“Come on in, boy.”
He didn’t need more than a crack of the door as invitation. The German shepherd trotted happily inside and instantly began sniffing around. At first glance, Cadence saw only one breakable object at tail height and moved the vase before he got near it.
“What do you think? Should we explore?”
With Riggs at her heel, Cadence wandered the house. A few things had changed: updated light fixtures and accent walls painted new colors. But most of it was familiar. The cedar-stained logs, the window that overlooked the bay at the end of the upstairs hallway, the moose accents everywhere.You sure did love your moose, Aunt Patty.
The pair wandered in and out of the guest rooms, Riggs content with his sniffing, Cadence happy to find the themes of each room were as she remembered. Some moose, some caribou, some black bears. All of them Alaskan.
Pushing open the door to the master bedroom, her favorite spot beckoned her like a long-lost memory waiting to be rediscovered. She entered the room that faced the front of the lodge. Floor-to-ceiling windows revealed a breathtaking view of mountains, ocean, and Alaskan beauty. The town of Sunset Ridge sat off to the side, the roofs of the buildings on the Main Street poking through the trees.
Cadence plopped down on the carpet in front of the windows as she used to do all the time as a kid. Riggs lay down beside her, his ears perked high as he scanned the surroundings. They both watched Ford on a riding mower off to the east.That’s new.
“I used to come up here all the time. Did you know that, Riggs?” She ran a soft hand over the back of his neck. “It was my favorite place. Ever.”
So many memories that summer. The one most prominent now was leaving, her cheeks soaked in tears. Thirteen-year-old Cadence made a pact to come back as soon as she graduated high school. Back then, she set her mind to living in Alaska and never looking back.How did I forget?
You can keep it, too.
“Keep it,” Cadence said to Riggs, remembering the lawyer’s words. “What do I know about running a lodge, Riggs? Tessa would never go for it. And Sophie, well, I don’t think her surgeon husband would be too eager to leave his beach life in Hawaii for a town without a hospital.”
She fished her phone out of her purse, wanting to text her sisters again but not knowing what to say that would change a thing. They had to sell the place. None of them could run it, and hiring a stranger to manage and run it in their absence just felt wrong. Wrong and such a hassle.
A flood of texts and email came through in a brief moment of signal, most of them from her boss, Janine.
“Six months.” It was nice having Riggs with her so she didn’t feel she was talking out loud to herself. Even if the dog couldn’t understand her words’ meaning, at least he was listening to her tone, if the various tilts of his head were any indication. “Six more months, and I can be my own agent. It’ll all be worth it.”
“There you two are.” Ford’s voice carried from the open doorway. His shoes were missing. “I’m all wrapped up if you’re ready to go.”
Riggs looked at Cadence, waiting just like Ford for her to make a decision. Reality rushed back in, sweeping away her nostalgic memories. “I guess I’m ready.” She’d taken a few notes and half a dozen pictures. But if she really wanted to put together an enticing listing, they’d need to hire a professional photographer.
“You know,” said Ford once the front door was locked and they were headed back to his truck, “you could stay here if you wanted.”
“Stay here?”
“While you’re in town. It’s yours now, right?”
Why didyeslodge in her throat? “I guess it is.”
“You’re only around for a couple days, so why not stay here and enjoy the place a little before you sell it?”
“I have a non-refundable—”
“Don’t worry about the cabin, Cadence.” He gave her a wink that set loose a flight of butterflies in her stomach. “I know the owner.”
Chapter Four
Ford
Ford suspected the alternator was the culprit last week when Rilee’s car started acting up again. The thing was like a Rubik’s cube. If one little colored box got out of alignment, the entire car rebelled. But it had come cheap at a time when money was tight. It just had to make it through the summer.
“Definitely the alternator.” Under the hood, Ford turned his head in the cramped space to look at his sister, but his traitorous eyes swept right past Rilee to the rental cabin behind her. He couldn’t deny how much he enjoyed Cadence’s company in the short time he’d known her.
“Think you can fix it?” Rilee asked, her arms folded. He’d miss that adorable tilt of her head with her ponytail bouncing. Some days he swore that was the last hint left of her childhood. So much about her was grown up now. It’d do her good in Boston, but he didn’t have to like it any more than that.
He shimmied from beneath the hood, rubbing a kink out of his neck. The tiny car did its best to make him feel confined when he had to crawl inside it like this. “I think Liam’s got an alternator in stock.” His buddy did. He’d asked him to order one last week, just in case. “I’ll run into town and grab it. Along with a couple of steaks.”
Rilee’s eyes lit up. Steak was her favorite, no question about it. “I can get some potatoes ready for the grill.”
