A Very Grumpy Lumberjack (Wolf Valley: Grumps #13)

Chapter 1

ONE

Jem

“Congratulations!” I tell Fern as she and Jackson make their rounds at the party.

“Thanks! I can still barely believe it,” she gushes.

Jackson, her fiancé, grins down at her. I don’t say it, but I can’t believe it either. Fern went to South Carolina for a wedding and came back a week later with a boyfriend. It was only two weeks later that they announced their engagement, and now here I am at their engagement party.

I’m thrilled for Fern. She was so sad and lonely when she first moved to Wolf Valley. Her family is terrible. She told me about them, and I was there when she vented about helping them with wedding planning. I tried to talk her out of helping, but I get it. Family is family.

She flew to South Carolina for her cousin’s wedding. She was the wedding planner, and Jackson was there working security. It was a whirlwind romance, but the two of them are made for each other.

“Do you already have the wedding planned?” I ask her, sipping my champagne.

“Pretty much. We need to book a few things, and um, I was hoping you would help with my wedding dress.”

I grin. “Of course! I would be honored.”

“I have one more favor to ask.”

I take another sip of champagne. “What’s that?”

“Will you be my maid of honor?”

“What? Oh, my gosh! Of course!” I reach out, tugging her in for a hug.

She laughs. “I know that it’s short notice.”

“Nonsense! What do you need help with?”

“Well, I think we’ll have a quiet bachelorette party. Maybe a joint one?” Fern asks, looking at Jackson.

He shrugs, leaving it up to her.

“Then there’s the rehearsal dinner and the big day!”

“Okay, I can handle all of that. We can go over the details later when you don’t have other guests to see,” I tell her.

“Perfect. I’ll stop by the shop this week. Maybe we can kill two birds with one stone and do dress shopping and wedding planning at the same time.”

“I can’t wait,” I say sincerely.

“It shouldn’t take that long. The wedding is going to be casual since I’m not inviting my family, and most of Jackson’s friends are still in the service or halfway around the world.”

“When’s the big day?”

“A month,” Jackson says.

“One month?” I ask.

Fern nods, grinning at her man. “We didn’t want to wait.”

“Well, we’d better get working then! Text me later, and we can set up a time for you to come by.”

“I will. Thanks.”

She hugs me once more before they move on to their other guests. I watch them go, smiling as I see Jackson wrap a protective arm around Fern’s waist. He dotes on her, and Fern deserves that after being overlooked and neglected for most of her life.

I look around the party, taking in the familiar faces of my friends, and my stomach cramps. Every single one of them is here with their husband, fiancé, or boyfriend. It’s been like this for the last few weddings, but I could overlook it. Now it’s getting to be too much.

I can’t do it. I can’t be the only single person at yet another wedding.

I feel sick as I look around again. The party is winding down, and I decide to sneak out. I’ll go to the market and grab some ice cream, then head back to my apartment.

With my plan in place, I finish my champagne and slip outside, taking a deep breath of the cool night air.

The Wolf Valley Market is a block down, and I pick up my pace as the wind kicks up.

The cool air helps to sober me up. I didn’t drink much, but I also worked late and skipped dinner, so the few glasses of champagne hit me harder than they should have.

I shudder as I walk into the market and the warm air hits me. Goosebumps rise on my arms, and I grab a basket and beeline for the frozen aisles. I need to get my ice cream and then get home.

I think about the wedding as I head down the aisle. As the owner of a bridal boutique, I’ve always loved weddings. The romance and love, the promises of forever, the bride looking like a princess as she walks down the aisle to her doting partner. I love all of it.

But in the last few years, that’s changed. It’s fun being at a wedding, but once all your friends settle down, things aren’t the same anymore. Everyone dances with each other, and everyone is seated with their partners.

Then there’s me.

What can I do, though? I’m not skipping my friends’ weddings.

I need to find someone of my own, but that’s easier said than done. No one has ever made me feel the spark that my friends describe. I’ve never bothered with dating and all that. I was focused on my business instead. Now I’m kind of regretting that.

No, this wedding is going to be different, I decide. I’m going to have a date for this one.

I just have no idea who yet.

I turn down the ice cream aisle and smile when I see my favorite double dough flavor. I grab two pints and am about to turn for the registers when I see someone at the end of the aisle.

I don’t know what it is about the man, but he snags my attention, and I can’t look away.

He’s tall, way taller than my own 5’4”. He’s glaring at the frozen meals as if they’ve personally offended him, and I bite back a giggle.

His dark brown hair is shaggy on top and slightly wavy. Some of the strands fall over his forehead. His nose has a slight bump in it, like it’s been broken a time or two. His jawline looks like it was chiseled from marble.

He crosses his arms over his chest, and dear sweet baby Jesus, he’s ripped. The muscles in his arms and back flex, and my mouth waters at the sight.

For the first time in my life, I’m attracted to someone.

I smile as I square my shoulders and march his way.

Looks like I’ve figured out who’s going to be my date, I think with a smirk.