Love at Last (Last Frontier Lodge #2) (6 page)

“Fine,” she replied automatically. “My dad’s glad you’re helping Gage with those heaters.”

Garrett nodded. “Heard the same from him.”

She grinned. “He figured it would take Gage most of the winter on his own. Sounds like you might have some experience with it.”

“So happens I used to do this for extra cash when I was in law school. My buddy’s family owned a heating business. I helped out on the weekends,” he explained with a small shrug.

“Why aren’t you a helpful guy?” she offered, unable to resist the urge to tease.

Garrett held her gaze. The air around them hummed, a current sizzling to life. Her pulse raced, liquid heat built in her core.

His eyes darkened and his shoulders rose and fell with a breath. He took a step into the room, closing the door behind him. He moved so swiftly, she didn’t have a chance to think. In a flash, he was at her side, leaning over. His lips caught hers in a searing kiss, his tongue sweeping inside. He pulled away just as swiftly. Her eyes slammed into his. He looked as stunned as she felt, which gave her a tiny degree of comfort.

He cleared his throat. “I can be pretty helpful…when I want.” The corner of his mouth hooked in a small smile before he turned away. He opened the door and glanced over his shoulder. “See you tomorrow night.”

She couldn’t speak, so she simply nodded.

***

Late that afternoon, Garrett kicked the snow off his boots before stepping into the side hallway by the kitchen. He and Gage had installed two more heaters this afternoon. After heading upstairs for a quick shower, Garrett was about to return downstairs when his phone buzzed. Glancing at the screen, he saw it was his office assistant, Elaine Moss. Elaine had been with him since the beginning. Not only did he appreciate her relentless work ethic, but she was also one of the most practical people he’d ever known. He hesitated for a second before answering because he wasn’t quite ready for reality to intrude.
What are you afraid of? Answer the damn phone.

With a sharp shake of his head, he answered. “Hey Elaine, what’s up?”

“I figured I’d better call you since you haven’t called to check in yet and you haven’t answered any of my emails.” Elaine’s tone was polite with a hint of frustration.

Garrett sighed and plunked down on the couch. Gage and Marley had a phenomenal view from their private quarters above the lodge restaurant. The ski slopes were in view with Kachemak Bay visible to the side. Snow was falling softly this afternoon, almost lazily floating down, the snowflakes plump and fluffy.

“I’m sorry, Elaine. I haven’t been blowing you off on purpose. I know you’re working overtime to cover for me, and I promise you’ll be paid double for every extra hour you put in. I just needed a break. Truth be told, I haven’t even checked my email.”

Elaine was quiet for a moment. “I didn’t think you were blowing me off on purpose. We’re juggling a lot here with you gone. I’ve handed over your most pressing cases to Olivia Brooks. I know she’s new here, but she’s the only associate who has time to cover. She’s doing a great job so far. Some of your old clients are getting pushy about when you’ll be back. Even though I don’t know why you’re out, I’m telling them it’s a family emergency. That’s about the only thing that shuts people up. Should I start scheduling for you after the month is out?”

Garrett could feel Elaine’s curiosity burning, but knew she was always gracious and would never push. He ran a hand through his hair, his eyes tracking a raven that flew by the windows. The sun was falling low in the sky, its soft light haloing the spruce trees. He took a breath. “I don’t know, Elaine. I might be out more than a month. I’m sorry.” His mind spun. He’d canceled everything for a month, but now that didn’t seem even close to enough time for him to clear his head. Gage’s comments about why that case got to him kept popping up, making him question if he even wanted to go back to what he’d been doing. That usually led to another round of questions, wondering if he was half out of his mind to walk away from the career he’d built. And then there was Delia—beautiful, sexy, sweet Delia who’d slipped through his sophisticated defenses. Hell, she was the only woman who’d made him notice he had defenses.

“I see,” Elaine said quietly. He could sense her thinking and waited.

“Do you mind me asking what’s going on? Out of nowhere, you had me cancel everything for a month, which is a long time in your world. Now it sounds like it might be longer. This isn’t like you, Garrett.”

“I know. I’m not trying to hide anything from you, Elaine. I haven’t taken more than a few days off at a time since before I started law school. I just need a break. If I had a better explanation, I’d give it to you. I’d appreciate it if you kept this to yourself. As far as I’m concerned, have Olivia cover anything pressing and I’ll check in once a week. Will that work?”

Elaine chuckled softly. “Garrett, did you forget you’re the boss? Of course, it’s okay. Olivia will be fine. This is giving her a chance to prove herself right out of the gate. As far as I’m concerned, you deserve a break. How about I call you Monday after next in the morning?”

“That’s more than a week away.”

“Exactly. You don’t need to check in any sooner than that. You’re amazing at your job, but with Olivia’s help, we can juggle everything we need. Take that break.”

The line went dead in his ear before Garrett had a chance to reply. He slowly set the phone down on the table by the couch and sat in the quiet room. He watched the sun’s slow bow behind the mountains, streamers of soft lavender and pink in its wake. In the fading light of dusk, he was startled out of his reverie when the door swung open.

Marley flicked the lights on and grinned when she saw him. “Hey Garrett! I didn’t even know you were up here.”

He stood from the couch and strode over to relieve her of the grocery bags dangling from her hands. Marley followed him into the kitchen area. Their private quarters were comprised of a wide room including the living room and a kitchen and dining area to one side with windows running the length of the room. A small hallway in the back led to the master bedroom and bath, along with two other bedrooms and a bathroom.

Garrett quickly got to work unloading the groceries. Marley giggled as she watched him. “Gage always said you were efficient. That appears to apply to everything.”

He glanced up at her, meeting her warm green eyes. He shrugged. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to take over like that.”

Marley shrugged. “No worries. I’m not territorial about my kitchen. I was about to start dinner for you guys.” She tugged a wine bottle out from the wine rack against the wall and arched a brow. “Wine or beer?”

“Beer. Can I help with anything?”

Marley shook her head. “Sit and keep me company. Gage will be up here soon. He was finishing up in the office.”

Garrett took the beer Marley slid across the counter to him and sat down on a stool while she started dicing and sautéing vegetables.

“What’s for dinner?”

“Stir fry. Hope you like it.”

“I’ll eat anything.”

Marley’s lips quirked in a smile. “You and Gage both.” She lifted the cutting board to slide onions into a pan. “Can I be a little nosy?” she asked.

Garrett shrugged. “Sure. I showed up unannounced at your place with plans to stay for a month. I can’t promise I’ll answer all your questions. Hell, I might not even know the answers, but ask away.” While Marley was new to the family, he trusted her completely. Once he’d seen her with Gage, any doubts he’d had dissipated. She was so clearly in love with his brother it made his heart twinge. Besides, she’d brought a lightness to Gage that Garrett hadn’t seen since before Gage went into the military.

“What’s up with you and Delia?”

Marley’s question slammed into him. He didn’t know what he’d expected her to ask, but it wasn’t that. He thought he’d been careful about how he was around Delia in front of others.

“I can tell by the look on your face, I’m not crazy then.”

“Damn, Marley. How about you give me a sec?” He knew his tone sounded slightly annoyed. He wasn’t annoyed with her, but himself. He’d never been anything other than cool and slightly distant when it came to women. His life didn’t leave much room for emotional entanglements, so he kept his relationships casual. They were more like business transactions. He had dates for premier work functions and not much else. He left women satisfied and made expectations very clear—there weren’t to be any. He was so thrown off guard with Delia, he was fending off questions about what was going on with them when he didn’t even know the answer himself.

He caught Marley’s concerned gaze. “I didn’t mean to push too far. It’s just I noticed you go into her office the other day and saw her right after. She looked a little,” Marley flushed and scrunched her nose. “Um, well, she looked like you’d just kissed her.” She paused and looked at him carefully. “Delia’s a good friend. I grew up with her, and her family was always close to mine. I know you don’t know me that well, so I don’t mean to be too pushy. It’s just I don’t want to see her get hurt.”

Garrett nodded. “If I seemed annoyed, it wasn’t with you. I, uh… Aw, hell, I don’t know what to say. Look, I don’t know what Gage has told you about me, but I work like crazy and relationships aren’t really my thing. I’m not an asshole, but I get why you might be worried about Delia. I’d prefer if you didn’t give Gage all the details because I don’t want to piss him off, but the thing is I like Delia. I didn’t plan on it. Just happened. So when you ask what’s up with me and Delia, that’s about all I can say.”

“Okay.” Marley eyed him for a long moment. “Seems like maybe I need to be worried about you too,” she said softly.

Garrett’s throat tightened, emotion washing through him. He forcibly cleared his throat. “Maybe so,” he said with a soft chuckle.

Marley nodded and turned away to add some garlic, spices and sauce to the pan. She gracefully gave him a moment of space and quiet before she spoke again. “Do you want to talk about it? Gage has been worried about you, you know?”

Garrett nodded. “I know. He doesn’t say much about it, but I can tell.” He tried to think of a way to make sense of what was going on with him, but nothing did. He took a swallow of beer. “I’d love to talk about it if I thought I could make sense of what’s going on with me.”

Marley kept stirring and nodded as if she expected him to continue. So he did. “All I know is one day I couldn’t even look at the woman who lost her lawsuit against the insurance company I was representing. That’s the day I canceled everything and flew up here. My office assistant called today, and I can’t even tell her when I’m going back because every time I try to think about it, I start to get a headache. Gage thinks I’m upset about that case because it hit too close to home.”

She nodded. “He mentioned that to me.”

He took a breath. “Right, so you know the details then. Maybe he has a point. I don’t know. All I know is I don’t even know if I want to go back anymore, and that makes me feel half crazy. I worked my ass off since the day I graduated from law school to get my practice where it is in Seattle. I make tons of money and have my pick of cases. It’s what I thought I wanted and now I’m tired of it. Makes me fuckin’ crazy.”

Marley turned the burner off and took a sip of wine. “The details were different, but I went through something similar.”

“The robbery?” he asked, referring to Marley’s abrupt move back to Diamond Creek from Seattle after she’d been robbed and assaulted. With the help of a friend and former SEAL team member, Gage had been instrumental in finding justice for Marley.

“The robbery was the straw that broke the camel’s back. I moved to Seattle with grand plans to start a tech company and be all kinds of amazing. I learned a lot and don’t regret being there, but it didn’t satisfy me the way I hoped. Sometimes you need to take a breather to find out what you want. The robbery gave me that chance. You’re not me, but maybe you should stop worrying about answers right now. From what Gage has told me, it’s not like you can’t afford not to work. I’m sure Gage already told you, but you’re welcome to stay here as long as you need.”

Garrett took a slow breath, the tension in his chest easing slightly. “Since I can’t seem to find the answers, I’ll try to take your advice.”

The door swung open and Gage walked through. “Hey man,” he said, slapping Garrett on the back as he walked by to drop a kiss on Marley’s cheek.

Conversation moved on to lighter matters. Hours later, Garrett lay in bed, Delia lingering in his thoughts. Any moment he was alone, she was on his mind. And any moment she was on his mind, lust streaked through him. He was rock hard. He kicked the covers off and strode into the bathroom. His hand was nothing like what he hoped to experience with Delia, but the release was enough for him to fall asleep.

Chapter 6

Delia’s phone chirped insistently. She came to a lurching stop in the parking lot and fumbled in her purse, not bothering to check the screen and see who was calling.

“Hello,” she said quickly. There was a long enough pause that she repeated her greeting. After the next pause went a beat too long, she sighed and started to pull the phone away when she heard her name.

“Yes?”

“Delia, it’s Terry.”

Her stomach lurched and dread filled her followed with flashing anger. Terry was Nick’s ever-absent father whom she hadn’t seen or heard from since the week after she told him she was pregnant. At the time, she’d been in her senior year in college and believed herself in love with Terry. Or so she’d thought. She’d bitterly come to learn the man she thought she loved wasn’t the man he was. She’d been in the untenable situation of only discovering she was pregnant when she was more than three months along. She’d been on the pill and rarely had her period anyway. She hadn’t even blinked when she didn’t have her period for three months straight. She’d been buried in classwork and working a full-time job at a local restaurant in Juneau.

After weeks of feeling nauseous every morning, her roommate, Sarah, had given her a long look and come home later that night with a pregnancy test. When Delia sputtered and told Sarah she was being ridiculous, Sarah had arched a brow and asked her if she’d forgotten to take her pills here and there. She’d missed a whopping total of two pills the month she’d gotten pregnant, but it was more than enough.