Chapter Six
A week later, on a Saturday morning, Faith sat on the back porch enjoying the quiet.
It was early, barely past six a.m., and mist hung over the edge of the yard where the daylilies and aster kept guard.
Honeysuckle climbed the fence to her left, and the sweet scent teased her nose as she sipped her coffee.
For the first time in recent memory, she was relaxed.
She sighed and sat back, smiling as Taco ran after something only he could see.
The last week, she’d fallen into a routine of sorts, and she was kind of happy, she supposed.
Her family hadn’t been in the news since Michael’s hospitalization, and no one had mentioned her name.
There was always another scandal to grip the nation, and currently, the mantle had been given to a Hollywood couple making all the wrong moves.
Faith sighed. It was too beautiful this morning to think about negative stuff, and she didn’t want to waste it.
She stretched and glanced around. The backyard of this house was large, very much on scale with the actual building.
And while there were only five tenants in residence, including the owner, Candy, none of them seemed to come out here all that much.
Liam, an older gentleman, tended to the garden and lived on the main level across from Candy.
While Sage Jackson, an aspiring writer in her early thirties, had the entire third floor to herself.
A pretty woman with long black hair and big blue eyes, she was friendly but spent a lot of time at the local coffee shop or holed up in her apartment writing.
Faith stared at the half-empty cup of coffee in her hands.
Sage was more interested in Gus than she was in Faith.
Not that Faith could blame her. The man was the kind of attractive that landed starring roles in action movies.
Tall and handsome with an edge, he would be any woman’s idea of the perfect man, if she were looking.
Which she wasn’t.
She thought of another man and of a time when her world had been picture-perfect.
But Declan had proved such a disappointment.
And though she knew she was better off without him, she could still mourn a future that she’d at one time wanted.
“Nothing is as it seems,” she whispered softly, hating the wave of sadness that rolled over her.
She was about to call Taco and head inside when movement caught her eyes, and she watched in silence as Gus appeared between the stand of trees off to the right.
She knew there was a trail that led to the lake.
She guessed he’d been out running. It wasn’t hard to make that assumption.
The man was shirtless, his body coated in sweat.
There was a tattoo on his neck — she’d seen that one the first night she’d encountered him.
But this was the first time she’d seen more of him, and there was another intricate tattoo across his shoulders and down his back.
It looked like vines with images hidden in them, but she was too far away to see it properly.
There was another across his chest, but again she couldn’t see it all that well.
He stretched his arms over his head, and Faith inhaled sharply, hoping the shadows would keep her hidden.
While Gus grabbed the T-shirt he’d tucked into the back of his shorts and pulled it over his head, she eyed the door and planned to escape before he noticed her.
But then Taco ran up to him and barked excitedly, running in circles and making more noise than was appropriate on a Saturday morning.
Faith jumped to her feet and swore under her breath as she stepped off the porch and called her dog.
Taco whirled around at the sound of her voice and took off like a rocket, running across the yard in seconds until he came to a stop at her feet.
He sat and looked up at her, ears forward, tongue lolling out the side of his mouth.
She held her hand steady and felt a wave of love as Taco licked her palm.
“That dog is living life.”
She nodded and raised her head. Gus’s eyes were so dark, they appeared black, but as she studied him, the light changed, she thought she saw a hint of gold.
It was hard to tell in the early morning light.
She shouldn’t be wondering about his eyes and cleared her throat a bit, wanting to leave but also wanting to know more.
She hadn’t seen much of him since her first week, other than a few quick hellos in the hallway or catching sight of him across the patio at The Dock.
Not once had he tried to speak to her or asked how she’d been.
And though she should wonder why it mattered, Faith decided to push the envelope and start a full-on conversation even though she knew it was the last thing he wanted.
Maybe because of that.
“How far did you run?” she asked lightly.
“Around the lake.”
“The whole lake?”
He nodded.
“But that’s . . .” She frowned. “At least . . .”
“Just over twenty miles.”
“How long did that take?”
“I took it slow today.” Gus dropped his gaze, and suddenly, she became aware that she wasn’t exactly dressed for conversation with a man who was practically a stranger. “You have a thing for Hello Kitty.” It wasn’t a question. And why would it be?
Her arms crossed her chest, an automatic gesture, and she hoped her cheeks weren’t as red as they felt.
Her pajamas — an oversized T-shirt and matching shorts — were old and definitely wouldn’t set the world on fire, but still, she felt almost naked under his gaze.
When a hint of a smile touched the corner of his mouth, she lifted her chin and shrugged.
“What’s wrong with Hello Kitty?”
“Nothing. It looks good on you.”
Tongue-tied by the abrupt turn in the conversation, Faith called Taco and stepped back.
“How’s the bike working out?”
Surprised by the question, she hesitated.
Candy had let her borrow an old ten-speed from the shed, and she’d been using it to get back and forth to work — though, the first night on her way back from The Dock, the back tire had gone flat.
The next morning, she’d found it with a new oiled chain, and the tire had been fixed. She studied Gus closely.
“You fixed the tire.”
He gave a nod but said nothing. Typical from what she could tell.
“Thank you.”
Faith took another step back, and Taco ran ahead of her, happily wagging his tail at the door.
“You still liking it at The Dock?” he asked again.
“Hal and Samantha make it easy.”
“They’re good people.”
“You’re working at the Boone place, aren’t you?”
“I am.”
“I hear it’s beautiful.”
“It is the best spot on the lake.”
“I met Ford and his young son last night. They came in for dinner. He seems nice.” There’d been something about the man that had stayed with Faith.
She couldn’t quite put her finger on it, but he’d definitely made an impression.
He was handsome, very handsome, if she were being honest, but it was something else.
Maybe the way he carried himself. Maybe a kind of sadness she recognized.
“You staying a while or just passing through?” Gus asked.
“What?” Confused by the abrupt change in conversation, she picked at the edge of her nightshirt.
“Fire Lake. You sticking around?”
She didn’t like talking about herself or her plans. Or anything, actually. And that was something she had in common with Gus. Heck, she didn’t even know his last name.
“You going to answer?” he prodded.
“Are you?” she shot back, a little surprised at herself. “Staying? I know you’re not a townie.”
What was this back and forth? His eyes widened a bit, and he gave a shrug, a small smile on his face. “For now, it’s home.”
She held his gaze a heartbeat longer. “Same.” Then gave a small wave. Faith had never been good at small talk, and this man made her nervous with his questions and those eyes. “Have a good weekend.”
She pushed at the door and disappeared into the common area at the back of the house, ending their conversation in a way that wasn’t exactly rude, but it wasn’t exactly friendly either.
Faith practically ran down the hallway and up the stairs until she reached her apartment.
She’d left the door unlocked and quickly let herself inside.
Her cheeks still burned, and she slowly turned when she heard movement in the hall.
With an eye to the peephole, she turned and peered through it.
Gus was at his apartment, a cell phone in hand.
He scrolled through a few messages and swore, obviously not happy with what he’d read.
He unlocked his door, then turned his head to the side as if listening for something.
Heart pounding, she pulled back, feeling as if he could see her through the three-inch-thick oak.
Taco whined, and she jumped, giving the dog some serious side-eye before stepping away.
She felt silly and busied herself filling the dog’s food and water dishes before heading down the small hall that led to her bedroom.
She had the day off and some cash in her pocket.
Restless, she hopped in the shower and decided it was time to explore this place she’d been calling home.
An hour later she let herself out of her apartment, eyes on the door directly across from hers. Was he still inside?
Feeling more than a little foolish, she locked up and, with Taco on a leash, took the stairs and walked out into the sunshine.
It was still early, mid-morning, but already hot.
Faith pulled on a pair of dark sunglasses and headed down the tree-lined street that would eventually lead to Main and then the town square.