“You used to love camping.”
“I prefer plumbing.”
“You two are more than welcome to stay here,” Cadence jumped in. “There’s plenty of room. And running water.”
“We couldn’t possibly impose on you for that long,” Ford said, joining her at the kitchen sink and running the faucet over the dirty plates. “You’ve been generous enough.”
“Honestly, I wouldn’t mind the company. It’s a big place to stay in alone.” He took the empty casserole pan that had held the potatoes from her, their fingers grazing briefly. The heated touch caused tingles that continued even after she walked back to the table to continue clearing it off.
“I can pay you,” Ford offered, dropping the pan into the soapy water in the sink.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Cadence said with a dismissive wave of her hand. “You work here. I’m not going to make you pay to sleep here.”
“Thank you, Cadence,” Rilee jumped in, probably to ensure Ford wouldn’t deprive them of showers and toilets that flushed. But her interruption reminded him of reality. He hadn’t expected Cadence to distract him so easily. Or at all, really. Rilee snagged her purse off the far counter. “I’ll see you guys later. Will the door be open?”
Ford wanted to say no. Force her to call him when she got back. But he tamped down the protective big brother inside him and simply said, “Yes.”
Rilee zipped out the door before he could offer her a ride. The Dipper was several blocks away, but from here it was all downhill. He was needed here anyway.
“Is it just the two of you?” Cadence asked, drawing his gaze from the trail Rilee used in her escape.
“Yeah.” He scrubbed a dry hand over the back of his neck, suddenly finding dishes a daunting task. There’d been a lot of loss in their lives. A lot more than he wanted to think about, so he forced the thoughts away. “No one tells you how you’re supposed to raise a teenager, especially when she’s your own sister.”
“She seems like a sweet girl.”
Ford laughed, happy the tension was breaking and his thoughts of all the people who’d passed away these last few years dissipating. “She’s too smart for her own good. Way too smart. But she is a good kid.”
“Kid?”
“I don’t like to think of her as an adult just yet.” Ford rinsed off the pan he’d been washing for too long. It was clean three minutes ago, but it kept his hands busy, his mind busy. “I’m not ready to send her off to college. It’s been the two of us for over five years now.”
“Where is she going?” Cadence discovered a dish towel in a nearby drawer and took the pan from him to dry. Their fingers grazed again, nearly making Ford mutter under his breath. He wasn’t here to fall for a woman he just met—only to convince her to keep the lodge. Nothing more.
“Boston.” Riggs wedged his way between them, his nose lifted toward the sink in hyper-sniff mode. Ford addressed the dog, a stern look in his eyes. “You know you’re not allowed in the kitchen.” Or at least, he considered it stern. Riggs seemed to consider it unimportant and slid toward Cadence instead.
She fought a smile, her eyes twinkling in humor at Riggs. She gave up her fight and scratched him behind the ears when he leaned against her leg. “Boston. That’s . . . far.”
“Yeah.” Ford drained the sink and wiped it down, eager to change the subject. “You need any help around here tomorrow, getting the place ready to be listed?” The question sounded counterintuitive, even to him. But he had a plan.
“I thought it might be nice to freshen up the flowers outside. Those along the deck look a little . . . unexciting. I’m no photographer, but I think some color out there would help the main listing photo pop.”
“I can do flowers.”
“Do you know any photographers in town who might be able to take on a job last minute?”
Ford was about to give a reluctant answer when the lights flickered and died. Though the sun never really set in the summer in Sunset Ridge, it did disappear for a few hours and leave the town painted in a dim, overcast hue. The house wasn’t pitch black, but it was dark.
“What happened?” Cadence turned in a full circle. “Power go out?”
Ford only had to peer out the kitchen window to see that Mrs. Tillie Grant still had lights to know it was an isolated incident. “Breaker might’ve popped.” Time to put his electrician hat on. Because he knew the house so well, he was able to dig a flashlight out of the junk drawer at the edge of the kitchen.
“Breaker?”
“We might’ve overloaded it.” But Ford doubted that. They hadn’t plugged in anything new or turned on any other lights. Though the lodge had been very well taken care of it, it was aging; things like this would happen. He hoped Cadence could accept that and not add it to her list of reasons to unload it. “I’ll go check the breaker box.”
“I’m coming with you.”
Ford paused, surprised at her eagerness. “It’s in the basement.”
