by Vella Munn
“What about yourself? You can reserve a snowmobile any time you want but you haven’t.”
“She’s making a good point,” Rey said. “I’m a workaholic, but you put me to shame.”
“That’s debatable. What isn’t up for debate is that I’ve been clinging to the side of a roof as long as I intend to for one day.”
Instead of heading for the ladder, Shaw looked all around. As he did, his expression became pensive. She longed to touch him to let him know she’d tapped into his emotions at least a little. A current would pulse between them, maybe take them unexpected places. No, she admitted, thinking of him solely as her boss wasn’t working. He was a man. She was a woman. It couldn’t get any more complicated than that. A whole world of emotion and feelings to explore. Physical needs.
He whistled softly, startling her. “Mother Nature is amazing,” he said. “Snow can make getting anything done a pain but seeing it like this—hard to believe how different everything will look come summer. How many more people we’ll have to share it with.”
The rented snowmobiles would soon start coming back. Once they did, the quiet would end. She wanted to bottle up these minutes, tuck them in her pocket, and take them out later.
Maybe share those quiet minutes with Shaw.
She’d tell him about how Mount Lynx had stopped intimidating her and had become a massive guardian over her world. If she wasn’t careful, she’d also let it slip that he’d taken up residence inside her mind.
“I wish I had binoculars with me,” Rey said. “Maybe I could spot the wolf.”
Echo had suggested that Haley let clients who hadn’t already heard about the predator know a wolf had recently visited the Lake Serene area. To some, her included, wolves were almost mystical beings. Just the same, at first she’d hesitated telling visitors to keep an eye out for a large grey shape because she didn’t want to alarm anyone.
She hadn’t needed to worry. More times than not people brought up the wolf before she could. The media had jumped on the story and resort staff had help spread the news. However, the wolf hadn’t been spotted since Kolina and Terron had seen it in the fall. Her guess was it had moved on.
Despite her dismissal of the predator, she understood why Rey had said what he had. How many people saw a wild wolf in their lifetime, particularly in their back yard so to speak? Maybe if she was still here come summer—
No. She wouldn’t be she reminded herself. Her job would end once the snow melted. She’d have no choice but to move on—somewhere.
Alone.
“Take a picture if you spot it,” Shaw told Rey. “Multiple pictures. Otherwise, I won’t believe you.”
Rey stepped closer to the edge. “Haley, tie the man to a snowmobile and drag him as deep into the forest as you can. Make him spend the night out there. That’s the only way he’s going to understand what a special place this is.”
Shaw snorted. “I’m aware of how special it is. And I’ll explore it once my uncle lets up.”
Why was he putting his uncle’s demands ahead of taking time for himself? He deserved it. Shaw might have said what he had to get Rey off his back but she wasn’t sure, not that it was her business.
“I’ve been wanting to do this since I got up here,” Rey announced. “Being an adult is highly overrated.”
She was still trying to figure out what he was talking about when he let his shovel slide off the roof and onto the mounded snow. Then, arms out for balance, Rey slipped-walked to the edge of the overhang. Then he jumped.
“Geronimo!”
She looked down to make sure she wasn’t close to Rey. While she’d been shoveling, she’d managed to keep her footing but now, without the shovel for a brace, she lost traction. Not fighting gravity, she spread her arms and pushed off.
“Yes!” she screamed.
One second she was falling. The next her feet hit the snow. Her legs sank into the cold, loose stuff. When Shaw’s shovel landed some ten feet away, she laughed as she hadn’t for years. She braced her elbows on the snow and tried to push free. Nothing happened.
“Look out below!” Shaw yelled.
She looked up in time so see him launch himself off the roof. His greater weight drove him deeper into the snow.
“This might not be the best idea we ever had,” Rey said from behind her. “But what a blast.”
By her reckoning, it took them nearly five minutes to pull themselves out of the snow. Once she was free of the icy quicksand, she made her way to the men who were standing where snowmobiles had packed down the snow. She appreciated that neither of them had come to her aid. A woman who could shovel snow off a roof with the best of them could get herself out of the minor mess she’d gotten herself into.
“I’ll have to remember you have a spontaneous side,” Shaw said as they dug snow out of the insides of their sleeves. “Issue a challenge and you’ll take it.”
“I could say the same about you.”
“I make a point of balancing spontaneity with caution. Otherwise, things can go sideways.”
“Not always, fortunately.”
“No, not always. Haley, we need to talk about the sled dog race.”
She didn’t want to talk about dogs or sleds or where the races would be held or anything to do with people coming here. She wasn’t sure what she wanted beyond standing closer to Shaw.
“All right,” she made herself say. “How about we use my office? We might not have much time.”
“Oh?”
“The clients. They’ll be back before long.”
“Unfortunately.”
Chapter Five
Looking back an hour later on what she’d said, Haley wondered if she’d subconsciously heard the snowmobiles returning. Rey, Shaw, and she had still been trying to divest themselves of the snow packed on them when the first machine appeared. She’d been listening to a young couple’s tale of how they’d ventured onto the lake only to lose courage and head for solid land when the second snowmobile showed up. Between reassuring the second party that there was nothing worrisome about the sound their machine was making and answering the phone several times, she was surprised Shaw hadn’t given up and taken off. They’d barely had time to speak to each other, but she’d been aware of his presence and consequently aware of every move she made. It was almost as if someone else was sharing her skin and thoughts.
Finally all of the rentals had been logged in and the machines checked out and parked inside the storage building. Feeling the impact of every shovelful, she sat on the hard metal chair behind a table that had seen better days in a space that wasn’t much larger than a closet and let the rest of the world fade away. She’d placed two folding chairs on the opposite side of her desk for visitors’ use. Shaw was sitting in one of them while studying the pegboard on the wall to her left.
Despite the amount of space he consumed, she didn’t want him to leave.
“That’s how you keep track of which machines are rented when?” he asked. He’d unzipped his jacket. Something about seeing his bare throat made this meeting feel even more personal, intimate. “Wouldn’t it be more efficient if you used a software program?”
“I’ve looked into buying one and loading it onto my laptop but—”
“Your laptop? In other words this operation”—he pointed in the direction of the snowmobiles—“depends on what you brought with you.”
“It isn’t quite that bad.”
“It isn’t good. I’m sorry. I dropped the ball on that score. My only excuse is that winter slammed before I thought it would. Hopefully I’ll be ready next year.”
“Next year? So you’re planning to still be here after the renovations are completed?”
“I believe so, but life’s unpredictable.”
“Yes, it is.”
He rubbed the back of his neck. “Back to what you have or rather don’t have to work with. What needs to change?”
No way would she blame him for the antiquated system she’d inherited. As she
saw it, a sport that could only be enjoyed for part of the year took a back seat to Shaw’s massive list of have-tos.
“Show me the software you need. I’ll get it and a laptop to run it on.” He looked around. “There has to be a way to enlarge and warm this space.”
She kept the electric baseboard heater on all the time but the lack of insulation and a single pane window meant she usually wore a coat when she was in here. She wondered if he’d spotted the blanket she put over her legs if she was going to be in here for a length of time or had any idea how trapped she sometimes felt in the small space.
“I’m sorry you had to wait for me,” she said after telling him she’d identified the software she believed would do the job. “But I can’t in good conscience put a machine away without first going over it.”
“I didn’t expect you to. You’re responsible.” He glanced out the window, not that he could see anything except night. Acknowledging his attempt reminded her of how isolated they were. There were dozens if not hundreds of visitors settling in for the evening at the resort but just the two of them here.
“So are you. Having so much on your shoulders must sometimes get to you.”
“I have my moments.”
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said what I did. You must enjoy taking a project from concept to completion or you wouldn’t be doing it.”
“Enjoy?” He shook his head. “That isn’t what brought me here.”
What, she wanted to know, had brought him here. Maybe he’d been intent on separating himself from a woman. If so, she couldn’t relate since she’d never truly given her heart to a man.
“At least you can go snowmobiling whenever you want to and not have to pay for it,” she said.
“That I can.”
His voice lacked enthusiasm. Wondering what would bring him to life as he’d been when they were on the roof briefly silenced her. Then because it looked as if he wasn’t going to say anything, she explained how she used the peg board to keep track of the snowmobiles’ ins and outs.
“Black pegs keep showing up next to machines three, eight, and nine,” he said. “Am I to assume that isn’t good?”
“Unfortunately you’re right. Those are the oldest ones. Black indicates when I repaired them. And the two striped pegs—that’s when I had to go after dead machines.”
“Dead?”
“They’d stopped running.”
“You? Alone?”
“Yes. One time the stranded driver was with a group, and they brought him back. I used the strongest machine to retrieve what he had to abandon.”
“And the other time?”
That was more complicated. Fortunately the solitary rider had been able to reach her via his cell phone. After retrieving him and refunding his rental money, she’d returned for the disabled machine. However, before she could do that, she’d had to deal with the rest of the day’s customers. As a result, she’d worked until nearly midnight.
“That’s not right. Why didn’t you let it go until the next day?”
“Because all of the machines were scheduled to go out in the morning. It turned out to be a simple tuning issue.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“You?” The longer the conversation continued, the smaller the room became. She was used to guarding her personal space but this was more than that. Shaw made her feel off-balance and alive at the same time, aware of herself as a woman. “You have more important things to concern yourself with than a single snowmobile or too much snow on a roof.”
“I don’t expect you to handle everything on your own.”
Was Shaw letting her know he didn’t believe she was equal to the job? If he did, he was wrong. She’d worked so hard and come so far from the broken teenager she’d once been. That confused girl no longer existed.
“I knew what I was getting into when I accepted the job offer.”
“You must have.” He leaned forward and planted his large hands on the table. “You know, this might be a good time for us to define our relationship. You’re right. My job description doesn’t include snow removal, but I wanted to see what you were talking about, not because I didn’t trust you to assess the situation but because I’m used to the buck stopping with me.”
“I get where you’re coming from. I’m sorry if I sounded defensive.”
“I don’t want you to feel you have to apologize. Like I said, our official relationship needs to be spelled out.”
“All right.”
He studied her. “Here’s how I try to work with the other department heads like Rey. Once they’ve proven themselves, which you’ve done, I leave them to run their operations. The only time I get involved is if it involves an expenditure or personnel.”
“Which is why you asked me about the snowmobiles.”
“Exactly. Speaking of something costing money, you need larger, more comfortable quarters. As I see it, that’s a matter of moving a wall, adding insulation, and improving the heating situation. Do you agree?”
“It would help.”
“Good answer.” He smiled. “As for personnel, you need some.”
Talking about what it took for her to be able to do her job should be easy, but even though she approved of the direction the conversation had taken, she wished it was more personal.
“Yes, I do.”
“How many?”
“I think, unless there’s an event, a single assistant will be enough. Hopefully someone who is mechanically inclined.”
“That we have. However, I’m not sure I can pull one of them off their current assignment. How do you feel about taking on someone who might not know his way around a snowmobile but is trainable?”
“I’d have to see him at work before I can say. It would help if he or she is strong enough to shovel snow.”
“Thanks for reminding me.” He frowned at the wall clock. “No wonder I’m hungry. How about we conclude this meeting? I’d ask you to join me for dinner at the restaurant but Uncle Robert has been leaving messages. I also need to answer several other calls.”
He seemed to draw out the act of getting to his feet. Maybe he was as sore as she now felt but maybe she wasn’t the only one who’d keyed into how close this space was. How intimate it felt.
“I almost forgot the most important thing,” he said. “About the sled dog races, how do you feel about having them held here?”
Instead of being less on edge now that he was getting ready to leave, she wished he’d sit back down. Wishing she was less keyed into his body, she struggled to give him the answer he deserved. As he’d pointed out, their relationship was purely professional.
“I think the best thing would be to have the event start near Noble Fir Campground,” she said. “There’s a lot of relatively open space there. The land south of Noble Fir is level for about a mile before it slopes down. As for laying out a route that meets the competitors’ needs and doesn’t call for cutting down any trees…”
“I agree. The Noble Fir area makes sense for the staging area. What if—I’ll try to break free for a while tomorrow. I’ll ask Terron to cover for you again. That way the two of us should be able to determine if our thinking has possibilities.”
“Tomorrow?” Swallowing was hard.
“The organization needs an answer as soon as possible. I wouldn’t be considering something with such short notice if I didn’t believe the event would financially benefit the resort.”
“Of course.” She tried swallowing again but the second time wasn’t any easier. “I’ll wait to hear from you.”
She could have remained behind her desk as he left the office. Certainly he didn’t expect her to wave him off. Just the same that was what her legs wanted to do. She didn’t try to dissuade them.
The flood lighting that lit up the front half of the building reinforced what she’d surmised. Not only had the storm hit, but the wind was blowing with such force that the snow was coming at them sideways. She pulled her hood over her head.
“You aren’t staying are you?” he asked with his back to the storm.
“Not long, but there are a few things I need to do before I lock up.”
“Do them tomorrow. I’m serious. The way the snow’s piling up, soon you’ll have trouble getting out of here.”
Her impulse was to tell him not to worry about her. Next to what had happened when she was fourteen, a snow packed road was nothing, but he was right. There was no point in risking getting stuck. No reason to worry him.
“Lock up,” he said loud enough to be heard above the wind. “We’ll make a run for our vehicles together.”
“You don’t have—”
“We already had one adventure. I’m game for another. How about you?”
“This isn’t the first time I’ve had to face—”
“Argue later. Close things up now.”
Knowing he was right, she returned to her office to turn off the heat and lights. After securing the several doors, not that anyone with a lick of sense would be out tonight, she placed her keys in her coat pocket and rejoined him. He stood in the glare of the light she kept on all night, his hair and shoulders buried under a growing layer of white. Much more and he’d resemble a snowman. She couldn’t help but laugh.
“What?” he asked.
“You could pass for the abominable snowman.”
“Thanks. Not.” He wiped his forehead. “Ready to attack Mother Nature?”
“We’re the ones under attack. Mother Nature is doing just fine.”
“I can’t argue that.”
He extended his hand toward her, moving slowly enough that she could have kept distance between them if she wanted, but she didn’t. They’d shared several lighthearted moments today and she wanted more. Wanted a lot of things that had nothing to do with him being her employer. His arm settled around her shoulders and he drew her to his side. Putting her arm around his waist for support made all the sense in the world as did laughing as they dug their boots into the snow and pushed forward. Because they were walking into the wind, she could barely see where she was going and concluded it wasn’t any better for him.
