Chapter 2
WILLA
Puffs of hot, moist air assault my face as I come to consciousness from a hard sleep.
I reach over, patting Maya, my black lab, on the head.
My alarm startles me the rest of the way awake.
With a big yawning stretch, I swing my legs over the side of my bed and stand.
The floorboards of my van are freezing, and I once again berate myself for not installing the more expensive insulation.
Maya whines impatiently as I start heating water for my coffee before filling her bowl with kibble. The swoosh of her tail rapidly increases as I pull out the container that keeps her food fresh and start scooping it up to feed her.
“Hold.”
I tuck my hair behind my ear to make sure she follows my command.
Her butt hovers an inch off the floor, but I don’t reprimand her.
Yesterday she had a long day of training as a search and rescue dog.
I can’t blame her for being so hungry this morning, especially with her big, brown eyes looking up at me with so much love.
I drop the scoop back into the container and stand. “Release.”
She launches herself at her bowl. Her tail wagging happily while she munches away. I grab my laptop and get back on the bed to go through my work schedule for the day. Ski patrol in the morning and then a few private ski lessons this afternoon. Easy enough.
After I get my coffee made and poured into a travel mug, I slip on some boots and my parka to take Maya for her first walk.
She waits as I close the van door and lock up behind us.
The RV park I camp at during the winter is nearly empty with most tourists preferring luxury condos or vacation rentals for ski trips.
I love the solitude. The quiet. There’s no way I could ever give it up.
Maya stays beside me as we follow the familiar path into the snow-covered pine and aspen trees. Just weeks ago they were a brilliant yellow, and now they’re a stark contrast between the snow- and mud-covered ground and bright blue sky.
My breath mists into the air as I follow along behind my sniffing dog.
She’s smelled every square inch of this trail three times over by now, but she’s just as excited each day.
When she tries to take the long way, I have to redirect her back to the van.
She’ll be excited once she sees she’ll be up on the slopes with me for the morning.
It doesn’t take me long to put my hair into two french braids and get dressed for work.
Before I know it, I’m behind the wheel and pulling out onto the pot-holed road into town.
It’s the first sunny day in over a week, so I have to reach onto the floorboard to find where my sunglasses slid off the dash to a few days ago.
The van jolts loudly as I hit a bump and immediately sit up straight.
There are no cars in front of or behind me, so I know I didn’t hit anyone.
A glance in my mirrors shows no animals or branches in the road, just a brand-new hole I didn’t see coming.
I turn my music down and listen to the engine intently, trying to make sure everything sounds good.
Not that I know a single thing about engines.
I got this van from a whitewater rafting guide two summers ago. He built everything out himself, including rebuilding the engine. According to him it ran like a dream and easily had a good hundred thousand miles to go on it.
“That was close.” I glance over at Maya who looks back at me with whale eyes, clearly stressed by the entire experience. “Sorry, girl. I’ll just use the visor for now.”
The employee lot is full, so I have to use the public lot by the resort. At least it’s a weekday, so parking is free. Before I get out of the van, I slip Maya’s harness on; all our ski gear is kept in the employee locker room.
“Hey Willa,” Knox says as I enter the building.
“Hi. Saw we’re on patrol together this morning.”
“Yep. Lucky me getting the two sweetest girls on the mountain to work with.”
I give him a sassy sidelong glance. “Maya, maybe.”
“You have your moments.”
“Few and far between.” I push open the door to the locker room and let Maya in. “We’ll be out in a few minutes.”
“No rush.”
Maya sits while I pull on all my gear. I slip a treat out of her harness pocket to reward her for being so well behaved and patient.
She gets another reward when she allows me to slip her boots on.
Early on in her training, she wasn’t a fan of wearing them, but she’s grown to tolerate them.
It makes me feel better knowing her paws are protected.
The morning is uneventful; we only had to respond to a few minor calls and clear one trail of some fallen branches.
Maya spends a good bit of time riding on the front of my skis, something I’ve been training her to do for a while now.
She lives for all the attention she gets when she’s on them with me.
I love seeing the joy she brings people on the slopes. Who doesn’t love seeing a dog riding a ski lift or skiing with their handler? Dogs bring happiness everywhere they go.
Her hours of fun in the snow have caught up to her, though. As soon as I bring her inside the employee lounge, she finds her pillow and curls up, falling fast asleep. I busy myself making a light lunch of ramen and baby carrots before I have to get ready for lessons.
The dad and daughter I’ve been giving private lessons to are back today, and I’ll be taking them onto the mountain instead of the bunny slopes.
He’s athletic and has taken to the sport easily.
His daughter is adorably smart and wicked and has no problem keeping up.
I’m sure it’ll be a great time with them.
“Willa,” Izzy yells my name excitedly as she attempts to run to me. Her ski boots make it challenging, but she gets to me before Drew. “Guess what?”
I crouch down to get eye level with her. “What?”
“They’re gonna sell my daddy for dogs.” Her little chest rises and falls quickly beneath her coat from the exertion of running in all her gear.
My eyebrows shoot up at her proclamation as Drew joins us. I look up and lock eyes with him, momentarily startled by the bright blue color. He’s usually wearing sunglasses or goggles, so I haven’t gotten a good look at them. His lips lift in an exasperated smile.
“Izzy, you have to stop saying it like that.” His attention turns to me. “My friend asked me to be in a charity date auction for the animal shelter. It’s not a dowry paid in dogs.”
I return his smile, thoroughly entertained by her interpretation of the situation. “I mean a dowry of dogs sounds delightful.”
The sound of his laughter dances in the air around us. Its deep, rich timbre vibrates through my soul. Why is this man so attractive? Especially the crinkles that form at the corner of his eyes when he smiles.
“Do you like dogs?” Izzy breaks the moment with her question.
“I love dogs. I actually have one.”
“What kind?” Her eyes go wide.
“She’s a black lab. Her name is Maya.”
“Maya.” She rolls the name around. “I love dogs. I’m asking Santa for a puppy.”
“Oh yeah?”
My eyes find Drew’s before I say anything in response.
I don’t want to overstep his parenting by giving her hope if he’s not.
But the love I see in his gaze as he looks at his daughter makes me think that she probably gets everything she wants.
Which I get, she’s adorable. I’d have trouble telling her no, too.
“Dogs are a lot of fun, but they’re also a big responsibility. You have to take care of them since they can’t take care of themselves,” I add. “But I hope you get your puppy.”
He nods from behind her, just the slightest bit. “What’s on the agenda for today?” he asks.
I gesture over my shoulder. “You two are ready for the mountain.”
“Are we going in that?” Izzy points at the gondola.
“No, that takes people to the very top of the mountain where the slopes are steeper. We’re going to take that lift,” I point toward the chair lift. “Think you’re ready to graduate from the magic carpet?”
“Yeah,” she answers excitedly.
“How about you?” I look up at Drew.
“I think I can handle it. Is there a safety bar for her on those?”
“Yeah. She’ll be fine. It’s a three-person lift, so we can set her between us, too.”
He relaxes.
We get our skis on and make our way over to the line. I take the time to observe them both as we make small talk. They listen intently as I explain the procedure for getting on the lift. The entire process goes smoothly with Izzy giggling about getting scooped up by the lift like ice cream.
“Do you have a boyfriend?” Izzy asks me abruptly.
“I don’t. Do you?” I whisper conspiratorially.
Her cheeks flush pink as she shakes her head. “My daddy doesn’t have a girlfriend, either. You should buy him at the auction.”
“Isabel,” Drew admonishes, rubbing his gloved hand over his eyes. “You can’t ask people to buy me like that.”
“Why not?”
“It makes them uncomfortable.”
“Does it make you uncomfortable?” She turns to me.
“No,” I answer with a stifled laugh. “I think it makes him more uncomfortable than me,” I tease.
His cheeks flush pink just like hers did a minute ago.
God, why is it so damn attractive that he blushes when he’s embarrassed?
Is it just him? I mean, I’d have to be blind to not notice how hot he is.
Tall, athletic, and a good dad? I’m surprised he’s single.
I wonder where Izzy’s mom is in all of this.
That train of thought is too tricky to ride, so I focus on instructing them about getting off the chair lift. Both of them are naturals on skis and have no issues, not even a single wobble. I wonder how many sessions they have booked with me because they might not need any more after today.
I’m inexplicably saddened by that. It’s not out of the ordinary for me to get attached to people I take on guided backpacking tours in the summer, but that’s because you spend every single waking moment with them out in the most beautiful parts of the country.
That type of experience bonds you. Spending several hours teaching someone to ski is different and much less personal.
It has to be a combination of Izzy being so damn cute and him being such a good dad.
He’s also kind and not a dick when I give him directions, something that happens more often with grown men.
The midwest nice comes out in him for sure.
That’s probably it. A lot of people I work with here at Holly Ridge are rich monsters with no manners.
He’s anything but, even though I know he must have a good deal of money from being a professional athlete.
The lesson goes so smoothly that at the end I find myself telling them I have full confidence that they don’t need another lesson.
Drew’s eyes follow me as I kneel down to help Izzy out of her bindings.
Part of me balks at the thought of not getting to work with them again, especially when Izzy throws her arms around my neck and squeezes.
“I think I need one more lesson at least,” she says, her little arms staying locked around my neck.
I stand, thinking she’ll let go of my neck, but her arms tighten and she wraps around me like a baby monkey. My gaze locks with Drew’s, and I notice a flash of sadness in his sky blue eyes. He blinks, and it’s gone.
“Come on, Bug. I’m sure Willa has things to do.”
“Can we go get hot chocolate from Aiden?”
He chuckles. “I’m sure he’ll hook us up with some.” His attention moves from Izzy to me. “My friend is the chef at Seasons. He’s spoiled her with their cinnamon spiced hot chocolate.”
“It’s good stuff.” I run my fingers along one of Izzy’s pigtails, twirling it into a spiral ringlet. “I’ll definitely see you out on the slopes this winter. Maybe I’ll even have Maya with me sometime.”
“Promise?”
“Pinky swear.” I hold out my pinky for hers.
“Pinky swear it.” She wraps hers around mine and shakes.
I watch as they walk off toward the restaurant.
Most of the time my nomadic lifestyle fits my needs perfectly.
But every once in a while I’ll wonder what it would be like to have a partner or the type of the stability that comes with having a family.
Clearing the melancholy from my mind, I tell myself I’m just ovulating or something.
I love my solitude entirely too much to consider having any type of family at this point in my life.