11. Chapter 11
Chapter 11
Juniper
W hen lunchtime rolled around, Rachel and I made our way into The Elk’s Head together. The hostess greeted us with a nod and directed us to where Edgar and Mia waited, already seated at a table with a basket of honey wheat rolls. Rachel sat directly across from Mia who was already picking at her bread, leaving me to sit across from Edgar.
We needed a new name. There was no more putting it off. Between the four of us, I figured we’d be able to come up with something.
Rachel was quick to get her laptop on the table, situating it between the two of us so I could see all the notes she jotted down. It took everything in me to not stare at her, especially after working out together this morning.
At the gym, I’d had a hard time keeping my eyes off her as she trained her lower body, and since she said nothing, I assumed I hadn’t been caught in staring at her ass in her tight workout pants when she squatted more weight than I could. Her curves drew me in, worse than any forbidden fruit.
But as I rolled my flannel sleeves up, I caught her glance at my forearms. Her eyes lingered there longer than normal before she darted them back to her water, which she took a sip of before she said, “Alright, I’ve got a spreadsheet officially ready for suggestions.”
What was she looking at my arms for? I examined them, checking to make sure I hadn’t accidentally landed on a butter dish for the bread but found nothing.
“What was the original name?” Mia asked.
“The Elks,” Juniper said. “Hence The Elk’s Head.”
“Ah, makes sense,” Mia said as she popped a ripped-off piece of bread into her mouth. I could smell it as some steam rose from the torn half in front of her. “Why change it?”
“A rebrand will help revitalize,” Rachel said. “If it wasn’t doing too hot, then a new name will really convey that it’s a whole new place.”
“Ah, gotcha. Hmm.” She pushed her blonde and dyed-orange hair back. “Do we wanna stick with the nature and wildlife theme?”
I said, “I’m open to it.”
“What’s everyone’s favorite animal?” Rachel asked. “I’ll jot a few down. Preferably, a favorite local animal.”
“We get moose this time of year,” Edgar chimed in. “They’re cool.”
“Maybe cougars?” Mia offered.
I shook my head. “Makes me think of older women.”
Edgar snort-laughed. “Probably not what we’re going for.”
“We get bears,” Mia offered.
“Overdone,” I said. “Save that for the ski runs.”
“I’ll write it down anyway,” Rachel said. “Whatever we don’t use can be up for ski run consideration or for something else. Star Wars keeps shit in the vault and then repurposes it years down the road all the time, so I don’t see why we can’t.”
I nodded. “Valid. I like marmots.”
“They’re the little beaver-looking guys, right? They’re so cute,” Rachel said, voice going up in pitch as she gushed. “Don’t we get foxes, too?”
“We do. I think there’s even a fox den near that hiking trail we like.”
Rachel’s eyes widened. “The Fox’s Den? We could even incorporate a fox into the logo.”
“Oh, I like that!” Mia said.
“Me too.” I smiled at Rachel. “At least one of us is smart.”
“I’d call it a group effort,” Rachel said. “I can probably whip a logo up. While I’m not the best at graphic design, I did learn a few pointers from some old coworkers.”
“I’ll look on my end to see if I need to update any paperwork and go through that. Once that’s set, I’ll let you know once we’re clear to update social.”
“Perfect.” She closed her laptop and put it away. “Well, that was easier than I thought. Now we just need to know when we open.”
“I’m working on it,” I said. “Let me crunch some numbers after we eat, and I’ll get back to you.”
After I texted Rachel our opening date last night, she’d whipped up a press release for me to approve this morning. Once I gave her the thumbs up, she’d sent it out—alongside updating the lodge’s website and posting on social media—before going on with her daily tasks.
It was only two o’clock in the afternoon and our first month was already sold out.
“Can you believe it?” I looked to Sasquatch, whose wide eyes were waiting for me to say anything. “Who’d have thought? I’m not sure I’m ready for all these people, but we’ll manage, won’t we, buddy?”
Sasquatch boofed in response.
“I know, I know. You’ve got my back whenever I get too overwhelmed. We’ve got Rachel now, too.” I remembered what Edgar said about leaning on her and sighed. “Come on. Let’s go talk to your favorite person.”
As I rounded the corner to the laundry room, I stopped when I heard two women chatting: Mia and Rachel, no doubt. I heard my name in passing, so I leaned my back against the wall and gave Sasquatch the hand signal we used for his sit command.
While Sasquatch obeyed, dutifully as ever, I mentally cursed myself as I leaned against the wall. In case someone turned the corner, I opened my phone and pretended to read through my emails while listening in on Rachel’s conversation. At least this way, I’d look inconspicuous.
Even though I knew I had to stop doing this, I couldn’t help but eavesdrop. I wasn’t sure if that made me nosy or an asshole.
Probably both.
I heard Mia first. “You know, I used to have the biggest crush on Juniper when he was a pro.”
“Not anymore?” Rachel asked her.
“No, now I feel sorry for him. But what do you think? He’s kinda hot when he’s not brooding, isn’t he? Even though that’s, like, all the time.”
My blood boiled at Mia’s words, but I was so curious my feet refused to move. I didn’t need her feeling sorry for me, nor did I need Rachel feeling that way either—though, I was sure she already did. As I willed myself still, I hoped one of my joints wouldn’t crack and give away my position. The likelihood of that happening was higher than I’d like.
“Between us?” Rachel said, her tone coy. “I think he’s hot even when he’s brooding.”
Both girls giggled. I couldn’t believe it. Rachel thought that?
“And besides,” Rachel continued, “I don’t think you need to feel sorry for him. He’s doing a great job around here. I’m not a hundred percent sure what compelled him to buy this place, but it’s clear he’s passionate about it. I really respect that, you know?”
“Fair!”
“We got off on the wrong foot, but he’s been really kind to me.”
“Wait, wait, did you say Juniper has been kind ?”
“In his own way, yeah. He shows it differently than others, that’s all.”
Then Mia giggled like they were schoolgirls. “Do you have a crush on your boss?”
Rachel scoffed. I heard a towel smacking an arm. “No professional comment.”
I couldn’t believe what I heard. That was as good as a confession from Rachel; AJ had filled me in on “girl talk” over the years enough for me to understand at least that much. Part of me was too stunned to even fully process the information, curious about exactly when this shift may have happened in Rachel. Did she always feel this way and I was oblivious, or did she feel a connection after our bad movie night?
Maybe I should call Mia Farrow and thank her.
Before they could go much further, I stepped forward, pocketing my phone and pushing open the back door to the laundry room. While Rachel worked on some new pool towels that recently came in, Mia worked on the kitchen rags for The Elk’s Head.
“Hey, Rachel.”
She looked up at me and smiled as if she didn’t realize I’d heard a word she said. “Hey, Juniper!”
“Can you help me with something?”
“Sure! I was wrapping up here, anyway.” She folded the last of the towels and tucked the basket under her arm. “See ya, Mia.” Once Rachel was in step with me, we carried on. “What’s up?”
At that moment, I realized I didn’t have an excuse; I’d forgotten why I’d come here, distracted by their conversation. I looked at her as we walked, studying her features. Her thick brows fit her face well, set above large, brown eyes like a doe’s in spring. Dark curls bounced with every step, noticeably healthier since her move to the mountains. She’d put on some muscle, too, likely from all the hard work she’d been putting in around here and getting used to the inclines—yet she still maintained a soft, feminine curve to her frame.
So, all I mustered was, “You look really pretty today.”
Pink crept up her cheeks. “Oh, that was unexpected. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. You look pretty every day. But you’re looking refreshed now that you’ve been here a while. Colorado treating you well?”
“It has been. I really love it here. More than I thought, actually.” But her smile faltered. “Did you hear us talking in there?”
I said nothing, opting instead to focus ahead of me and to try to think of anything that I might need her help with. Her conversion with Mia had completely derailed any previous train of thought. As we passed the indoor pool, she dumped the laundry basket off by the door so she wouldn’t have to carry it further than necessary.
“You did hear us, didn’t you?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Is that what this is about?”
“Maybe.”
“Okay, now you’re just playing hard to get.”
As dryly as I could, I asked, “Did you find your last boss hot, too?”
“Ugh, hell no.” She shuddered and tucked a stray curl behind her ear. “But I hope I’m not in trouble for thinking you’re handsome.”
“So am I hot or handsome?”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake.”
I laughed, letting my teeth show. “No, you’re not in trouble. Besides, I called you pretty, so consider us even.”
“Is that why?” Her hands found their way to her hips. “You wanted to even the score?”
“No. I wouldn’t have said that if I didn’t mean it. You should know me better by now.”
“Not sure if you’re trying to flirt with me or keep me humble, but touché.”
I shook my head. I wanted to smack myself for letting this conversation go off the rails, but at least she didn’t seem bothered by the fact I’d listened in. “Though, I did need your help with something. I’ve, uh, sort of been ignoring requests for comments from the press. They started blowing Edgar up because I’m not responding. I probably should have come to you sooner about it.”
“Hey, it’s okay. We can make something work. They want statements?”
“Yeah, especially now that we’ve landed on an opening date.” I huffed out an exhale. “I also would like you to help me figure out what to say to them. When, you know, they actually talk to us in person. We can’t live exclusively off of your PR.”
“Wanna do some practice sessions? We can role-play.”
I fought the urge to say, while I didn’t think role-play was my thing, I’d try anything at least once. “I’d appreciate that. Maybe after we can go over some job applicants together, too.”
“Sounds good to me!”
We made our way to my suite where I removed Sasquatch’s vest and tossed him one of his toys from a basket of them in the living room. Sasquatch chased it down the hall toward my bedroom where we could faintly hear it squeak.
In truth, I didn’t need media training. Rick made sure I’d had plenty of it as a snowboarder, and while I never followed any of his advice, it didn’t mean I hadn’t paid attention. No, I always had been a jerk. I hadn’t wanted to be there, not truly, and lashing out was easier than telling the truth. Telling the truth meant being vulnerable, something I learned was hardly ever worth the risk.
But I wagered Rachel was worth that risk. I didn’t have a choice, but even if I had, a part of me sensed I’d still be sitting here beside her, admiring the way she looked in the navy-colored dress she wore today, covered in a white and green winter floral print. Small buttons cuffed at her wrists as the sleeves billowed out in a light fabric. The dress reached midway down her calves but cinched at her waist with a belt.
I wanted to spend time with her. And today, she was a knockout.
She should wear this dress more often.
“You think so?”
I hadn’t realized I’d said that thought out loud. “Oh. Yeah. You have some hazel flecks in your eyes,” I said, trying desperately to sound factual rather than infatuated. “The green on the flowers really makes ‘em stand out.”
Rachel rose an eyebrow and smirked. “You are laying it on thick today,” she teased. “Not that I’m complaining.”
Hoping to seem nonchalant, I shrugged a shoulder. “You’re not usually so dressed up.”
“Laundry day,” she said as she sat on the couch, crossing one leg over her other knee. “My office attire is all I had left.”
“Sorry, didn’t mean to make it weird.” I grabbed my laptop and joined her, sitting with my knees spread to help open up my hip flexors. “In case you need it,” I said as I set the laptop down on the coffee table in front of us.
“You didn’t,” she said. “Ready to get started?”
Probably not.
“Ready as I’ll ever be.”