15. Finn
Finn
“What do you want?” Adele growled, flopping into an armchair in Henri’s office. Her hair was pulled back in intricate braids, and she was wearing her coveralls unbuttoned to her waist. Beneath it, her tiny tank showed more than a little cleavage. “I’m busy.”
“Take a seat.” Henri grunted. “Thanks for blessing us with your presence, my queen.”
“Better,” Adele said, sitting up straight. “Talk.”
“Finn is planning to fly out to Site 211 this week.”
I had been grounded for more than two weeks and was itching to get into the air.
Even if it meant flying over former Hebert land.
We had sold a little more than a hundred square miles to the Gagnons a few months back.
It was on the northern edge of our holdings and hadn’t been touched in years.
The cutting was excellent up there. My father would have known that if he had been doing his job instead of trafficking opioids, but at least we’d sold it at a great price.
I swallowed thickly, hoping to clear the lump that formed in my throat each time I was around Adele.
We hadn’t spoken since our game of strip axe-throwing, and I was finding it difficult to form coherent thoughts, let alone sentences.
“Probably Thursday. I’m waiting to see what the weather looks like. ”
“There are a few structures out there, decent roads, and some equipment,” Henri said. “I think it may be helpful for you to join Finn when he goes.”
Adele shot her brother a withering look. “Why? I have a lot of work to do here.”
“Don’t lie to me. You’re months ahead of schedule on maintenance and you let your crew cut out early all the time.” He hid his smirk.
It was no secret that Adele treated her employees incredibly well. I’d witnessed it myself. They were loyal to her, and she mentored them, championed them, and fought for them when necessary. It was one of the many things I admired about her.
“Sorry I’m so good at my job. Should I be less competent to make you feel better about yourself?” she hissed. Henri and Paz may have been known for being grumpy, but Adele had them beat. Her scowl could scare away a moose at fifty yards.
“This land hasn’t been touched in a decade. The drone data is fantastic, so we’re making plans to add it to our cutting operations for the winter.” He took his hat off and ran his hand through his dark hair.
By the wary expression he wore when he put the hat back on—one I’d never seen on his face unless his sister was involved—I’d bet he’d be popping some antacids after this meeting.
“But I need to see what we’re working with on site. Can we store machinery? Can we house people? Since it’s so far from the main camp, what are the options? Roads are shit, but we can get a crew out there for repairs if it’s got the kind of resources we need to house and support the operation.”
“If this is so mission critical, then why don’t you go with him? Or send Richard. Isn’t he in charge of roads?”
“Can’t. Also, no one is more particular than you are. You can’t tell me you’d allow a single piece of equipment up there if it wasn’t up to your standards.”
She crossed her arms. The move would probably scare the literal pants off an average man, but her brother didn’t back down.
“You keep telling us you want to be a full partner in this business.”
“I am a full partner,” she retorted. “You and Paz collude to cut me out of the big decisions.”
“And here we are, making an effort to bring you in. This is your opportunity to oversee our expansion. Paz is up to his eyeballs with contracts and lawyers, and you and I both know you wouldn’t want him assessing road quality for your trucks anyway.”
Her eyes were narrowed to slits and her back was ramrod straight. Damn, she was furious. “No, I do not. Paz doesn’t even know how to change brake fluid.”
“Exactly my point.” Nodding, Henri dropped his elbows to the desk, clasped his hands, and pressed them to his mouth. From my vantage point, it looked like he was hiding a smug smile.
I hadn’t been here long, but I’d already discovered that Henri was shrewd and strategic.
To run a multigenerational family business with his siblings, he’d have to be.
All the Gagnon siblings, while smart and good at what they did, had vastly different personalities.
Having witnessed a few meetings, I could only imagine what Thanksgiving dinner was like.
“Fine. I’ll spare a few hours.”
“Finn is going to teach you how to use some of the camera equipment so you can collect as much information as possible. This expansion is going to make us the largest and most productive timber company in the state.” He winced the moment the last word left his mouth and shot me a sheepish look. “Sorry, man.”
I shook my head. Damn if I didn’t hate the pity. I couldn’t escape it, even here. “I have no attachment to the land. It’s just trees to me.”
It was a means to an end. Selling off acres in hopes of bailing out the business was no skin off my back.
Owen had handled the sale from Boston. That was his specialty. Contracts and accounting and debt ratios. He was great at it.
I wanted nothing to do with Hebert Timber.
Like my brothers, I hoped the doors could remain open.
It would be horrific for our employees and subcontractors if we had to sell the business.
But I trusted Owen. If he thought this deal would help us continue operating, albeit at lower capacity, then I did too.
But my future had nothing to do with logging.
I had my eyes set on starting my business and taking care of Merry.
If I had to work for the Gagnons to do it, then I would.
Unsurprisingly, Adele left the office still fuming. I found her at her desk that afternoon, where she was pounding the keys of her laptop into submission.
“I’ve been tracking the weather and the GPS coordinates. Looks like the best time to leave will be Thursday around noon,” I said.
I kept my tone light and approached her slowly. If I startled her too much, she might throw a wrench at my head. And given her aim with an axe, I had zero doubts that she’d hit me dead between the eyes.
“The rules still stand.” She didn’t even look up from her screen. “And no mentioning the other night.”
I held my hands up in surrender. There was nothing in this life that could make me forget the sight of her mostly naked body. I’d balance an apple on my head and let her knock it off with an axe if it meant I could see her tits again. Not that I would say that out loud, of course.
“We’ve seen each other naked,” I said, raising one eyebrow. “We can move on now. It’ll be a quick trip. We’ll be back before sundown.”
She grasped the top of her laptop screen and slammed it shut, pinning me with one of her signature glares.
“She-Ra,” I soothed. “I know that look usually shrivels every set of testicles in a five-mile radius, but it won’t work on me.”
“Shut up,” she growled. “And forget about the other night.”
“As if I could. Seeing you naked might have been the highlight of my year. I gotta tell ya; I can’t get you out of my head.”
“I won.” She grunted. “No more flirting. No more staring at me like you want to devour me.”
That was a blow. Not only because the urge to do just that was unrelenting, but because she could read me so damn well. Though I supposed I’d never really hidden my attraction.
“I’m not Red Riding Hood, and you’re not the Big Bad Wolf.”
I smirked. She was partly correct. She was no Little Red Riding Hood. She was a wolf, just like me. That right there was what made her the most fascinating woman I’d ever met. She wasn’t sweet, and she wasn’t innocent. She was powerful and dirty and all my fantasies come to life.
“Got it. No flirting. No talk about nakedness. Any other rules?”
“The most important one.” She cocked a brow at me. “Don’t piss me off.”
Ha. As if that were even possible. “My breathing pisses you off, She-Ra,” I said, taking a single step closer.
“True.” She pushed her chair back a few inches and regarded me. “But when you’re flying a plane with me as a passenger, I want you to keep breathing, so I’ll grant you a stay of execution.”
I bowed my head in mock gratitude. “You are a benevolent queen.”
“You can go now.”
She swiveled in her seat, averting her attention from me, and put her booted feet up. Settling back, she picked up her phone from where it sat face down on the desk. Without another word, she swiped at the screen, effectively dismissing me.
My eyes were drawn to her purple nails as she gripped the device tightly. It took a moment to realize she was watching me with both brows lifted. Right. I was making this weird.
I turned to leave. But then my curiosity got the better of me.
And maybe my yearning to be in her proximity.
The pull between us was strengthening every day, and I wanted to be near her for another moment.
Then I’d leave. So what if I was a masochist?
Her insults excited me, and when she was angry, it lit up all my nerve endings.
Yeah, there was something wrong with me.
Sauntering back over, a glutton for punishment, I caught sight of her phone screen and stepped up behind her, bending low so my beard tickled her ear.
“Are those dating profiles, She-Ra?”
She immediately clutched the phone to her chest. “So what if they are?”
“Lemme see,” I said, holding out a hand.
“Fuck off and get out of my office.”
“Come on,” I teased. “We both know you have a bad picker. Let me see what’s out there.”
She hesitated for a second, which gave me an opening to grab her phone. I was a big guy, but my reflexes were still quick.
“Asshole,” she cursed, but she was smiling. Sometimes I thought she liked this game of cat and mouse as much as I did.
It was only a matter of time before she threw something at me or kicked my ass, so I’d enjoy it while it lasted. I studied the app on her phone. One I’d never heard of—LuvStruck. I clicked on her matches.
“Okay, Brad,” I said, perusing the photo of a boring-looking dude in a polo shirt.
“Likes dogs? Lame.”