"You do?"I perk up at the news."Oh, thank God."
"It's dial-up."
"It's what?"
"Are you ready to head up?"
"Yes."My lips pull down into a frown."Um, up where?"
"The mountain, Cordelia."He nods at a snow-capped peak in the distance.
"We're going up there?"I squeak, my stomach sinking faster than a stone."I thought you lived in town.You know, near other people and houses and buildings and roads and things."
Breathe, Cordy.Breathe.
"Nope," he says."We're going up the mountain and we won't be back down until next week.So if you need something, you better say something now, Sunshine.Once we get up there, you're stuck."
Oh, this is bad.No, this is worse than bad.
This is my worst nightmare brought to life.
"You good?"he asks, his steely gray eyes lingering on my face."You look like you're going to puke.If you want to quit now…"
Oh, I see how it is.Deacon Cromwell can't wait to be rid of me.Well, too bad for him because I'm no quitter.I'm going up that stupid mountain with him, even if it kills me.
ChapterFour
DEACON
Cordelia Shanks is even more beautiful in person than she was on her website.That shock of pink hair and her pretty little dress give her a pin-up vibe that makes me want to pull over and see what's under that dress up close and in person again.Her stunning green eyes shine as bright as the sun, especially when she's smiling.But she doesn't smile the whole way up the mountain.She doesn't say much either.
Most people ooh and ahh and take a million pictures, overwhelmed by the majestic beauty of the mountains.Sweeping views of Mt.Baker give way to breathtaking glimpses of the valley below, with rivers snaking their way through the countryside.Cordy doesn't drink it all in.She cowers in her seat, shrinking into herself the deeper into the middle of nowhere we get.
It's not a peaceful silence, either.It's loud as hell.I don't like it much.
"You don't spend much time outdoors, do you?"I growl fifteen minutes from the cabin.The question pops out sounding accusatory.
"No," she says, her voice small."Never."
Well, hell.I should turn around and take her right back down the mountain.I knew before I ever loaded her three suitcases in my Jeep that she didn't belong out here…but I loaded them anyway.I want her in my space, filling it with her sweet laughter and cheerful rambling.It's a foreign desire, one far outside of my wheelhouse, but I want it, nonetheless.
"Why'd you want the job then, Sunshine?"
"I can do this job, Deacon," she says firmly."I started my business my senior year of college.I may not look the part up here, but I'm one of the best at what I do because I understand firsthand what it takes to run a small business."
What the fuck?
"Never said you couldn't, Cordelia.I just asked why you took the job."There's something she isn't saying, a reason she's so anxious.I want to know what it is.
She shivers, snuggling deeper into her coat."Drunk Me read your ad and decided that you sounded like you could use my skills," she says.
"Nell," I growl.
"Who is Nell?"
"Sister."
"Ah."Her lips twitch."Now, I understand."
