Never Let Go (Haven, Montana Book 2)

by Jill Sanders

  Now that he knew he was sticking around Haven, he figured it was time to find somewhere more permanent to sleep than in his childhood bedroom.

  Tyler was currently clearing his plot of land adjacent to the family acreage with high hopes of starting construction on his home this summer. Trent had been thinking about following his brother’s lead since all three of them had been given an equal share of the land in their father’s will.

  Having Kristen’s mother there was giving him the nudge he needed to get moving on doing something of his own. For the past few days, he’d been house-plan hunting. But instead of building his own place, he was looking at hiring a crew to put together one of those log home kits.

  So he’d driven into Helena the other day and had walked through a couple of model homes. He was leaning toward the three-thousand-square-foot place. It had massive log beams crossing the lofty ceilings, a two-story stone fireplace, hardwood floors throughout, large glass windows, and a full wraparound porch.

  Not to mention the five bedrooms, three and a half bathrooms, and an impressively sized kitchen.

  Plus it could be set up and delivered within five to eight months. Assuming he could get his land and a driveway cleared. Which meant more backbreaking work.

  Trent had been helping Tyler clear his land for the past few weeks. They’d made huge progress and he really enjoyed driving the backhoe. The wood chopping he could live without.

  Now, however, his brother’s work on his place had stopped so that Tyler could spend all his time with Kristen. They were about to embark on moving her and her mother’s belongings out from New York.

  “How’s she doing?” Trent asked.

  “She says she’s fine.” Trent could see the worry in Tyler’s eyes. “But she still wakes up screaming every night.”

  “It’ll take time.” He leaned against the truck next to his brother. “Not that I would know what it was like to be kidnapped.”

  It still got to him.

  “I wish I could have been the one to . . .” His brother’s statement dropped off. Trent watched him sigh and roll his shoulders.

  He figured a change of subject was in order. “How’s the investigation into the accident going? Heard anything new yet?”

  Tyler sighed again and shook his head. “No, other than it was sabotage, nothing more. Our new security cameras seem to have scared off whoever was messing with us. At least nothing else has happened since. I’m starting to lean toward the possibility that it was someone who tagged along with the protesters. A lot of them have come and gone lately. Maybe whoever did the damage has already moved on.”

  “Yeah,” Trent said after a moment. “Or maybe they’re just lying low? I kind of wish something else would happen. You know, so we can catch whoever was screwing with us in the act.”

  “When they destroyed my office,” Tyler said, “I had a feeling it was Brian Laster. It just seemed personal.”

  “Ditto,” Trent said, thinking of all the times Brian had been a burden in his life, starting in grade school. The man had returned to town a few weeks ago with the protesters. “Part of me thinks it’s him or Darla.” Darla was sex in heels and rotten to the core. She worked at the local strip club and seemed to have her claws in a lot of men in town.

  “She was acting up there for a while when you and Kristen started . . . you know.”

  Tyler chuckled. “Seeing one another?”

  Trent glanced down the road that Addy’s white Jeep had taken.

  “It’s still hard to take it all in at once,” Tyler continued. “First, Dad dies, then when things start going well, Kristen comes in, then all the funny stuff starts, like the destruction of my office and our equipment, and then, to top it off, there was all she was forced to go through.”

  “Yeah,” Trent agreed.

  “Well, I guess I’d better go on my damn walk.” Tyler nodded to the trail. “Clears the mind.”

  “And gets some of that pent-up anger out as well.” Trent nodded. “Why do you think I’m here?”

  Tyler smiled. “Well, I thought you were chasing tail.” He nodded in the direction Addy had driven.

  “Take your damn walk.” Trent moved to his truck as his brother laughed.

  “Maybe you need another hike . . . you know, to release some of the pent-up sexual frustration.”

  Trent turned like he was going to go back and kick his brother’s ass, but Tyler jogged up the head of the trail, laughing the entire time.

  “Ass,” he called after him.

  “Love you too,” Tyler called back.

  CHAPTER TWO

  The drive from Haven to North Dakota was one that Addy had taken several times now. Trent had been correct; there wasn’t really a reason for her to go again so soon. Other than her desire to get out of town.

  In the past two years, she’d gotten used to traveling. She actually enjoyed it. She had her small travel trailer hooked up to the back of her Jeep and that was all she needed.

  Since returning to Haven, she’d only seen her parents for half an hour, twenty-nine minutes of which she’d spent listening to her mother explain how many different ways Addy was ruining her parents’ lives and her own. She’d quickly excused herself and hadn’t returned to their massive house along the river since.

  Addy was truly on her own. What her mother thought of her didn’t matter, nor did the disappointed look in her father’s blue eyes. One of the only physical traits she’d inherited from him.

  Yet her parents were only part of why Haven was now in her rearview mirror.

  It took almost eight hours, but she finally pulled into the massive parking area where small groups of people milled around. She knew there were well over a thousand people gathered there, but on a night like this, most were tucked inside their tents trying to stay warm. Snow had started to fall, which had made the last hour of the drive seem to go slower than the first seven.

  It had taken her a while to get used to the kinds of people she usually saw when arriving at a location. This time, since it was still snowing, most were layered with thick, heavy jackets, hats, and blankets.

  Two summers ago, she’d gone to a location to protest the sale of a lot of land by the beach in California. The buyer was a large company known for getting around laws prohibiting toxic dumping. They’d snatched up land directly next to a huge plot dedicated to California condor mating. Most of those protesters had been half-clothed or only covered in fake feathers.

  The rest ran the spectrum—from shady characters to your average family person. Still, she’d learned not to let her guard down while on location. She’d heard a few protest horror stories about rapes, stabbings, theft, and even once, back in the eighties, a murder.

  As Addy parked, a short, very thin, redheaded woman waved and started making her way toward her Jeep.

  “What are you doing here? I thought Beau had you tied to Montana for the next few weeks,” Joy Garrett said as Addy opened the Jeep door.

  “No, he told me I could come here,” she said, not looking at Joy directly in the eyes. She hated stretching the truth, but she didn’t feel like explaining that she had needed to get out of Haven. If for no other reason to prove to herself that she could.

  “Addy, Beau isn’t going to be happy. He was going to call you later tonight.”

  “About?” Addy climbed out of her Jeep.

  When she’d first met Joy, who was a few years older than she was, Addy had assumed that she and Beau were an item, since Joy waited on the director of Friends Respecting Everything Environmental, FREE for short, hand and foot.

  Addy had been hired on as program organizer almost two years ago, shortly after, completely against her parents’ wishes, dropping out of college. She’d tried school for a couple of years before finally walking away from her parents’ control.

  To date, it had been the best decision she’d ever made.

  “What’s up?” she finally said when Joy bit her bottom lip and remained silent.

  “He’s g
otten wind that there is a large land purchase in the works.”

  “From?” Addy took a deep breath and tried not to get frustrated as Joy took her time relaying the news. She’d learned early on that she had to handle Joy with a delicate touch.

  “Well, he’s heard that McGowan Enterprises, that company we went up to Montana in the first place for . . .” She paused and took a few breaths as she glanced around. Probably keeping an eye out for Beau. “They are purchasing over a hundred acres.”

  “What?” Addy’s voice rose. “What for?”

  “Well, we’ve heard that they’re going to start fracking for oil.”

  “Where?”

  “Just outside of Haven.”

  Addy didn’t think the McGowan brothers could afford that much land. Sure, she knew that things had been going well for them since they had taken over the family business after their father’s death, but she didn’t know how well.

  “Where did he hear this?” she asked, now gazing around for Beau herself. Perhaps she could corner him and get the information from the man directly.

  “Well,” Joy sighed. “I’m not a hundred percent sure, but last week when we were there he talked to a man who’d told him about the purchase.”

  Seeing the back of Beau’s dark, curly head down by the frozen water, Addy decided to forgo the rest of the slow conversation with Joy.

  “I’m sorry, Joy, I have to . . .” She trailed off when Joy nodded in agreement.

  “It’s good to see you again,” Joy called out as Addy made her way through the snow.

  Beau was the skinniest, tallest, and hairiest man she’d ever met. The fact that he’d walked around all summer in California without a shirt and sun rays still never made it down to his pale skin said everything. Still, he had a heart of gold and really, truly cared about people and the earth.

  Which, in her book, bumped him up several notches.

  “Hey,” she said, a little breathless when she finally reached him.

  “Addy?” He frowned over at her. “What are you doing here? I thought I . . .”

  “Joy told me that you heard the McGowans are buying some land.”

  He fell silent for a while, scanning the crowd before turning back to her. “Yeah.” He took her arm gently and drew her a few steps away from the nearest clump of people. “Not just any land, the land directly east of the Flathead Reservation.”

  Addy sighed and tried to brace herself for what she knew was coming.

  “We’ll need you back there as soon as possible. We’ve got our hands full with everything here.” He looked around the campsite, temporary home to the thousands of protesters braving the snow to fight against the pipeline. “I’m really hoping you’ll take the lead on this since you know the place and the people involved there. Kind of like an insider . . .” He shoved his hands in his pockets as Joy walked over to them.

  “Did you tell her?” Joy asked.

  “Not yet.” Beau’s eyes dropped from Addy’s.

  “What?” Addy steadied for another blow, but then Joy smiled.

  “We’re getting married.” Joy held out her small hand, and Addy noticed the freshly inked tattoo. Green vines wrapped around her ring finger, and Addy could see an outline of a large flower near the top knuckle. “We’ll get it finished on our honeymoon.” Joy smiled.

  “Wow!” Addy couldn’t think of anything more to say. She knew they were both against mining, so it made sense that tattoos were their preferred way to show their dedication to one another.

  She watched Beau wrap his arms around Joy, who was almost half his size but fit perfectly next to him.

  “Congratulations,” Addy said, almost stammering it out.

  Personality wise, they were a perfect match. Joy was soft-spoken, sweet, and extremely smart. Beau was everything any normal woman would dream of. Yet . . .

  Addy wasn’t a shallow person. Really, she wasn’t. She’d spent most of her childhood being made fun of since she’d been skinny and taller than most girls and hadn’t grown boobs until . . . she stopped herself from looking down at her barely B cups. All that, plus the ugly glasses and the haircut Trent had ever-so-thoughtfully brought up. She’d been teased so many times she’d lost count.

  But just looking between Joy and Beau, no matter how antimaterialistic you were, you couldn’t miss their size differences. He was six seven, rail thin. She was five one and very petite. She knew that others in camp talked about the pair behind their back. She also knew that neither of them cared what others thought. Something Addy still struggled with personally.

  Addy wondered how it would work physically between them. Then she realized she was thinking about their sex life in front of them and her face heated. She had to turn away before they noticed her pink cheeks.

  “We’re hoping to get married this fall.” Joy gleamed at Beau.

  Addy could see the love in their eyes, and she knew that any physical differences between them fell away once they looked at each other.

  “I’m so happy for you both,” she said with heartfelt honesty.

  Then Beau turned back to her. “I’m sorry that you just got here, but I really do need you back in Montana.”

  Addy sighed heavily. “I’ll get a few hours of sleep and head back.” She turned and started walking toward her Jeep and trailer.

  “Hey, Adrianna.” The use of her full name made her jaw tense—and the fact that she knew who had said it doubled the force of her clenching.

  “Hi, Brian. I thought you were still in Montana.” She’d been avoiding him there recently.

  “Nope, came down here a few days ago after those McGowans almost killed me.”

  “They didn’t lay a finger on you,” she started to say, only to have him interrupt her.

  “I’m thinking of hiring a lawyer and suing their asses. Breaking and entering. They tore up my stuff, not to mention had me arrested . . . twice.” His blue eyes narrowed. “We have to protect our own.” It was a statement he used all the time. She doubted he even knew what it meant.

  “What do you want, Brian? I need a few hours of sleep. I’ve been on the road—”

  Once again he interrupted her.

  “Oh, man. You just got in? Yeah, sorry, I won’t keep you long. I was just wondering if I could catch a ride with you back to Haven when you go? I caught a ride with Reed out here since my car had been acting up.”

  “I don’t know, Brian. I’ll probably need—”

  “It’s just a ride.” His tone instantly turned and she knew it would get even worse if she didn’t just agree. The man constantly interrupted her. It was one of his patterns. One that always had her on edge whenever she was around him.

  “Sure,” she sighed. Visions of a nice, quiet, peaceful drive back to Montana fled her mind. “I’ll probably get a few hours of sleep, then head back first thing in the morning.” She started walking again toward her trailer.

  “That’s cool. So I was talking with Ricky, anyway, um, he’s hooking up with Kitty tonight and . . . I’m kind of out of a place to . . .”

  “No,” she said, continuing to walk. “We’ve been over this.” She sighed again when he fell into step next to her.

  He reached out and grabbed her arm, stopping her. She glanced down at his hand. “Listen, I don’t mind giving you a ride, but I don’t let anyone stay with me. Is that clear?” She tried to jerk her arm free, but his fingers tightened.

  “I’m not asking to fuck you, just to bunk with you. You’ve got that big trailer all to yourself.”

  Addy glared at him. “If you don’t let go of my arm, I’m going to have to report you.” Before she could get her phone out, his hand had dropped. “Now as I’ve stated on many occasions, I don’t bunk up. Go ask Beau, he’ll arrange for you to bunk with another man for the night.”

  Without giving him a chance to respond, she turned on her heel and headed back to her trailer.

  Home sweet home, she thought as she climbed in and locked the door behind her. A massive king-size b
ed occupied the entire back of the trailer. Bookshelves lined both sides of the cozy nook, filled with books of all shapes and sizes. Most of which she’d read at least three times.

  The bathroom and kitchen were near the front. A small, one-person dining area connected the kitchen and the bed area.

  Pulling off her boots, she set them on the drying rack she had built herself. Hanging her coat on one hook, she pulled off her hat and hung it on another. There was a place for everything she had, and she was meticulous about keeping her space, no matter how tiny, tidy.

  Being organized was something she had found out she loved early on in life. It had nothing to do with her mother or the drive the woman had to run Addy’s life. Instead, she found great pleasure in knowing exactly where everything was.

  When she climbed into the overly soft, expensive mattress she’d splurged on, she sighed and closed her eyes. Instantly Trent’s brown eyes came to mind.

  Turning over, she tried once more to fall asleep. This time, she heard his chuckle, which jolted her body to full sexual alert. Damn that man for consuming her thoughts. Then she heard the soft chuckle again.

  Her eyes opened and she frowned. Turning once more, she punched her pillow and closed her eyes. Only now she heard what she could have sworn was Trent’s low voice.

  This time, she sat up and glared at her front door. There was no way she was really hearing him outside her trailer.

  She sat still for almost a complete minute and, when everything was silent outside, decided she needed more sleep than she’d thought. However, the second she closed her eyes, that voice returned.

  She jumped from her bed and swung her door open, almost knocking Trent over as he reached up to knock. His smile bloomed.

  “There you are. I was just—”

  “What in the hell are you doing here?” she said through gritted teeth. The fact that her knees went weak at the sight of him standing in the parking lot, fresh snow dusting his eyelashes and the long, curly hair that peeked out from under his hat, didn’t matter. She tried to ignore what the man’s presence was doing to her body as she glared down at him.