“I’m just here grabbing a few snack items to restock the break room at work.”
“And where’s that?” She swiped the card stack from the counter and collated them again, her idle hands making her anxious. “Where’s work?”
“Major Hart Mountain Rentals. You heard of it?”
Her eyes fell open wide. “Yes, actually. Believe it or not, I was just up there the other day. I went out on a snowmobile ride with one of your coworkers.”
“Oh, really? And who would that be?” Lance did that strange, near-shouting thing again.
“Buddy.”
His mouth cracked into a smile so large, she could no longer see his gray eyes pinched above his cheeks. Lance bent at the waist with a single, punctuated laugh and then straightened. He dragged a hand through his hair. “Buddy? You don’t say? Buddy is the best.”
“Seems like a pretty good guy.”
“Oh, most definitely. That Buddy…he’s a real keeper.”
Rachel wasn’t sure where this odd conversation might take her.
“Buddy, Buddy, Buddy,” Lance said on repeat, a laugh tacked to the end like an echo. “Some people say he’s got one of those familiar faces.”
“Yeah?” Her hands clamped around the cards. They were going to be mangled if she didn’t just set them down.
“Yes, they do.” Lance thumbed the divot in his chin. “What do you think? Does he remind you of anyone?”
Rachel scanned her brain, but it was currently on pause. She couldn’t compute anything. “Not that I can think of.”
“Doesn’t remind you ofanyoneyou know?”
At that moment, a thunderous clatter resounded from two aisles over, like an avalanche of canned food and boxed cereal. Dozens of aluminum cans rolled across the linoleum floor, several coming to a stop at Rachel’s feet. She stooped to collect a jar of pasta sauce.
“What on earth?” she mumbled.
“I’ll take care of that.” Lance grabbed her by the shoulders, locking her in place. Another patron—an elderly woman—came through the front door and Lance flicked his gaze behind him quickly. “You just take care of her and I’ll get things put back.”
“What do you think even caused that?” Rachel made a motion to step forward again, but Lance blocked her like a linebacker.
“Probably just another earthquake.”
“An earthquake?”
“Oh, yeah.” He jogged backward. “We get them all the time up here. You don’t remember?”
There was a lot Rachel didn’t remember about Snowdrift Summit, and earthquakes definitely fell into that category.
Being up on that mountain made her loopy, alright. And judging by Lance’s unusual behavior, she wasn’t the only one affected.
CHAPTER16
“Istill can’t believe you.”
Holden cut the engine a quarter mile from the Joy property. They would hike the rest of the way in. With the help of a full moon reflecting on alabaster snow, he didn’t think they would have any trouble locating the mammoth tree. Or hopefully not-so-mammoth tree, if his father’s wish came true.
“You can’t believeme?” Lance gripped the edges of his beanie and yanked it over his ears. He released his seatbelt. “You’re the one who nearly blew our cover with all of that commotion. What a racket. You knocked over half an aisle’s worth of food. You were supposed to be hiding.”
“I had to stop you! It was the only thing I could think to do. You were being ridiculous with all of thatRachel Joyshouting.”
“I just wanted to make sure it was her. Someone had to do their due diligence because you didn’t think to before you started falling in love with her.”
