Chapter One
Charlotte
I’ve never really belonged here. I’m not talking about the mountain. I love the mountain, especially this time of year, when the snow is still falling and there’s a reason to sit by the fire, drink tea, and read with Dragon, my orange tabby.
Where I don’t belong is in this family.
I don’t love shopping and getting my nails done like my mother. I don’t love gossip and fancy clothes like my sister. And while I love the outdoors, the only person who enjoyed it with me passed away five years ago.
My dad was one of a kind. The kind of guy who’d make you campfire pancakes with his rifle leaned against the hunting blind window but never shot a thing.
Heck, most of the time we left breakfast scraps for whatever animal wandered by.
The blind was just a place for him to disappear for a while.
He was a nice man, and I admired him and everything he stood for.
Truth be told, I’m not entirely sure what he was doing with my mother to begin with.
They were from two different planets, and from what I saw, they argued constantly.
I’m not talking about petty little disagreements.
I’m talking about major arguments. Arguments where my mother would scream, holler, and question every decision my dad made.
I’ve tried not to let the facts of their relationship cloud my views of her, but it’s hard.
My dad was my best friend, and I know he deserved better.
It doesn’t help that my mom and my sister are a completely different breed from me.
They love designer outfits, getting regular pampering, obsessing about every strand of hair, and complaining about everyone.
I couldn’t care less about any of those things.
Still, I’m here trying to support my sister's very last-minute wedding to a man she barely knows. I’m watching her try on white dresses for the millionth time. I’m going with the flow, and I’m smiling while drinking champagne out of fancy crystal glasses.
Heck, I even wore a dress today and made small talk with my mom about a sale going on at a department store in the Springs. Despite all this, both my mother and my sister have found a way to berate me at every turn.
“This boy you’re dating,” my mother leans in, her breath reeking of alcohol, “does he have plans to do anything other than construction? That’s hardly a living.”
I consider bringing up the fact that my mother married a blue-collar man who she claimed to love and care for…
but now doesn’t feel like the time. Instead, I narrow my brows and tilt my head toward her, very prominently conveying my confusion.
Sure, my boyfriend is fake, but I really hate how she’s talking about him.
“Mom, Jake is doing really well for himself.”
My mother laughs under her breath and turns back toward my sister, who’s sauntering out in another low-cut white dress that’s two sizes too small. “And when are we going to get to meet this… Jake? Will he be showing his face at the wedding?”
Candace, my beautiful, perfect sister, does a full spin for everyone to swoon over.
“Of course he’s coming to the wedding.” My stomach churns as I say the words…
mostly because Jake doesn’t exist. Well, I mean, Jake exists, I work for him, he’s one of my bosses, but he doesn’t exist beyond that.
He can’t exist beyond that. It would be insanely inappropriate for him to exist beyond that.
“Good,” my mother quips as my sister disappears into the backroom for another change. “I’m excited to finally meet the man you’ve been talking about for what… two years. I was starting to think the boy was a figment of your imagination.”
I wonder if I should tell her he’s not a boy. He’s in fact a very grown man, about twenty years my senior. A man closer to her age than my own. A man I have no business talking to, thinking about, or lusting after because he’s not my boyfriend. He’s my boss.
“Earth to Charlotte!” My mother nudges my elbow, and I jump.
“Sorry. Yeah, just thinking about the wedding. Everything is happening so fast. I mean, Candace is going to be a married woman before the end of the week. That’s pretty crazy to think about.
She’s only eighteen.” I know the second the words come out of my mouth, she’s going to launch into a defense.
“Your father and I got married at eighteen, and we spent forty-five years happy as can be.”
Happy as can be… yeah right. I bite back a comment on how I partly blame her for my father’s heart attack. I mean, you can’t tell me the stress she put him under didn’t add to his heart issues.
Thankfully, my phone buzzes, offering a distraction. I glance down at the screen to see who’s calling. It’s my friend Maya. She’s the other receptionist at work, and I figure I better answer considering I’m here on an extended lunch break.
I lift a finger toward my mother and pull the phone toward my ear, gesturing to everyone that I’ll be taking a call.
My mother rolls her eyes, and a few of Candace’s friends smile and nod before I slide out onto Main Street and suck in the cold January air. Fresh air has never felt so nice.
“Hey, what’s up?”
“Jake and Holden just stopped in the office looking for you.” Maya’s voice sounds panicked. “They were looking for updates on the Wilder brothers project. The town ordinance guy just came around and slapped a stop-work order on the distillery.”
Oh my God… the permits! My chest tightens, and my head starts to spin. I didn’t reapply for the temporary power permits. I brush my hand back through my hair and start to hyperventilate this magically fresh air in an attempt to calm myself down, but it’s not working.
I’ve been so distracted with all my own drama that I totally spaced on the absolutely most important thing I need to do for work.
Awesome job, Charlotte.
“Were they upset I was gone?”
Maya clears her throat. “They didn’t sound happy. I told them you had a family emergency, but you should probably get back here sooner rather than later. You know these guys. They have zero chill.”
My stomach churns as I crane my neck back to look up at the puffy white clouds rolling by. What the hell is wrong with me? How could I forget something so important? It’s my job to remember the permits.
I’ve barely returned to a normal standing position when I see a tall, broad man with tattoos covering his neck walking toward me.
He’s wearing a Carhartt jacket and a pair of work boots.
His hat is on low, and though this matches the description of multiple men in this town, I know right away the man walking toward me is Jake.
For one, Jake is a monster of a man with a particular body type that very few are graced with. Two, the office for Blackrock Contracting is only a few doors down from the dress shop. Three, you’d have to walk this way up the road to get anywhere else. Four, he already sees me and he’s waving.
Shit!
I drag in another deep breath, praying for a miracle. “Hey, Jake.”
“What are you doing? Maya said you had a family emergency.” He glances up at the dress shop sign and then down at my outfit, which doesn’t look like a family emergency type outfit. It looks like a girl-trying-to-fit-in outfit.
I’m pretty sure this doesn’t end well, which sucks because I really love having my own home, heat, and food to eat.
“Yeah. I ugh, I—”
“Charlotte!” My mother’s voice pierces the cold, and my chest nearly explodes.
This can’t be happening. This seriously can’t be happening!
The world begins to fray around the edges, and I glance toward my mom in a panic.
“I’m coming back in, Mom. Just give me a second, okay?
” I stand between her and Jake, hoping she doesn’t see him and just goes back into the dress shop as quickly as she popped out, but she doesn’t.
Despite the cold, she steps out into the street with no coat, wraps her arms around herself, and stares up at the man I’ve been fantasizing about for years.
The man I’ve been describing as my boyfriend.
“Who is this, Charlotte?” My mother’s voice softens as she extends her hand toward the giant before us.
“Jake.” My boss stretches out his hand to greet my mother. “Sorry to interrupt whatever’s going on here. I just needed your daughter for a mo—”
“Jake!” My mother leans into his chest and hugs him like a long-lost family member. “I’ve heard so much about you. I’ve gotta say, I questioned what Charlotte would see in a working man, but I get it now! You’re handsome!”
Well, looks like we’re planning a wedding and a funeral now ‘cause I’m pretty sure my heart just stopped.
I stare toward Jake, eyes wide as though maybe he’ll be able to pick up on my call for help.
His gaze meets mine, then darts back toward my mom. “Thank you.” He swallows hard. “I, ugh, if I could get a second with your daughter, that would be great.”
“Oh, yes. Of course.” My mother squeezes Jake’s hand and steps back into the shop, but not before slapping me on the shoulder. “Such a big, strong man, Charlotte! Good for you!”
Oh my God! I’m not sure humiliation gets any worse than this. In fact, I’m sure it doesn’t. There’s no possible way. I’d rather piss my pants in front of a crowd of people rather than live this moment, and judging by Jake’s downturned expression, I gather he’s feeling the same way.