Damn. I wouldn’t say no to a reminder.
Calli regards me when I look up from the phone. “Is something going on between you again?” Her question is curious, not judgmental.
“He kissed me,” I confess with a shrug. “I might bring him home tonight. I could use some stress relief.” I’m not riding with him to the party, though.
She bites her bottom lip and hesitates to reply.
“You don’t think I should? Are you worried things will get messy with him being Arlow’s friend?”
“No, I’m not saying you shouldn’t. Just be careful. I know a lot of men say they don’t do relationships or whatever, but Lee means it. It’s been seven years since he lost his wife, and he hasn’t been serious with anyone since.”
This isn’t news to me. I’m not sure of the details and Calli isn’t either. All we know is that Lee’s wife was murdered and he doesn’t talk about it. “I’m not interested in anything serious. I told you I’m done with relationships and that hasn’t changed.”
Calli leans her elbow on the counter and props her head on her hand. “I know, but I worry that you’re vulnerable right now after such a tough year. That shit with Kyle and Sandra, then losing your mom so suddenly. If he hurts you after all that, I’ll have to kill him.” She rolls her eyes. “Then there’s the whole digging a grave to bury him. He’s not a little guy if you haven’t noticed.”
“You’re overlooking the obvious. He’d totally fit in that dry well on the back of the property.”
“Possibly. It’s just a lot of hassle when I’m already busy, you know?”
Everyone should have a friend as good as her. I lean over to give her a hug. “Don’t worry, he isn’t even my type.”
“I know, you like the soft guys,” she says. “And he isn’t one to be told what to do, just like you.”
“We’d tear each other apart,” I agree as Nina steps into the doorway to tell Calli her order is ready.
Calli gets to her feet. “Okay, I should go. See you tonight.”
She has nothing to worry about. I’m not interested in having any man to deal with right now. I have plenty to focus on with my business. That doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy a night of being ravaged by a beast of a man who can throw me around like a rag doll.
I reply to his text before getting back to work.
Me
I’ll drive myself, thanks. Also, if I was teasing you, I’d admit that I won’t be wearing panties.
Without checking to see if he answers, I tuck my phone in my pocket and get back to work. Tonight’s going to be fun.
CHAPTER 2
LEE
The humid airsticks to my skin and makes my shirt cling to my back. Ninety-five degrees the third week of October is diabolical. I put another log on the chopping block, raise the ax, and bring it down hard. The crack echoes through the trees, sharp enough to startle a crow into calling from somewhere above me.
The smell of fresh oak cuts through the heavier damp scent of the lake. Sweat drips into my eyes, and I wipe it away with my sleeve. This is the kind of work I like. The steady rhythm of it, swing, crack, stack, works an ache into my shoulders, but it clears my mind.
Despite the weather, the summer season is over and there’s lots of work to be done. The cabins usually remain empty through the winter, other than one or two rented by fisherman, but I’ve done things differently this year. A local low income apartment complex was shut down, leavingfamilies scrambling to find a place to go so I offered the cabins as a temporary solution. It’ll get them through the winter and give them time to find another home.
I bought this property, complete with nine lakeside cabins, over seven years ago. The property management firm I hired from town does a good job of handling the administrative side that I don’t want to deal with, like scheduling the reservations and collecting the money. It leaves me free to do the maintenance and upkeep.
Solitude wasn’t my intention when I bought the place, but I’m thankful for it now. My house is on the far side of the property, backed up to the lake, surrounded and hidden by thick forest on three sides. The only access is the gravel road that ends at my driveway. It’s well away from all the cabins except one. Cabin nine is located on a bend in the same road, tucked back out of view, but not far enough away for my liking. Which is why it’s the only cabin I don’t rent out. It sits empty with the windows boarded up.
As I’m finishing with the wood, my phone rings.
“Wow, you answered instead of texting me back. I’m flattered,” my little sister Lacey teases.
“It’s not too late for me to hang up.”
“Then you know I’ll show up at your door.”
