Bitter Retreat (Bitterroot Montana Veterans, #2) by Anne M. Scott

Author:Anne M. Scott
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: military romantic suspense, cowboy romantic suspense, clean & wholesome romantic suspense, clean & wholesome romance, military veteran romance, cowboy romance, age gap romance, romance action & adventure, Montana romance, small town romance, sweet romantic suspense
Publisher: Lightwave Publishing LLC
Published: 2023-01-14T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 12

Wiz woke, picked up her cell phone, and blinked. Zero-nine? She never slept that late or that long. She’d better move—she had brunch with Tom and Pete at ten. She smiled and stretched. She’d anticipated a lot of anxiety last night at church, but instead, she’d felt slightly wary but mostly safe and protected. Scoping out the building and surroundings before the event had helped, and Craig’s presence did too. She wasn’t the only one carrying a concealed weapon in a house of worship—she’d seen the slight bulge at the back of Craig’s leather jacket. But mostly, it was Tom and Pete’s presence. Which was strange because she was fairly certain neither of them had been armed. But she still felt safer with them.

Her cheeks heated, then burned. She’d kissed them. It had seemed like the right thing to do on Christmas, after church, but what if they expected more? Or if Tom assumed it would be okay for him to kiss her? She was being ridiculous. Neither of them would do anything to make her uncomfortable.

Wiz threw the covers back. They were both good people who happened to be male. Not men looking for power or sex. Well, at least not at her expense. Tom had looked at her, especially her sweater. But only a quick glance, then he looked away. He hadn’t tried to do anything, not even a hand on her back on their way out the door. Of course, they were in church.

She swallowed and bit her lip. She kind of wanted to know what his hand would feel like on her back, or holding hers. But he’d never make the first move. She’d have to initiate any physical contact, and she wasn’t sure she could. Maybe not ever.

She’d wasted too much time. She rose, showered, dressed, and made a cup of coffee. She wore the same pants and boots from last night, pairing them with a dark burgundy cashmere sweater. She added a simple gold necklace and some diamond studs, then braided her hair back loosely. It felt odd not to put it all the way up so no one could grab it. She’d cut it short, but regularly allowing a stranger with a weapon at her back was out of the question.

Downstairs, she put on her coat, hat, and gloves and grabbed Tom and Pete’s presents. Outside, she slipped her micro spikes over her nice boots and walked. The mini crampons were a wise choice; the road was icy, and the packages were big and awkward. When she reached the ranch house, she pulled off the spikes and let herself in the door, petting Rusty. The smoky goodness of bacon made her mouth water.

“Merry Christmas!” Pete stood in front of the stove. “Have a seat. Do you want some coffee?”

“Merry Christmas. Coffee would be good, thank you. Where can I put these?” She held up the brightly wrapped packages.

“Oh, under the tree in the living room. Tom is still upstairs; he should be down soon.

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