Charles nodded. “Yes. Have a good vacation, because when you come back, I promise, we’ll be back on track.”
Good to hear. Getting up Ethan replied, “I’ll be ready. See you next month.”
Kollette Sommers couldn’t believe it. There is no way this was the right place. Her father had told her he was taking the hotel chain in a new direction, but this was too much. How did he expect his customers who enjoyed staying in the lap of luxury to stay here?
Heck, I’m not sure how I’m going to manage.
She wasn’t one of those high maintenance women, but there were things she enjoyed when she was on vacation. Kollette had a feeling this place didn’t meet any of her requirements.
Pulling out her cell phone to call her father, she was met with the same thing she’d encountered for the last hour. No signal. How was she supposed to report her findings back to the office if she couldn’t reach anyone? Kollette tossed her phone on the passenger’s seat and leaned back, closing her eyes. This has to be a bad dream. It’s got to be.
She practically leaped out of her skin as a deep voice beside her Jeep asked, “Miss, are you going to sit in your Jeep all day or do you want to come inside and warm up?”
Kollette had been so focused on the log cabin in front of her that she hadn’t noticed anyone approaching. She rolled down her window enough to ask, “Is this the Potters place?” Deep inside hoping it wasn’t.
“Yes ma’am. I’m Roy Potter. I take it you’re looking for lodging?”
She hated admitting that she was. “I believe you have a reservation for me. Kollette Sommers.”
“If you’re asking if I have a room, the answer is yes. I don’t keep track of names,” Roy said. “Why don’t you pull your Jeep up yonder and I’ll carry in your bags.” Roy pointed to a spot near the cabin.
It was large and rustic looking, much like Roy himself. She rolled her window up and did as he asked. When she got out, a cool gust of wind whipped around her and she pulled her sweater snug. “You’re right. It is nippy here.”
“Yes ma’am. Smells like we might get some snow too,” he said as he grabbed her suitcases from the back.
Smells like snow? What the heck does that mean?
“I’m sure the weatherman will give you an update on tonight’s news,” she stated as she followed him inside.
“He wouldn’t tell me anything my old bones don’t know already,” Roy stated. “Now you tell me, you want the room on the left or the right?”
This was the oddest way to be checked in. She stood at the entry and asked, “What’s the difference?”
“Ones on the left, the other is on the right.”
Kollette turned and faced him thinking this was a joke. What was even funnier than his response was the expression on his face as though she was the odd one. Biting back her laughter she said, “The one on the right please.”
Roy walked over and opened the door placing her bags just inside. “My wife should be back soon to finish cooking. I’ll let her know we have a guest.”
“I’m sorry. Weren’t you expecting me?” she asked.
He shrugged. “We never know when folks are going to show up or not. But the door is always open and people are always welcome.”
Before Roy left she added, “Don’t you want my credit card or something?”
“For what?”
“To pay for the room,” she said.
“If you like your stay, you pay what you want. We don’t ask for money and we don’t take no credit either. Ain’t got no use for it up here.”
It kind of made sense since there didn’t seem to be any cell signal. “Oh sorry. One last thing before you go. Is there a WIFI password that I can use so I can get online?”
“Online? You mean like a computer?” Roy asked. She nodded and he said, “Nope. Ain’t got that either. No phone. No television. We have electricity because of a few solar panels, but that goes out if it snows too many days in a row.” Roy raised his nose in the air and said, “Yup. We sure are getting snow tonight. I best go get some more wood for the fire. Gonna be a cold one.”
Roy didn’t linger. He apparently wasn’t much for small talk. Hopefully his wife was. Usually she found it better to listen. It was going to be hard to get information if she had to ask all the questions. She looked around her room and saw a bed covered in what looked like a handmade patch quilt, a small nightstand and a bureau. That was all. This was worse than she’d thought. Maybe I should’ve asked for the room on the left.
Kollette picked up her cell phone and looked at it closely while walking around her room. It was no surprise of the results but she wasn’t about to give up. She was here to do a job, and no internet was definitely going to hinder her doing it properly so she decided to put her phone away. Her father had expected this to take a week or more. She felt like she could walk around the property and get enough of a feeling to do her reporting. But if she returned that quickly, it wouldn’t look like she took her assignment seriously. And that was the last thing she needed.
Kollette plopped down on the bed, which was actually very comfortable. She probably should unpack, but she was sure there’d be plenty of time for that later. Even now lying there, she was surrounded by silence. She reached in her back pocket and pulled out her cell phone and put on some music. Ah, that’s better.
She was tired from the long drive but it was the stress she put on herself which really had wiped her out. To her father, this assignment was about expanding the hotel chain. She had wanted to question him as to why. The business wasn’t hurting. If anything, they were one of the fortunate ones who many times had no vacancies. But her father didn’t seem content with that, and here she was in West Virginia, in the middle of nowhere, in the cold month of February. If he had been looking to expand where it got cold, why not someplace like Aspen? Their guests wouldn’t be so…shocked that way. Who was going to go from Miami, Hawaii or Dubai, to the woods without internet?
Of course that could all be changed. They could build a cell tower and of course better roads, because half of them were dirt roads for the last few miles. This place was high enough on the side of a mountain that if they cleared some trees, maybe there was a great view.
She snickered at how she was already devising a way to change everything about this place and she hadn’t even explored it yet. With there being nothing to do here, she wouldn’t have to worry about any distractions from doing her job either.
Kollette reached down and grabbed the corner of the quilt and pulled it up to cover her slightly. This place was far from ideal, but it didn’t have to be. For her, this assignment was about proving to everyone she hadn’t received the promotion to hotel manager due to her blood line, but on her own merit. Kollette was going to stay until she found the hidden gem in this place and devised a plan to capitalize on it.
I’m going to show them just what I’m capable of.
But first, she was going to take a nap. She was exhausted and she was sure she wouldn’t miss much by closing her eyes for an hour or two.
Her mind had been going a mile a minute, but somehow she must’ve fallen asleep, because when she opened her eyes, the room was dark. She fumbled around on the bed searching for her phone. At least she could use it to light her way. It had to be somewhere on the bed, but she couldn’t feel it anywhere. She had an idea where the door was, but not totally sure. What kind of place doesn’t have any lights? Do they want their guests to break their necks?
Even though it was a brief meeting with Roy, he didn’t seem to be mean or uncaring. Actually it was the opposite. She felt welcomed, which was more than she could say about some five star resorts she’d been to. But Roy needed to make a few changes here if he wanted this place to stay in business, never mind be successful. But how he ran his place shouldn’t be her concern. If her father decided to buy it, they’d make whatever changes were required.
Top of the list, lights!
Pulling the covers off, she heard it go crashing to the
floor. It had a screen protector so it should’ve survived just fine. Now finding in on the floor in the dark was going to be challenging.
Had there been a light on the ceiling? A lamp on the nightstand? Neither as far as she could remember. There were two options right now. One would be stay in her room till morning, or the other was to see if she could remember which direction the door was. Since it had been a long drive and she needed to use the bathroom, it really made the decision easy. Now finding a bathroom on the other hand might not be.
God, please let them have indoor plumbing, because if it’s an outhouse, I’m out of this house for good.
She’d heard stories about bugs or rodents being inside those and she wasn’t fond of either. But in desperate situations, which she hoped this wasn’t one of them, she’d do what she had to. Kollette hadn’t gotten where she was by letting anything stand in her way. No spider was about to change that.
Feeling her way from the edge of the bed, she slowly shuffled her feet across the floor, hands out in front of her, until she made contact with the wall. It was a real log cabin and the walls were rough. Gently she felt her way till she found the door. As she stepped back to open it, she tripped on her suitcases and went tumbling backwards landing on her butt with a loud thud.
“Damn it!”
Seconds later, her bedroom door flew open. The bright light from behind him casted a silhouette of him as he came in to help her up. Kollette gratefully extended her hand and he gave her a quick tug, practically yanking her off the floor. Gee Roy. You’re a lot stronger than I thought.
“Thank you Roy. I guess I forgot to move my luggage,” she said.
“You’re lucky you didn’t hit your head on that bedpost. And my name is Ethan, not Roy,” the deep voice corrected.
As her eyes adjusted to the light, she realized he definitely wasn’t Roy. This guy was not only half Roy’s age, but twice his build. He didn’t seem to fit here anymore than she did. He looked like a sexy lumberjack, but he was clean shaven, wearing sweet cologne that made her think otherwise.
“Sorry. I thought you were Roy. Are you his…son?” Roy had only mentioned a wife, which she still hadn’t met.
“No. I’m a guest here. I have the room across from yours. I take it you’re not family since you don’t know Roy and Mabel don’t have any children.”
Guest? Someone else actually wanted to stay here? And someone who looked like Ethan? Why? Maybe he was on the run from the law or here trying to fight an addiction. Or maybe his father sent him on a wild goose chase looking at this property too. Kollette always had a wild imagination. If she hadn’t followed in her father’s footsteps, she probably should’ve been a writer. Of course she didn’t have the patience to sit long hours on end typing away on a laptop. She needed to be around people. And being a hotel manager provided her that.
“I’m a…guest too. My name is Kollette.”
“Nice to meet you.”
“I guess I slept through dinner,” she said.
He nodded. “Roy and Mabel are early risers, but also in bed before nine.”
“You just got here but seem to know more about them then I do,” she stated.
Ethan replied, “It’s not my first time here. When I want to get away from it all, this is where I come.”
“Then maybe you wouldn’t mind showing me around a bit? I’ve only seen the inside of my room so far.”
“Sure. Why don’t we start with the kitchen and you can get something to eat?” he suggested.
“How about the ladies room first?”
“Sure, come with me.” She followed him through the main living area and into the kitchen. There he pointed to a door on the opposite end. “The light switch is on the right when you go inside. I don’t want to have to pick you up off the floor twice in one night,” he said with a grin.
It eased her embarrassment somewhat. But she wasn’t about to stand there a moment longer. She needed to go and peeing her pants wasn’t going to make the situation any better. She quickly made her way to the bathroom, and without a moment to spare. When she was finished, and entered the kitchen, she was met by the wonderful aroma of fresh brewed coffee.
“That smells good.”
“I know it’s late, but I can drink it any time. Did you want a cup?” he asked.
“I’d love one, thanks.”
He handed her the mug and said, “Sugar is in the mason jar on the counter and milk in the refrigerator. You won’t find any fancy creamers or anything here.”
“That’s okay. I take my coffee black.” He shot her a look as though that wasn’t what he expected. “Is there a problem with that?”
He shook his head. “Not at all. Just you look more like the…”
“Maybe you should stop while you’re ahead,” she suggested. She didn’t need him telling her she looked like someone who needed the frills. She’d heard that all her life. Even her step-brother Connor had made fun of her. Just because a woman was pretty and successful, didn’t mean she couldn’t take care of herself. If she cared, she’d set Ethan straight on that fact as well. But she wasn’t going to be here that long to need to worry what he thought.
Ethan dropped the subject and said, “Mabel had made a chicken stew. There’s plenty if you want to warm some up. If you don’t eat it today, you’ll be eating it tomorrow. They don’t let anything go to waste out here.”
The town wasn’t much more than an hour drive, but she could understand why someone wouldn’t want to do it every day.
“I don’t think I’ve had chicken stew since I was a kid,” she said as she opened up the container and looked inside. “There’s so much left. Even if I eat some tonight, I think we’re all having it again tomorrow.”
“Mabel always cooks like she’s feeding an army and usually there is only her and Roy.”
“So it’s rare that they get guests?” she asked.
“Let’s just say this is the first time I’ve come here and there are two.”
She made a mental note. People weren’t attracted to his location. Probably the lack of amenities.
“Guess this is your lucky day,” she smiled.
“Not if you were coming here to get away from it all,” he stated flatly. Pouring himself another cup of coffee he said, “You know where my room is if there is anything you can’t find on your own. Have a good night Kollette.”
“You too, Ethan. Thanks again for the quick tour. Maybe if you’re free, you can show me around the grounds too?” She was good with people, and getting them to open up and get involved. Somehow Ethan looked like he was going to be a challenge. His response confirmed it.
“It’s going to snow. There won’t be anything to see.” With that, Ethan left her alone in the kitchen.
What a waste of a drop dead gorgeous guy. There definitely was more to him than he was letting on. No one came out here for a vacation. The question was, did she really want to know why he was here? Probably not. It might bring on more problems than she was prepared to handle. It was better that Ethan was so reclusive. It also meant she had more time to concentrate on her research.
Kollette took a bite of the stew. It was amazing. Mental note. We need a chef like Mabel.
2
“Roy, are you sure you want her here? I don’t think this place was what she was expecting” Ethan said.
“You know I don’t turn anyone away. Someone needs a place to lay their head, we give them one,” Roy stated.
“I don’t think she’s in need Roy.”
Roy lit his pipe again and said, “Need is a funny thing. You can’t always see it with your eyes. Sometimes you have to feel it in your gut.”
Ethan wondered at times what exactly Roy was smoking in that pipe, because Kollette didn’t look like she needed anything or anyone. Even when he helped her off the floor, he could feel her resistance to assistance. If he’d known that Roy had someone else here, especially a woman, he would’ve gone somewhere else. Of course, Ethan didn’t know another place th
at one could just show up and stay. This wasn’t a hotel, or an inn. It was Roy and Mabel’s home.
He recalled the first time he found this place. It was by accident when he was in college that he met up with Roy. He’d been driving and a deer had bolted out of the woods and totaled his car. Roy had been driving by and offered him a lift into town but he had to make a quick stop at his home first. That’s all it took. One brief visit and he was welcomed to return. He had thought for sure Roy was going to be surprised when he showed back up a few months later, but he wasn’t. It was like Roy had been expecting him, even when Ethan hadn’t planned on going.
From the look of the Jeep parked out by the cabin, he didn’t think Kollette arrived under the same circumstances. “Did she say why she’s here?”
“Nope. Then again, I didn’t ask.”
Of course not. That was one of the things Ethan loved about being here. Roy and Mabel never asked any questions. Hell, he wasn’t even sure if they knew his last name. He knew what they’d say if he brought that up. Names ain’t important. People are. That’s not how Ethan did things. He needed to know about who he was staying under the same roof with. Granted it wasn’t his roof, but he wasn’t one who liked surprises.
If Roy wasn’t going to broach the subject, then Ethan would. Just not in earshot of Roy. “I think I’ll see if she wants to go for a horseback ride when it stops snowing if you don’t mind.”
“Then you ain’t going out today. Cause it ain’t going to stop for a while.”
“Let me guess. You’re bones are telling you that.” Roy rubbed his left knee then nodded. “Then I guess I should come up with something different for us to do,” Ethan said. It wasn’t like there were many options.
“Looks like it,” Roy stated. “Maybe you can go get some more wood while you’re thinking.”
Roy didn’t ask for money when you stayed, but he asked you pull your weight. Getting wood was nothing compared to what you received while you were there. Getting up he asked, “Want me to get you another cup of coffee before I go?”
The Billionaire's Deception (The Blank Check Series Book 5) Page 2
