Chapter 7
Sadie
Twenty-four hours ago…
Touching down in Jackson Hole sends a warm, tingling feeling over my entire body. Kinda like nostalgia, or something close to it, mixed with a little excitement.
A whole new chapter is upon me now that I’ve left my old life in New York, at least for the holidays. I did it. I got on the plane with Mindy, and that was that. This break will be good for me. A fresh perspective. At least that’s what I’m telling myself.
It’s been a huge week of getting everything out of the apartment and making sure it was squeaky clean so I can get my security deposit back. Hopefully, it shouldn’t be long until my severance check comes in and I can recoup my non-existent savings.
Mindy and I travel like the little troopers we are with two suitcases, a small carry-on, my laptop and Mindy’s travel case.
I didn’t concentrate all that much on the plane, even though I had my e-reader readily charged to dive into a new book.
My mind kept flicking to my impromptu adventure and how I would never have dreamed in a million years I’d be able to spend Christmas in Alpine Falls with Bailey, and that I’d get to go see my folks all in one trip.
This whole being wrongfully dismissed debacle has really forced me to take a deep look at a lot of things in my life, and it’s made me realize very quickly that I’ve been stuck in a bit of a rut. It’s weird how a couple of bad things spiral into a lot of bad things. Self reflection is necessary.
The last couple of years have been a merry-go-round of sameville; something I didn’t want to acknowledge to myself until I was forced to.
But finally I’m able to breathe with the knowledge I can enjoy the holidays and let my hair down a little.
The minute I see Bailey, that fuzzy feeling returns at seeing my best friend for the first time in a year.
“OH MY GOD!” Bailey cries as I carefully place Mindy’s carrier on the ground to hug my bestie within an inch of her life.
“I’ve missed you so much!” I cry back as we hug for the longest time, neither of us wanting to let go.
Bailey eventually pulls away to glance down at me. “I can’t believe you’re here!”
I can’t wipe the smile off my face. “Me either.”
“I know a lot has happened in a week.” Her face falls slightly as she looks at me. “But you’ve done so well getting through it.”
“Well, I can’t say it’s been easy, but I’m here,” I declare. “And I realized last night I have no new winter shoes, only open toe pumps and some booties.”
Bailey laughs, her chocolate brown eyes scan over me as she laughs at my pumps. “We’ll get you some shoes, I have plenty you can borrow.”
Bailey and I are exact opposites. Where I’m blonde and short, she’s dark-haired, tall and athletic with gorgeous long legs that seem to go for miles. Luckily, we are the same shoe size, not that Bails has worn heels in her life.
She grins and gives me a one armed hug as I pick Mindy’s carrier back up. “We’ve got so much to catch up on,” she sings. “You need to fill me in as soon as we get your luggage.”
“Sounds like a conversation we need with wine,” I giggle, although there isn’t much to fill her in on because I’ve been talking to her every day since I lost my job.
We’ve been gassing about the holidays a lot, but the main topic of conversation has been about my job firing, and Kelto’s mysterious exit in the middle of the night. For now there’s not much I can do about it.
We chat excitedly all the way to the luggage carousel about all the things we’re going to do in Alpine Falls. Luckily, it doesn’t take long to grab everything, and we’re out of the airport in no time.
Once we have my belongings stowed in the back of Bailey’s Jeep, we head off for Alpine Falls. I’m finally able to let Mindy out of her carrier, and after a little cuddle from Bailey, she curls up on my lap and falls asleep in a ball.
“How was the flight?” Bailey asks as she navigates the airport exit with ease.
“It was great,” I say, looking out the windshield to the beautiful deep blue sky with roving clouds. “Mindy was pretty chill, nothing bothers her.”
“She knew Aunty Bailey was coming to get her, didn’t you, angel?” she coos.
Mindy nestles even more lazily into my lap hearing her name, and I swear to god she knows we’re talking about her.
Bailey has an affinity for animals, not so much for people, mainly horses.
She’s been burned by guys too in the past, so she threw herself into work, and running the stables.
She cares for the horses at the Lodge and ski resort, as well as her own stables, and recently decided she wanted to update the old bunkhouse on her property and turn it into rustic accommodations with all the modern conveniences.
Lord knows there are no spare Airbnbs around these parts at this time of year.
“She knew alright,” I laugh, resting my head back on the headrest, watching the picturesque backdrop of the mountains and trees enveloping me as we drive. “I think this is going to be exactly what I need.”
Bailey smiles. “I think so, too. I’m just sorry I couldn’t get away to help you move out and track down that Kelto bitch.”
“It’s okay. I know you’ve been busy. And yes, I never saw Kelto again,” I sigh. “But I had Viola and Jane around most days helping when they could.”
“They’re good friends. Being on your own at a time like that wouldn’t have been easy.”
“I could never feel alone when I have you in my life.” I can’t help but smile. “And thanks again for the ticket, you know I’ll pay you back.”
Bailey waves her hand across the space between us. “You don’t have to keep thanking me. And I told you it was a gift for you and Mindy. A few weeks here will feel like a year,” she assures me. “Unless…”
We share a glance, and I can’t help but laugh under my breath. “Unless?”
“The Lawless Farm job offer. You said Isabelle called you, right?”
“Yes, she wants me to come in on Monday to look around and have an informal chat.”
Bailey bangs her palms on the steering with obvious excitement. “That’s so cool! You’ll love Izzy, the whole family actually, oh, except Zane, but don’t worry about him. His bark is worse than his bite.”
I glance at her and don’t miss the frown that’s suddenly appeared on her face.
“Zane? Funny you didn’t mention him earlier, or his apparent grumpiness.
” Of course, I know who she means. It’s not like I didn’t take notice of the family photo on their website.
Who could forget that large, hulking man with a beard and piercing eyes?
He looks like a grizzly bear. I may or may not have had visions of him without his shirt on chopping wood, but it isn’t my fault TikTok put that idea in my head. I blame the algorithm.
Even from the photo, you can tell a lot; he’s huge, standing taller than the rest of his family, and I don’t know but there’s something about a mountain man in flannel. I wonder if he wears chaps? Good lord. I can’t be crushing on my could-be boss.
Isabelle did tell me I’d be working mainly with her brother.
“Yeah, about that,” she sighs.
“Hmm. It sounds like there’s something you don’t want to tell me.”
“Zane is Izzy’s brother. He kinda runs the farm side of things.”
“I kinda figured that part out when Isabelle explained the family dynamics.”
“He’s not all bad,” she concedes. “Just gruff.”
“Uh, huh, what else aren’t you telling me?” I press.
“Nothing.” She sounds way too innocent.
“Nothing?”
“If I tell you, you’ll get mad and say I lured you here on false pretenses.”
I gape at her. “Oh, no, Bailey, what did you do?”
“I didn’t do anything!” she maintains. “He’s just a bit of a pill, but don’t take it to heart, he’s like that with everyone.”
“Oh, great, that makes me feel so much better!” I shake my head.
“He means well and all, and he has a lot of good traits — a hard worker, devoted to the family—”
“Uh, huh, he’s a pill, I got it.”
She waves a hand. “You’ll be fine, you’re a New Yorker. Think of Zane as a big grizzly bear. He just needs a little taming.”
“That isn’t really helping, grizzly bears aren’t exactly friendly, nor can they be tamed.”
“See, you’re getting it already. Zane’s just a grump, not mean spirited or anything. In fact, you’ll probably barely see him, he’s always outside, wrestling with giant logs.”
My brows scrunch together. “Funny how you never mentioned any of this before I agreed to come.”
“Look, Iz is really desperate, and I’m sure Zane will be on his best behavior. You’ll see.”
I give her a sideways look. “Why does it feel like you’re trying to sell me on him?”
“Because he’s a good guy deep down. I promise.”
“Lucky he’s cute,” I sigh. “Or I might just turn around and go back to New York.”
I’m kidding, of course,
Her head whips around as fast as lightning. “Cute? How do you know?”
Double shit. I have nowhere to go from here, so I just keep on blurting. “Umm. I looked up the website; there’s a family photo,” I say. “He was the only one not smiling and looked a little intense, so I just assumed that was him.”
“Uh, huh.”
“Now you’re uh-huhing me?”
“I know what that look means,” she states.
I gape at her. “What look?”
“That look. He’s easy on the eyes, but Lawless is trouble. Don’t go mistaking it.”
He went from Zane to Lawless in two minutes. Here we go, my bestie in protective mode; she was bound to surface sooner or later.
“Right, but he’s my boss, so we’re all good on that front.”
She taps her chin with her pointer finger. “Then again, it could be perfect. If you fall for him, then you’d get to stay in Alpine Falls. I like that idea.”
I snort. “I’m not staying in Alpine Falls, remember. I’m here for the holidays, come what may after that.”
“Don’t be a spoilsport, let me live out my fantasy.” She pouts. “I always pictured us as old ladies, watching each other’s grandkids grow up together in a small town, just like we did.”
I smile at the memories. “Miracles can happen.” I shrug. “But judging from the lack of men you’re always complaining about in this town, I doubt it’s gonna happen anytime soon.”
“Party pooper.”
I poke my tongue. “Just keeping it real.”