Adele
By the time Monday rolled around, I was calm and ready to face what lay ahead.
The weekend had been quiet, as they usually were during the summer.
Gagnon Lumber did the majority of its cutting during the winter when the ground was frozen.
It made transport easier and minimized damage to the forest floor.
It was one of the advantages of logging in Maine.
The ground stayed frozen longer in northern areas like ours, and it froze so thoroughly that we could use heavier equipment.
That, of course, meant we could get the jobs done faster.
Other regions, where the ground didn’t freeze completely, required lighter equipment and more hours, which cut into profits and efficiency.
We had summer and fall cut sites, too, but the majority of our land was winter cut.
In Maine, spring lingered, even in late June. That meant thaw and water and mud, which was not ideal for cutting or transport or road maintenance. The crews typically spent August and September repairing and upgrading the roads in preparation for the beginning of the season in October.
Our summers were short and, therefore, extremely busy. Along with the summer cutting, we spent the season working on our equipment so that it was all in tip-top shape when the ground froze.
Today, though, had been one of the slower days. Slow days made me even more itchy.
I would be a professional. This was my goddamn shop and my company. His presence may have been unwelcome, but I’d get through it. I always did.
Thankfully when He-Man and I had arrived at the office, he was nowhere to be seen. There was a tan, military-style backpack on the chair in the office/closet I had assigned to him, but there was no other trace of the man.
Good. I could focus.
I updated the board, checked in with Estrella, who was taking apart a front-end loader, and placed an order for a few parts with my supplier. All in all, the day wasn’t a bad one.
But I should have known it wouldn’t last.
I sensed him before I saw him. Mainly because He-Man got out of his memory-foam dog bed and growled. It took a lot to make my sweet baby growl like that, but the spawn of Satan would do it, for sure.
Near the end of the day, the door to the shop slammed, and heavy footsteps sounded on the cement floor. When Finn turned into my office, He-Man pounced, barking and lunging at his legs.
“What the shit?” Finn shouted, jumping back as He-Man reared up and caught his pant leg in his teeth. “What is this thing?”
“He-Man,” I said firmly. “Stop. Come.”
The dog froze and looked over at me, as if to ask why he couldn’t bite the bad man. When I eyed him and pointed to the floor in front of me, he reluctantly backed away, then trotted over and jumped into my lap.
“Good boy,” I said, burying my face in his fur and scratching his ears.
“Um. What the hell was that?”
I looked up. “You’re still here?”
“Yes. What is that thing?” He frowned, looking nonplussed.
I cradled He-Man close. “This is my sweet baby, He-Man. He’s very protective of me. I guess he could sense your evil.”
Finn raised one brow. “That yippy little shit tried to bite my ankles.”
“You seem to have survived.” Shrugging, I looked him up and down mockingly. “And don’t underestimate him. He’s an eighteen-pound killer. Aren’t you, baby?”
I scratched his ears again, always proud of my boy.
“Why are you here?” I asked when the giant of a man continued hovering.
“I work here. Henri and I worked out a plan for drone surveillance, and he wanted me to run it by you. Equipment and software are being set up now so I can get it all done quickly. While I’ve been waiting for that to be completed, I figured I’d get to know the other employees.”
I blanched. “Why? Your position here is temporary. We’ll hire a real pilot at some point.”
“I am a real pilot,” he said, the corner of his mouth quirking. “Ask the US Navy.”
Shooting him a withering look, I huffed. “Not one I can tolerate. I’d much prefer one who isn’t the spawn of a murderer.”
Finn pulled up the chair directly across from my desk and sat in it. He-Man lunged at him, but I held him back, tucking him against my chest.
Placing those massive inked forearms on the surface, he leaned forward. “How many times do I have to tell you that I’m not him? I barely had a relationship with my father. I don’t want trouble. I want to work.”
His dark eyes met mine, and he held my gaze for a moment longer than necessary to make his point.
Heart thumping in my chest, I sat still, deliberately not responding.
Because what I wanted to do was scream and throw torque wrenches at his handsome head.
Instead, I held He-Man close and focused on breathing through the rage.
It was late, I was tired, and I had a date with a new episode of Succession later.
I was gathering up the courage to kick him out of my office when my phone buzzed on the desk, right next to his giant paw.
Before I could react, he snagged it and held it up in front of him.
“Hey.” I dove forward, upsetting He-Man, who hopped off my lap in the process. But he pushed his chair back and stood, examining the screen.
“Hold up,” he said, his attention still fixed on the device. “These are LuvStruck alerts.”
My stomach dropped and my face flamed. As if every part of me didn’t already hate this guy enough, now he was going to mock me for using dating apps? Not today, Satan.
I stood and crossed my arms, going for authoritative. “Give me my fucking phone, Stretch, or I’ll take it from you, and I will not be gentle.”
He smirked. “That is not the threat you think it is, but here.”
He held it out, but he was still halfway across the room, so I was forced to round my desk to get it back.
“Go forth and date,” he said when I tore the device from his hand.
Annoyance flashing through me like a storm, I narrowed my eyes. “Is it so strange for a person to be on dating apps? Let me guess, I’m so terrible and ugly and mean that I have no business dating. Is that it?”
I was fuming, yet he only raised a brow and dropped back into the chair he’d been occupying.
“Project much, She-Ra?” he teased, leaning back and spreading his legs wide.
“I was only curious. Figured some lucky guy with balls of steel and a really good life insurance policy had locked you down already.”
I clutched the phone with both hands. “Nope. Still looking for Mr. Right.”
He chuckled. “Fascinating.”
“Fuck off with your smug judgment.”
He held up his hands in surrender. “No judgment here. It’s rough out there. And you’re talking to someone who hasn’t been on a date in years. It’s not like women are lining up these days, what with my father being a murderer and all.”
I grinned. Finally some good news. “It warms my heart to know the women of Penobscot county have such high standards. Maybe there is hope after all.”
Before I could bask in the glory of putting him down, he pushed back, the legs of his chair scraping against the floor, and stood. We were close, maybe six inches away from one another. His body took up every spare inch of space in my office, a physical reminder of how big he was.
He tilted forward a little so we were eye to eye while maintaining the distance between us and dropped his voice. “Or maybe you’ve been waiting for me all these years. Since that hot make-out session in my truck.”
His warm breath coasted over my skin, the scent of cedar sending a shiver rippling down my spine.
He was so damn tall he had to lean down to talk to me.
Most men were at eye level, if not shorter.
I didn’t like feeling small and powerless, especially around someone like Finn, who exuded power and confidence.
All the rage I had spent the weekend tamping down reared up inside me. “Do not bring that up.” I took a step back and relished the cool air that filled the space between us. He-Man was at my feet, sensing danger. “If you value your life, don’t say another word about that night.”
He scratched his beard, still not understanding the gravity of this situation. “Your face right now? It looks like you’ve been possessed.”
Clearly, this man had a death wish.
“You joke, but I’d love to access some dark magic right now. Do you have any idea how satisfying it would be to curse you?”
He crossed his arms over his expansive chest as a slow smile spread across his face. “Don’t worry, your presence is enough of a curse.”
“Then get the fuck out of my shop and go back to your lair,” I growled, irrationally annoyed by how tight his T-shirt was. “Don’t you have somewhere to be? Some kind of villain convention to attend so you can reminisce about the good old days when you could burn mouthy women at the stake?”
He moved so fast I didn’t have time to react. Before I knew what was happening, I was backed up against my desk and caged between his arms. “That’s where you’re wrong.” His voice dropped an octave, making goose bumps rise along every inch of my skin.
“I enjoy your mouth. Quite a bit.”
He was so close, and he was staring at my lips so intently they tingled. “I want to feel that mouth everywhere.”
Was he going to kiss me? I didn’t want to find out. So I did the first thing that came to mind. I punched him, as hard as I could, in the shoulder.
He stumbled back, clutching it. “Fuck, She-Ra.”
I took the opportunity to step behind my desk again. “You’re lucky I didn’t break your nose. Don’t ever talk to me like that.”
Still clutching his shoulder, he glared at me. “Don’t tell me you didn’t like it. Look how you’re squirming. Look at the way your nipples are poking through your bra.”
Crossing my arms over my chest, I hid the evidence that backed up his argument.
“Nice one, by the way. No stretchy cotton for you. That’s clearly some expensive lace.”
The nerve of this asshole!
“If my brothers knew you were looking at my bra, they would kill you.”
He laughed again. Why was everything so funny to him?
“Oh, please. Like you’d pass up the opportunity to do the job yourself. You’d probably be angry if they didn’t include you in the fun of dismembering me.”
He was right. Dick. I couldn’t tell my brothers about any of this because they would be furious at Finn and at me.
Then they’d have lots of questions and get all protective and shit.
I had been beating those instincts out of them for decades, and this would be a major barrier to progress.
No, Finn was right. I had to handle this myself. As usual.
He took another step back, as if preparing to leave, and a hint of relief flickered to life in me. Good. Get him out before more damage was done.
But then he paused and tilted his head to one side. Even in the terrible fluorescent lighting, this guy was as gorgeous as a model. Like one of those super-hot guys who posted wood-chopping thirst traps on TikTok.
“Last year,” he said, looking down at his hands, “after what happened with Remy…”
A chill ran through me. It was such a scary time.
“I was working up the courage to ask you out.” Lifting his head, he regarded me with those dark, intense eyes. “Would you have said yes?” In the blink of an eye, he had transformed from jovial Viking, hell-bent on driving me crazy, to vulnerable.
At the time, I was so filled with gratitude that I probably would have. Because nothing was more important to me than my family. And Finn had defied his own father to help mine. That version of him? I still held on to it, but I knew I had to let that go.
“I can’t believe it was only a year ago.”
He nodded, focus still locked on me. “So much has changed. So much has happened.”
An ache bloomed in my chest as I held his gaze. “I would have said yes,” I said softly. “I will always owe you for that. For Remy.”
He shook his head. “You don’t owe me anything. You can call me any day, any time, and I’ll be there.” Tucking his chin, he dropped his attention to the desk between us and ran his hands through his hair. “Is there any chance?” His words were barely a whisper.
“No. Not anymore,” I said, both relieved and sad to make my intentions clear. “Not after…”
He nodded again. “Yeah. My dad.”
And as I stood there, witness to the pain on his earnest face. I felt it.
The thaw.
As much as I wanted to despise the man and everything he represented, I couldn’t.
After losing my dad and almost losing my brothers, holding my ground on one side of a silly family feud didn’t seem worth it.
I couldn’t forgive, and I’d never forget, but I would tolerate.
I would do it for the business and for my dad, who truly believed in giving people second chances.
I had to do better. “Let’s get through this. Work together.”
Swallowing thickly, he dipped his chin. “Yeah.”
“No flirting, no innuendos, no teasing. Okay?”
He winced. “That’s gonna be a challenge. Maybe if you agreed to stop wearing those cute outfits…”
I looked down at myself and held out my arms. “Um, I’m covered in axle grease. Trust me. This isn’t me trying.”
He chuckled and held out a hand. “Truce?”
I slid my palm against his, trying to ignore how big and strong it was and the way my heart jumped a tiny bit when our skin touched.
After holding on for way too long. I dropped his hand. Willing my walls to come back up.
“Now that we’ve settled that, get the fuck out of my office.”