He smiled, wide and adorable.Argh. There was that word again. She cleared her throat. “I’m fine. Go get your bib. Have a great run.” She forced a smile.
“I heard you’re shorthanded. Some of the volunteers...” His voice faded off as he shrugged. “I’d like to help. Really.”
She didn’t have time to make a point about it. She wasn’t in a position to turn down capable hands, no matter if they did belong to Jack Swisher.
“Can you work the snack table? I have someone there now, but they need to man the finish line and time clock.”
“Sure.” He hesitated for a moment. “What do I do?”
“It’s basically an aid station, but people really like to socialize there. Make sure the various foods stay filled. Keep cocoa packets and candy canes out. Those are always popular, especially with the kids. It’ll start getting busy soon. We usually have a rush of racers about half an hourbefore start time. It’ll die down while the mile is happening, and then you’ll have another rush for the people who are going from the mile to the 5K. I have a few things to do, then I’ll come check on you.”
“Sounds good.” He smiled and halfway turned before stopping. He gave her that smile again. “This really looks great. It’s amazing how you made it look like Christmas.”
“Well . . . ” She lifted her hands. “It is Christmas.”
“True, and it’s amazing.”
Her stomach did a little flip-flop as he turned away from her. Steph scrunched her mouth. Why was he so incredibly annoying and so cute at the same time? He was making it hard to hate him.
As expected, runners soon began arriving. She recognized most of them. She said hello, asked about their families, and laughed at the jokes people always made about the cold when they’d known full well what they signed up for.
She made a point to introduce herself to anyone she didn’t know and to get them situated and comfortable, make them feel like they’d come to the right place and let them know how grateful she was they were contributing to a great cause.
While she was zip-tying a banner that kept pulling loose, she overheard a conversation near the registration table.
“—found it up near the north trailhead. Somebody hiked in and reported it.”
“A grizzly?”
“Skinned out completely. Paws were gone. Rumor is the bear was pulled from its den.”
Steph’s hands stilled on the zip tie.
“Why the paws?”
“Black market. Traditional medicine and cuisine. Gallbladder, too, if they can get to it. Worth serious money. This wasn’t a trophy hunter. Whoever it was knew exactly what they were doing and went in specifically for it.”
“That’s a federal crime.”
“Several federal crimes. The game warden I talked to said they’ve been finding signs across multiple areas. They’ve been at it for a while. Even longer than was originally thought.”
Steph finished the zip tie and moved on. Her Frozen Divide training plan called for an overnight run next weekend. There was already a decent amount of snowpack at the gate into the park, and the road had been closed since early November. It was a popular area for cross-country skiing and snowshoeing, and the perfect place to get in some needed miles and practice with her sled.
The north trailhead wasn’t her route, but she filed the information away. She’d pay attention. She always paid attention. Winter endurance sports required it.
She glanced toward the snack table where Jack was leaning against it, laughing with a group of young girls dressed in elf suits and wearing light-up necklaces. Even wearing tights and long sleeves, they looked like they were freezing. They also looked like they couldn’t get enough of the famous Jack Swisher.
Jack didn’t seem to mind the interaction, but for reasons Steph couldn’t explain, it bothered her.
Chapter 8
Jack
Jack made the right call not running.
He’d known it within minutes of arriving, after overhearing someone say they were short on volunteers. When he offered to help, Steph told him he should run, but practicality and the need to put on a good race won out.
Jack wanted to gain points with Steph. If she saw he was willing to do the work, maybe she wouldn’t think so badly of him. And it meant time with her, which was reason enough.
