Page 11

“On ice.”

“I’ve been using ladders since I was twelve.”

“Congratulations.”

“You are unbelievably irritating.”

“So I’ve heard.”

She turns toward the lodge.

I follow.

She glances back. “Why are you following me?”

“We need to talk.”

“No, you need to explain why you lost your mind last night.”

“Didn’t.”

“You bid a hundred thousand dollars for a wife.”

“Yeah.”

“Normal people don’t do that.”

“Never claimed to be normal.”

Her eyes flick over me.

Lila is terrible at hiding when she looks at me.

Also something I like.

I open the lodge door before she can reach it.

She gives me a look as she walks past. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

“Still mad at you.”

“I’ll survive.”

The lobby smells like coffee and woodsmoke. The place needs work, but it’s solid. Frank Dawson built it forty years ago. Hank expanded it. Lila has spent the last two years keeping it alive with duct tape, determination, and money she doesn’t have.

She walks behind the front desk. “Coffee?”

“Sure.”

“I’m not making it for you.”

“Then why’d you ask?”

She pours herself a cup. “To establish dominance.”

I almost smile.