Chapter 24
twenty-four
Cole
“You need a storage shed,” I grunt as I heft what feels like the thousandth box of click flooring onto my shoulder.
Charlie and I have been at it for well over an hour as she’s giving one of the two four-bedroom cabins a long overdue deep-clean, while I’m left moving a plethora of materials from one building to the next.
Charlie’s website and social media overhaul seem to have had their desired effect, for a steady stream of bookings has trickled in over the past week or so.
A large group is set to arrive for a family reunion in the morning, and Charlie is over the moon about the fact that every last one of the newly renovated cabins has been rented out for the first time since the resort changed hands.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy for her. I really am, but unfortunately for me, I’m the one who has to bear the brunt of her last-minute freak-out.
“I have a storage shed, but whoever stuck it out there clearly wasn’t thinking straight. It’s miles from everything. I’m guessing they had some kind of monster truck to haul stuff around, because we both know Berta Rose would fall apart if I even thought about taking her off-road.”
“Who?” I ask, dropping another box into the wheelbarrow I’ve been pushing back and forth too many times to count. Charlie hits me with a look of displeasure.
“Berta Rose. My Mini Cooper. We’ve talked about this.
You know, for someone who works for the FBI, you should really be better at retaining information.
” My lips twitch at her sass, and I take a moment to wipe the sweat off my forehead while I listen to her babble.
“Anyway, I’ve only been in the building once, back when the realtor showed me around the property, and it gave me a serious case of the creeps.
Looked like something straight from the set of a horror movie.
An abandoned shed in the woods. Are you kidding me?
The place practically screams serial killer vibes.
Nope. Not happening. I’ll just keep shuffling stuff around, thanks. ”
“That’s because you’re not moving it. I am. And where exactly is this shed you speak of? I’ve swept the property several times, and regularly switch up my jogging route to keep things interesting, and I’ve never seen it.”
Charlie’s in the process of cracking all the windows open to air out the stuffy interior, having just dusted the place from top to bottom. I can see the particles dance in the afternoon sun and wonder how long it's been since this place was last occupied.
“It’s about a mile to the west, on the opposite side of the beach.
I’m telling you it’s in a weird spot, because there’s absolutely nothing else back there, and it’s not close to any of the paths that connect the rest of the buildings.
Makes no sense to me. Honestly, I should just tear it down and use the scraps to build something closer to the office.
I’ll never get any use out of it otherwise. ”
“Maybe whoever chose the location had plans to extend the resort that way. Who knows why people do the shit they do. Maddox always says ‘Stop trying to figure people out. That’s one battle you’ll never win.’”
“Very wise. How is Maddox, by the way?” she asks while she carries her bucket of soapy water over to the kitchen.
Maddox left bright and early the morning after our night out, and the sight of Dee standing in the parking lot looking forlorn and sad as she watched his vehicle until it disappeared from view made my jaded heart ache for her.
We haven’t seen hide nor hair of Razor or Charlie’s ex since, and I’m not sure how to feel about it.
The unexpected visit has caused me to move back into Charlie’s apartment, however, and we’ve been fucking like rabbits every night since.
I’m actually surprised my dick is still working, considering the sheer amount of friction he’s been subjected to.
But no matter how hard I try to give the poor sap a break, one heated look from my little siren and he perks right back up.
Dude is determined to make up for the substantial dry-spell I’ve forced him to endure and damn the consequences.
“No idea. Haven’t heard from him, and I likely won’t until he’s back on US soil.”
“Don’t you worry when he’s doing whatever he does?”
I shrug. “No point in worrying. He’s well-trained and knows how to look after himself. I trust he won’t take unnecessary risks, but I’m aware there’s a possibility he won’t return every time his team sets out on a mission. It’s part of the job, and it’s not all that different from my own.”
“I don’t know how anyone is just fine with the idea of dying. The mere thought terrifies me.”
“I hate to be the bearer of bad news,” I say while I stack another box onto my growing pile. “But we’ll all end up six feet under eventually.”
Charlie rolls her eyes at my generic answer, making me want to go over there and fuck the attitude right out of her, but I know she’s stressed about wanting the place to look presentable, so I’ll keep my hands to myself, for now.
“You know what I mean. I hope I’ll be ready when I’m old and too frail to do much of anything. But the idea of going before my time, when I still have so much I want to experience? I won’t lie, it freaks me out.”
“Like what?”
“I don’t know,” she shrugs, scrubbing at a particularly stubborn spot on the worn linoleum counter. The way her large breasts sway with the vigorous movement has my cock swelling behind my jeans. Down boy. You’ll get yours soon enough, you greedy fuck.
“Travel and see the world. I’ve never been out of the country. I don’t even own a passport!”
That has me doing a double-take.
“How is that even possible in this day and age?” I ask while I unscrew the cap of my water bottle and gulp down about half.
“Never had a reason to. Jason didn’t want me traveling without him, and he could never pry himself away from his club long enough to take me anywhere.
Of course, he himself took trips south of the border all the time.
But he never wanted me to tag along. Most likely because he didn’t want me cramping his style while he gave the club whores of the visiting chapters a good dicking. Either way, it just never happened.”
“Well, we’ll have to change that. Maybe I’ll take you along on my next trip.”
It’s the first time I’ve voiced the possibility of this going past our time here, and Charlie halts her scrubbing long enough to gift me with the sort of smile that chips away at the layers of ice surrounding my heart.
“What else?” I grit out, swallowing down the emotion clogging my throat.
Dunking her sponge into the water, she takes her time wringing it out before she speaks again. “Not sure. Become a mom. Have a kid or two. Fall in love?”
“In that order?” I ask, humor lacing my tone, and her eyes flash with amusement. If I was asked even a couple of months ago if I’d ever want another child, I’d have said, not a chance in hell.
The mere thought of bringing someone else into the world who’d make me fall in love so completely, just to run the risk of having that someone taken away from me again, would’ve been too much to consider.
Truthfully, I simply couldn’t picture being with someone in a serious way after losing Elena.
But looking at the courageous woman standing across from me now, the one who looks like she belongs in the moors of the Scottish Highlands, and imagining her belly swollen with my child, somehow doesn’t seem all that absurd.
Whoa, time to pump the brakes there, champ.
You barely even know the girl. Besides, how would that even work?
My life is in DC. She’s just starting over in the Pacific Northwest. Our lives don’t mix.
We’re too different. And yet, I can’t deny that she makes me feel things I thought I’d never feel again.
I like the person I am around her, and I’m slowly but surely starting to live again.
Would it really be so far-fetched to entertain the idea of a future together?
Would she even want me to be a part of hers?
Maybe I’m getting way ahead of myself. Maybe I’m nothing but a rebound to her.
A convenient fling she can cast aside when the time comes.
Blowing out a frustrated breath, I shove my fingers back into my work gloves. “I’m sure you’ll end up living a full, long, and happy life, and whoever it is you’ll eventually fall for is one lucky son of a bitch.”
Charlie stares me down for several silent moments before she gives me a single nod and gets back to work herself.
And like the coward I swore I’d never be, I take the opportunity to roll my wheelbarrow out of the cabin that suddenly has an almost claustrophobic feel to it and walk away from the temptation within.