Page 205 of Mountain Men Heroes

“Down girl,” I whispered to myself. “Drooling is a bad look.”

I took a deep breath and pushed open the door, hopping down to the gravel road. “Hey there, guys. Thanks for coming out to give me a hand. Hopefully she’s not dead dead, you know what I mean?”

I offer a soft smile but only get a couple of chin lifts from both, but not a single word. Eeli brushed right past me as he made his way over to pop the hood of the truck. Dyson paused beside me and I realized as I looked up at him that he wasn’t wearing his blank face. His gaze wandered over me from head to toe, and I got the sense he was as eager for the sight of me as I was for him.

Shivers worked through me but I controlled them before anyone could notice.

His eyes met mine and a searing heat burned into me, a heat unlike anything I’d experienced before.

“Clara.” My name came from him on a growl. Even as his eyes devoured me, his voice was laced with regret. The sound squeezed at my heart and I suddenly found myself fighting the urge to wrap my arms around him and just kiss away whatever kept him locked away from me.

He moved past me to stand by Eeli, stealing the one chance I might have had to act on my thoughts. His actions spoke louder than any words could, so maybe it was for the best. He might be feeling some of the same things I was, but right now Eeli would win every time. And a voice inside me whispered that it was okay.

I was lucky to live in a family where happily-ever-afters surrounded me. But none of my family had ever had to deal with what was happening between Dyson and Eeli. Tears came hot and heavy behind my eyes. I could feel them pushing, thick and prickly, clogging my throat. What if I couldn’t help them? What if I’ll never be more than just a friend’s baby sister? I moved my gaze to the two men. They stood shoulder-to-shoulder, leaning over the exposed engine of my truck and my heart squeezed painfully.

I pulled in a deep, slow breath through my nose, as I reminded myself this wasn’t about me. Two men I cared for deeply needed my help.

I fought back my tears and when I felt like I could, at the very least, fake a happy tone, I moved forward. I stepped up to Eeli’s side, leaning into him as I peeked into the engine.

“What’s the diagnosis?” I asked.

“Doesn’t look good.” Eeli pulled up a hose and poked at something underneath.

I wrinkled my nose. My knowledge of engines could fill a thimble. I leaned in closer to Eeli. “Think you can fix it?”

“Maybe.”

I looked up at him, but my gaze immediately collided with Dyson’s. His dark eyes narrowed, but I didn’t see any of the jealousy I’d expect to find.

Maybe I’d misread the situation. Or maybe the whole attraction thing was all on my side. And while on that thought, I’d never seen them act this connected before, so my assumptions and guesses were not to be trusted.

Only one way to find out—help Dyson and Eeli with whatever issues drove them together. And see where I fit in with Dyson. My path was clear.

I loved them both. They’d been part of my life forever. I’d already felt a strong compulsion to help them. And now there was a chance with Dyson. I’d be crazy to walk away. But until he could separate himself from Eeli, there was a strong possibility I’d be pretty miserable.

I squared my shoulders. Any doubts I’d entertained about butting out and letting Sawyer and the guys help them through things left me in an instant. I knew at that moment the only way the three of us could ever be really happy was for me to keep working on getting them to open up and deal with whatever was tormenting them.

Determination settled in for the first time in days, I felt content in the knowledge we would find a way to fix all this.

I turned and took a step away from the truck, trying to come up with my next step. Dyson jogged to his vehicle to grab a toolbox and I tracked his every movement. When he started to make his way back, I glanced at Eeli to find he had his eyes pinned to Dyson, too.

I’d thought Dyson’s reaction to being without Eeli the other day was pretty extreme. But seeing the way Eeli kept his eyes on Dyson, the way his throat moved as he swallowed hard, the way his shoulders lost a little tension with each step Dyson took closer to him, it struck me that Eeli might need Dyson more.

I pressed my lips together even as my heart constricted at the thought of the mental scars their service to our country left on two of my favorite men. Time to put some plans in motion to help them heal.

And suddenly I thought of the perfect way to ease Eeli into separating from Dyson. What’s the one thing all men love?

Four

Eeli

“Dyson, this could take a while. And I haven’t had a chance to eat today. Would you mind running down the hill and grabbing some lunch for us?”

I came up so fast at Clara’s question, I almost slammed my head into the hood of the truck. I turned to look at Dyson who stood up from his spot examining the engine more slowly than I did. I didn’t miss the way his eyes darted to mine before he looked over to where Clara sat in the grass by the side of the road looking pretty as a wildflower.

She had her long, tan legs bent, an arm wrapped around them. Her other hand sifted through the grass beside her. Her head tilted to the side and she stared up at Dyson from underneath her lashes, a slow smile turning up the corners of her pink lips.

Shit. There was no chance that girl wasn’t going to get her way. She had us all wrapped around her tiny, little finger since she was a kid.