2. Roman

"Oh my. You're the Roman that Sasha always talks about?"

The grey-haired woman in the kitchen just… hugs me. She doesn't wait for any kind of sign that I'm okay with it. She just does. And… I like it.

"I am. You must be the Millie he always talks about."

She smiles warmly at Sasha and a wave of nostalgia hits me so hard I have to blink it back. It's been over twenty years since I'd been in a kitchen with my mother, and that wave of emotion came out of nowhere.

"I am. Here, sit. I made Sasha's favourite cookies, and he said you like gingersnaps."

I settle on a stool at the large industrial stainless steel kitchen island. Millie places plates of cookies down and Sasha bounces with a laugh.

"Ah, yeah! How awesome! You're a peach Millie." Sasha reaches for his maple creme cookie with the boyish exuberance I love about him.

"All he ever eats is cookies, you know."

Millie chastises Sasha, but it's all in jest. She'd feed him cookies every day if he asked for it by the looks of things.

Sasha playfully sticks out his tongue as I reach for a gingersnap.

"It's not my fault you got me hooked on maple everything like it's heroin, Millie."

"I'm certain I'm not forcing you to eat them, my dear. Now, Roman, are you happy to join us? What did you think about the drive in?"

Pausing with a cookie at my mouth, my eyes dart to Sasha. He raises an eyebrow with pursed lips and I turn back to Millie.

"I bet it's really pretty when the snow melts."

"Oh, it is! But we need the snow and all the mess of the melt to make the syrup this boy loves." She ruffles the hair on Sasha's head and he smiles so big it's a pull on my heart. Sasha never had a family like I do. This is good for him. He's happy and thriving here and I couldn't be more thrilled to witness it.

"There's my beauty. I thought I heard you come in."

Leaf enters the kitchen and kisses Sasha, letting his warm gaze linger on his lover before turning to greet me.

"Nice to see you again, Roman. Welcome to the lodge. How did you like Sasha behind the wheel of a giant half-tonne? He's only taken out a few shrubs so far."

Leaf smiles at Sasha, and I have to look away. Leaf's gaze at my friend sets off an uncomfortable ache in my chest. One that keeps returning, and it's more annoying than heartburn. I have no desire to be all hearts and rainbows with one man forever, but sometimes the look on Sasha's face makes me want to change my mind. Almost.

"I wasn't in fear of my life, Leaf. Don't worry about that. But I'll need to get myself a 4x4 from what Sasha said. I was thinking about a Land Rover. Is there a dealer nearby?"

Millie sets a glass of milk in front of me, and I happily reach for another gingersnap. I could get used to this.

"Save your money and get a GM. If a Land Rover breaks, you're towing it two hours away for repair." A man wearing a pair of work overalls with no shirt underneath enters the kitchen and pulls a jug of orange juice from the fridge with a nod to Millie. He's all wide shoulders and muscles built with labour, not gym time. A swirl of dark chest hair peeks out from the front of his overalls and I wonder how the hell he's not cold without a shirt on. His hands look like he just dismantled a car engine. Covered in dirt or oil, it's almost too hard to tell the colour of his skin.

Although I can tell he still carries a tan from the previous summer. His chest is more pale than his arms.

I watch as he plucks a glass off a nearby tray and pours himself a glass of juice, touching the cap with his filthy hands. And something about that makes me snap.

"You're in a kitchen. You should wash your hands before touching stuff in the fridge. I hope that juice isn't for guests."

The man pauses and fixes his pale blue eyes on me. Along with everyone else.

"Are you the new kitchen police?"

"No."

"Then keep your opinions to yourself."

"Like you kept your opinion about a Land Rover to yourself?"

He nods with a condescending glance. "That wasn't an opinion. It's a fact. I'm doing you a favour."

"Well, I'm doing the guests of this lodge a favour asking you to wash before you paw everything with your filth."

"Ro, don't be so rude."

Sasha elbows me with a questioning stare.

"I'm not rude. He is."

The burly man pauses his drinking and smirks.

"Ah, so you're Roman. I should've guessed."

Standing straight, I glare at him. Words spoken to me with that tone are never good. And I won't let him think I have no backbone.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Leaf claps his hand on the man's back. "Okay. Enough, you two. Roman, this is my brother Perry and I'm going to ask that you forgive his attitude today. We've been rushing to finish the renovations in your suite and we hit a snag. He's not usually like this."

"I fixed it." Perry grits and instead of flying off the handle, I breathe in and count to five.

"Is there a problem with the room?"

"Not anymore…Roman." He fake smiles at me. "Your palace is ready."

He makes a show of touching the juice cap again before kissing Millie on the head and leaving the way he came.

"Um, so I told you Leaf wanted to renovate, and this was the perfect time to do it, remember?" Sasha wrings his hands and I immediately let the anger go. I don't like him upset.

"I do. I'm sorry. But if I caused you any problems, I can help recoup the costs, Leaf."

"Oh, that's unnecessary. It's just…" Leaf rubs the back of his neck and Sasha smoothes a hand on his back.

"What he's trying to say is he got a little carried away in his quest to become the next great house flipper and fix past problems in an older building. There was a plumbing issue, and it took more work than he or Perry realized. They've put in some long hours and Perry is likely just overtired. But the good news is it's fixed!"

Leaf smiles with a nod. "Yeah, it's fixed. We hope you like it."

"Okay, great. Can I get my bags and settle in then?"

Sasha loops his arm through mine as we head to his truck for my substantial number of suitcases. Leaf comes with us and we catch up as the three of us struggle with the luggage through the lodge and up the short staircase to my suite. Well, Sasha and I struggle. Leaf seems to be fine carrying two enormous suitcases on his own.

When we reach the door, Leaf fishes out an old-fashioned key with a wooden maple leaf attached to it.

"Sorry, it's not a key card or iPhone or whatever." He smiles sheepishly. "I'm sure Sasha has told you I'm old school here. My guests don't particularly care, so it's still keys."

Sasha snorts. "Just a little old school, but I love you like that."

They do this cute, happy couple kiss thing in front of me while he turns the key to my room and I roll my eyes. Couples should reserve cuteness like that for puppies, not themselves.

The door swings open and I'm greeted with the smell of fresh paint and a room brimming with natural sunlight.

The room itself is bright and modern, which I wasn't expecting. New light fixtures and fresh carpet are obvious in the main room, and I smile when I notice the boxes piled up against the wall.

"Ah! Is that all my fabric?"

Rushing forward, I check the tags and it's indeed the shipment I was hoping for.

"They came two days ago. I just brought them up here but thought you'd like to wait to open them. And come see what we did in the bathroom."

Sasha pulls me into the oversized bathroom with a gorgeous shower.

"This is where the reno problems happened, so really it's my fault. I know you need to steam the fabric, so instead of constantly having to fill your steamer, the shower has an option for steam. I ordered a special rack to hold the fabric and you can just wheel it in and turn the steam on. Use an iron if needed on problem spots. It will decrease your work time, I hope."

Sasha, my bestest friend in the world, waits for my response and I'm truly touched by his thoughtfulness.

"This is amazing, Sasha. I love it."

"I mean, you can use it for a steam room, too. It's not just for the fabric. I know you liked those Turkish steam baths that time in Montreal. I just…I want you to feel at home here, Ro."

"You're here. My fabric is here and we're about to work together…finally. This will be home, Sasha. Don't worry about me."

"Okay." His sunshine grin is hard not to return. "I'm so glad you're here. I can't wait for you to see the sugar bush and come to the Maple Festival. And feed you pancakes! You will die for the ones Millie makes."

Sasha once again loops his arm through mine and pulls me out of the bathroom to the main room.

"We should let him get settled, beauty. We thought you'd like to join us for dinner tonight in our apartment. This suite has no cooking facilities, unlike our cabins, so you'll need to use the lodge kitchen or join us when you like."

"I'm sure I'll figure it all out. I'd love to join you guys, though!"

"I'll come and get you around 6 P.M., if that's okay? I'll give you a full tour and show you where you can always find us."

"That's perfect."

After saying goodbye to Sasha and Leaf, I close the door with a sigh and survey the new space, done especially for me. It's small but functional and should do just fine while we get started. They set up one bedroom with two large tables for me to work on, and the other one is for sleeping.

Rolling one mammoth hard-sided Louis Vuitton suitcase into the bedroom, I'm pleased to see the king-size bed and an oversized wardrobe. It won't even contain my selection of business suits and corsets, but it will do for now. I have a feeling I may have to adjust my clothing choices here, anyway.

I've never been picky about the places I lay my head at night. When I moved out of my family home and away from my sisters, I preferred to share apartments with people who needed the help. As long as it wasn't some sketchy place where I'd get robbed, I was game. And it came with ample closet space, of course.

Where I called home wasn't something I ever concerned myself with. I'd rather drive a comfortable car and wear nice clothes than spend money on a fancy apartment or house I rarely spend time in. Not to mention my pesky hang-up about not being able to sleep unless someone else was in the house.

So this arrangement should do just fine. I hope.

After unpacking my largest suitcase, I grab the tote with my toiletries, strip down and head to the shower Sasha was so excited about.

For good reason.

After arranging all my hair and skin care products and placing my favourites in the shower, I fire it up and step inside. The water is hot and perfect and the steam releases the knots in my muscles as I plaster my favourite mud mask on and sink into the warmth.

Sasha isn't my best friend for nothing. This is amazing for me to sit and enjoy without leaving my room. I'll have to buy him one of those sappy romance books he loves as a thank-you. Maybe on my first visit to town after I get a vehicle. No, that will take too long. I'll ask for a ride in sooner and treat him. Hell, I should buy him the whole dang store for this.

With a low chime, the timer clicks, and the steam stops. Rinsing off, I step out and go through my moisturizing routine, humming and happy. Truly happy.

I might not like the mud and ick of spring here in the bush, but I love everything else. Mostly.

Until I arrive at Sasha and Leaf's place.