Chapter One
“Man, I don’t know.”
“Oh, come on,” Brock said. “How long have we been friends?”
Lance Denison sighed. “I don’t know. Probably since we were zygotes?”
His friend laughed. “Exactly. And since we’ve been friends for so long, I can tell exactly when you need a break.”
“A break from what?”
“From the suck of your life! Look, Lodge 10 is going to be completely empty. The UnValentine’s Day celebration is exactly what you need right now.”
“Dude, it costs hundreds of dollars a night to stay in one of these cabins. I live ten miles away. It’s a waste of money.”
“Oh my God, you haven’t listened to anything I’ve said, have you? There was a last-minute cancellation. That Lodge is already paid for. It’s just going to sit empty if you don’t take it.”
“Bull. You can list it on the website and one of the people on the waitlist will snatch it up in two minutes.”
“That’s not the point.” Brock leaned against the side of his bronco and scanned the parking area where all of the new reservations were arriving. Four o’clock was check-in time, which was exactly why Lance tried to be far away from here by three every day.
“How much work have you done on these cabins?” Brock asked.
Lance canted his head. “I don’t mind.”
“Well, you won’t let me pay you, so at least let me show you what it’s like around February 14th.”
Lance scrunched up his face. “I hate Valentine’s Day.”
“Yes! That’s the whole point of UnValentine’s Day! There won’t be a single rose or chocolate heart in sight. Look over there,” Brock said, pointing to a stack of kegs a delivery driver was hauling into the main lodge. “Beer. No champagne, no chocolate covered strawberries, no mushy shit whatsoever. I promise. And Gran is pulling all the stops this week with the menu. Gravy on everything.”
Lance snorted. Well…it would be kind of nice to get away from everything that was happening. Maybe he could meet some fellow anti-commercial holiday goers like himself. Or hell, he could probably just sleep for three days and get rid of some of the heaviness from the last year. He was due to call off some days from work. And honestly, he loved Gran’s cooking. She sent him home with leftovers when they had them, but the lodge rarely had any. Gran’s cooking was known for four counties.
“You’re sure you don’t just want to rebook the room?” Lance asked skeptically.
“I’m sure. Go home, pack a bag, bring your soccer stuff, we will eat and laugh and ignore the stupid holiday this week. It’ll get your mind off everything.”
Lance puffed air out of his cheeks. The dang salesman-Brock was winning this one. “If I see one candy heart, I’m out of here.”
Brock grinned and clapped him on the shoulder so hard, Lance nearly had to take a side-step. “I don’t know why you’re so excited about Non-Valentine’s Day or whatever. You have a wife who is attached at the hip. You two are the mushiest couple I’ve ever seen. It’s disgusting to be around.”
Yep, Brock had taken a nose-dive off the bachelor wagon last year and fallen headfirst into love with an armadillo shifter named Ava. Them being excited about this weird un-celebration was strange.
“It’s called UnValentine’s Day. Get it right.” Brock was walking backward as he talked. “Put your tool bag away this week and just breathe. Trust me. It’ll be good for you. Dinner is at six in the main lodge. I’ll have your key under the welcome mat when you get back. No need to check in. I’m telling Gran you’re staying!”
Shit. There was no getting out of this now. Gran would serial-call him until he gave in.
He’d grown up with Brock, and Gran had practically raised him on weekends. She was the biggest reason he volunteered his handy-man skills at The Woodpecker Inn on his days off and on lunch breaks. Part of it was for an excuse to be around people he genuinely cared about, and part of it was to avoid his empty apartment.
Lance looked around at the singles bustling into the main lodge behind Brock to check in to their cabins.
There was a woman dressed in all black, with heavy eye make-up and black lipstick who gave him a sour look as she passed. He offered a pursed-lip smile and nodded politely. She growled at him.
Okay.
Well, from what he understood, the meals in the lodge were served at the big dining tables to mingle, but maybe he could just show up at the tail end of dinner and avoid everyone.
He turned around to head to his truck and ran into a child, who went flying backward with a squelch. A bright purple suitcase fell right on top of her.
