Chapter 4

Chapter Four

The phone rang at the front desk, and Jen lifted her head, blinking. She willed herself awake and disentangled herself from Colby. Ever since the incident the year before where he’d gotten lost in the woods, Colby had suffered from constant nightmares.

He slept with her now, which made nighttimes even more difficult. But it was better than waking up to him screaming from his bedroom. And he didn’t fit so well in the Pack ’n Play at the front guest lodge bedroom anymore.

She hadn’t taken her socks off, but her toes curled on the cold wooden floorboards anyway as she hurried from the back bedroom toward the front desk. Lifting the phone, she managed, “Front desk, can I help you?”

There was a pause on the other line. Then a male voice. “Were you sleeping?”

Somehow, the question annoyed her more than it should. As though she didn’t have the right to sleep. “Can I help you?”

“There doesn’t appear to be any hot water in my cabin. I’d like to switch to another cabin so I can take a shower before bed.”

She checked her watch. It was almost two in the morning. Who in the hell took showers at two in the morning? “Uh . . . sir, did you try moving the lever to the other side?” Somehow what people failed to try amazed her. She’d had to visit cabins and explain how almost all the appliances worked at one time or another.

The laugh on the other end was humorless. “Yes, I checked the other side. Went to college, too.”

“I wasn’t questioning your intelligence.” She sighed. Why, of all nights, did she have to have a difficult customer tonight? She would rather put him in a new cabin and explain things to Laura in the morning. She checked the reservation. Single guest. In their most expensive cabin.

Looking at the schedule, her heart fell. “Unfortunately, sir, there aren’t any other cabins available. Weekend check-ins include Thursday evenings around here. But all the cabins are serviced regularly. If there was an issue with the hot water, we would have heard about it by now. My suggestion is to let the water run for a bit.”

Terse silence sounded on the other end. “I’d like to have someone from the front desk come and check on the water. Within the next twenty minutes. Thanks.”

The line went dead.

Jen gritted her teeth. She knew what Mark Dawson, who ran the cabins with his wife Laura, would say. He’d say not to go, that it wasn’t worth putting herself at risk to go help a guest in the middle of the night. But the last thing she needed was a guest complaining about her to Laura in the morning. She wanted to wake up tomorrow with new luck and new perspective. Not carry over the shittiness of the previous day into the morning.

Sighing, she yanked her boots and coat on and headed for the door. She pulled the door closed and deadbolted it. Then she locked the outer glass door. No way in hell she was leaving Colby sleeping without several locks. Hopefully, he wouldn’t wake up and realize he was alone.

Fortunately, the complainer was in cabin four, which was a short walk from the front guest lodge. A halo showed around the full moon, Orion low in the sky already. She frowned and shoved her hands in her pockets.

She trudged up to the cabin, her eyes burning. This would kill her sleep tonight. Once she woke up like this, she could never get back to sleep.

Cabin four was one of the biggest cabins for guests who wanted more luxury than rustic camping. Why would a single guest rent this cabin? Usually, it was for large groups or families.

The light on the porch flipped on, and the door opened as she approached.

Not this guy.

Complainer and Hot Guy from the drive-through were one and the same. Of course. Why wouldn’t it be this way?

Except he wasn’t wearing a suit anymore. He had a fitted T-shirt and pajama pants on. And slippers. How cozy. She barely kept herself from rolling her eyes, surprised that he wasn’t wearing a fleece robe. Rich, spoiled jerk.

The look in his eyes made it clear he recognized her, too. “You,” he said simply.

“Jen.” She stepped through the open doorway. “What seems to be the problem, Mr....”

“Jason.” He motioned her farther in. “I told you. Hot water is broken.”

She sighed and made a beeline for the master bathroom on the first floor. Somehow, she doubted he was using the loft bedroom, even though the view was the best Redding Cabins had to provide. This guy liked his convenience. Her guess proved right. A travel case was open on the sink, and an open box of condoms was on the toilet.

Oh. No wonder he wanted a shower. She didn’t look to see if whoever he’d brought back was still here because she didn’t want to know.

Not her place to judge or even think about guest behavior. She wanted to get out of the cabin as soon as possible. Not that it surprised her he had someone with him. He was handsome. And virile.

Stop it.

She hadn’t had sex in far too long. After her experience with Kevin, she’d sworn off sex without some sort of commitment. Not that Kevin hadn’t promised to be committed. That was beside the point. Maybe things would get serious with Brad soon enough for that to enter the equation, though. She would welcome the end to her very long dry spell.

This line of thought needed to end. Jen went over to the shower and pulled the lever all the way to the left, turning the spray on.

Jason came to the doorway. He crossed his arms, watching her wordlessly. The muscles in his biceps flexed and were toned and smooth. Not that she was trying to pay attention. Her gaze flitted away, lower, and she stared at the floor. Goddammit, Jen . Get it together. She did not want this man thinking she was staring at his package.

“I already did that,” he said finally.

A blush warmed her cheeks. “How long did you leave it on?”

“Enough for it to warm up.” He scowled. “I don’t appreciate the insinuation that I don’t know how to use a shower.”

She checked her watch, not wanting to talk to him. Should she acknowledge their earlier interaction? Not doing so made the whole thing more awkward. She gave him a tight smile. “You’re not from around here, right?”

“I’m from Chicago.”

“Right.” City boy. It showed. “The thing is, we’re on well and septic systems out here. And the water is coming straight from the well, which is way underground, and it’s winter. So it’s freezing. Takes a bit for warm water to come out of the faucets because of the lower water pressure.” She pointed at the sign on the wall by the shower where this was explained.

She walked over to the shower and put her hand under the stream. The temperature had warmed, so it wouldn’t be long now before steam was filling the bathroom. “Give it another minute, and you’ll be fine.”

With a polite smile, she turned to go.

Jason tested the water temperature for himself. Seemingly satisfied with her explanation, he dried his hand, not saying anything else.

All right. Time to go. She headed for the front door. His footsteps padded behind her. Without looking back, she said, “If you need anything else, let me know.”

He hurried to the door. “Wait.” He offered an apologetic smile. “Sorry for making you come out here. I really thought it was broken. I swear I let it run like a minute before.”

“Yup. No problem.” She winced inwardly. He couldn’t help that she was a grouch tonight. Or can he? He had definitely added to her struggles.

“No kid tonight?”

She frowned, meeting his gaze. Something about him felt so familiar and goose bumps rose on her arms. Not that it was any of his business to ask about Colby. But he seemed like he wanted to be more congenial. “He’s at the front guest lodge. Asleep. That’s why I should get going now. Don’t want him to wake up and find out I’m not there.”

“You left him there by himself?” He raised one dark brow.

She gave him a funny look. The accusatory way he said it made it sound like she’d left him in the middle of the street to play in rush hour. Irritation pricked her shoulders, bunching her muscles there. “Well, when guests demand I pay them a service call at two o’clock in the morning and hang up on me, it doesn’t leave me much choice. Next time, maybe run the water for a bit before you assume it’s not working. Like I had suggested.” Or read the sign.

His features darkened. “Thanks again. Good night.”

The door closed with a bang behind her.

God, what a jerk. He deserved every bit of her rudeness. Laura wouldn’t be happy with her if he complained, though, which he probably would now.

Jen hurried back toward the front guest lodge. His comments about her leaving Colby alone had put her mom brain into hyperdrive, thinking of all the ways he could get up and injure himself.

Worse still, it reminded her of that horrible night a year earlier. Thank God for Sam and Garrett's levelheaded thinking and selfless actions that had saved Colby. She’d never been more terrified in her life.

Jen’s hands shook as she unlocked the doors to the guest lodge. She held her breath, listening for the sounds of Colby’s frightened screams. Thankfully, she heard nothing.

Shutting the door quietly, she locked the front door and slipped back toward the bedroom behind the front desk. The sounds of Colby’s soft breathing reached her, and her body relaxed.

Her coat crinkled as she slipped it off and unlaced her boots. She climbed back into the bed and curled her arms around Colby, tucking his warm body against her. Her mom said it was a mistake to co-sleep with him, that he’d have a hard time transitioning to his own bed later. Mom even suggested that if she ever got married, Colby might feel displaced by his stepdad.

Well, who cared if she never had another man in her bed again?

Kevin had promised all sorts of things, and look where it had gotten her?

She had Colby. She was young with so much life ahead of her, but already she felt he was all she needed. Just the two of them versus the world. And no one would ever convince her otherwise.