Heart Of The Hunter

Book 3: Copper River Romances

by Cherime MacFarlane

Genres: Small Town & Rural; Contemporary Romance; Military Romance

Synopsis

She likes Jay, but his PTSD problem worries her. How bad is he?
NUMBER 2 Listopia's Army Men and Women of Romance
Jay Leighton is back from Afghanistan and happy to bury himself in the solitude of the Copper Basin. He is a hunter and a loner trying to heal scars; emotional wounds brought back with him. The last thing he needs to be brought face to face with the loveliest woman to move to the Basin in the last year. His head is not ready; his heart is already lost. Leda is a teacher just out of school, who has not had time for love; Jay takes her by surprise. A soft-spoken slightly broken man who lives with only his dog, Licker, for company, Leda sees something in Jay she needs to pursue. But Leda is worried about her reputation in the tiny community of Kenny Lake. She should stay away from Jay. But can she? Just who is the hunter and who is the hunted?

Release date: January 6, 2014

Publisher: Paper Gold Publishing

Print pages: 263

Sample

 

She had good reason to be angry, but not enraged. It was the injustice of the affair which pushed all her buttons way past blowout. The kids would be the losers if she couldn't figure out how to help them.

Worse yet, her students did not understand their futures were at stake. They would be happy if she only passed them along. It wouldn't be until later, much later, when the fallout came down on them.

Except for Linda Lynn, any of her other students who tried going to college would find themselves relegated to bonehead classes. They would need to work twice as hard as anyone else just to get caught up. How many of the kids from this area would be able to afford the extra time in school to rise to grade level?

That thought kindled her anger all over again; Leda kicked a rock into the bushes. The rage still simmered below the surface waiting to burst out. Turning, Leda aimed a swift kick at one of the front tires. With the flat of her hand, she smacked the hood of the SUV.

"Well, I thought I had the damn thing under control. Just goes to show you," Leda mumbled.

"Good thing you used the flat of your hand, otherwise, you might be explaining how it got dented. I don’t think you could claim a moose hit you."

A groan left her at the sound of the deep voice coming from beside the passenger's side of the Jeep. A peek from under her lashes revealed what she suspected; Jay leaned against the SUV. He had one arm lying on the roof of the Jeep.

"Uh huh. Yeah, I know it," she replied.

"Already been there, done that and have the T-shirt to prove it, do you?" He walked forward until he was even with the front fender.

"Much to my eternal shame, the answer is yes. My temper used to get way out of control."

Jay laughed. "I've had my moments. Lately, I've been working on keeping a tighter rein on the dratted thing." He shrugged. "It's been a while since a major incident. At least I have a bunch of logs to reduce to kindling for a few people I know. A guy can work off a lot of steam making big logs into little sticks."

"You chop kindling for other people, including a teacher with a temper tantrum problem?"

Jay nodded. "Tell you what, there’s a big pot of chamomile tea sitting on my table, and I've got two cups. If you back up, then drive in, we can both get a cup of tea and talk about it. It might help."

She lowered her head and thought about his offer. Leda didn't want to get caught in the rumor mill, but it would be nice to drink a cup of tea with Jay. She got the feeling he might be the sounding board she needed. "The only problem is, I don't want to get a bad reputation before I've even been here a whole month."

"I have the solution. If you let me drive the Jeep in, I have a hidey-hole we can tuck it into. Okay?"

Leda nodded. "Keys are in the ignition."

Arms still wrapped around herself, Leda walked around the front of the Jeep to the passenger door. Jay opened the door for her and went around to the driver's side.

"Thankfully, my nearest neighbor is a couple of miles up the road. Once we get this thing parked out of sight, no one will know where you are," he said with a grin.

After starting the SUV and backing it up, he swung it into the driveway and took the vehicle around to the far side of the cabin. A lean-to on that end of the building opposite the road provided shelter for the Jeep.

He expertly backed it into the shed then cut the ignition. "Come on in. Let's get that tea while you tell me what set the ball rolling this evening."

Leda followed Jay into the house. The first thing he did was pull the cafe curtain across the kitchen window facing the road. Then he got a second mug out of the cupboard.

Leda shut the door behind her and looked around at the inside of the snug little cabin. A large window faced the mountains to the east. The front porch boasted a bench on the right side of the door.

"You want anything in your tea, Leda?" Jay asked as he picked up the teapot.

She shook her head. Leda stood with her arms wrapped around herself. After pouring the mugs full, Jay held one out to her.

"Come on. Let's sit on the porch. No one will see us. We can just sit and watch the mountains disappear into the night."

Leda took the mug from his hand and followed him out the door to the porch. There was just enough room on the bench for two people. Licker popped up from under the table to tag along with them. Jay called the dog over to his right side.

Picking her feet up, she placed them on the seat and brought her knees up to her chest. Neither of them spoke while they sipped the tea. The light slowly faded, and the brightest stars appeared. Leda sighed as the silence eased her irritation.

"Want to tell me what set your burner to max out?" his deep voice asked.