by Codi Gary
“You two are going to get me fired over something stupid! Now get the hell out of here before I beat you both so bad, you’ll be crawling to your cars.”
Hunter wiped at his throbbing lip, noting the line of blood on the back of his hand. “Stay away from her,” he said darkly.
Trent glared at him, blood running over his mouth and chin. “I was going to tell you the same thing.”
Hunter shot Penny one long glance, noting her expression of disbelief. It was as if she’d never seen him before. Then he got the hell out of there.
Trent watched Hunter walk out the door, waiting until it shut behind him before he groaned in pain. Penny slapped a wet rag in his hand, and he wasn’t surprised that she wasn’t eager to nurse him back to health. She grabbed him by the arm and dragged him out the front door after Hunter.
“You’re banished, too.”
“I’m banished? I was defending you!”
She scoffed. “No, you were pissing on me and I don’t appreciate it. No matter what the two of you think, I’m the one who decides who I date. And it’ll have nothing to do with which one of you Neanderthals wins a bar fight.”
Trent mopped at his sore nose, pretty sure it was broken, and winced. “I know it is your decision. But I want to make sure you know that you have choices.”
“Yeah, between dumb and dumber.”
“No, kitten,” he said softly. “Between a man who will fight for you, and one who waited until he had to.”
Trent dropped the rag and cradled her face in his hands. “And in case you didn’t realize, I’m the former.”
Trent was just dipping his head to kiss her when someone tapped him on the shoulder. As soon as he let Penny go and turned around, pain exploded in his face. Another fist connected with his cheek.
He fell on his ass and looked up to find two big, burly men standing over him, identical scowls on their faces.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing to our sister?”
Penny pounded on her friend Allison Fairchild’s door twenty minutes later, ready for some much needed girl talk and a bottle of wine. She heard a series of high-pitched barks through the door before Allie opened it and gave her a once-over. Allie’s dog, Kermit, sped around Penny in a circle before disappearing back inside as fast as his little legs would take him. His long fur flew behind him like a cape.
Allie’s gaze met hers. “Should I grab the wine?”
“Definitely. Got a vat of it?”
“’Fraid not.”
Penny stepped into Allie’s homey cabin, shaking her head. “I don’t know why you don’t move in with Dex in the main house. You two have been together for eight months now.”
“I basically live with him, but we haven’t decided where to put my stuff yet. Besides, sometimes a girl needs her own space.” Allie grabbed the bottle of wine and two glasses before adding, “Hunter showed up about forty-five minutes ago looking like he was going to explode, so I figured I’d let them have some boy talk.”
Penny hadn’t even noticed Hunter’s car because she’d been so angry. “Yeah, well, he’s such a dick.”
Allie’s eyes practically bugged out of her head. “Did you just call Hunter a dick?”
“Yeah, I did. He showed up at the Grizzly and started a fight with Trent. As if he has any right to tell me we need to talk, especially after he walked out on me last night.”
“Wait, what happened last night?” Allie asked.
Penny, already on a roll, continued, “The most earth-shattering kiss of the century. And then he bolts.”
Allie tipped back one of the glasses she’d poured and shook her head. “Wait. So you’re telling me that after I broke up that fight at the hospital between Trent and Hunter, he went to your room and kissed you? And then he left?”
“Yep.” Penny downed her wine. “Like I said. Dick.”
“Idiot,” Allie said, correcting her. “So, what does this mean for you? Do you like Trent? Or Hunter?”
Penny laid her head on Allie’s kitchen counter with a groan. “God, don’t ask me that.”
“Why not?”
She turned her head to the side so she could see Allie. The smooth tile cooled the heat of her cheek. “Because I don’t know. On one hand, I’ve wanted Hunter for years. I’ve been dreaming of this moment, when he would wake up and realize he wants me, too.” Finally standing back up, she continued, “But on the other, Trent isn’t who I thought he’d be. He’s actually pretty sweet, and he’s fun, and charming, and makes me laugh. Maybe that’s the type of guy I should be with.”
“Sounds like quite the dilemma.”
Penny held out her glass for more wine. “Yeah, it is.”
“Who makes you lose control?” Allie asked.
Penny stopped tipping the glass back at her question. “What?”
“Which one of them makes you completely lose it and want to rip off their clothes and never let them go?”
Chapter 12
Hunter sat by Dex’s big window, watching the little cabin. He’d seen Penny pull up and head inside. Now that he knew she was there with Allie instead of off with Trent somewhere, some of his tension seemed to ease.
Still, he couldn’t look away from Allie’s door. He was waiting for her to leave. He had to talk to her, had to explain.
“Man, you’ve got it bad,” Dex said behind him.
Hunter glanced at his friend, who was relaxing on the couch. “Got what?”
“You’ve got it bad…for Penny.”
Hunter didn’t bother arguing. What would be the point?
Suddenly, Penny emerged from the cabin and hurried the short distance to her car. Once the headlights turned on, Hunter set down his half full glass of whiskey, and pulled out his keys.
“Go get her, tiger,” Dex said, raising his glass to him with a grin.
Hunter ignored him and raced out of the house to his own SUV. If he hurried, he could probably catch her before she made it back to town. As he pulled up behind her, he honked several times, and flashed his lights. When she finally pulled off the road, he parked behind her and got out. She had already gotten out of her Tacoma and had thrown her hands up in the air.
“Have you completely lost your mind? First you start a fight in the Grizzly, and then you come up behind me, blaring your horn and lights and scaring the piss out of me! I mean, what the hell is wrong with—”
Hunter cut her off with his mouth, his hands cradling her face as he kissed her. He couldn’t think straight when she was yelling at him in the glow of his headlights, her hair flying around her shoulders and her breasts heaving below the V-neck of her T-shirt. When her arms slipped around his waist and she pulled him against her, he stopped thinking about all the things he wanted to say. He just concentrated on the feel of her lips against him, of her tongue tangling with his.
He pressed her against the tailgate of her truck, and with his hard cock straining against his jeans cradled in the softness of her stomach, he almost lost it. He let go of her face and picked her up, carrying her back to his SUV. When he opened the back door, she didn’t say anything. She simply scooted onto the seat and waited for him to join her.
By the time Hunter shut the door behind him, Penny’s shirt was over her head and nowhere to be seen. The dim light from the moon outside shone in on her skin, highlighting the way her breasts rose over the lace of her bra. Hunter slipped a hand into her hair, cradling the back of her head.
“God, you’re beautiful.”
“Uh-huh,” she mumbled as she pulled him to her. Hunter let her, loving the way her mouth moved eagerly under his.
She climbed over him, straddling his lap, and he grabbed her ass in his hands, his eyes opening in time to watch her reach behind to unsnap her bra.
And that’s when a flash of red and blue lights flicked across her face. It only took him a second to realize why.
“Shit.”
Penny scrambled off Hunter’s lap, trying to get her bra rehooked. Finally, she gave u
p on that and she slid down to the floor of the SUV, looking for her shirt.
“Here.” Hunter pulled his shirt off and handed it to her.
He blocked the window for her as she put it on. She got it into place just as someone tapped on the glass.
“Can you please step out of the car slowly?”
Penny recognized Deputy Luke Teller’s voice, and almost groaned aloud as Hunter did as he asked.
“Hey, Luke, how’s it going?”
Penny could hear them talking through the open door. “Hunter? Uh, what the hell are you doing out here? And without a shirt?”
“It’s hot outside. You never drive home shirtless?”
Penny would have smacked him if she wasn’t hiding behind the seat. He couldn’t have come up with something better than that?
“Not usually. Everything okay?”
“Yeah, sure.”
“Isn’t that Penny Davis’s Tacoma?”
Penny poked her head out the door with a forced smile. “Hey, Luke.”
Luke raised an eyebrow, the corner of his mouth twitching. “Penny. You have car trouble or something?”
“Would it make you feel better if I said yes?”
“No.” Luke put the flashlight in his hand back on his belt. “How about the two of you take it somewhere else, huh? It’s dangerous stopping on the side of the road like this.”
Hunter glanced at her with so much heat that her face burned. “Be happy to, Luke.”
But now that she’d gained some distance from Hunter’s incredible kiss, she wasn’t so sure about continuing. There were so many factors in the mix. She wasn’t only deciding between Hunter and Trent, but the two jobs. And if she decided to take the San Diego job, there was no point in starting anything with either of them.
But if she took the job in Red Lodge…
It seemed that anything was possible.
Chapter 13
Hunter chased Penny up the walkway to her house, shirtless and frustrated. Mostly because she’d hopped into her truck before he’d finished talking to Luke. She seriously tried to ditch him. After she’d had him right where he wanted to be: underneath her with his tongue in her mouth.
“Penny, will you hold up a second?”
“Not tonight. I’m tired.”
He caught her arm at the door and spun her around, backing her against it so she couldn’t escape.
“We need to talk, whether you want to or not.”
“What I need to do is go inside and get some sleep. God knows when my brothers are going to come stumbling—oof!”
Suddenly, Hunter and Penny were hurtling into the house and toward the floor. Hunter tried to catch most of her weight with his body, but they both grunted as they hit the ground.
“What the hell?” a deep voice above them said.
“That’s what I’d like to know,” Hunter wheezed.
Penny shoved at his chest. “Get off me.”
He climbed to his feet and came face to face with Wes and Cal Davis.
“Damn, Hunter, it’s good to see you!” Wes gave him a bone-crushing hug. He’d gained at least fifteen pounds of muscle and several inches since the last time Hunter had seen him. Hunter slapped him on his back with a grin.
“Good to see you too, buddy.”
“Hello, still down here!” Penny said.
Hunter tried to reach down and help her, but Cal grabbed him next. By the time the two brothers let him go, Penny had gotten herself up and was stomping off to her room.
“Hang on, fellas, I’ve got to talk to your sister.”
Hunter chased her down the hall and put his foot in her bedroom door before she could shut it.
“Move your foot.”
“Come on, Penny.”
She bent over and took off her shoe, hurtling at his chest.
“Whoa, big sister’s pissed at you, man!” one of the brothers teased behind him.
The second shoe flew past him, probably aimed at said brother’s head but Hunter took the opportunity to step inside next to her and close the door.
“Please get out,” she said, softly.
Hunter shook his head. “Why are you fighting me?”
“Because I’m confused and you’re not making it any easier on me.”
“Making what easier? Is this because I told that meathead Trent to take a hike?”
Penny took a deep breath and sat on the bed. “It’s not only about Trent.”
Hunter’s heart started hammering as he took in the serious expression on her face.
“I’ve been offered my dream job in San Diego.”
“Wow.” Hunter stepped back, against the door. His chest was squeezing. “Are you taking it?”
“I’m not sure yet. I do know that no matter what I decide, it’s going to be about me and what I want. It’ll have nothing to do with a couple of idiots who think that starting bar fights is a good way to win a woman’s affections.”
Hunter ran his hand through his hair, knowing full well that she was right, and that he should be encouraging her to take it, to follow her dreams…
But a small, selfish part of him didn’t want to be that good guy right now. He wanted to beg her to stay.
Even if she didn’t want to be with him, Bear Mountain wouldn’t be the same without Penelope Davis.
Penny lay in her bed, listening to her idiot brothers and Hunter talking in the other room. She wasn’t sure why she’d only told him about the job in San Diego and not the one in Red Lodge. Maybe she was worried he’d tell her to take the latter.
Or worse, what if he hadn’t? What if he’d told me to go to San Diego?
She rolled over and shoved her face in the pillow, muffling her scream of frustration. She was insane. That was the only explanation.
It wasn’t as though her life was getting any easier. She had until Friday to let the San Diego Zoo know whether she was going to take the job. That meant she had a week to make one of the biggest decisions of her life.
When she finally heard Hunter leave, she got up from the bed and went out to get a glass of water. Her brothers were kicking back, drinking beer, and watching Deadpool. When she finished pouring her water, she turned to find both of them staring at her from over the back of the couch.
“What are you two looking at?”
“What’s with you and Hunter?” Wes asked.
“Nothing.”
Wes snapped his fingers and then pointed at her. “That’s bullshit. You wouldn’t throw shoes at someone you didn’t like.”
“Wow, now that’s some solid logic for you. I’m only violent with people I care about. Never knew that about myself. Appreciate the insight, Dr. Phil.”
Cal took a long draw of his beer. “What about the dipshit from the bar?”
“Trent? Nothing. I have nothing going on with anyone. They are both idiots.”
“Uh-huh,” Cal said.
Penny crossed her arms over her chest, and cocked a hip. “How about you two mind your own business? And call next time before you show up and start beating up people?”
Wes glanced at Cal grimly. “Defensive and hostile. There’s definitely something afoot.”
“I agree, but with who is the question,” Wes said.
The two of them turned identical blue eyes her way, as if they actually expected her to answer.
With a snort of disgust, she stomped back to her room.
“We only ask because we care!” Wes called.
“And we’re nosey!” Cal chimed in.
Penny slammed the door on both of them.
Brothers.
Chapter 14
Penny was calculating how easily she could kill her brothers and make it look like an accident when her cell rang. They had only been home three days and so far, they had left their dishes piled in the sink every night, expected her to do their laundry, and drunk all her beer. San Diego was sounding better and better.
Come on, as if your brothers weren’t a reason to make you stay.
Penny glanced at the caller ID and saw it was Trent. She slid her thumb over the screen to answer. “Hello.”
“Hey, kitten. Feel like getting out of the house?”
Penny looked around the shit storm that was her place. “Definitely. Give me five minutes.”
She ended the call and grabbed two glasses of ice water. After walking into her brothers’ room, she stood between the two full beds and let the contents of the glasses fly across their faces, impressed by her aim.
Wes flew up first. “What the h—”
“Damn it!” Cal hollered, wiping at his eyes.
“Now that you’re awake and I have your attention, here is the deal. You will wash your own dishes, pick up after yourselves, and do your own laundry, or you will find somewhere else to crash. I am your sister and I love you, but my love will not turn me into your maid.”
She marched out of their room, listening to their curses with a smile. She went outside to wait for Trent, relieved to see him pulling in.
“You seem happy to see me,” he said as she climbed into his car.
“Actually, I doused my brothers with two cups of ice cold water. That put this smile on my face.”
“Yowza! I’d be locking my door tonight if I were you.”
“Ha! They wouldn’t dare retaliate.”
Trent backed out of her drive with a chuckle, and turned down the road. “If you threw cold water on me when I was sleeping, I would enact a thorough and diabolical revenge.”
“I feed them. They know not to mess with the person who handles their food.”
“Fair enough,” he said.
When he took a left, and started heading out of town, she frowned. “Where are you taking me?”
“I thought we’d drive to the airport and watch the tiny planes take off.”
“Exactly what I wanted to do on a Tuesday,” Penny joked.
“Don’t knock it ’til you try it. It’s how I relax when I’m stressed out.”
Once Trent pulled into the field next to the airport, they climbed out and crawled onto the hood of his SUV. There were more birds than planes taking off, but Penny had to admit that it was actually kind of peaceful.