Summer on the Mountain (23 page)

“That’s ancient history,” Jarrod cut in angrily.  “We got past that, Rick.”

“Hey, I know, don’t take my head off.  I just thought…”

“You thought what?”

“Nothing.  You, uh, want the dog?” he broached tentatively.  “Meg said if I come back with him, well, she said not to bother coming back.”

Jarrod paused, studying his friend, and then turned to stare at the dog.  Interestingly, Summer had loved the darned thing—just as she had fallen in love with nearly everything else on the mountaintop.  Had she fallen in love with him too?  Did he dare to hope?

He turned back to Rick, who watched him as hopefully and expectantly as a dog awaiting a treat.  “Oh, all right.  I’ll take him.  But I have to go now.”

“Where you going?” he asked.  “I wanted to talk to you about the big sting I missed thanks to Meg’s allergy attack.”

“Later,” he said.  “Bring Brutus back later.  I’m going for a drive.”

“Where?”

“To the city.  I’m bringing Summer home.  She belongs with me—us,” he said, glancing ruefully at Brutus.

The dog thumped his tail in response. 

 Rick watched his friend drive away.  He’d bring Brutus back later all right.  Finally, he’d found a home for his best friend … and with one of his best friends.  He hoped Summer would be open to the idea of a big dog in her life.  He also sincerely hoped Jarrod wouldn’t turn out to be allergic to dogs.  Brutus was a lot of dog to be allergic to.

Jarrod arrived at the gallery just as a young woman was about to close the door.  She smiled apologetically and pointed at the “closed” sign she held in her hand.

“Is my mom here?” he asked.  “I mean, is Gwendolyn here?”

“She left hours ago.”

“Is Summer around?”

“She left, too.”

“Who are you?” he asked suddenly.  He hadn’t heard his mother intended to hire a new employee.

“I work here.  I just recently started.”

“Oh.”

Jarrod sighed heavily, glancing off across the gallery.  His eyes lighted on a sketch that definitely caught his attention.  He strode across the room and took in the drawing of him, standing lakeside, and staring out across the lake.

The girl followed him and he turned to her.  “That’s me,” he said incredulously.

She smiled awkwardly.  “Okay.”

Jarrod realized she appeared frightened, and he had to admit he was acting strange.  “I’m sorry.  I’ll leave.”  He snatched the sketch off the wall.  “I’m taking this with me.”

He could see by the startled expression on her face that she wasn’t sure how to respond to that declaration.  She watched him uncertainly, as if he were a maniac, or a thief, or both.  He knew she would dial 911 the second he left the gallery, and the last thing he needed was to be accosted by local law enforcement. 

With a long sigh, he snatched his cell phone off his belt and punched in his mom’s number.  She picked up on the first ring.  “Mom, I’m at the gallery.  Will you please tell your new hire I’m not an ax murderer?”

“What’s in it for me?”

“Mom!”

“Oh, all right.”

He thrust his phone at the girl, who took it and listened to his mother speak briefly.  She smiled tentatively as she passed him back his phone.  “You’re not an ax murderer,” she said with relief, and then bestowed upon him what he figured must be her most winning smile.  The girl was pretty, but she was no Summer.

“Gotta go,” he said, and then strode out of the gallery with the sketch tucked under his arm.

  He drove to Summer’s place, having found her address in the phone book. 

She wasn’t home when he arrived, but he resolved he would wait as long as necessary.  All night if he had to.

***

Summer hung the last painting in Leonard’s study, stepping back to assure it was straight.  To be certain, she reached for the level and checked it.  Spot on, as usual.  “All done,” she called to Gwendolyn, who rushed into the room in a flurry of enthusiasm.

“I can’t wait for Leonard to see them,” she cried.  “Okay, then, don’t go anywhere.  I’m going to get him.”

Gwendolyn dashed outside to call Leonard into the couple’s home, and Summer sighed loudly.  She hoped he would love the paintings, but she couldn’t seem to conjure up any excitement at the prospect.  The wind had seemingly gone out of her sails again, and she suspected her burst of creative energy on the mountaintop might have abandoned her once again.  Upon her arrival home, she had painted one last painting, but now had no desire to pick up a paint brush.

She dropped into a chair in Leonard’s study, waiting for the couple to enter.  Her eyes lighted on the painting of the lake, and she forced back a sigh.  She missed the lake, its crystalline beauty beckoning to her even now.  She missed the clean alpine air, and the rugged beauty of the mountain terrain.  She missed everything, she realized sadly.  Most of all, she missed Jarrod.

When Gwendolyn and Leonard entered the room, she rose and watched Leonard’s face for any expression.  When he broke into a wide smile, she knew she had captured the beauty of his beloved mountaintop.  He crossed the room and embraced her.  “You see my mountain as I see it,” he whispered with wonder, pulling back to study her face.

She nodded, fighting the tears that threatened to spill over.  He watched her knowingly, but stepped away from her when Gwendolyn directed him to various features of the paintings.  “See, sweetheart, Summer has painted the lake, the cabin, Jarrod’s cabin and look here, she has even painted Jarrod standing lakeside.”

Summer glanced tentatively at the latter painting.  It had been based on the sketch she had drawn of Jarrod.  She had transferred the drawing to canvas and painted him standing against the sparkling lake.  Even she had to admit it was good—a rendition of a handsome, rugged man in his element.  This painting spoke to Summer like no other, reminding her of how much she missed him.

Unfortunately, it was clear to her he didn’t miss her.  She hadn’t heard a word from him.

She pulled her eyes away from the painting, realizing that Gwendolyn and Leonard were watching her curiously.  She attempted a smile.  “I’m so glad you like the paintings, Leonard.”  

“As am I,” Gwendolyn said, turning from Summer and to her husband. 

“You’ve captured the beauty of my mountain home.  I can’t thank you enough,” Leonard said softly.

She smiled, and then said her goodbyes.  She felt a little surprised when Gwendolyn practically shoved her toward the front door, but then, she didn’t know what her friend knew—that Jarrod was waiting for her.

Summer looked forward to a quiet evening at home, having scarcely had time to settle in.  She realized she hadn’t made much of an effort, perhaps because it no longer felt like home.  Instead, the tiny space felt confining, as if the walls were closing in.  She reasoned anyone would experience the sensation after having vacationed on a

mountain-top.  

After leaving her friends’ home, she stopped briefly to pick up a loaf of bread and a few grocery items at the market, and then headed to her condo.  She pulled into her garage, exited her vehicle, and was about to close the big door behind her when she heard a masculine voice call her name.

She spun around, her eyes widening in surprise.  “Jarrod!”

He smiled awkwardly, running a hand through his hair.  “I’ve been waiting for you.”

She returned his smile, albeit tremulously. 

“It’s good to see you,” he told her, crossing the garage and standing beside her.  He reached for the bag of groceries in her arms.  “May I come in?  We need to talk.”

 She nodded, not trusting herself to speak yet. 

Jarrod followed her through the door that led past her laundry room and into the tiny kitchen.  He set the groceries on the counter top, glancing around.  “Nice place.”

“Thank you.”  She quickly began putting the groceries away, glad for the opportunity to still her pounding heart.  Once the groceries were stowed away, she turned back to him. “Would you like to sit down?”

He followed her into great room off the kitchen and sat down on the plush sofa.  She sat in a chair across from him.  “Are you surprised to see me?” he asked, studying her curiously.

“Surprised you’d
want
to see me,” she answered honestly.

He appeared taken aback.  “Why would you say that?  Of course I want to see you.  Summer, why did you leave like you did?  I was worried sick.”

“You were?” she said, daring to hope it might be true.

He nodded.  “When I came home and found you’d moved out of the cabin, I…”  He raked a hand through his hair.  “Well, I felt like I’d been punched in the stomach.”

“You did?”

“Why’d you leave without telling me?” he asked, his eyes boring into hers.

She swallowed over a lump in her throat and shook her head sadly.  “I caused so many problems for you,” she explained.  “It’s my fault the deer came down the mountain, and it’s my fault the bull elk was killed by poachers on your parents’ property.  I know you were angry about my mad dash through the woods with the bears chasing me.”  She sighed ruefully at the memory.  “Your coworkers saw how stupid I was.  I know I embarrassed you.”

“Honey, you didn’t embarrass me.  I was terrified about nearly losing you, but not embarrassed.  And you didn’t cause me any problems—at least not the kind you’re suggesting,” he said with a smile.  “In fact, the truth is, you solved my problems.  All sorts of problems…”

She watched him curiously.  “Jarrod, what do you mean, I solved your problems?”

“Come over here and I’ll tell you.” 

She rose and crossed the room, joining him on the couch.  He shifted to face her, reaching out and lacing his fingers through her hair.  He gently pulled her close and kissed her.  “I’ve missed kissing you,” he murmured.  “God knows I’ve missed you.”

“I’ve missed you, too,” she said with a sigh. 

“Well, good, we’re on the same page then.”  He punctuated the statement by kissing her again.

Summer pulled back and shook her head, attempting to remember what they had been talking about before the kiss.  “Tell me, Jarrod, how did I solve your problems?  If my memory serves, I created more problems than I could have possibly solved.”

He smiled.  “Summer, do you remember telling me about the couple you met hiking?  The ones who suggested that you put out the salt licks?”

She nodded.

“You told me the man’s name, and it turns out, I know him.  I also know he’s well aware it’s not a good idea to put out salt licks.  His dad used to be a forest ranger, in fact.”

“Then why would he…”  Suddenly, her eyes widened.  “He wanted to draw the deer and other animals closer.  He’s involved…”  Her words trailed as understanding dawned.

He nodded crisply.  “I went to see him after leaving your place the day I showed up and collected the salt licks you’d put out.  Anyway, I didn’t let on that I suspected him of anything illegal, but I took the opportunity to glance around the place.  I spotted blood on his truck, as well as an outbuilding I suspected might house a variety of interesting items.”

“Like items used for poaching,” she suggested.

“That and as it turns out, he was storing the truckloads of merchandise he and his buddies in crime had stolen from other cabins around the lake.”

Summer’s mouth dropped open.  “But … how did you catch them?”

“During my visit, I told him we were disbanding our stakeout on Janson Ridge.”

“Were you?”

“Well, no, but we were close to shutting down.  But anyway, I told him that and other things to try to lure him up to the ridge.  Eventually, we pulled out—or at least we made it look as if we pulled out, and true to form, he and his buddies showed up to do some poaching and we nabbed them.”

Summer gasped.  “But how did you learn they were linked to the burglaries, too?”

“With probable cause based on their poaching activities, local deputies searched the property and lo and behold, they discovered all kinds of stolen merchandise in the outbuilding.  Summer, thanks to you, we broke up a veritable crime ring.”

She subsided against the back of the couch.  She couldn’t believe Jarrod had caught the people involved in both poaching and burglarizing on the mountaintop. 

She sat up abruptly.  “But Jarrod, it’s still my fault the bull elk was killed.”

He sighed, and then reached for her, pulling her close.  “Honey, it’s not your fault.  You didn’t know that putting the salt licks out might put animals in jeopardy.”

She shook her head.  “But the elk…  Jarrod, you should have seen him.  He was so beautiful and…”

“Summer, I did see him, and yes, what they did to him was awful, but the truth is, if you hadn’t put out those salt licks, I wouldn’t have asked you what had prompted you to, and we would probably still be looking for the poachers.  And many, many more elk would still be in jeopardy.  Not to mention, these guys were getting bolder in their burglarizing efforts.”  Jarrod scrubbed a hand across his jaw.  “Summer, you never did tell me that the burglars were cutting phone lines to the cabins.  Had I known that, I wouldn’t have let you stay up there alone.  I would have insisted you go home until I was back at my cabin.”