Chapter 3
LORI FINISHED PACKING ON FRIDAY afternoon, adding a swimsuit at the last minute. Brandy had said the cabin had a hot tub, although she didn’t plan to get into it if it became a couples thing. She grabbed three books from her to-be-read pile on her bedside table. Maybe she’d get some reading time, maybe not. But she wanted to be prepared.
She glanced about her apartment on the upper level of the shop. Had she forgotten anything? Her gaze paused on the cat bed in the corner of the bedroom. She hadn’t thrown it out even though it had been a couple of months since her cat’s death. Lori knew Silver wasn’t coming back, but just having the bed still in her room made her feel less abandoned somehow.
Lori’s phone buzzed with a text announcing that Brandy and Ian were there to pick her up. They were a beautiful couple and fun to be around. They’d gotten engaged last month, right after Everly and Austin’s wedding. Ian owned a gorgeous cabin in a secluded area just above Everly Falls, and he had turned his furniture-building hobby into a career.
Lori headed down the narrow stairs, then paused inside the shop to say goodbye to Marci. She looked up from where she was arranging a Halloween candy display. “Have so much fun! And don’t worry about a thing.”
“Thanks so much,” Lori said, flashing a smile, then headed toward the front door of the shop. She had only one duffle bag—she’d packed light with the exception of her books.
Ian climbed out of the driver’s seat as she exited the shop. The guy looked like he was ready to walk into the forest and chop more wood for his custom furniture business. His olive skin was set off by a red plaid shirt, and his light green eyes turned up at the corners as he smiled at her. “How are you, Lori?”
“Great, thanks.”
Ian opened the back door for her and then took her bag to set in the trunk of the car. Brandy rolled down her window, her pale blonde hair tugging in the breeze.
“Hey, lady, so glad you could come.”
“Me too.” Lori climbed into the back seat and relaxed against the leather upholstery. “Where is this place again?”
“Oh, it’s not far,” Brandy said. “Didn’t you open the link I sent? It’s just above Everly Falls, where all those cabins are going in.”
“Oh right.” It sounded vaguely familiar, and Lori pulled up the texting thread and began to scroll back. Now that she was in the moment and had time to focus, she’d look at the details of the cabin.
“They’ve made tons of progress already,” Ian said as they drove past the condominium construction site.
Lori looked over at the trucks and heavy-duty machinery, all working from sunup to sundown. There was a trailer parked on the lot too, and crew men all over the place. Marci had been giving her reports on the progress, although she hadn’t been paying too much attention.
“There are still protesters?” Brandy said with a laugh. “Not even my mom is that hardcore.”
“It looks more like coffee hour to me,” Lori mused. About a half a dozen people were camped out on the corner of the lot—chairs set up and coffee cups in hand. After the initial incident a few days ago, she hadn’t given the protesters much thought. She might have thought of the foreman, Malcom, a time or two. Was he a foreman? Was that what he was called? She knew little to nothing about construction job titles.
“Malcom Graves seems like a decent guy,” Ian said. “I’ve talked to him at the gym a few times. I don’t get why some people are up in arms about the project.”
Wait . . . Malcom Graves went to the town gym? Did he live in Everly Falls? Lori was curious now. Maybe not enough to question Ian further, yet how else would she find out?
“Don’t let my mom hear you say that,” Brandy said with a laugh. “I’m surprised she’s not still keeping vigil with the protestors.”
“Believe me, I’m keeping silent on the subject.” He reached for Brandy’s hand and the two interlaced their fingers.
Lori smiled to herself. She was really happy for Brandy and Ian, especially after what she had endured with her former boyfriend. Ian had appeared in Brandy’s life just when she needed him most.
Lori shook off the melancholy that threatened as she wondered what her future relationships might be like—if any. Yeah, Everly Falls was a small town, but it was certainly growing. She glanced out the back window at the construction site they’d already passed. The progress was pretty incredible. Holes had been dug, cement foundations poured, and steel beams were going up.
Maybe she should invest in a condo. The apartment above the shop was so small—and she’d thought once or twice that it might make a cool reading nook for customers. But people probably wouldn’t want to trudge up and down the stairs. So she’d been looking into the vacant space next door—it used to be an insurance office. If she bought it, she could expand her shop and have the new space as a bookshop.
But that would all be dependent on how much her parents’ house sold for and what cut they gave her. Lori had no idea of what that might actually look like.
Her thoughts returned to the present as they headed up the canyon. The drive was beautiful, with the autumn colors growing richer and richer the farther they drove. They passed the turnoff for the trail to the waterfalls and continued up the windy road.
Lori had driven through a couple of the cabin community neighborhoods when they were first being built a couple of years ago. But she hadn’t been up this far since. Now, the sight blew her away.
“Wow. This is amazing.” She peered out the window at the impeccably landscaped properties and the elegant cabins. “Who owns these places? They must cost millions of dollars.”
“From what I hear, they’re owned by corporations,” Brandy said. “Used for retreats and conferences.”
When Ian turned into one of the properties, Lori was still staring. “Is that a pond? And a . . . zipline?”
Brandy laughed. “You still haven’t looked at the link I sent, have you?”
“No.” It was too late now. She’d just see everything in person.
Two cars were already in the massive circular driveaway.
“Looks like we’re the last ones here. Everly and Austin drove with Steph and Cal. Julie and Dave brought their own car in case they have to get back for anything with the kids.”
Lori’s heart lifted as she climbed out of the car and was greeted with fresh air that smelled of pine and rich earth. She’d forgotten how invigorating it could be in the canyon.
She decided that she’d love being around everyone, even if she was the only one going solo. She was glad she’d come after all.
The front door opened, and Everly and Steph came outside. Everly’s dark blonde hair was a mass of curls, barely contained with an oversized clip. She wore off-white jeans with decorative patches and a long-sleeved orange shirt. Steph’s auburn hair had been curled and styled—different than her usual messy bun or ponytail she wore to her job as a hairdresser. She, of course, wore a dress—her signature style. This dress was loose knit and a deep green color.
“You made it!” Everly said. Everyone hugged, even though they saw each other plenty.
“Come on,” Steph said. “I’ll give you the grand tour. Ian, you’ll find the guys in the great room trying to figure out how to work the fireplace. It’s supposed to get pretty cold tonight.”
Julie came out of the cabin just then and hugged Lori. “I feel so free,” she gushed. “No kids. I don’t know what to do with myself.”
Lori laughed. “You’ll get used to it soon enough and not want to go back.”
Julie grinned. “Maybe. Except I’ve already texted my mom-in-law for any updates.”
They walked with Steph around the cabin, assigning bedrooms, and then looking through the food items Steph had said she’d be in charge of. “I don’t want us to have to go into town for any meals. We’ll prepare everything here, and it will all be easy.”
“How long did this take you to put together?” Lori asked, looking in the well-stocked fridge.
“Oh, I ordered it all online and then Cal and I loaded it up on our way.” Steph opened a bag of chocolate candy and poured it into a huge bowl. “Couldn’t forget the chocolate though.”
As Lori snagged a couple of pieces, she heard, “The hot tub’s not warming up,” coming from one of the men.
Everyone headed out on the back deck, which was huge and looked out on a gorgeous vista of pine trees intermingled with aspens.
Austin was crouched before the hot tub controllers, but nothing was happening. The water jets wouldn’t even turn on. When he stood, Brandy said, “I’ll call the owner. This was part of the package, and it should work.”
She headed into the cabin while Lori and Julie dragged a couple of chairs toward the edge of the deck. They sat in the shade as the sound of aspen leaves rustled in the wind.
“Someone will be here in an hour or two,” Brandy announced from the sliding door. “So we’ll hot tub after dinner.”
After that, everyone kind of scattered. Brandy and Ian went on a nature hike. Everly and Austin were on dinner duty and began preparations.
Dave came out to sit with Julie and Lori, and they ended up talking about the condominium project. “It’s just a slippery slope,” he said. “This gets approved, and what’s next? An amusement park? A zoo? Another condo project? Pretty soon Everly Falls will be crawling with people, and we’ll have to expand the roads.”
Lori listened absently, wondering if it would be rude to escape to her room and read until dinner.
Steph and Cal came outside, and he fiddled with the hot tub settings again, but no luck.
Finally, Lori went inside to help with dinner, and by the time Brandy and Ian returned, the chicken tortilla soup was ready, along with several sides. Darkness fell outside, and still no maintenance person showed up.
Brandy made another phone call, then hung up, her expression worried. “I guess there’s a new company that’s handling things, and they just started yesterday. So there’s been a delay on some of the jobs.”
Julie waved a hand. “Let’s play board games. Dave brought like five of them.”
Playing games ended up being a lot of fun, and the time flew by. Around eleven o’clock, a few people headed to their rooms, leaving Lori, Brandy, and Ian downstairs by the fire. It had grown cold, and the fire also kept things cheery.
When a knock sounded on the door, Lori nearly jumped out of her seat.
“Probably the hot tub guy,” Brandy said with a laugh as Ian unfolded himself from the couch.
“Unless someone ordered a late-night dessert,” he said, throwing a questioning look at Brandy.
“I made no orders.”
Ian crossed to the front door and opened it. By the muffled conversation, Lori knew it was another man. Then she heard the words “hot tub” and glanced over at Brandy, who was smiling.
“Finally,” she whispered. “Hope it’s an easy fix.”
Lori turned when Ian walked into the great room with another man, a smile on his face. “Look who’s on call tonight,” he said. “This is Malcom Graves.”
He wasn’t wearing a ball cap, but Lori would have recognized him anyway. In fact, he was dressed in a button-down shirt, slacks, and leather shoes—as if he’d been at some other event. Maybe even on a date? His eyes were hooded in the low light of the cabin, his expression stoic.
“Oh.” Brandy pushed to her feet. “Are you really the repair guy? I thought you owned a construction company.”
Malcom’s gaze moved from Brandy to Lori. If he recognized her, he didn’t give any indication. “I do, and apparently, we’re newly contracted for the maintenance of this community, but our operations manager neglected to inform the association that our crew is already dipping into overtime. It looks like I’m the man on call this weekend until I can get someone hired on Monday. Anyone here looking for a job?”
Ian laughed. “I’ve got my own job, thanks.”
“Figures,” Malcom deadpanned. “Well, lead the way.” He picked up a tool bag that sat at his feet.
Lori rose from her chair as Brandy and Ian followed him through the cabin to the back deck. She trailed after them, kind of feeling sorry that Malcom came all this way to do something that he probably would hire out himself. Where did he live anyway? How far had he driven?
By the time she arrived on the back deck, Malcom had a panel open, and Ian was holding up a flashlight. Lori joined Brandy where she was leaning against the rail.
“He’s cute,” Brandy whispered as she nudged Lori’s arm. “Want me to ask if he’s single?”
“In what universe would I ever want you to ask that?” she scoffed. “We’re not in elementary school anymore.”
Brandy laughed, catching Ian’s attention, which meant he walked over to them. “You ladies want to hot tub tonight? Looks like it will be fixed soon.”
Lori allowed herself another glance at Malcom. He had a couple of tools out and was working away.
“I’d love to,” Brandy told Ian, her voice soft, hand slipping into his.
Oh no, Lori wasn’t going to join their love boat. “I’m getting pretty tired, so I’ll probably head to bed soon.”
The lights inside the hot tub came on. A very good sign. Next, the jets started up.
“Great, man,” Ian said. “Thanks so much.”
“No problem.” Malcom packed up his tools, then straightened to face them. “You folks have a good night.”
“Wait,” Ian said, releasing Brandy’s hand and stepping forward. “Do you want a drink or something? If you’re hungry, we have tons of leftover dinner.”
Malcom paused. “Water would be great. I sort of left in the middle of something to hurry up here.”
“Something important?” Brandy asked. “I feel so bad.”
“Oh, it wasn’t important, exactly,” he said. “It was . . . a relief. I was on a blind date, actually, a double date. And I’m pretty sure the woman who was supposed to be my date would have much rather been paired with my friend.”