Knocked up by the Mountain Man (Silver Ridge Mountain Men)

14. Beau

14

BEAU

“ B eau, are you even listening to me?” Wyatt waves his hand in front of my face to drag me from my thoughts. “I’m trying to talk to you about the cattle here, but you’re on another planet. What’s going on? Is it something to do with your father?”

His question makes me feel guilty. I should be thinking about my father, but here I am, thinking about me and Clara. Again, like always. I’m one selfish son of a bitch, aren’t I? My God, I’m an asshole.

“Er, yeah, something like that.” I force a smile on my face, trying to play it off. “Sorry, what were you saying?”

“It doesn’t matter.” Wyatt rolls his eyes dismissively. “I know that you’ll only end up going along with my plan for the cows anyway. You know I have this shit under control and that my plans always work out for the best. I’m only asking you to be a good person. Why don’t you tell me what’s happening with you?”

Ha! If only I could talk about it with Wyatt… or with anyone.

“Nothing is going on with me.” I purse my lips together to make sure the words don’t spill out. “I’m fine.”

Wyatt looks at me, clearly unconvinced, but he doesn’t push further. “Alright, if you say so. But we do need to decide on the feed schedule. The summer grazing plan isn’t going to implement itself.”

I nod absentmindedly, my thoughts drifting back to Clara. I can’t stop replaying our time together. Every touch, every whisper, every kiss keeps swirling through my head. It felt so right, but now she’s actively avoiding me, and it’s driving me crazy. She’s here, somewhere, but basically out of my reach. I hate that most of all.

“Beau!” Wyatt’s voice snaps me back again. “For God’s sake, man. If you’re not here, let’s just reschedule.”

“No, no, I’m here,” I insist, trying to focus. “Feed schedule, right? Let’s... let’s go over it.”

Wyatt sighs, shaking his head but proceeds to outline his plan. I try to follow along, but my heart isn’t in it. Every thought keeps leading back to Clara. The memory of her touch, her voice, her warmth… it’s all consuming.

“Wyatt, I’m sorry,” I finally say, interrupting him. “I can’t do this right now. We’ll have to finish later.”

“What? So you admit that you aren’t listening” Wyatt looks at me, bewildered. “You can’t leave now though, we’re in the middle of…”

“I know, but I need to handle something important.” I stand up abruptly, already heading for the door. “I’ll be back. We can talk properly then. My head will be in it, I promise…”

Ring, ring… Ring, ring… Ring, ring…

Wyatt’s phone breaks the tension. He glances at the screen, frowns, and then looks back at me. “I’ve got to take this. Don’t go anywhere. We’re not done.”

“Give me a moment,” I insist. “I’ll be back!”

Before Wyatt can protest further, I’m out the door, striding quickly toward the stables. Clara has been on my mind non stop, and I need to find her. To talk to her, to understand why she’s avoiding me after what happened between us. I need to know if I’m imagining this or not.

That phone call came at the right moment since it allowed me to get out of here.

The sun is high in the sky, and the heat of the day beats down on me as I make my way across the ranch. I search every familiar spot, asking anyone I see if they’ve seen Clara. But no one has. She doesn’t seem to be with any of the horses either, which is weird. I don’t know if she’s even seen Daisy today.

Finally, I see Carl leaning against the fence, staring out at the horses grazing in the distance. He looks up as he hears my footsteps, and his brows furrow in concern.

“Hey, Beau,” Carl greets me, his voice carrying a note of worry. “You looking for Clara?”

“Yeah,” I reply, trying to keep my voice steady despite the knot of anxiety forming in my stomach. “Is she here?”

Carl shakes his head, pushing away from the fence to stand upright. “No, she didn’t come in this morning. I thought maybe she was sick or something.”

Sick? My heart sinks at the thought. Clara doesn’t seem like the type to just not show up. “Did she say anything to you yesterday? Was she... okay?”

Carl scratches the back of his head, looking troubled. “She seemed fine when she left yesterday. Nothing to make me worry.”

So it’s me.

I’m the issue.

She slept with me, and now…

Fuck.

“Thanks, Carl,” I say, my mind racing with possibilities. “If you hear from her, could you let me know?”

“Sure thing,” Carl replies, nodding. “Hope everything’s okay.”

I offer a tight lipped smile, not trusting myself to speak.

I decide to head to Wyatt’s house next, hoping Clara might be there. The walk feels endless, every minute stretching out as my anxiety builds. When I finally arrive, I knock loudly and wait, but there’s no answer. I knock again, harder this time, but it’s clear she isn’t home.

The door remains firmly shut, the silence mocking my urgency.

“Damn it,” I mutter under my breath, turning away from the door.

As I step off Wyatt’s porch, the frustration boils within me. Clara is avoiding me, and it’s tearing me apart. I don’t know what I did wrong, but I need to find out. My feet drag me back toward the main house, my mind a whirlwind of thoughts and regrets.

“Beau, wait!” Finally, Wyatt catches up to me. I feel bad but I don’t want to see him right now. I can’t handle him. Not when my head is all over the place about his sister. “Clara… are you looking for her? Because she’s gone.”

Gone?

My heart stops beating.

“What do you mean?”

“I can’t find her anywhere and I’m worried that she’s gone back to Lewistown. I was having such a good time with Thomas, and now my nephew is…” He offers me a one shouldered shrug as the color drains from his cheeks. “Not here anymore. I got a call from her, saying she needed a break, but what does that mean? Is she gone forever?”

My heart races as Wyatt’s words sink in. Gone?

Back to Lewistown? This can’t be happening.

I can’t stand it.