself if Luke is gonna keep harassing him.

  “You sure?” I ask, wanting a little time to myself desperately. The picture of sitting down with a plate of pie I won’t have to share with my kids is already forming in my mind.

  Whipped cream. Cherries. Hot coffee. Flaky crust.

  That self-care that the gas station attendant was talking about.

  “We’re sure,” Harper says, taking Cedar from her husband’s arms. With him on her hip, she tells him he’ll get an M&M if he uses the potty like a big boy. “Go,” she says, shooing me away and carrying her boy down the hall to the bathroom. “And find something of mine to wear, put on some lipstick, take down your hair. It will do wonders, promise.”

  I twist my lips together debating this as Jaxon turns on a DVD for the gaggle of kids. Elmo starts babbling the ABCs and it’s obvious he can take care of the crew.

  Me? I need to go take care of myself.

  —

  An hour later I get out of my van at Rosie’s diner. My long, wavy blond hair is loose around my shoulders, nearly to my waist, and the sundress I found in Harper’s closet flutters at my knees as I walk to the restaurant. I feel free in the way I longed to a week ago when I left.

  Free in the way I’ve longed for all my life.

  Pulling open the diner doors I see Rosie isn’t working. It’s the new girl, Josie, the one I’d heard her talking about earlier today when she laughed about being the Rosie and Josie duo at the diner. She’s beautiful, with a devil-may-care sparkle in her eye that Luke always warned against. Confident. Bright. Larger than life.

  I press my pale pink lips together and feel foolish. She’s all bright red lips, thick eyeliner, high heels—and totally confident.

  I’m in flip-flops and lip gloss and feel at more risk than I ever have before.

  But then she smiles at me, waves me in, tells me I look like a summer sunset: soft around the edges. Her compliments warm me to her instantly. Shallow, maybe, but my soul is parched for generosity, and she seems like a well, overflowing.

  “Thanks,” I tell her, taking a seat in a corner booth.

  “What can I getcha?” she asks, pen and paper at the ready.

  “Coffee. And pie.”

  “We got apple, peach, and cherry.”

  “Cherry. Please. And cream for my coffee.”

  “I’m on it.” She turns away and I sink into the vinyl seat, relishing the late summer night alone.

  She comes back over, pouring my coffee as the diner door swings open. In steps a man the likes of which I’ve never seen before. Apparently, neither has Josie because the mug she’s filling overflows with steaming coffee.

  “Dammit,” she says, flustered by the man. “I’ll clean that up, let me go grab a rag,” she tells me, headed for the kitchen and leaving me alone in the dining area with a man who dominates the room. He’s in a white t-shirt, arms covered in tattoos, and his beard makes Jaxon’s look like a teenage boy’s. His eyes are smoky gray and they land on mine.

  I bite my bottom lip, press my thighs together, and manage to contain my whimper.

  This man is more than handsome... he makes my body melt into the booth. I can’t think of a time my body responded like this to a man... certainly never with Luke. Luke could press himself inside me and all it felt like was a clammy exchange I never wanted.

  But one look at this man and my body reacts in a way I never considered before.

  Full of desire.

  A lifetime of pent up desire.

  Josie comes in and wipes up the table, and I’d think this man would start checking her out as she bends at the waist, her tight jeans showing off her rear, her top low cut and revealing a set of breasts I’m guessing no baby has ever suckled. She looks like sex I’ve only ever dreamed about.

  But when I look at him, I realize his eyes haven’t moved off me.

  “How can I help ya?” she asks once she’s cleaned up the mess.

  “I’d like a cup of coffee. A piece of pie.”

  She smiles. “That’s what everyone’s having tonight. Decaf or regular?”

  He looks at me like we’re finishing a conversation we never started.

  “Regular,” I tell him, not even knowing why. “And cherry. Cherry pie.”

  “Perfect,” he tells Josie. “I’ll have the same.”

  Josie cocks her eyebrow between us as he walks over to my booth as if trying to understand what’s happening here.

  I’m trying to understand, myself.

  But I don’t tell him no. I don’t resist. In fact, I find myself sitting up straighter, looking him in the eye, wanting him to lead the way.

  Tonight, I wanted to be free... but in a flash, all I want to do is follow.

  Follow my heart... or at least follow the space between my legs. The space that is hot and bothered and wanting something it’s never had before.

  A real man.

  “This seat taken?” he asks, already sliding in across from me.

  I shake my head.

  “I’m Hawk,” he tells me, reaching a hand over the table.

  “I’m Honor,” I answer, taking his hand in mine. When we touch it’s electric and I know people say there’s no such thing as love at first sight but whatever this is... it’s more than a handshake.

  It feels like he’s reaching over and not just offering me water from his proverbial well like Josie had—no. Hawk reaches over and pulls me in.

  I let him.

  Chapter Four

  Hawk

  She holds onto my hand and I pray she’ll never let go.

  The last thing I expected to find when I finally showed up here at the base of the mountain where Jax lives was a woman like her.

  She doesn’t match this mountain vibe. She’s not rugged like she was born here, or jaded like she left the city but keeps looking back—like the waitress.

  No, this woman across from me, with her hand in mine, looks like she blew in from a world I’ve never been to. A world where a greasy mechanic sure as hell wouldn’t belong. She’s soft brush strokes to my steel engine but for some reason, I can’t seem to let go.

  She runs her thumb over the callouses on my palm and her fingers are like pinpricks of pleasure, hinting that they know the right places to touch to make a grown man cave.

  Hell, she’s given me nothing but her name and already I’m willing to give her the whole damn world. She may be sitting in a booth, but I can see her cu
rves, her full breasts, and immediately know she’s the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.

  “Honor? Nice name, it’s different,” I say, picking up my fork and taking a bite of the pie the waitress has dropped off.

  “Thanks,” she says. “So is Hawk.” She takes a bite of her pie. There’s whipped cream on her fork and I swear to God it gets me hard as fuck just thinking about her mouth being filled with that sweet cream.

  She smiles at me, but the smile doesn’t quite reach her eyes. And when I look in them, I see pale blue pools of water; there’s a depth to them. Eyes I could swim in.

  Eyes that tell me she’s been through hell and back, but she hasn’t drowned.

  I understand that. After my ma died—killing the other driver in her recklessness—I was torn up inside. My ma’s choices ended the life of another. It was paralyzing, realizing that it can all end in an instant.

  In theory, I wanted that realization to propel me into being a better man, but in fact, all I’ve been is the vigilante for my friends’ justice. Picking fights they could have owned themselves. Fighting, but not for the things that matter.

  One look at Honor and I want to fight for her in ways I don’t even understand.

  I want to protect this woman who looks like she’s seen better days.

  “You come here often?” I ask, not even cringing at my line because I swear to God, I had no good reason to stop at this diner on my way to my cousin’s place—but I couldn’t help myself. I was drawn here. Craving something I couldn’t even put my finger on.

  At least not until I saw her.

  Now I know exactly what I wanted.

  Want.

  Her.

  “It’s my first time,” she says, picking up her coffee.

  “Just driving through?” I ask.

  She shakes her head. “No, I’ll be here a bit.”

  I nod, the idea of staying around this mountain suddenly not seeming so bad.

  “Me, too.”

  She smiles then, her cheeks turning pink and I realize that I am having the same reaction on her as she’s having on me.

  “Does it feel like...” I start but she cuts me off.

  “Like we’ve met? Or at least... know one another?”

  “Yeah,” I say slowly, looking at her with more discernment. “But I know we haven’t met before. I’m sure of it.”

  “Oh yeah?”

  I grin. “There’s no way in hell I’d forget you.”

  She laughs, soft and sweet like a cherry blossom in bloom. The summer wind blowing her delicate fragrance over my hardened heart. Instantly, I’ve softened to her, and by the way she licks her lips and sighs with longing, I know she’s a flower ready to bloom.

  I may not have all my shit together—but I can certainly help part her petals and show her how a garden grows.

  “So, what is a pretty thing like you doing at a diner all alone?” I ask, hating the stupid line, but also needing to know. Needing to know her.

  She offers me an innocent shrug. “I needed a night off, I guess. Life can be hard, ya know? Really stressful?”

  I nod, my jaw tensing, hating that this woman’s life is ever hard. Looking down at her cherry pie I smile. “So, you’re telling me you’re a stress eater?”

  She laughs at that, smiling like she needs more smiles in her life.

  “You’re beautiful when you laugh, you know that?”

  She lifts the fork to her mouth. “I bet you use that line on all the girls.”

  I shake my head. “Naw, just the ones I want to get to know better.”

  Her face flushes then, a rosy blush filling her cheeks.

  “Am I embarrassing you? Coming on too strong?”

  She squares her shoulders then, lifting her chin as if made of more determination than I pegged her for. And even though she looks like a wildflower, a woman used to growing wherever she can manage, she’s rooted in something. She knows who she is.

  I want to know her too.

  “I’m not embarrassed.” She twists her lips, as if trying to conceal a smile. “Honestly, I like it. It feels good to hear a compliment like that, even if I’m not the only girl you say that to.”

  “I’m not bullshitting you, Honor. You are beautiful.”

  She wipes her mouth with her napkin, then presses her lips together, a smile peeking out. “Thank you.”

  I take her hand in mine, lacing my fingers with hers. “You’re welcome.”

  We stare at one another for a beat too long. Or a beat just long enough. A beat to know this night has just begun.

  “You wanna get out of here?” I ask, pulling out my wallet and throwing a twenty on the table.

  I don’t wait for her to answer because this girl is already on her feet.

  She was ready to go before I ever sat down.

  Is this what love at first fucking sight is? Because damn, I swear I’ve spent my life in the dark and am suddenly blinded by the truth. The truth of her. Us.

  I can’t look away, even if I wanted to.

  But I don’t.

  I want to see her for what she is.

  And tonight, she is mine.

  —

  In the parking lot, I point to my truck. “Wanna go for a ride?”

  She nods, then hesitates, the first time I’ve seen her take a second guess about this. About me.

  “How about we just drive down to the bluff a mile down the road? There’s a nice lookout I saw when I was driving through.”

  She nods again but her eyes flit around the parking lot and I try to follow her gaze. “I can’t be long. Just an hour. Okay?”

  I smile at her, the setting sun framing her face like she’s been sent from heaven just for me. Glowing and pure and a sweet fucking dream. “Anything you want, angel.”

  She shakes her head as if she’s embarrassed. For a second, I think I’ve gone too far with my words, but as I open the door to my truck for her, and she glides onto the bench seat, she looks up at me with those pale blue eyes and they tell me she isn’t embarrassed at all.

  She’s relishing this.

  Wordlessly, we drive to the bluff, the parking lot empty, and I’m about to put the truck in park when she shakes her head. “No,” she tells me. “Down there.”

  She points to another parking spot, nestled in the trees, more discreet.

  I look over at her, my cock a fucking rock at this point, and damn, I wasn’t thinking I’d take this innocent angel so soon; thought she’d want to take her time, get to know me, but she insists.

  “Please Hawk, down there, where it’s more... private.”

  I give her a sidelong glance, loving the way she so easily tells me what she wants.

  “You don’t need to tell me twice,” I tell her, putting the truck in reverse and driving to the spot tucked away, far from anyone who may be driving past, line of sight.

  I park the truck then, with the setting sun in front of us and the mountain range behind us. The only thing right here, right now, is us.

  “You always this sure of what you want?” I ask as she unbuckles and turns to face me.

  “Not always,” she says almost too faint to hear.

  “But now?” I ask, reaching for her, cupping her cheek in my hand, not wanting to take away this angel’s innocence before she is ready. She looks like a virgin; untouched and pure. “Now you know?”

  “I know what I want, Hawk. For the first time in my life, it’s all beginning to make sense.”

  Her words don’t scare me—and hell, in the past they sure as fuck would have had me running from a girl who spoke with such clarity.

  But not now. Not Honor.

  Her words are a balm to my restless soul, effortlessly easing me into the idea of being a different sort of man.

  I kiss her then, partly because I want to. But mostly because I need to. And I know she needs it too. Needs me.

  I kiss her. And don’t stop there.

  Chapter Five

  Honor

  His lips tou
ch mine and my heart beats fast, my body hot and willing.

  I may be a sister-wife, and have a man who calls himself my husband—but I’m not married. Polygamy is illegal, and Luke had already married True when I was forced into the church—the one he formed—and sealed to him as his wife.

  I laid with him, had children with him, but he has never once been my partner... my lover. My spouse. He is the man I lived with and the man I ran from. But legally, we are not bound by anything beyond our flesh and blood.

  Certainly, not bound by the bonds of holy matrimony.

  Which is why when Hawk kisses me, I kiss him back.

  “Your lips are like honey,” he tells me, pulling back and looking into my eyes. His words are so sugary, not at all matching the way he appears on the surface. Hardened and tough. “So damn sweet.”

  I shake my head. “Kiss me again,” I tell him, my body already demanding more.

  He does, his lips press against mine, and my mouth parts, inviting him in. His tongue finds mine, and my skin pricks with pleasure. His hands run down my back, pulling me closer to him, and I sink into his hold.

  My dress is short and as I lean toward him, it inches up past my thighs. I’ve never been so exposed, but with Hawk, it feels right. The moment I saw him I felt safe and seen.

  I felt like for the first time in forever, I was in the right place at the right time.

  So, I’m taking this moment without looking ahead because I don’t know what the future will hold. My babies will need me and I’ll need to be strong every day.

  Which is why right now I’m going to let myself be weak at the knees.

  I’m going to let myself be his.

  “Oh, angel,” he whispers, kissing my ear, my neck, my nose. “You are fucking unreal.” His hands run over my butt, over my exposed leg. “I want you so badly.”

  “Good,” I tell him, breathing in his rugged scent of gasoline and fresh air and leather. He smells like a man who knows what to do with me. “Because I want you, too.”

  He pulls me to him like I don’t weigh a thing and I straddle him, feeling his hardness beneath me. I close my eyes, savoring this sensation. A man wanting me so desperately. Not using me today and his other “wife” tomorrow, his next “wife” the day after that. No. Hawk isn’t asking for anything other than what this moment can offer us both.