Chapter 10
S adie
Still flush with excitement from the sled dog race, Sadie hurried to her hotel room to pile on even warmer clothes, along with the pair of sensible boots without high heels Jessie had loaned her.
Kreston had offered to give her a ride out to Grayling Lake, so she hurried back downstairs. When she reached the lobby, Jessie was bundled up and heading for the door with Ten Second Tess and Aloha in tow.
“The check-in desk is closed, ma’am.” Ten Second Tess pointed at a closed sign on the counter.
“Thank you, Tess!” replied Sadie without a second thought, realizing she’d fallen into the cadence of Polar Creek. It hit her like a lightning bolt: she was getting attached to these people.
No, I can’t do that! When I leave here, I won’t be coming back.
It was a cruel reality, but when this storm cleared, she’d be on the first flight out with Lucky. Or—would Kreston fly her out? No, it would have to be with Lucky. If she flew with Kreston, she might not get off his plane. She shoved the notion from her mind as she walked outside to Kreston’s pickup. The huskies poked their heads through the round holes of their dog boxes, yipping a welcome as she approached .
Lucky swung open the passenger door. “You sit up front and talk to the driver while I get some shuteye.” He winked at her like he was doing her a favor.
“Kreston, you need to carry a forklift to hoist people into this truck,” she groused, grunting to lift her foot onto the impossibly elevated floorboard. “You need an altimeter for this thing. This is like boarding a semi.”
“Semis are easier,” Lucky said dryly.
“Haven’t gotten around to ordering one.” Kreston shifted the truck into reverse as Lucky heaved himself into the back seat and pulled the door shut.
The air was thick with snow falling when they arrived at Kreston’s dog yard, though it had slowed somewhat. Sadie watched the two men work together to get the dog team situated. The way they moved between tasks and traded friendly jabs stirred something lonely inside her.
When was the last time she’d had a friendship like that? Her colleagues at work were pleasant enough, but her hectic schedule held everyone at arm’s length. She missed having someone to share the everyday pieces of her life with—both the wonderful and the mundane.
Kreston moved to her with an ice chopper and a pooper-scooper. “Ever chisel doggy droppings from frozen snow for seven huskies? It’s an amazingly satisfying experience.” He held out each tool, grinning.
She looked at the tools, then at him. “No, but I have the feeling I’m about to learn.”
Lucky called out, “There’s an orange bucket next to Denali’s doghouse. Have fun!”
Sadie stepped over to the line of doghouses and set to work chopping out doggie droppings, glad she couldn’t smell them because they were frozen rock hard. She filled the bucket half full and presented it to Kreston, along with the tools.
“I love a woman who knows how to wield an ice chopper,” he purred at her.
She laughed. “Is that how you Alaskan men size up the ladies? By how well we pick up doggie droppings?”
“You catch on quick, for a cheechako .” Kreston grinned. “Ready for some ice fishing?”
“Sure, why not?” She stamped her feet to warm her toes.
Kreston didn’t walk toward his truck. Instead, he headed to an outdoor garage and swung open the door.
“Ever ridden a snowmachine?” crowed Lucky. “Unlike those gutless lower forty-eight pieces of shi—”
“Ahem! Language, buddy.” Kreston gave Lucky his evil-eye, then handed Sadie a pair of new foam ear plugs. “Stick these in first.”
“Okay.” She worked the soft orange foam inside her ears.
Kreston lowered a familiar helmet onto her head—the same badass helmet she wore in the outhouse race. She liked the red lightning bolts. Not her usual style, but it was liberating not to have anyone judging her.
She was sick and tired of being judged in her world. Another self-revelation. She couldn’t care less how she looked at the moment. Come to think of it, she hadn’t worn makeup since she’d arrived in Polar Creek. It seemed oddly out of place, so she hadn’t bothered.
Kreston didn’t seem the type who got wrapped around the axle about looks. Her ex sure had. All he’d cared about was showing her off as his trophy, always picky about her hairstyles, make-up, and clothing choices.
I’m fed up with that, too.
Maybe it was a good thing fate had intervened with Clayton, sending her the onerous text. She wondered if he’d tried calling or texting her. Surely, he’d noticed by now, she hadn’t returned to Seattle.
Lucky swung a leg over his Arctic Cat, as did Kreston, who motioned her to sit behind him. “Hang onto my waist,” he ordered.
Even with the warm layers and thick jacket, she enjoyed reaching around his waist and hanging onto him. The back of his forest-green parka smelled good to her. A combination of dogs, winter air, and a hint of the potpourri Aloha kept in bowls around the hotel lobby. She liked it.
Kreston popped earplugs into his ears, then tugged on his helmet. He and Lucky started the engines, and they were off, speeding down the snowy road from Kreston’s place to Grayling Lake. She loved how he maneuvered his snowmachine around the curves and how the powder trailed after them. The only downside was the ride ended too soon.
Kreston slowed to ease his Arctic Cat onto the lake ice before skittering out to the ice fishing shacks in the center, where he cut the engine. “Welcome to Polar Creek’s holiday ice fishing tournament.”
“Are you sure it’s safe out here?” Sadie eyed the snow-covered ice, casting furtive glances around her. The falling snow had lessened for a spell.
“We wouldn’t be out here if it wasn’t,” Kreston assured her.
She glanced up at a sight that had her mouth agape, tugging Kreston’s sleeve. “Is that Denali Mountain through those snowflakes?”
He lowered his sunglasses and teased, “Does a salmon swim upstream?”
“All right, smarty pants.” She fumbled her phone from her pocket and powered it on to take a photo. “I can’t believe how high it is!”
“Get your fill, because it’s a rare thing when she’s out.”
Sadie held up her phone. “You referred to Denali Mountain as a female. I like that.” She gave him a demure smile.
Lucky pulled up on his snowmachine, his grin visible above his frosted red beard.
“What are you so happy about?” Kreston removed his helmet and shook his hair, like a hot guy in a shampoo commercial, causing Sadie’s breath to hitch. “You look like Tess when she discovers another bizarre way to organize soap.”
“Oh, nothing,” shrugged Lucky. “Just wondering how you two will get along in a two-person shack for hours on end.”
Kreston made a face at him. “And what makes you think it will take hours? I plan to catch the winning fish in the first hour. No, make that the first half hour!”
“You seriously have control over that?” asked Sadie, not believing a single word.
“You don’t think I’ll do it?” Kreston gave her a triple-dog-dare look. “Care to bet on it?”
Sadie wasn’t one to back down from a challenge. “I’ll do you one better. I’ll bet you I’ll be the one who catches the winning fish in the first half hour! ”
Kreston guffawed and pointed at her. “You got yourself a bet. What are you betting?”
Sadie thought for a minute. “If I catch the winning fish in the first thirty minutes, you will cook my fish for dinner tomorrow night at the Crooked Spoon and serve it to the customers. And while everyone enjoys my winning fish, you’ll serenade them with a song of my choosing, wearing my moose antler hat.”
His jaw dropped. “You can’t be serious.”
She folded her arms. “Dead. Serious. Take it or leave it.”
“You drive a hard bargain, Seattle. And if I win?”
“I do the same.”
“Agreed. With one slight change. You’ll sing ‘The Alaska Flag Song’ while waving the flag.”
“Interesting choice. But okay, agreed.” She extended her hand. “Shake on it.”
He shook it just as Tucker moseyed up with a clipboard. “As Mayor, you must sign this roster of ice-fishing teams over at my truck. It’s an official document. Don’t want to get it wet.” He blinked snowflakes from his eyelashes.
Kreston and Lucky moseyed off with Tucker, laughing and talking, with Lucky’s arm around Kreston’s shoulder. He punched Kreston’s arm and pulled away, laughing. Sadie wished she could hear what they were saying.
Jessie appeared next to her. “I put Tess and Aloha to work decorating the ice shacks.”
“They’re doing a wonderful job. It looks like a Hobbit holiday village on ice,” said Sadie, nodding.
The tiny shacks dotting the frozen lake were each decorated with haphazard strings of battery-powered twinkling lights. Sadie squinted. “Those wreaths look familiar. Are they made with red and green hotel towels?”
“I’m afraid so,” said Jessie. “Tess and Aloha’s designs.”
“There’s something I’ve been curious about. Why does Lucky seem connected to Kreston at the hip? Does Lucky work for him?”
“Kreston and Lucky worked out a barter system. It’s a common thing we do in Alaska.” Jessie pressed a cardboard cup of hot chocolate into Sadie’s hands. “Lucky helps with Kreston’s dogs, and whatever odd jobs crop up, and Kreston helps Lucky with plane mechanics. They don’t keep track, but it always seems to balance. Kind of like how you and Kreston balance each other out.” She stated it as fact, sending a shock wave through Sadie.
“How so?” she stammered.
“Honey, the man has always kept neat, organized offices at the hotel and the mayor’s office,” said Jessie. “But since you arrived? His office looks like the Grinch went to work on it.”
“Oh.” Sadie wasn’t sure what to make of it, but she understood what Jessie meant about balance.
“Opposites attract, you know. Just saying.” Jessie pointed out. “I better go see what Tess is up to. Keeping track of that girl is like trying to nail Jell-O to a glacier. See you later.” Jessie moved off, leaving Sadie to her own devices.
Sadie hadn’t considered that angle. From the moment she’d stepped off Lucky’s plane, the whole town had been trying to push her and Kreston together. She’d resisted their matchmaking attempts, brushing off their comments and hints. After all, what was the point of developing feelings for someone when she’d be leaving soon ?
And a quick fling wasn’t her style. Unlike some women she knew who could separate emotions from physical attraction, she couldn’t just shelve her feelings for casual sex.
That wasn’t how she rolled.
Kreston strode over. “Snow has let up a bit. Weather forecast says it’ll taper off tomorrow.” He let it hang there, and she let it.
I guess it’s time to leave this godforsaken place.