Things were looking up, really.
He put the paint and rollers away in the storage shed at the back of the main lodge and swiped at his brow again. He was sweating like a pig, and his muscles ached, but it was a good ache. The ache of a day spent in hard, honest labor. He liked that. It was, however, time for a shower and some food. Food first, he decided, and headed in to the main lodge through the back door.
Once he went inside, he heard voices in the kitchen. Old habits sprang up and he slowed his steps, pausing to listen.
“I don’t know that you should feed that thing Cheetos, Brenna.” That was Grant’s voice.
“Gollum likes Cheetos, doesn’t he?” Brenna made kissy noises at what Rome assumed was her puppy. “And you’re just being pissy and taking it out on us right now. Just spit it out already, baby.”
There was a long sigh from the kitchen. “You saw the way Elise ran out of here. Do you think he was harassing her?”
“He? I don’t seem to recall anyone that we hired who was named He.”
“You know who I mean. Rome. He’s a rough sort, Brenna. I still can’t believe you hired him. I— Hey. Don’t make that face at me. I’m just looking out for my sister.”
Rome tensed. Either this was perfect fucking timing or shit timing. Either way, it was good to know what his employer thought about him. He waited, listening in on the conversation.
“You’re being a snob,” Brenna said. “Just because he has some tattoos and piercings, it doesn’t mean that he’s a criminal.”
“It doesn’t mean that he’s not,” Grant countered. “I’m just worried about Elise and our clients. I don’t want him to give anyone the wrong impression, and I certainly don’t want him scaring my sister.”
“If your sister is scared of a few tattoos, she must be terrified of me. Just imagine what she’d think of my piercing.”
There was a long pause. “Please tell me you didn’t show my sister your piercing.”
“Of course not. That’s your property.” There was a sultry note in Brenna’s voice.
“Good. I was about to get a little bizarred out. And quit distracting me with thoughts of piercings.”
“But I like distracting you.” Brenna’s voice lowered to a purr. “In fact, if you’re good, I might just distract you as soon as dinner is ready.”
“I guess that’s my cue to go home and make it.”
“I do believe it is,” Brenna teased.
Things were quiet for a long moment, punctuated by a few pornographic groans and a puppy bark. Then it got quiet. Rome waited, body tense with anger.
“You can come out, now,” Brenna called to him. “Grant’s gone.”
Rome frowned to himself, then stepped out of the shadowy hallway and into the kitchen. Brenna stood near the counter, wearing a pair of jean cutoffs that were two sizes too big and a T-shirt that read TULANE. Her new puppy was on the counter, licking an orange Cheeto.
She gave him an appraising look, as if he’d been stripping purely for her pleasure. “Well, hello there.”
He ignored her playfulness. Brenna was obnoxious to everyone. It was harmless. “How’d you know I was there?”
“Gollum tried to go into the hall to greet you, and he’s normally a scaredy-cat, so I figured someone familiar was there. And Pop’s in town and Dane’s in the woods, so I thought it was you.” She wiggled her eyebrows at him. “So I distracted Grant. You’re welcome.”
He felt the sour burn of anger in his stomach. “Your fiancé hates me.”
“He does,” Brenna admitted, fishing another Cheeto out of the bag and offering it to her puppy. “But I wouldn’t take it personally. Grant doesn’t like anyone until he gets to know them. Just look at how long it took for us to get together despite him practically vibrating with sexual tension whenever he was around me.” She looked over at him and winked.
Rome went to the sink, washed his hands, then headed to the icebox and grabbed some lunch meat. He made himself a quick sandwich and took a bite out of it. Brenna didn’t seem to be leaving, so he asked, “Am I in danger of losing my job?”
She sighed and gave him an annoyed look. “Not you, too. Look, you’re fine. Grant doesn’t like you, but he didn’t like me, either, and I’m still working here. Just stay busy and low-key and he’ll relax. He’s got his panties in a bunch because his sister is here and his entire weird family seems to think that Elise is fragile and will break if someone looks at her wrong.”
He wasn’t sure he believed her. He’d let down his guard too many times and gotten dicked over in the past. He pulled a bit of meat off of his sandwich and offered it to her puppy. “I need this job, Brenna.”
“I know you do, Rome. And you’ve got me on your side. Don’t worry. Grant’s just a freak.” She patted his shoulder and then wrinkled her nose at her now sweat-and-grime-covered palm. “He’ll calm down once Elise is back home and he realizes you aren’t a serial killer or something.”
She sounded so confident that he couldn’t help but hope she was right. “I did see Elise today,” Rome admitted. “She came out to the paintball course while I was working on it. Saw me and turned and ran.”
“That girl’s kinda strange, no doubt about it. Nice kid, but strange.”
Rome took another bite of his sandwich, determined not to smirk at Brenna calling Elise a kid. He figured they were the same age, but there was a worldliness to Brenna that Elise was lacking. He swallowed, and then said, “Her brother doesn’t have to worry about her where I’m concerned. She’s scared shitless of me.”
“That’s weird.”
“How is that weird? Her brother is convinced that I’m a convict just because I have a few tats.” He might not have been wrong about that, but Rome wasn’t going to bring that up unless absolutely necessary.
“Yeah, but Elise actually talks to me about stuff, and I wasn’t getting a fear vibe from her when it comes to you, if you know what I’m saying.” She wiggled her eyebrows at him.
Rome rolled his eyes. Brenna thought everyone was as horny as she was. There was no mistaking Elise’s terror when she’d fled earlier today, though. That wasn’t sexual tension. That was the opposite.
“Probably to be on the safe side, you should avoid her, though.” Brenna shrugged. “If she makes Grant all freaked out, you don’t want him coming down on you.”
“I have no intention of bothering her, trust me. I like this job and want to keep it.”
She winked at him and scooped her puppy up off of the counter. “I hear you. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a fiancé to go molest.”
Brenna left and Rome finished his sandwich, made another, devoured it, and then headed off to his own cabin. His mood was black as he played through the day in his head over and over again. Elise’s fear of him. Grant’s perpetual dislike. Brenna’s careless words.
By the time he got back to his own cabin, he was fuming. He looked around at his place. It was threadbare but clean. The roof over his head didn’t leak, the bed had blankets on it, and he had his own bathroom. It was private, and best of all, it was his.
It had been a long time since he’d had a place of his own. He didn’t want to lose it because some rich bitch thought he was scary.
He calmed down a bit after a long, hot shower. Then he toweled off with his one threadbare towel—as soon as he got his next paycheck, he’d have to get himself some linens—and headed back into his room. He dressed and then lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling.
Rome didn’t have a TV in his small cabin. The main lodge had one, and it served as a rec room for the employees most nights. He’d spent several evenings having a beer with the guys and playing Xbox, but tonight he didn’t feel social. He was still pissed. Plus, Dane—who got along with everyone—was out in the woods, so his fiancée, Miranda, would be by herself. Seeing as how one female was scared of him, he didn’t need to alarm another. And since Colt and Beth Ann were in Alaska, that meant it’d be Pop, Grant, and Brenna.
No thanks.
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Maybe he’d ride into town, have a beer at the bar. He picked up his phone to check the weather. It had started looking nasty earlier, and riding a Harley through a rainstorm wasn’t his favorite thing to do. Before he could check his weather app, though, a new text message flashed on the screen.
It’s J. You should know Dad’s out of prison and wants to catch up with us. I’m on the road but should be heading to Texas soon. Just a heads-up if you want to meet.
His brother, Jericho. Damn it. Rome deleted the message. The last thing he needed was his family hanging around and ruining what he had here.
• • •
That evening, Elise decided to stay in. It wasn’t that she couldn’t drive out to the main lodge and hang out. She’d be welcome.
It was that she was feeling a little weird about catching Rome shirtless and then running away like an idiot. Better to stay away for a few days until everyone forgot. Grant and Brenna wouldn’t miss her—they’d be too wrapped up in each other—and the sight of them flirting just made her feel even more like a third wheel.
Everyone she knew in Bluebonnet was paired off and living their own lives. It was Elise who was floating around, aimless. She couldn’t expect everyone to entertain her forever.
So tonight she’d be staying in at the Peppermint House.
The bed-and-breakfast was the only thing close to a hotel near tiny Bluebonnet, Texas. It was in the process of being renovated, but what was done so far was charming and adorably Victorian. Elise’s room was full of pinks and mauves, and the four-poster bed made her feel like a princess. The owner of the bed-and-breakfast, Emily Allard-Smith, was also as friendly and relaxed as they came, and Elise liked her a lot.
She headed downstairs and nearly ran into Emily, who was heading out the door, a food container and her keys in hand. She looked surprised to see Elise. “Oh. Are you staying in tonight?”
Elise gave her a sheepish smile and let her hair swing in front of her face. “I was considering it.”
“Oh! I thought you’d be going out.” Emily immediately turned around and headed toward the kitchen. “Let me whip you up some dinner.”
“It’s okay,” Elise said, trailing behind her. “Really. I can order a pizza or something.”
“Nonsense,” Emily fussed, putting her keys down on the counter and opening the fridge. “This is a bed-and-breakfast, and I feed my guests. Is a sandwich okay?”
“A sandwich is fine.” Elise sat on one of the barstools in the kitchen and admired the container of cookies Emily had placed on the fridge. “You heading to the police station?” It was no secret that Emily loved to cook, and when she didn’t have many guests, she ended up baking for the police station and the fire department. Elise was constantly being stuffed with delicious pastries every morning, thanks to Emily’s obsessive baking.
“No, heading over to visit Luanne.” She pulled a ton of ingredients onto the counter and began to construct an enormous sandwich for Elise, layering vegetables and condiments with all kinds of meat. “Hank’s working the late shift, so Luanne’s working on my webpage. She wants me to go over some of it with her, and I thought I’d bring some cookies as a thank-you to Hank.”
“That’s your sister who’s dating the police officer, right?” Elise hadn’t met her, but Emily mentioned her once or twice.
“That’s right. Hank has a real weakness for cookies. Actually, so does Luanne.” She topped the sandwich with a thick slice of freshly made bread and shoved two colorful toothpicks through it, then sawed it in half. “Voilà. How’s that for dinner?”
“Impressive,” Elise said with a shy smile. “Thank you so much.”
Emily waved a hand. “It’s nothing. You sure you want to stay in? I’m guessing you could hang out with me. Luanne wouldn’t mind. My sister’s a bit of a string bean and obnoxious at times, but she has a good heart.”
“No, I’m fine. Thank you.”
“You sure? You need to get out more often! You’re young and single.”
Elise tensed. She rather hoped that Emily wasn’t going to start trying to set her up with someone. “You’re young and single, too.”
“Actually I’m older than you, and I’m divorced.” She shrugged. “Old before my time, I guess. And I’m the one going out. You sure you don’t want to go?”
“I’m sure.” Elise took a big bite of her sandwich so she wouldn’t have to talk.
“Okay. If it storms, I might stay at Luanne’s a bit later. The weather looks kind of foul at the moment.” She gestured at one of the cabinets in the kitchen. “There’s candles in there if the power goes out.” Emily looked uncomfortable and hesitated. “You’re not scared of ghosts, are you?”
Elise nearly choked on the mouthful of sandwich. Coughing, she shook her head.
“Just making sure.” She bit her lip. “You sure you don’t want to come with me? I hate the thought of you sitting here in the dark if the power goes out. With, you know . . . my visitor.”
Elise swallowed, her throat burning as she gulped the food down. She placed a hand in front of her mouth as she spoke. “I . . . don’t really think this place is haunted, Emily.” She’d been warned by Em that there were rumors of a haunting, but no one ever seemed to hear anything but Emily herself. Elise had been here a few weeks now and hadn’t heard a peep. She wasn’t scared.
“Are you sure? You’re my only guest at the moment. I’d hate for you to leave.”
“I’m sure.” She picked up her sandwich again, indicating she would continue eating. “I’m just going to finish this and then work on my photos some more. It’s all very boring.”
“All right,” Emily said after a long moment. Then she picked up the cookies and her keys again. “There’s beer and wine in the fridge if you want anything. Help yourself. I’ll be home later.”
Elise waved her off.
• • •
The evening was quiet enough for several hours. Elise went back to her room, fired up her laptop, and poked around on Photoshop, cleaning up a few photos and adjusting the coloring. When it began to thunder, she shut down her computer and went downstairs to the living room to watch the weather on TV. She curled up on the couch with a beer and flipped between local channels.
Sure enough, there was a crack of lightning and the lights went out.
Elise sat in the dark for a moment, then headed to the kitchen to light some candles. While she was in the kitchen, her phone rang.
It was Emily. “Power dead over there?”
“Yep, all dead,” Elise told her. “I’m lighting candles.”
“Okay. I’m going to stay here for a bit. I think I saw some hail, so I’m going to wait for it to pass. Luanne says Hank doesn’t want anyone on the roads in this, so I’ll be home in a few hours.”
“No worries,” Elise said softly. “Thank you for checking on me.”
She got off the phone with Emily and took a few candles into the main living room. The big Victorian wasn’t that creepy with the lights off, not really. It was just great mood lighting. She wished she had something to do, though.
So much for getting more life experience. Even tonight, she was all alone and rather enjoying it. What did that say about her?
Candle in hand, she peered out the front window at the driving rain. A moment later, it began to hail.
THREE
When it began to rain, Rome cursed his luck and paid his tab, then headed out for his bike. There was nothing worse than riding a motorcycle in a downpour, but he didn’t have any other transportation. He put on his helmet and straddled his bike. It’d be a shitty ride home.
A moment later, he’d barely gone a block before it began to hail, and hard, pebble-sized pellets began to thump against his jacket, stinging with every connection. Okay, so there were worse things than driving home in a downpour.
Cursing to himself, he saw the sign for the bed-and-breakfast and pulled in there. The yard of the garish Peppermint House was thickly treed and would provide some safety for
his bike, at least. He parked it under the nearest tree and pulled off his helmet. Waiting out the storm under a tree would be fine for his bike, but it would suck for him.
Rome glanced up at the house as hail poured down. The place was dark, but there was a candle in the window. Someone was there, at least. He tugged his jacket over his head to protect it, then jogged up to the front door of the bed-and-breakfast.
He knocked on the door, then rang the doorbell. The sound of the hail pounding on the roof was so loud that he wasn’t sure anyone would hear him. “Hello?” he called out.
After a long pause, the front door of the bed-and-breakfast opened a crack. A face peeked around the corner, holding a candle.
It was Elise.
Rome was stunned. She was the last person he expected to see. “Hey, Bo Peep . . . can I come in?”
She opened the door a little wider, and he went inside.
When the door shut behind him, the roar of the rain and hail muted, and he was left staring at her shadowed face as she held the candle. Her eyes were wide, but he didn’t see fear in them.
And that made him feel a little better. “Hi,” Rome said quietly. “Is it going to bother you if I hang out here for a bit? The weather’s kind of shit.”
She shook her head and he wondered if she planned on speaking to him.
But after a moment of quiet staring, Elise gave him a faint smile and turned and headed deeper into the house. Intrigued, Rome stuffed his hands into his leather jacket and followed her. With the candle flickering as she walked, Elise was forced to cup a hand close to the wick, and he saw she had slim, pretty fingers. The rest of her figure was barely illuminated in the soft light, and he caught sight of a fuzzy sweater and tight jeans or leggings. Her long, silky hair spilled over her shoulders, and he wondered if it was as soft as it looked.
And he stiffened at the thought of how this would go down. Would she return to Grant and say Rome was harassing her? Would he get canned simply because he’d picked the wrong place to show up during a hailstorm? Fuck. He didn’t know what to do. Rome hesitated, but when Elise didn’t turn around, he sighed to himself and followed her. She wasn’t speaking, and that made him uneasy. He hated the silence between them, because it was impossible to tell what she was thinking.