When I started to smell smoke, I looked up. White puffs of exhaust came from under the hood.
“That’s just great.” I released a frustrated shriek into the silence, grabbed my bag, my phone, and climbed out of the car before it blew up or something. What the heck was I going to tell the rental company? How was I going to pay for this? I had come to this town and caused so many problems. I didn’t need this trouble. Soon, I’d be on one of those wanted by police posters.
I checked the time, realizing that I was supposed to be on Viktor’s doorstep, ready and willing to get to work. When I glanced down at my cell phone, it didn’t show a single bar. Crap.
This had to be the definition of cruel fate. Was this some sign? Was I doomed from the beginning never to be happy?
On top of that, big snowflakes began to fall from the sky.
I swung my bag over my shoulder, dug my fist into my coat pocket, and began walking. I was going to get there somehow. I’d never stop. I’d never give up.
Chapter Seven
Viktor
I looked down at the time on my watch for what seemed like the one-hundredth time. It was already forty minutes past the hour and there was no sign of Kristene. No phone call either.
I almost called the motel, but somehow, I thought that would only make me look desperate.
I felt like a fool for believing that Kristene would come back. She probably set me up. Had probably skipped town the moment I dropped her off at the motel yesterday.
Did I need to stop trusting people again? Was I getting too soft? Every time I let my guard down, things like this always happened.
I got up from the table and looked out of the kitchen window and released a deep sigh.
It was a good thing that Roy was back in school today. I didn’t want him to see me like this.
After another fifteen minutes of waiting in the house on a woman that would never show, I left, grabbing my ax from the back porch and joining the three guys who were already outside hacking at the wood and loading them onto a truck.
“Hey Boss!” Fell yelled. “Gonna be another busy week, huh?”
“Yup, I checked my messages this morning, and I got two orders in. The Montgomery’s will be sending a guy over to pick up their load around noon.” I pulled my gloves from my back pocket and slipped them on. “I’m closing up shop around two and then transitioning over to the properties to do some service calls and make sure my tenants don’t need anything.”
“If you want, I can stay later here. My girlfriend sort of dumped me so it’s not like I have anything else to do. I could use the money anyway. Come this spring, I’m taking a trip to see the beach.”
Fell was one of my most reliable workers, and he was a good guy. He’d been living in Arrow Lake for the past ten years. For five years, he’d been renting out one of my cabins and working for me at the same time.
“I’m sorry your girlfriend dumped you. You can stay as late as you like. Not too late though or you’ll definitely freeze your ass off later on. I plan to supply what I can for the town until that blizzard arrives just in case the lights go out, but I’m not trying to kill myself.”
“Alright. I hear you, boss. I’ll be gone by sundown for sure. Hey, what happened to that boy who started the fire last night?” Fell asked.
Fell had been one of the renters who had come running when they saw the blaze.
I cleared my throat. “He’s gone. I sent him home.” I picked up my ax.
“Well, did you call his parents? I went in that office this morning to clock in and the whole left corner is burned up. You’re lucky he didn’t burn the whole damn thing down. Someone needs to pay for that shit.”
“I’ve got it handled.”
I didn’t want to say too much, so I raised my ax and brought it down hard, slicing the wood in half.
Fell gave me a look of indifference, shook his head, and then bent down to tie a bundle of wood together.
About thirty minutes into chopping wood, a car rolled up in the front of the yard, distracting the guys’ attention. From my position, I couldn’t see who it was.
“Damn, that’s the Sheriff,” one of the guys mumbled.
“You called the Sheriff here, boss?” Fell asked, wiping his brows.
“No, but I think I know what this is about. You guys stay put. I’ll be right back.”
I brought my ax down into the ground and rushed from behind the house to the front yard. By the time I reached the gravel driveway, the Sheriff had already gotten out of his car and walked around to the passenger side.
Before he opened the door, I recognized the woman inside.
It was Kristene.
What the heck?
My pace slowed as I tried to process what was going on. Why was Kristene in the Sheriff’s car?
“Sheriff, is something wrong?” I asked, my gaze leveling with Kristene’s as she rose from the vehicle.
She was covered in a thick fleece blanket. Her boots were wet and muddy, and her cheeks and lips were really red.
“Hi,” she said, meekly.
I rushed to her side. “What happened?”
“This woman, Kristene Hunt, abandoned her vehicle on the side of the road. Says she lost control and landed in a ditch. I was on my way out here to talk to you about that fire that young boy started in one of your cabins. I saw her walking alongside the highway. She says she was headed your way,” the Sheriff stated.
“Is that true?” I asked Kristene.
She nodded.
“I told her she ought to go to urgent care to get checked out. The front wheel of the car was bent up pretty badly. She was shivering like a sick puppy when I picked her up. I could tell she wasn’t from around here. Are you hiring drifters again, Kamaz?”
“Please, I don’t need to go to the urgent care. You’re right. I’m not from around here and I don’t even have medical insurance so I wouldn’t be able to pay for it anyway,” Kristene said, fumbling with the fleece blanket around her midsection. Even her fingertips looked chilled to the bone.
“Why didn’t you call me?” I asked.
“No phone service. I would’ve called. I didn’t want you to think I wasn’t coming.”
“It’s okay,” I said.
“Well, I’m glad you know her. She said she was coming to do a job for you. Thought she was fibbing at first with the way she looked so nervous,” the Sheriff continued. “Anyway, like I said, I was actually on the way here to take a statement from you about that fire. Got a minute?”
“Uh…” I looked back and forth between the Sheriff and Kristene. When I didn’t say anything, Kristene dropped her attention to the ground, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. “You know what…sure…let’s talk about that, but would you mind if I get Kristene inside first? It’s warmer in the house.”
I couldn’t stand the sight of her shivering in the cold.
“Sure. I’ll be waiting out here.” The Sheriff leaned against the hood of his car and pulled out a cigarette and lighter.
“I’m so sorry,” Kristene mumbled as I walked her up the path to the porch.
“You don’t have to apologize so much,” I said. “I thought you ditched me.”
She gave a short laugh. “You still don’t trust me, do you?”
“Are you sure you don’t have any injuries?”
“I got scared and lost control. I’m fine. Just a little shaken up. My neck hurts, but it’s nothing major,” she said.
I opened the door and led her inside. “What happened?”
“I saw a wolf in the road. I didn’t want to hit it.”
“I could see how that happened. We have lots of wolves roaming around here. With the weather like this, they’re probably just looking for food where they can. I’m glad you’re okay.”
She nodded.
“Listen, I’m going to go talk to the Sheriff. Why don’t you warm up a bit? I’ll put some more wood in the fire for you.”
I moved over to the fireplace
and threw a few logs into the blaze. A split second passed, and the flames danced around the wood. When I turned around, Kristene was close, extending her hands and arms out toward the hearth. Her cheeks reddened a bit. I passed it off as a reaction to the cold or maybe even the sudden wave of heat pulsing at both of us from the fire. It couldn’t have been anything, but the way she lowered her eyelashes to avoid eye contact had me wondering if she was affected in another way.
“Thank you,” she mumbled, biting into her lush bottom lip.
I told myself long ago that I’d never let another woman trick me. The last one had my emotions all in a bunch and then ripped my heart in two when she was done with me. I wasn’t going through that again. I wouldn’t let anyone else control me. No. Never.
“No problem,” I said, and turned swiftly toward the door.
“Oh…Viktor?”
I halted abruptly. The way she called my name sent warm chills up my spine.
I looked back at her standing by my fireplace looking like a woman who could destroy me all over again if she wanted to. “Yes?”
“My bag’s in the Sheriff’s car. Would you mind getting it for me?” She gave me a small smile.
“Sure.”
“Thanks.”
“Be right back.”
She nodded. “Okay.”
I took one last look at her and at the innocent expression she had on her face before slipping outside to send the Sheriff on his way. There was no way in hell he was going to lock Kristene up for breaking in and starting that fire. No. I was going to handle this just like I planned. Even if I wanted to put the blame on her, I couldn’t go through with it. There was something about Kristene that I just couldn’t shake.
Chapter Eight
Kristene
I was huddled in a big leather chair under a cozy blanket when Viktor came back inside. He closed the door behind him, came in, and placed my bag on the sofa. I stood up from the seat.
“Sorry about the wait. After the Sheriff left, I had to round the guys up for a quick meeting,” he exclaimed, letting his gaze flow up and down the length of me.
“I changed clothes in the master suite. I hope you don’t mind. My boots and socks were soaked. I guess I don’t exactly have the right gear for this type of weather,” I said.
“I don’t mind at all. I wouldn’t want you to catch pneumonia or anything like that.”
“Well, like I promised, I’m here. I’m ready to start work.”
He shook his head. “You need a break after what just happened out on the road. You’re lucky. The Sheriff said the rental was less than ten feet from a utility pole.”
“That would’ve been a disaster. Where’s Roy?” I looked around.
“They had school today, which he wasn’t too happy about. He thought he was getting a snow day today.”
“I didn’t see any schools while I was in town. Are they further out?”
Viktor nodded. “This house is just on the outskirts of the main town which is where Roy’s school is. There’s another boy his age that goes to the same day school, so we have them carpool everyone once in a while.” He looked down at his watch. “He’ll be home in a few hours. Hopefully, I’ll be done with the rounds by then.”
“Rounds?”
“I’ve got to go check on my properties. I haven’t gotten any calls…yet.”
I sighed. “I wish I was here earlier. I hope I didn’t mess up your schedule too much.”
“Not at all. I planned to take you out, show you around the place, but I think you should stay inside, especially if you’re in pain,” he said.
“I’m not in any pain. I was just in shock. In fact, I walked about thirty minutes before the Sheriff saw me. I’m not sure what he thought I was doing, but he asked me like a million questions about why I was walking on the side of the road. He was really suspicious of me. I mean, I wasn’t walking out there in the freezing cold and snow for my health.” I chuckled.
He laughed. “But some folks do it for their health,” he added.
“Well, it’s nothing new to me. Public transportation is where it’s at right now for me. At least until I save up enough for a car,” I said, and then added, “Oh! Which reminds me…I’ll need to call the company about the rental. I think it’s still running. It’s just…stuck.”
“I’m sure it happens all the time out here. Don’t worry. So, you really don’t have a car back home?”
“Nope. None at all.” I shrugged. “I don’t travel outside of the city. Using public transit every day isn’t unheard of where I come from.”
“Makes sense. Around here, it’d take me hours to get where I wanted to go if I walked around all the time.”
“So, see? I’m perfectly fine. I’d love to go out with you. I won’t get in the way or anything. I promise.”
He swallowed visibly and narrowed his gaze. “You don’t have boots,” he teased, grinning.
I smiled. “I can just wear heels. I bought a pair in my bag just in case.”
“You’re prepared. I’m impressed.”
“I didn’t know what the dress code was at your office,” I said. “I was hoping I wouldn’t have to walk around in a dress or anything like that, but…”
“There’s no dress code. You can wear pajamas if you want as long as you show up for work. Of course, I wouldn’t advise it.”
I walked over to my bag, ready to slip on my heels, anxious to see what a man like Viktor did all day long.
“Don’t worry about the heels. I don’t think you want to get those muddy. I have extra snow boots in the laundry room. I’ll get you a pair.”
“Okay.” I couldn’t believe how excited I was to go out on Viktor’s property. I definitely needed to get out more, and not just because someone was in trouble and really needed me.
He grinned. “Okay. Be right back.”
I couldn’t help but look at his retreating figure as he stalked across the room. His thick arms and shoulders would make any woman swoon on any day of the week. Or was it just me?
I was attracted to him and the most obvious reason was right in front of me. On top of how breathtaking he looked, he’d also been kind enough to help me out even after I broke into one of his cabins.
I had never met a man like Viktor. I’d probably never meet anyone like him again in my life. I was going to make the best of our time together. It certainly looked like he could teach me a few things about life in general.
But first, I would pay him back for what I did.
…and I was looking forward to it.
Chapter Nine
Kristene
“So, that seems easy enough,” I said, as Viktor pulled the truck into a carport in his yard.
We had just returned from doing the rounds on his property. While checking on a few of the tenants, he’d gone over what he wanted me to work on down at the rental office. As we discussed before, most of my time would be spent answering calls and fielding work requests to the appropriate maintenance guys. On top of that, I also promised to clean up the mess I made that first night.
“It’s easy until you get people calling in back to back for trivial things. Fortunately, I haven’t had a batch like that in a long time. I usually get tenants like that around spring break and the beginning of summer. You know, when we have college kids up here on vacation. They’re always up to something and they tend to break things easily,” he said, turning the engine off.
I giggled. “I bet they do.” On a more serious note, I added, “You know, my sister was taking online college courses. I think her boyfriend was too.”
He frowned. “Hmm, have you checked the local technical college? Maybe she enrolled there?”
I shrugged. “She didn’t mention that one. One thing I know about my sister is that she never would’ve sat through a class if she didn’t have to, which is why she was doing the online thing.”
“Check with the registrar’s office. Could be worth a shot.”
“I’ll call them tomorrow. So
, if I can convince the rental company to loan me another car, I should be here bright and early tomorrow morning.”
“Roy is off to school pretty early in the morning and with you working the office for me, I have some time between then and when my day starts. If you want, I can pick you up early in the morning.”
“That would be great.”
“Good. Roy should be home any minute now,” he said, looking out through the windshield. “I would take you home now, but I don’t want to miss him when the Bennetts drop him off.”
Snowflakes had just begun to fall, and the temperatures were steadily dropping.
“I understand. I can wait around until he gets here. Maybe there’s something I can work on while I’m waiting.”
“Actually, would you like to stay for dinner?” he asked.
“I, um…”
“If you don’t want—”
“Yes, I want to. It’s just that I don’t want to be a pest or anything,” I said.
“You’re not a pest. Roy asked about you this morning. Wanted to know if you were coming back. I promised him I’d at least ask.”
I smiled. “Well then…I’ll stay for dinner.”
“Let’s go inside.” He opened the door and then raced over to the other side to let me out.
Once we were inside, we hung up our coats in the foyer and pulled off our boots. Luckily, the socks he lent me were still dry, so I kept them on.
Viktor threw another log on the ashes and poked around in the fire until the blaze started again.
I wrapped my arms around my midsection and enjoyed the heat as my body began to warm up.
“Roy mentioned that you were getting a housekeeper,” I blurted.
He straightened up and ran his fingers through his hair. “Something like that. My businesses are growing. The cabin rental company has always been in the family. My great-great-grandfather and family built them from scratch. We’ve owned the land for decades and it’s something I won’t be selling. Chopping wood was something we did on the side until more and more people started relying on us for it. Plus, I have a kid now and haven’t been able to keep up with my own home as much.”
Wife for the Lumberjack: A Single Dad Mountain Man Romance Page 5
