Protector: Doms of Mountain Bend Book 1 by BJ Wane (reading books for 7 year olds .txt) 📗

The view of snow-capped mountains rising behind widespread, soon-to-be-golden wheat fields settled any lingering tension from a busy day, and thankfully, today was no exception.

A mile out of town, he spotted a compact yellow car on the side of the road up ahead, a petite woman with shoulder-length white-blonde hair delivering a swift kick to the flat rear tire. A grin tugged at his lips as he pulled up behind the Volkswagen, wondering if her pale face was due to hurting her foot or her natural complexion. She swung her head toward him as he got out, and he was struck by a chord of familiarity even though he would swear he didn’t know her.

Striding toward her, he saw a flash of surprise in her eyes as he nudged the brim of his Stetson up and quickly sought to reassure her. “Ma’am. I’m Deputy Sheriff McDuff. If you’ll pop your trunk, I’ll give you a hand.”

“Oh, I…well, okay. Thank you.”

She swallowed, and damn if he didn’t want to put his mouth on that slender throat, sink his teeth into her soft skin. The instant flare of lust caught him off-guard, and was unacceptable. He’d stopped as an officer of the law sworn to look after others, not as a Dom drawn by her flustered appearance.

“No problem.” Shawn forced himself to look away from her ass encased in snug denim as she pivoted and bent inside the open driver’s-side door to pull the trunk lever. She straightened, tucking her hair behind her ear as she faced him again. Her striking green eyes held a hint of wariness, clinging to the sight of him as if he weren’t real, that look tugging at his memory banks again even though he could swear he’d never met the woman. “Is there a problem, ma’am?” he asked, moving to lift out the spare, taking note of the packed trunk and rear seat. He should admonish her for blocking her view with belongings, but, given her state of apprehension and the compact size of the VW, he refrained.

“No.” She shook her head and stepped away from him as he attached the jack. “I just didn’t expect…I mean, there’s been no traffic on this road.”

“Yeah, it’s used mostly by the ranchers, not travelers. Where are you headed?” He popped the flat tire off, eyeing the bald tread. It was a wonder she hadn’t suffered this fate before today.

She peered up at him. “Mountain Bend. Am I close?”

Her gaze skittered off to the side, making him question why he made her nervous. The thought of a cop or anyone else giving her just cause for such uneasiness didn’t sit well with him.

“About a mile, is all. You must have turned off the highway an exit too soon. That happens a lot. What brings you to Mountain Bend?” He hoped his casual chatter put her at ease. She was wound as tight as the raccoons when the dogs chased after them.

“A temporary job offer.”

When she wasn’t any more forthcoming, he nudged his hat back, swiveling on the balls of his feet toward the spare, and looked up at her again. “Not too many jobs that would entice an outsider…” Shawn snapped his fingers. “You must be the new teacher hired to fill in for Cathy Daniels.” He was glad to see her narrow shoulders finally relax. While he was all for women who traveled alone practicing caution, he didn’t care for the nervous tension pouring off her in waves. Too bad being a cop didn’t give him the right to demand answers about the source of her obvious agitation.

“Yes. I’ll finish teaching her second graders while she’s on maternity leave, and maybe stick around to fill in for summer school. I don’t know yet.”

She stooped and handed him a lug nut before he asked, a hint she knew how to change a flat. That’s what he got for assuming she was too petite and delicate to handle the chore. He could still swear he knew her from somewhere, that he’d seen those eyes before, but for the life of him, he couldn’t imagine where.

“Have we met?” he asked bluntly, not one to sit around and wonder for long. Her gaze widened, but she shook her head.

“This is the first time I’ve been to Idaho,” she replied, shifting her eyes to the side again.

That wasn’t really an answer, but Shawn let it go for now in favor of getting them both on their way. He tightened the last bolt in place, spun the tire, then pushed to his feet. “That should hold you until you can get it into the body shop for new tires. All four need to be replaced. Here.”

After wiping his hands on the towel she handed him, he reached into his shirt pocket and withdrew one of his cards. Scrawling Ed’s name and address on the back, he handed it to her, unprepared for the electric jolt that hit him when the tips of his fingers brushed hers. She gasped, jerking her hand back after taking the card, and he wondered if she experienced the same heat as he. He hadn’t reacted so strongly to first meeting a woman in a long time, if ever, and wondered what the hell was wrong with him. He was a master at sexual control, but right now, all he could think about was bending her over the rounded hood of the VW and shoving those butt-hugging jeans down, baring her lily-white ass to play with while he plummeted her sweet pussy.

It was Shawn’s turn to step away from her, that wild thought and the image it put in his head too distracting, not to mention ill-suited for the situation. Hell, he hadn’t even asked her name. “Ed’s the only mechanic in town, but a damn good one.