No thinking.
In answer to his question, I raise the hem of his black T-shirt. His arms go up automatically, allowing me to pull the soft cotton over his head. I drop it to the ground, the dark fabric disappearing in the shadows.
Reaching behind him, I fumble for the door and lock it. I grab his hand and lead him to the bed. “It’s okay. No one will come in.” I sit on the edge of the mattress and gently pull him down.
He doesn’t say anything at first. It might have something to do with the fact that I slipped my top off. I’m bared from the waist up, with the exception of a pretty black bra I splurged and bought on sale from Victoria’s Secret.
Tyler touches my naked shoulder. “Ahhh…?” His eyes remain on my breasts for a second, then flutter to my face and lock on my eyes. “I like you. We don’t have to do this tonight.”
For over a year, I’ve daydreamed about what it would be like to be Tyler’s girlfriend. If he’d take me to the movies, or if we’d hang out at his house with his mom and the sister he’s told me about. But that’s a fantasy.
Tyler would never want me if he knew where I came from and how messed up my past is. We can never be more than we are, except in this one way.
At least by sharing this, I’ll have a piece of him. This moment.
“I’m sure. I want you.”
Grab REBOUND ROOMMATE Now!
Author’s Notes
The Washoe (Wa She Shu) are a Native American Tahoe Basin tribe living in California and Nevada. I used creative license in reference to a few of their cultural and mythological beliefs depicted in Mountain Man, most notably during the Cave Rock swimming scene. Lewis tells a story about a giant man-eating bird called Ong who attacked anyone that trespassed on Cave Rock. Actual legend dictates Ong nested in the middle of the lake, preying on villagers until a clever Washoe destroyed him. I left Ong’s existence open-ended and linked it to Cave Rock for the purposes of the story.
Cave Rock is in fact a sacred site to the Washoe, where healers, thought to possess special powers to cure the mind and body, brought offerings for spiritual renewal. In the story, Lewis tells Gen that the Heavenly ski mountain was the location of water babies, but actual Washoe legend indicates water babies were sought at water sites like Cave Rock.
Any errors regarding the Washoe people and culture are mine alone and created for fictional purposes. To learn more about the Washoe tribe, visit: www.washoetribe.us/contents.
Also by Jules Barnard
USA TODAY Bestselling Author
Men of Lake Tahoe Series
Off Limits (Book 1)
Mountain Man (Book 2)
Rebound Roommate (Book 3)
Hookup Master (Book 4)
Cocky Prince (Book 5)
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Cade Brothers Series
Tempting Levi (Book 1)
Daring Wes (Book 2)
Seducing Bran (Book 3)
Reforming Hunt (Book 4)
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CHECK OUT JULES’S PARANORMAL ROMANCE TITLES AT:
WWW.JULESBARNARD.COM
About the Author
Jules Barnard is a USA Today bestselling author of contemporary romance and romantic fantasy. Her contemporary series include the Men of Lake Tahoe and the Cade Brothers. She writes romantic fantasy under the same pen name in the Halven Rising series Library Journal calls ''...an exciting new fantasy adventure.'' Whether she’s writing about sexy men in Lake Tahoe or a Fae world embedded in a college campus, Jules spins addictive stories filled with heart and humor.
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When Jules isn’t in her sweatpants writing and rewarding herself with chocolate, she spends her time with her husband and two children in their small hometown on the California coast. She credits herself with the ability to read while running on the treadmill or burning dinner.
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Mountain Man Page 27