Cherished By the Mountain Man
Wild Heart Mountain: Military Heroes Book 5
by Sadie King
Genre: Mountain Man Military Romance
She’s
my best friend’s widow and the only woman I’ve ever loved…
“She’s here.” The whisper goes around the church, and necks strain to glimpse the bride.
The wedding march begins and I squeeze my clammy hands together, trying to still the butterflies in my gut. Taking a calming breath, I turn to watch the procession make their way down the aisle.
My breath catches when I see Angie. She’s a vision in a floaty white dress that hugs her generous curves. White roses decorate her hair, and a thin veil trails down her back. Her face glows with hope and happiness and her blue eyes scan the church, smiling at the guests as she passes.
Angie moves like an angel floating down the aisle. Her gaze rests on mine and I beam at her, struck dumb by her beauty. My chest constricts and my heart aches at how beautiful she looks today.
She gives me a small smile before her gaze shifts. Her eyes find Paul’s and they light up, her shy smile turning to a broad grin.
My best friend makes a choking sound deep in his throat, and for the first time in my life, I see tears at the corners of his eyes. Love shines out of them, matched only by the radiant glow coming from his bride.
She reaches the front of the church and takes her place next to Paul. I step back into the Best Man’s position while my heart squeezes itself so hard I clutch my chest.
Today I’ll pass the ring and give a speech and make sure the day is special for the two people I love most in this world. And if my heart bleeds onto the floor while I watch my best friend marry the woman of my dreams, then I’ll never let them know. Any suffering will be done quietly.
They stare into each other’s eyes, and I’m the villain for wishing it was me. They’ll be married, I tell myself. I can get over Angie and find someone of my own to love. But even as I try to convince myself, I know I’ll never get over Angie. I could search the entire world and no one will ever come close.
My smile is painted on for the rest of the ceremony. I hand over the ring and watch my best friend tie himself to the woman I love.
Loved By the Mountain Man
Wild Heart Mountain: Military Heroes Book 1
He’s
a scarred military hero. She’s the young, innocent woman forced to
spend a night in his cabin…
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“How long did you serve?”
I hate talking about the military. It drags up a lot of stuff for me, not all of it good. Instinctually, my hand goes to my scar, and I pull it away before I can touch it.
“Too long,” I tell her. “I made the spare room up for you.”
She looks at me for a long time but doesn’t challenge the subject change.
“Thank you. I appreciate it.”
As we’ve been talking, Hailey put her feet up on the couch. Now she slides them along the couch so that her toes wiggle against my leg. I put my hand around her sock clad feet and start massaging.
I can’t help myself; I need to touch her.
She looks at me shyly and doesn’t pull back, which makes me think she likes it. She sets her cocoa down on the table and scoots up so that she’s next to me.
“Thank you for your service.”
Her face is close to mine and I take her cheeks in my hands, feeling her hot breath on my skin. She’s stirring up feelings inside of me, desire, need, and longing. A deep longing to have a woman in my life, to have this woman in my life. I’m not sure what she sees in a man like me, but she’s here letting me touch her with her lips parted in anticipation.
I press my mouth against hers, pulling her into a kiss. She tastes like cocoa and cheese, sweetness and light and all the things I fought for during those long, hard years. All the goodness that I came home for but never found until now, with this woman.
Hailey pulls away from the kiss, and her green eyes are sparkling with emotion. Her hand runs up to my face, and before I can stop it, her fingers trace the line of my scar.
She doesn’t say anything. She just leans forward and kisses the puckered skin. I try to hide the scar with my beard, but the bristles grow patchy over the dead skin. It must feel hideous under her gentle lips.
When she pulls back, there are tears in her eyes. And that’s when it hits me. This is a pity kiss. Hailey feels sorry for me, and this is what she’s doing. To thank me for my service.
I stand up abruptly.
“You don’t have to feel sorry for me, Hailey.”
There’s a wounded look in her eyes, but I walk away. The last thing I need is pity, especially from Sleeping fucking Beauty.
“Your room’s down the hall.”
I stride out of the room and straight to my bedroom, pulling the door closed behind me and leaving Hailey in the lounge.
I don’t know what the hell I was thinking. Why would a beautiful woman like Hailey want a messed up monster like me?
Do you read yourself and if so what is your favorite genre?
I read widely. I love contemporary and historical romance. I also read in other genres, fantasy, sci-fi, mystery, crime, literary fiction and all sorts of non-fiction.
Do you prefer to write in silence or with noise? Why?
I prefer to write in silence and my husband likes to have music playing. We both work from home and tried sharing an office for a while. It was not good! Now we each have our own work space. I heard that’s typical of introverts, to prefer working in quiet.
Do you write one book at a time or do you have several going at a time?
I write short novellas so I always finish one before stating another.
What made you want to become an author and do you feel it was the right decision?
I love making stuff up. I’ve always been a storyteller, I’ve worked in theatre, and TV but writing is what I really love to do.
Do you have any advice to offer for new authors?
Read widely. Experiment and enjoy!
What makes a good story?
Characters make the story for me. And the complex relationships between them.
What are you currently reading?
I’ve just started Pride by Eva Charles, it’s nice to be back in the Sinful Empire world! For my short romance fix I’ve been on a Jagger Cole binge as well as finishing up Olivia T Turner’s latest Mountain Man series. In paperback as a homage to the great British writer Martin Amis who passed away recently, I’m reading the classic London Fields. In non-fiction I’m reading Outlive by Peter Attia. Yup, I read a bunch of books at once!
What is your writing process? For instance do you do an outline first? Do you do the chapters first?
I outline my series first with tropes and basic character info. When I start a new book, I write up a brief outline, 2-3 sentences for each scene, then go for it.
Do you try more to be original or to deliver to readers what they want?
I try to give readers the same same but different. Give them what they want but told in my own unique way.
If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what would it be?
Get started sooner! It took me a couple of failed careers before I came to writing. When I was growing up, I never knew anyone who made a living from writing and it didn’t seem like a viable career option. It didn’t seem like something someone from working class suburban Auckland could do. I would tell my younger self to pursue the dream and keep writing.
How long on average does it take you to write a book?
My books are novellas and I write one a week. Then edit it the second week.
Sadie King is a USA Today Best Selling Author of short instalove romance.
She lives in New Zealand with her ex-military husband and raucous young son.
When she’s not writing she loves catching waves with her son, running along the beach, and good wine, preferably drunk with a book in hand.
Keep in touch when you sign up for her newsletter. You’ll even snag yourself a free short romance! www.authorsadieking.com/free
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