The Middle of Nowhere
Page 1
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Epilogue
The Middle of Nowhere
A Billionaire Romance
Piper Phoenix
Contents
Mailing List
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
About the Author
Also By Piper Phoenix
Stone - The Brother’s Rebellion
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Epilogue
Copyright © 2016-2017 by Piper Phoenix
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Second Edition February 2017
Mailing List
If you would like to be notified of the latest releases, cover reveals, sales, and more… sign up for Piper’s mailing list now! It’s free to join and who knows, she might just offer free exclusive content from time to time!
1
I was doing the right thing. At least that’s what I told myself over and over again. After what had happened to my mom and dad, I knew I had to do whatever it took to get away. Out of the city. Far, far away from people.
My Aunt Audrey was off telling the moving men how to do their job while I packed into the trunk the few things I was taking with me in my car. I had already paid for and had the furniture for my new house delivered to the cabin I now was the proud owner of. If it hadn’t been for the inheritance, I wouldn’t be able to afford to get away from the city life and become a country girl. Or more like an isolated girl. But that is what I wanted.
“Are you sure this is what you want honey?” Aunt Audrey said putting her arm around me. I jumped at her touch.
“Jesus Audrey! You scared me half to death,” I said turning to face her. It wasn’t even funny how easily I was startled these days. But Aunt Audrey understood more than anyone else ever could. We had both experienced the same devastation. I had lost my mom and she had lost her sister. She put up a good act around me, but I knew she was heartbroken too. Apparently she was just way better at dealing with everything that came along with losing someone than I was.
She frowned and tapped her finger against her lips. I could tell she was concerned, but then again, ever since the incident she always seemed concerned.
“Yes, this is what I want. Not only what I want. I need this,” I said looking up towards the puffy clouds in the sky. They moved so fast that it seemed as though they too were rushing away from the city.
“I’m afraid you living out there all by yourself will only make things worse… not better. Things need to get better. You know I worry about you,” she said as she straightened her spine and wagged her finger at one of the movers. “He’s going to break that!”
She was taking some of the furniture I was leaving behind for her house, and thus felt very strongly about how it was being handled. I shook my head as she ran off after the movers. They would probably deserve a bigger tip than I had planned to give them.
I closed my trunk and leaned back against my car as I crossed my arms in front of my chest. The air was a mixture of car exhaust and garbage, or at least that’s what I told myself it was. I wasn’t going to miss city air. Not ever. I smiled as I watched Aunt Audrey chase after the men from the truck back into the house. It almost seemed as if they were trying to dodge her. The older of the two movers especially. He looked as if he had been grinding his teeth, then again it looked as though he had been grinding his teeth long before he met Aunt Audrey. The funny thing was that if they broke anything it would probably be because she was chasing them down shouting her orders at them.
The sold sign on my front lawn looked strange. It was weird to think I was giving up this house. Sure it was small, and nothing special, but I had lived there alone for the last three years. There had been some very special memories created there. Like the time I insisted on hosting Thanksgiving dinner and ended up burning pretty much everything. My mom and dad sat there repeatedly complimenting on how wonderful the cranberry sauce was, which I had poured out of a can. I smiled at the memory. Damn I missed them.
When I felt that jerk in my chest, the one that warned me if I thought about them much longer I’d break down and cry my eyes out. And then that would lead to me thinking about the incident that took their lives and get angry. So like I always had to, I forced myself to stop thinking about them. And that was why selling the house and moving far away was the right thing to do. The memories were in my head, not in the house. The house was just a house.
Aunt Audrey started walking towards me, and the moving men seemed to scatter away like cockroaches. They were trying to make themselves invisible so she wouldn’t see them and give them new orders. I looked in the window of the passenger side to make sure I had my purse inside. My hand dove into my pocket to check for my keys. Those were the only two things I needed, absolutely needed, to leave this place behind. Anything else was replaceable.
“Well, I guess I’m going to get going,” I said squinting up at the blue sky. I wanted to be on the road before it got too late. I didn’t want to arrive at my new cabin at night. I wanted to be able to find it easily and not have to peer through the darkness. I had seen it already but Uncle Matt and Aunt Audrey had driven me up, and truthfully I hadn’t paid much attention.
“When will I see you again?” she said looking as though she was holding back her sadness. Or concern. Probably, knowing her, both.
I was moving away. Far away, but it wasn’t like I couldn’t drive back. It wasn’t like I had even see her all that often the way it was even though we lived in the same city. She was pretty much the only real family I had left.
“You can visit me whenever you want and I’ll come back too. It’s only like a six-hour drive. It’s not like I’m going to Siberia,” I said giving her a quick hug.
She sniffed and walked with me to the driver’s side door. I opened it and glanced at her quickly before I sank down into my seat. It wasn’t that I was worried about her, Aunt Audrey was a very strong woman, but I didn’t like seeing her this way. Mostly because it was because of me. I was the one leaving and changing things.
“I wish you had a better car,” she said giving the car a dirty look. It was as if she was trying to make the car feel bad for not being all shiny and new.
“This car is reliable. I b
rought it in for a tune-up last week. Besides, I hope that I won’t even need to use it that often.” My little car wasn’t even that old, but it did feel special to me. My dad had helped me pick it out, test drive it and even though it was embarrassing to admit, help pay for it.
“That makes me even more nervous. Cars need to be used or they die,” she said almost sneering at my car. “You have the money now honey, buy something nicer. Newer.”
“I’ll think about it,” I said hoping that would be enough to satisfy her for now. Surely every time we’d speak on the phone she’d mention it. That’s just how she was. I gave her a little wave with my hand that was holding the car keys. They jingled as my fingers wiggled. I closed the door and started the car.
As I drove away from my nervous looking Aunt I couldn’t help but smile. With each house I past I felt a weight being lifted off my entire body. I got lighter and lighter and lighter. Stress was leaving my body and it felt amazing.
I had no idea what I’d do in the country all alone but it didn’t matter. Maybe I’d take up fishing. Or writing poetry. I’d be free to do whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted. I needed this so badly it hurt. A tear leaked out of the corner of my eye but it wasn’t from sadness. It was because I could feel myself leaving behind the dark shadows that had been haunting me for the last year plus. And I wasn’t going to miss them one bit.
2
The six-hour drive went smoothly, up until I got to the narrow road that would take me to my new cabin nestled deep in the woods. I should have been paying better attention when I came up with Uncle Matt and Aunt Audrey but I had been too busy watching the beautiful scenery. But now on my own, it was proving to be a little difficult to both read my directions and follow the map I had printed out.
I tried to turn my phones GPS on but I kept losing my signal every so often. It helped for maybe a mile before it shut off and left me on my own to figure it out. I pulled my car over, parked in the grass and flicked my hazards on while I tried to figure out my route. Why I had even bothered to put my hazards on was beyond me. I hadn’t seen another car in at least an hour. Always better safe than sorry I suppose.
Somewhere in the not too far away distance, I heard some kind of engine noise filling the air. It noisy and choppy, almost sounded like a helicopter. I knew other people lived out here, but each house was pretty far away from the next. I probably just happened to be close to someone’s house and they were using some kind of tool or driving some kind of motorized vehicle. Whatever it was slowed and I was able to focus on my map again. I wanted to keep moving before it got too dark and I’d be stranded out here with no idea where to go. It wouldn’t be too hard getting lost out here surrounded by darkness, even with a map. There were no sign posts or landmarks. I tried not to think about all the things that could go wrong and focus on what I needed to do.
There was a small knock on my window. I jumped and clapped my hand over my mouth which barely muffled my scream. Outside my window was a man waving his hands and stepping away from the car. I could hear him through the window saying over and over again that he was sorry.
I put my head down and tried to calm my breathing. My hand on my chest was rising and falling so fast it looked like I was patting myself. I took a deep breath and rolled down my window a crack without really looking at him.
A little cough escaped and then I cleared my throat, “Do you know this area well?”
“Pretty well,” he said his voice was a little rough yet it had a hint of sweetness to it.
“I’m looking for a cabin,” I said nervous about giving this stranger, scratch that, any stranger, too many details. Especially when it included where I was going to be.
“Oh! You must be my new neighbor,” he said leaning down slightly so he could attempt eye contact through the window.
I glanced at him quickly. There was something about his eyes that grabbed me. I looked back at him. He was rugged and gorgeous and not at all what I expected to see out here. He had the most beautiful, rich chocolatey brown eyes I had ever seen. When he smiled at me I could feel my heart pounding against my chest. His dark hair was wavy and messy it was almost as if he hadn’t bothered to even comb it when he woke up this morning, but it looked perfect. He was definitely something I wouldn’t mind waking up next to in the morning.
I shook my head attempting to shake away my straying random thoughts. He was just so gorgeous he could have been a model or an actor. I collected myself and got my thoughts back on track.
“Umm… I guess I am. Unless a lot people move up here,” I said trying not to get lost in his eyes.
“Can I see?” he said pointing at my printed maps and directions. I rolled my window down further and slipped the paper to him. Even though he was like one of the most handsome men I had ever seen, it still wouldn’t be a good idea to give him too many details about myself. Looks could be deceiving. He was a stranger. I didn’t know anything about him except for the fact that he was amazingly hot.
I watched his eyes scan the paper before he passed it back to me through the window. I took them back and placed them back on the passenger seat, forcing myself to turn back to him. Maintaining eye contact was difficult because I felt he could tell what I was thinking. It was distracting to sit here thinking about how gorgeous he was while he was trying to talk to me like a normal person. If I was too friendly he’d start inviting me over for tea and I had come out to the wilderness to get away from people not bring new ones into my life. No matter how hot they were.
“Good news,” he said with a grin that made me want to sigh, “you’re going the right way.”
“What’s the bad news?”
“It’s a solid ten minutes away,” he said leaning slightly into my car window. I could smell him. He smelled like leather, the outdoors and deodorant. “Just stay on this road,” he said as he pointed forward, “there will be a little marker at your driveway.” He tapped the roof a couple times and took a step backwards away from my car.
“Thanks,” I said as I started to roll up my window.
“Nice to meet you,” he said with a small wave as he turned to walk away. I forced my eyes back on the road in front of me and away from him. Although, I wanted to watch him walk away. Perhaps it was good to meet at least one neighbor out here. You never know when you might need something, like a cup of sugar. Not that I was going to be out here doing any baking, although maybe I should. I was going to need hobbies. Baking would be a good one except there would be no one to eat my, let’s call them, experiments.
I drove down the road looking for my driveway marker. I probably started watching the side of the road two minutes after driving away from Mr. Hottie which ended up making it feel like far more than ten minutes had passed. But I felt a sense of relief when I saw the little green marker at the end of my driveway, and I had found it before nightfall. I turned in and parked my car at the back of my cabin.
Just how quiet it was out in the wilderness compared to the city was amazing. No horns honking. No hum of car engines. No people screaming. Only silence, well except for random gentle animal noises. Birds tweeting. Crickets chirping. A wolf howling. A wolf? I guess it was a good thing I had gotten myself that hunting rifle and the training that went along with it.
I breathed in the beautiful clean air as I made my way to my cabin. It wasn’t anything special. I could have splurged on something a little bigger, or one with a swimming pool and hot tub, but I didn’t need anything like that. This one was perfect for me. The perfect size for one single person.
The wood steps creaked under my feet as I walked up to unlock my front door. I’d get my moving boxes from my trunk after I checked the house. The movers wouldn’t be bringing anything here. They’d be thrilled when the found out the delivery address was Aunt Audrey’s. I wanted to make sure that everything that was supposed to be in the house was there. I had ordered some new furniture awhile back and hadn’t gotten a chance to see it. They had called to confirm but I hoped they hadn’t just l
eft it pushed up against a wall.
I stepped inside and gasped. It was even more beautiful than I had imagined. I instantly felt the warm and cozy feeling I had hoped for when I had worked with the decorator. I closed the door and examined it. It had all the locks I had asked for but I still wondered about a security system. Everything was so perfect I knew I wouldn’t miss any of my old stuff.
I didn’t bother locking the front door as I went back out to the car to unload the boxes, although I did consider it. I figured it would be too hard to juggle the boxes and the keys. It only took me four trips and then I closed the door behind me, and flipped, turned and clicked all the locks into place. After I was locked inside I decided to check the small closet by the door to make sure my shotgun was still tucked safely inside. But at the same time I hoped I’d never actually have to use it. Even with the training I had, I never wanted to be put into a situation like that. Then again, who did?
The gun wasn’t something I was happy about. In fact, I never was a fan of them, but after what had happened to my parents I insisted I had one for my protection. There could be bears or mountain lions up here too. I had taken several gun safety courses and practiced at the shooting range. I felt comfortable with my skill level, but that didn’t mean I liked the idea of having one in my home. But it did ease my mind having it tucked away.
My new sofa was calling my name so I left the boxes unpacked and flopped down letting myself melt into the soft marshmallowy cushions. Everything was perfect. It felt right. I felt more calm and relaxed than I had in a long time. I knew this is where I belonged.
I was home.
3
The next day I was completely unpacked and settled in before noon. But it was easy since I hadn’t taken much with me. It was strange not to hear the traffic zooming by outside. The buzz of the world didn’t exist out here. The only thing I heard outside the windows was the birds singing and the leaves of the trees rustling in the breeze. It was pure heaven.