Hot. Hot. Hot.
Yep. He was gorgeous.
Trouble.
Catnip.
She clicked off his pick and turned away from the screen. She wasn’t going to North Dakota for a fling.
And she certainly wouldn’t let another cowboy take her heart and toss it away. Nope. Jack was off limits–even if he had wonderfully broad shoulders and a chest she’d like to fall asleep on.
Stop it!She scolded herself.
He was off limits, and she was too smart to fall for him. Making a name for herself was all that mattered. Once she did, she could go home with her head held high.
CHAPTERFOUR
Jack and Drake stood on the wrap-around porch watching a parade of vans, trailers, moving trucks, SUVs, and more make their way down the lane and turn into the south field next to the house.
Miss Newberry had emailed with a list of requests. One of them was a parking lot where they could set up the live-in trailers. He’d given that one some thought before deciding to clear the field. It’d taken him eight hours to move enough snow off the field so they could pull in and not get stuck until spring. He’d piled up the extra, creating a wind block to help during filming. It would probably be there until July, but that was a small price to pay.
A man with a megaphone and a map taped to a clipboard was directing drivers where to park. A small city was forming before their very eyes.
“How do they expect to power all this?” Drake folded his arms as if he was ready to frighten off anyone who tried to plug an extension cord into their Christmas light outlets in the eaves.
“Miss Newberry said that they have generators. Apparently, it’s normal when shooting on sight.” Jack pushed his cowboy hat up with one finger as he continued to watch the procession. One of the larger trucks opened and workers began unloading props and sets. “It’s like a whole Tinsel Town out there.”
“What about feeding them? They don’t expect mom to cook for all these people, do they?”
Jack shook his head quickly. “Miss Newberry said they have two food trucks. They’re responsible for feeding everyone–including us, if we want to partake.”
“You guys have spent a lot of time talking, eh?” Drake looked at him out of the corner of his eye. “What else does thisMissNewberry have to say?”
Jack punched him in the shoulder. “Bro. She’s probably mom’s age. It’s all been very professional.” And a complete drain. He ran his hand down his cheek as the stress from the last week hovered like a storm cloud.
On top of that, Dad wasn’t getting better. The darn pneumonia lingered in his lungs like an unwelcome guest at Christmas dinner. Nobody wanted to discuss what would happen if he took a turn for the worse, but they didn’t dare talk about a full recovery either. Mom always had a smile, but when she didn’t think anyone was looking, she’d fold over under the weight of it all. It was possible that she didn’t want to cancel the movie because she didn’t want to disappoint Dad. Which meant that Jack needed to make this happen for the both of them.
Talk about holiday stress.
At the end of the procession was a small blue car that fishtailed its way down their lane. Drake bumped Jack’s arm and pointed it out. “You’ve got to give him props for daring to take that little thing on our snow-covered roads.”
Jack huffed. Out here, a person could get killed in a car like that. Four-wheel drive was necessary for survival. However, the driver seemed to have practice on snow-covered roads because he didn’t end up stranded.
“Shouldn’t you be down there? You know, taking charge or something?” Drake asked as he tucked his hands into his coat pockets.
Jack leaned against the porch rail. He wasn’t going anywhere near the chaos until he had to. Besides, the guy with the clipboard was doing an excellent job. A blonde woman dressed in all black joined him. She had an air about her like she was in charge of the universe, and don’t you dare try to tell her differently.
The blue car parked along the fence where the reindeer milled about. Their curiosity had them crowding the fence to see what was happening. Of course, the flying reindeer were shut up tight in the main barn–much to their dismay. Being curious was a problem for several of them, leading to trouble. Dunder was the most mature. He could probably be out here, except he practically oozed Christmas Magic and was impossible to boss around. If he flew away from all this, he’d do it and not care who saw him.
Maybe.
Dunder was a tough old guy, and his mood could go either way lately.
A woman popped out of the blue car wearing a Carhart jacket, skinny jeans, and boots he’d seen on sale at the feed store yesterday. She’d tucked her long brown hair under a tan beanie, and her smile was genuine. She took a deep breath in and didn’t even cringe at the smell of reindeer droppings. Jack was nose-blind to it, but several movie people held their noses as they ran from task to task.
He was about to refocus somewhere else when she made for the fence and the reindeer. Sugar separated herself from the rest of the herd with awatch thisglance over her shoulder.
Jack swore under his breath and took off at a light jog. Drake laughed behind him. “Don’t you have something to do?” Jack yelled back.
