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She clambers up and then stands over me, her hands clenched on her wide hips. “I warned you not to even think about touching me. I was just proving a point.”
“Which missed the mark because I didn’t touch you,” I snap back, enjoying the sassy attitude even as I have to fight the urge to turn her over my knee.
“I could see you were thinking about it.” She shrugs. “I was just cutting you off at the pass.”
I wrinkle my nose. “Have you been reading dime store westerns or something. It’s been a long time since I heard anyone use that particular turn of phrase.”
Her stubborn jaw clenches. “And now you’re going to insult how I speak? Are you just naturally an idiot. I know you’re one of my grandpa’s neighbors which means I’ve also heard in town how both of you want this land, so pissing me off before you ask me for something seems insanely stupid.”
She stomps off and I grimace. She’s right. I don’t want to set her back up before she decides to sell to me. That makes it easy on Clay. Something that I have no intention of doing.
Running after her, I grab her arm and tug, wincing when she yells. “Sorry about that. Did I hurt you?”
I drop her arm and she rubs it, her brown eyes fixed on me. “Would it matter if you did? Honestly, it seems like you have no idea what to do around women. Don’t you have women around here? Are you married?”
I shake my head, stepping back to give her some room. “I’m not. Never even had a girlfriend.”
Those wide brown eyes narrow on me. “Now that is the least surprising thing you’ve said this whole time.”
I swear as she stomps off. I have absolutely fucked this up and I’m not sure how to fix it.
I head into the cabin to open the flue and the windows to air out the little cabin.
At least that’s something I can do that might not piss her off.
CHAPTER2
Angelica
Honestly, I could have handled that better. I’m not selling and I need to let the two men that were my grandpa’s neighbors know that. I know they want the land and the cabin. Mainly to piss each other off, according to my grandpa.
Tears mist my eyes when I think about the nasty old man. He was always a mean old coot. He would say the nastiest things to you. But there was one thing he always believed. Family came first.
So although he could have made either one of these guys happy, he left the cabin and land to me, his only living relative. Insisting that I had to live on the land for at least a year before I could sell it.
Not that I was in any big rush to sell it. My heart rate triples and I sit down on the ground, struggling to breathe through the terror gripping me. This couldn’t have come at a better time. The need to get away makes the timing perfect. Not for him to die. No, I’d never wish that on anybody.
But if I’m lucky Jeremy will lose interest in scouring the countryside for me if I don’t make it easy. I’m assuming up here in the mountains it won’t be easy to find me.
I stand on jelly legs and walk back to the cabin, groaning in frustration when I see that the door is wide open and so are the damn windows.
“Shit, shit, shit!” I holler, stamping up and in the house. Of course when I look, I know I won’t find him. My little escape artist is probably halfway to Texas by now. Alone in the woods with bears and wolves and who knows what!
“Dammit! Why the hell did you leave the door open?” I scream at the gorgeous man with his mouth hanging open. His dark blue eyes widen and he runs a big, rough hand through his hair.
“What the hell is your problem now, woman? I’m just airing out the cabin!”
“Without telling me so I could get Marcus out of here!” I growl, tearing at every surface I can find, hoping he’s hiding in plain sight. Fat chance of that.
“Who the fucking hell is Marcus?” His big body trembles, vibrating with anger when he stalks up to loom right over me. “Do you have a man here?”
“Not that it’s any of your business but Marcus is my cat. And he’s an insanely adept escape artist but he doesn’t really have to be when you leave everything open for him to get out!” I poke him in his chest and immediately feel a twinge in my lower belly. He’s fucking rocking the best bod I’ve ever seen.
I shake myself out of my lustful stupor. “Didn’t you see him run out the door?” I stomp back outside, not surprised when he follows me.
“Of course not. You think I’d just let your cat out, knowing that he was in there? I’m not a total asshole.”
“Could have fooled me,” I grumble, swatting at his hand when he tries to grab me.
