CHAPTER 5 #2
“Put your suitcase and bag into this closet.” Mia opened the door and took a key off the top shelf. “It locks, and we don’t use it, so until we get you settled, your stuff will be safe here. I’m sure Abigail has a plan for your stay. She always has a plan.”
Finn followed Mia’s instructions and took off the heavy down coat she’d been wearing.
The girl looked like she’d lost fifty pounds.
Her red hair was shaved on one side where she had a row of earring posts shimmering.
A crescent moon hung in the lowest piercing.
In her other earlobe, she only had one piercing and a matching moon earring.
If Christina had been covered in black when she’d arrived years ago, Finn wore an explosion of colors.
Over her red jeans, she wore a royal-blue T-shirt, and she had yellow sneakers with a pair of Hello Kitty socks poking out.
She grabbed an orange Virginia Is for Lovers hoodie and pulled it over her head.
Then she met Mia’s gaze, staring at her with bright green eyes. “Are you sure my staying here is okay? I won’t be here long. I need to get my van fixed, and then I’ll be out of here.”
“You think you can live in your van here in Magic Springs? Do you know how cold it gets in the winter? And that’s not far off.
I’m surprised we haven’t had a snowfall yet.
” Mia took the girl’s arm, and they headed to the back doors that would lead directly out to the yard without going through the gym.
“We’ll figure something out. Don’t worry about it.
And there are showers in the bathrooms in the gym. ”
“I know. Abigail’s been letting me use them on days I work,” Finn admitted as they walked out to the gathering around the firepit. “Abigail is the best.”
“Yes, she is,” Mia admitted as they reached the gathering. “Finn, you know Abigail and Trent, but this is Christina, who used to work with us. And her fiancé, Levi. And my grandmother, Mary Alice Carpenter. Finn’s going to be staying with us for a while.”
Grans spoke first. “Are you sure at this time . . .”
Mia shook her head and interrupted. She didn’t want Finn to feel like she was intruding. “You’re right, we’ve got all the bedrooms filled this weekend, but we’ll figure out something.”
“I’ve got a rollaway in my garage I was going to donate, but I can bring it over tomorrow and set her up in the extra room on the first floor. I’d say set up one of the classrooms, but we haven’t remodeled the bathrooms up there yet.” Trent was already in problem-solving mode.
“Sounds like we’ve got a plan.” Mia pointed to an empty chair, and Finn sat down, her hands in her hoodie. “If you don’t mind sleeping on the couch tonight.”
“A couch would be perfect. You don’t have to go to any trouble.” Finn glanced around at the group.
“The rollaway is in my way,” Trent admitted. “You’re actually doing me a favor. Moving it here makes it Mia’s problem.”
Mia sat down next to him. She leaned into him with a shoulder butt. “You’re a brat.”
“How are you feeling? Your grandmother thought you’d be better after a long nap.” He kissed her on the cheek.
“Much better, thanks,” she responded as she looked over at Abigail. “So, what have you been talking about?”
“Nothing really. Just Christina and Levi’s plans, and the party, of course. Finn, I told you I needed you to help prep on Friday, right? And now, it looks like we have another party the next weekend for Mary Alice’s engagement.”
Finn leaned close to the fire. “I’d love the hours. I need to fix my van and find a place to live. And I’ve got nowhere to go right now.”
“You started at a great time,” Christina added. “You’ll get tons of hours. We’re always slammed during the holidays.”
Mia wondered if that would be true this year, with the changes at the Lodge still not going in their favor.
Before she could fixate on the issue, Abigail handed her a stick with a marshmallow on the top. “We’re making s’mores.”
“And drinking a dessert wine,” Christina added, laughing. “I know you’re probably wanting dinner, but the rest of us have already eaten. You slept a long time.”
“S’mores sound wonderful.” Mia looked over at Finn, who was already roasting her marshmallow. “Have you eaten, Finn?”
“I had a hamburger for lunch, I’m good.” Finn didn’t look at anyone.
“Not in this house, you’re not.” Mia shook her head. “We are all about the food, so once we’re done with our pre-dinner dessert, you and I’ll go in and see if there are any leftovers.”
“Mom cooked,” Trent said dryly. “What do you think?”
“I made chicken enchiladas. And Spanish rice.” Abigail sipped her wine. “I can’t help it if I got used to cooking for four men in my house.”
“Sounds like we have a dinner to warm up.” Mia rotated her marshmallow and brought it out as the tan was beginning to darken. Trent had the graham cracker and chocolate ready for her. “So, tell me a little about you, Finn. You aren’t from Magic Springs, are you?”
“No, I grew up in Nampa, but then my mom remarried, and I thought it would be better to give her some space, so after graduation, I tried Boise, but it felt too big and too close to home.” She glanced around at the people gathered around the firepit.
“So I headed this way to see Sun Valley, and someone told me about a job here in Magic Springs. So here I am, with a broken-down van.”
“We have similar stories.” Christina grinned. “I took a plane to Vegas before Mom canceled my credit card. Then my brother Isaac rescued me from there and dumped me on Mia’s doorstep when Mom got tired of me not following her rules. I was a bit of a wild child.”
“ ‘Was’?” Levi asked and got swatted by Christina. He pulled her closer and kissed her head. “That’s your best quality, babe.”
“No, that’s not true. Christina is bright and caring, and for some reason, she loves my troublemaker son.” Abigail smiled at the pair. “When did you realize you loved cooking? Don’t look shocked, I see you reading cookbooks on your lunch hour. Only true fanatics like us do that.”
“When my dad left, Mom went to work, so I started making my own dinners. Then I made enough so she could eat when she got home. I did a lot of research on how to make a grocery budget last,” Finn admitted.
“When it was the two of us, I cooked everything. Then, when Dale moved in, he took over the cooking. He’s good to my mom, so I’m happy for that. I don’t fit into their lives.”
Mia and Trent exchanged glances. There was more to Finn’s story, but Mia wasn’t going to push the girl. Not until she found out more. She hoped Finn was accurate about graduating high school. Mia didn’t want to be harboring an underage runaway.
Finn sniffed her marshmallow before taking a bite. She made a face, then looked at the others. “Does anyone else smell sulfur in the fire?”