It occurs to me that perhaps he wants me to leave. I sit up in a hurry. The tight skin on my hip protests, but before I can lurch to my feet, Tanner is in front of me. He’s brandishing more tea, and his face has relaxed. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to wake you so early.”
“You didn’t wake me.” I take the tea. “What time is it?”
“Six. Eve told me you’re shitty at getting up for work, but I was gonna let you sleep a little longer.”
“When did Eve tell you that?”
“This morning. She sent me, like, seven messages while I was in the shower.”
I belatedly notice Tanner’s damp hair, and the faint sheen of moisture on his inked skin. At some point in the night I’ve kicked his cozy blanket to his battered hardwood floor. I bend to retrieve it, hoping the action conceals the effect he’s having on me.
If he notices, it doesn’t show. He sets the tea mug on the coffee table and backs up. “Do you need a ride to work?”
“Nah, my boss picks me up from the parking lot right behind this place.”
“Nice boss.”
“He’s okay. There’s a shower at HQ too, if I can make the generator work. Jerry’s kind of a miser about getting it fixed.”
“Jerry Coleman?”
I’m staring at a bead of water still running down Tanner’s long neck. “Yeah. You know him?”
Tanner nods. “I used to work for him.”
“At Wildfoot?”
“Yeah.” Tanner turns into the kitchen, showing me his muscled back. The wide expanse is covered with ink too, and I find myself squinting to decipher it before I realize he’s not doing anything. He’s standing at the kitchen sink as if he’s forgotten why he’s there.
I wonder if he doesn’t like my boss, but that doesn’t seem possible. Jerry has good reasons for doubting my lynx aspirations, but in everything else, he’s been sound as a pound. Salt of the earth. I can’t imagine anyone not liking him.
The thought returns me to the logical reality that Tanner wants his space back. I roll from his couch. My bag is at my feet. I retrieve it and straighten slowly, easing my body back to life, grateful for the night I’ve spent on a sofa that’s three times the size of my bunk at the hostel. I fold the blanket into a neat square and set it on the coffee table.
Tanner still isn’t looking at me. I contemplate leaving him to it and slipping away, but as I near the kitchen, I can’t make myself do it. I come up behind him and touch his shoulder.
He startles, and whirls around.
I give him what I hope is an easy grin. “I’m off. Just wanted to say thanks for putting me up.”
A beat of silence stretches between us. Then he nods. “That’s okay. You good for tonight?”
I shrug, because I have zero clue, and I’m not a liar. “Dunno. I’ll talk to Jerry later. He might know somewhere I can stay. Or he might advance my paycheck so I can figure something out.”
“What do you do for him? Are you a ranger?”
“Nope. Videographer. He hired me to spend the winter cataloguing the wildlife on the new trails he’s opening up.”
“The Black Claw trails?”
“Yeah. You know them?”
“A bit.” Tanner’s dark eyes seem to flash. “You aren’t going up there dressed like that, are you?”
I laugh. “No. I lost all my casual clothes in the fire, but my gear is stashed at HQ. I’m good for hiking and sitting in the mud all day.”
“Is Jerry still renovating the office?”
“Yeah. I heard he’s been doing it for years, though.”
