Stone Heart_A Single Mom & Mountain Man Romance

by Rye Hart

  “Okay, so what are these places you have for me to look at?” I asked.

  “I thought you’d never ask,” Lindy said.

  She pulled out her phone and opened numerous tabs. All the building she had up ranged from $100,000 to $500,000 – our price range for down payments. I wanted to stay away from the ones that were more expensive because I wanted to pay as much out of pocket as we could. The less debt we could go into with this type of venture, the more money we would be able to scrape off the top and take for ourselves. I knew it would take time to build up a devoted client base, which meant we were facing anywhere from six months to one year of not being able to make any significant profit for ourselves.

  And I was going to pay Lindy before I paid myself. Since I’d be living in the building, I could afford to do it.

  There was one building, however, that caught my eye. It was a rough-looking building and it was boarded up. It was three thousand square feet and was free-standing. It would need a lot of work, at least on the inside. The outside wasn’t too bad, especially for being boarded up for four years. The price was set cheap at $150,000 for everything, and it even had the lofted second story I was looking for.

  Not only that, but the loft already had plumbing and electricity running through it. Jack pot!

  “Holy shit, this place is awesome,” I said.

  “I knew that one would catch your eye. And the price is great. We could put thirty thousand down, take out a loan for the rest, and use our remaining one hundred thousand to fix up the place and get the equipment we’ll need,” Lindy said.

  “That’s not a bad idea. If we could get approved for the other one-twenty, we’d be set. From the looks of it, it shouldn’t take more than about sixty thousand to do what we need to do inside, which would leave us forty for inventory, and I found a place we can get stuff wholesale for pretty cheap.”

  “And you could put some of that into the loft upstairs so you’d have your own place.”

  “No, no, no. Outfitting the loft is going to be with my own money. The business money isn’t gonna touch that place,” I said.

  “But you need a place to stay. It has plumbing and wiring for electricity, but it has nothing else. You’d need to put up walls and get shit for a kitchen. It’ll take some money up front for you to move into a place like that.”

  “It looks like the main area already has a bathroom. Sort of. It will when we renovate. I can use that to clean up until I can find the money to—”

  “Emma.”

  “Lindy, I’m not fighting with you on this. That’s my home, and the business money isn’t gonna fix up my new home. End of story,” I said.

  “Fine. I take it this is the place you want to put an offer on?”

  “I mean I want to go check it out tomorrow with you but, if all goes well, then yeah. I think it’s pretty damn perfect.”

  “Well, pick one to have on the back burner in case this one falls through. You know, so we aren’t starting at square one,” she said.

  “Well, considering that it’s been boarded up for four years, I don’t think the bank is going to turn us down.”

  I could feel my dreams getting closer. Lindy was already on her phone setting up an appointment to go see the place tomorrow on our day off. We ordered our food and got to talking about how we would want to fix the place up, but my phone ringing interrupted our conversation.

  And I groaned when I saw it was my mother.

  “Fuck. Hold on,” I said. “Hey, Mom.”

  “Did you leave the damn door open?” she asked.

  “Did you tell everyone you fucked where our spare key is?” I asked.

  “That’s none of your damn business. Lock the fucking door. You trying to get me killed?” she asked.

  “Do you really want me to answer that question?”

  “You’re not funny. Anyway, that’s not why I’m calling.”

  “Shocker. Some dude steal your panties again?” I asked.

  “Drop the attitude. I’m calling about the Grove Brothers.”

  “Who?” I asked.

  “Don’t play stupid with me. The Grove Brothers. You know. Black hair. Blue eyes. Tall. Muscular. Tattoos. Wear the navy-blue leather jackets.”

  “Navy blue? That’s a shit color for leather,” I said.

  “They were in the damn bar last night talking to you,” she said.

  “How do you know who the hell was talking to me in the bar last night?” I asked.

  “So, you do know them,” she said.

  “No, I don’t. What the fuck are you talking about?”

  “The three hot men that sat at the bar with you all night. My friend Georgia said they were nursing beers and shit. She sent me pictures. They are hot as fuck. Did you get their numbers?”

  Holy hell, she was talking about Nick, Jacob, and Adam.

  “No, I didn’t,” I said.

  “Why the hell not? You know the kind of guys I go for. They were perfect!”

  “I didn’t get their numbers because they’re not single, Mom,” I lied.

  “Oh. Well, shit.” I could hear the disappointment in her voice, but I knew that wouldn't stop her for long, especially if she was drinking.

  I wasn’t going to let my mother sink her talons into those three. They had seemed like decent guys. I’d been around some nasty bikers in my time, and these guys weren’t that.

  “Well, maybe they’ll be back.” my mother said.

  “Can’t you just respect people’s boundaries for once?” I asked.

  “What? They’re men. They aren’t married, right? Girlfriends come and go.”

  “So do booty calls,” I said under my breath.

  “I heard that. The bar open tonight?” she asked.

  A thought crossed my mind, and I grinned as I eyed Lindy.

  “What?” Lindy asked.

  “Can I stay at your place tonight?” I asked while I covered the phone with my hand.

  “Of course. What’s up?”

  I held up my finger before I cleared my throat.

  “Yeah, Mom. The bar’s open tonight. Booker is trying something new out. He’s theming nights now.”

  “Theming nights? The fuck does that mean?”

  Lindy clapped her hand over her mouth, stifling the laughter pouring from her lips.

  “It means some nights have a theme now. Tonight is ‘leather and lace.’ Men are in leather. Women are in racy lace,” I said.

  “It’s about damn time that boss of yours did something to get more men in there. I gotta go shopping. See you tonight.”

  “I’m not working, but have fun,” I said.

  “Always do, sweet cheeks.”

  “You are so bad,” Lindy said as I hung up the phone.

  “Serves her right for being a bullshit mother,” I said.

  “I would love to see the look on her face when she shows up all dressed up, and there’s no one there,” she said.

  “Thanks for letting me stay at your place. But we’ll have to go home soon so I can pack.”

  “Yeah. She’ll definitely lock you out of the house for this one,” she said.

  “Did you get us a time for the tour tomorrow?” I asked.

  “Yep. The realtor said she can do anytime, so I told her three in the afternoon. We can sleep, eat, then go, prepared to walk around for a while.”

  “I knew there was a reason why I liked you,” I said.

  “Smart ass.”

  CHAPTER 4

  I having a feeling I might just blow up from excitement.

  Even as I stood behind the bar serving drinks, I couldn’t get my mind off the warehouse. Lindy and I had gone to see it the day before, and it had been better than the pictures portrayed it to be. Plenty of space, with rooms on the inside already divided by walls. The loft upstairs spanned the entire length and width of the building, which gave me over three thousand square feet of space to set up a new home for myself.

  I could see everything as I walked into that place: t
he themed rooms with different sets of outfits, a room where Lindy and I could work on fixing up other people’s items, a shoe room, and a boot room. We could set up a denim room and a leather room, and another room for women’s nightgowns and extras to spice up their hookups and shit. It made me both thrilled and impatient for this new venture ahead.

  And putting an offer in on the place meant I was one step closer to my dream.

  We told the realtor of offer we wanted to put on the place: ten thousand below the asking price, at one hundred and forty thousand. She said she would put it in and get back to us on what the owner said, but she had a feeling he would be more than willing to offload the burden onto us.

  The building wasn’t a burden. The building was a beacon for a new life Lindy and I could make for ourselves.

  “Five beers, please.”

  I was pulled from my thoughts by a familiar voice. When I looked up, I was met with those dreamy icy blue eyes and shaggy black hair. I grinned as Jacob stood in front of me, his chiseled physique leaning against the bar.

  “Fancy seeing you again,” I said, grinning. “Five beers? Aren’t there only three of you?”

  “Nope,” Jacob said.

  I watched as four other men appeared at Jacob’s sides. They were all wearing the same leather jackets, and they were indeed navy blue. They each had a different shade of piercing blue eyes, ranging from Jacob’s icy gaze to Adam’s deep ocean blues. I nodded toward Nick as he bowed his head to me, but there were two men I didn’t recognize, though they looked like the rest of them.

  Except these two were identical fucking twins. Could this family get any fucking hotter?

  “I don’t think we’ve met yet,” one of the twins said. “I’m Tanner.”

  “And I’m Tyler,” said the other.

  “It’s nice to meet you both, and now I see why Jacob here needed five beers,” I said.

  “Yep. He said he was going to get the drinks tonight, but I didn’t realize he was also going to be hogging the most beautiful girl in this room,” Tanner said.

  “And we weren’t going to let Jacob have all the fun tonight,” Tyler said.

  “Well, I see charm runs in the family. What kind of beer do you guys want?”

  “Got a special going?” Nick asked.

  “Two fifty for all long-necked Coronas,” I said.

  “Sounds good to me. Five Coronas, five limes, please, Emma,” Adam said.

  Then, all five of them sat down at the bar in front of me.

  “Five Coronas with lime coming up,” I said, still tingling all over from the sound of my name rolling off Adam’s tongue.

  As I looked around the bar, I noticed there were a lot of men in here with the same leather cuts. They had on the same navy-blue material, and I figured their entire club had come in for drinks. I slid beers to each of them and watched as their large, strong hands caught them languidly. Five sets of long, thick fingers curled around their beers.

  Fuck, there wasn’t a damn thing about these men that wasn’t attractive.

  “So, I haven’t seen you guys around town,” I said.

  “Our club is relatively new to the area. We all just came from a meeting,” Adam said.

  “I suggested this bar,” Jacob said.

  “He’s the VP,” Nick said.

  “Well, aren’t you important?” I teased with a smile. “What’s your club’s name?”

  “Road Warriors,” Tyler said.

  “How long have you guys been out this way?” I asked.

  “About six months,” Tanner said.

  “Moved this way from the Lodi area,” Tyler added.

  “You been around Lucas Corner long?” Adam asked.

  “Born and raised,” I answered.

  The conversation went on like that for a little while; we bantered back and forth as I ran from one end of the bar to the other serving the crowd.

  The twins, Tyler and Tanner, didn’t stay for very long. They finished their Coronas, then got up and left. I was disappointed they had gone so quickly, but they left me a twenty-dollar bill for their measly beer.

  Each.

  “Hell of a tip,” I said as I shoved the bills into my pocket.

  “Hell of a woman,” Jacob said, grinning.

  “So, what’s a woman like you doing working in a bar like this?” Nick asked.

  “What do you mean?” I asked.

  “You’re obviously intelligent. You can keep up a conversation. I’m sure your dream isn’t to work in a bar your entire life,” Jacob said.

  “I’d be interested to know why you started working in a bar in the first place,” Adam said.

  “Okay, okay. One at a time,” I said, giggling. “I started working here when I was—young.”

  “We catch your drift,” Jacob said.

  “It was a job. I hated school and didn’t want to go, and my mother couldn’t have cared less. I was hired here as a bartender with absolutely no training, but it gave me the money I needed to save up for my store.”

  “Your store?” Adam asked.

  “Yeah. I’m opening my own biker clothing shop. Maybe have a clothing line, eventually. I figure with all the clubs here and in the surrounding area, I can drum up a pretty decent sized clientele and make a good living for myself. Plus, it gets me out of my mother’s house.”

  “What’s wrong with your mother’s house?” Adam asked.

  I rolled my eyes. “Well for starters, my mother lives there,” I commented, at which all the guys laughed.

  I didn’t offer any other explanation, and they seemed to sense that I wouldn’t, so they didn’t pry.

  “What kinds of clothes would you want to sell in your shop?” Nick asked.

  “Demin and leather. Maybe a little bit of lace for the ladies. I also want to have an area in the store where people can drop their stuff off to get fixed. Tailored or patched up or whatever,” I said.

  “That’s good. That’s a necessity that’s hard to find,” Jacob said.

  “Exactly! Thank you! Someone who finally gets it,” I said.

  “Of course, we get it,” Adam said.

  His voice rushed fire through my veins. All of them turned me on in some way: Jacob with his low voice and his sincerity, and Nick with the childish glint in his eye. Adam was stern and quiet. Adam seemed rough around the edges and no doubt a fucking freak in the sack.

  I thought about what it would be like to fuck every one of them. Take them each a different way and watch them as they came. I took a couple of shots with them, and that really loosened me up, and soon my mind was running away from me in ways that made me blush.

  “Thinking of anything interesting?” Jacob asked.

  “I shouldn’t be drinking at work,” I said, giggling.

  “Oh, I like that sound,” Nick said. “Do it again.”

  “Do what?” I asked, giggling.

  “That. That devilish little giggle. It suits you,” Nick said.

  “I’d rather hear other sounds drip from those lips.”

  Adam’s words sent shivers down my spine.

  Fuck.

  Were we thinking about the same thing? It was clear that at least Adam was. And I’d fuck the shit out of him. I’d sit on his beautiful lips and wrap my hands in his hair. I’d ride his face until I came and then let him take me on any surface he fucking wanted.

  “Question,” Jacob said.

  “What’s up?” I asked.

  “Since you’re a little loosened up, and I’m a bit curious as to that blush rising in your cheeks, which one of us are you currently thinking about?”

  “Good question, brother,” Adam said.

  “I’d be interested in hearing, too,” Nick said.

  “What?” I asked, my mouth suddenly going dry.

  “Come on, now. Don’t hold back on us. You can trust us. We won’t get upset,” Jacob said.

  “No, no. It’s not that. It’s just that, well—”

  “Oh, I see,” Nick said.

  “Wha
t?” I asked.

  “You’re thinking about all of us. Aren’t you?”

  My cheeks blushed furiously as the three of them sat back in their chairs.

  “Interesting. I wouldn’t mind sharing someone. Would you, Jacob?” Adam asked.

  “Keep your hands off me, and I’d be just fine,” Jacob said.

  “Nick?” Adam asked

  “Can’t believe I’m about to say this, but I’d risk anything if it meant being with you, Emma,” Nick said.

  HOOLLLLY shit. Was this actually happening?

  The blush on my cheeks was creeping down my neck. I felt like I was on display, and I was both horrified and aroused. I dipped down behind the bar and took a deep breath, fiddling with the beers in the fridge. This flirting was getting way too intense, and I had no idea if they were being serious or joking. Would they really all fuck me at the same time? Would I really let them?

  They stayed until last call and took it as an opportunity to order another beer. I slid their beers toward them and served up all the last drinks for the night. Even though people were leaving, they stayed put. I started wiping down the bar and organizing everything for tomorrow night, but when I looked up, I saw they were gone.

  My heart sank to my toes until I heard chairs being tipped up onto tables.

  “Hey, Emma? You got a rag?”

  I scanned the room and found Nick with his hand up in the air.

  “Toss me one. This table’s gross. Fucking pigs.”

  They were helping me clean up. These beautifully chiseled men were helping me clean up the bar.

  Again.

  When everything was wiped down, and the glasses were in the dryer, I locked everything up behind me.

  “You okay to drive?” Jacob asked.

  “Oh, yeah. I’ll roll the windows down, turn on some music. I’ll be good to go,” I said.

  “Are you working tomorrow night?” Nick asked.

  “Yep. Every night except Sundays and Mondays,” I said.

  “Well, I’m going to be the one to step up and say I’m not quite finished with this party yet,” Adam said.

  “Oh, really? And what did you have in mind?” I asked.

  “Well, there were some fun thoughts you put in my head earlier in the evening,” Adam said, looking straight into my eyes. “I figured we could explore those options.”