Page 18 of Wood Riddance
Good old Adele, doing the same thing every day. Stuck in her anger and unable to push through. Story of my goddamn life.
Chapter5
Finn
The only way to salvage this weekend was by heading out for a long run. So I grabbed my weight vest and set off to figure my shit out. It was humid, and the mosquitoes were already the size of bloated sparrows. I’d regret not bathing in Deet, but the urge to get out and move was too powerful. I had a lot going on, and the only remedy I’d find would be through sweat.
I’d learned that back in second grade, when it was impossible for me to sit still. When I couldn’t finish math worksheets or stay in my seat for an entire movie.
My dad’s solution was to scream at me and insist I was stupid. For a long time, that stuck. It wasn’t until much later, when Mom took me for testing, that I learned that this was a part of who I was.
In order to focus, I needed to be challenged. And that usually involved exhausting my body first. I couldn’t think when I was itchy and distracted.
And right now, I had a lot on my mind.
Making my way through town, I doled out kind smiles to everyone I saw and winced when most looked away. I knew what they all said behind our backs. I’d heard the whispers, and I saw the pity in their expressions.
Our family name was mud in this town. Four generations of Heberts in Lovewell and almost a hundred years of providing jobs to the community. In an instant, all the respect our family had earned, all the friendships and goodwill, were gone. Because of my criminal father.
My brothers and I, of course, were tainted by association. Not that anyone would say it to my face. My height, the tattoos, and my time in the military took care of that. People had been intimidated by me since I surpassed the six-foot mark in middle school. I was used to it. Which was why I always worked to speak softly, always did my best to wear a smile, and always kept my movements slow and subtle.
But now, what was the point? The people of Lovewell, even those I’d known my whole life, only saw the son of a murderer when they looked at me.
I followed the river toward the mountains, leaving the neat rows of houses behind. The homes were more spread out here. Fewer cars passed, and I didn’t pass a single person. Here and there, I’d encounter a barking dog behind a fence, but otherwise, my only company were the squirrels that scurried past and up trees and the mosquitoes.
I could deal with this.
The worst part about being in the military was all the running. When I separated from the Navy, I swore up and down I’d never run again. I said a lot of stupid shit back then. Yet here I was. Because running did what no medication could. It slowed my brain and body down. Plus, it was virtually impossible for a guy my size to be fast, so it was always a humbling experience. Especially during PT, when 160-pound guys would fly by me, making me feel like a Clydesdale.
Some days, I needed the ego check. Today wasn’t one of those days. On no. Adele Gagnon was the best ego check on the planet. The United States government should hire her, pronto. She’d play the perfect bad cop in any diplomatic negotiation. I could only imagine how quickly peace treaties would be signed if she were berating the world leaders involved.
I laughed to myself. In this daydream, she’d wear a skirt suit. You know, the sort of skirt that’s knee length and conservative but still tight as fuck? Yeah.
Shit. I should not have been thinking about her body.
With a shake of my head, I hoofed it up the hill, set on running until I got Adele out of my head.
She was so intense and beautiful, and she was just mean enough to make me ache for her. There was something wrong with me, because I loved it.
Life was hard, and I had little time for weak people. I respected those who pushed up and through.
And Adele was next level.
On a creeper, her top half hidden under an engine, wearing coveralls that barely hid that round, juicy ass—
Shit, I was thinking about her body again.
Instead of being put off by her prickly personality, I found myself drawn to her.
Sure, she had sharp claws, but buried beneath that was a well of passion, a personality so intense she could probably keep up with me. Nothing she said to me wasn’t deserved. At least she, unlike the cowards who made up the rest of this town, had the stones to be honest with me.
Plus, I had no doubt she was a hellcat in bed. Probably loud and bossy. The kind of woman who would claw the shit out of my back and leave teeth marks all over my body.
Shit, now I was hard. Running in flimsy gym shorts and a weighted vest through town at dusk.Way to be a predator, Finn.
I needed a reality check. And a swift kick in the ass. Right now, I had to focus on making ends meet, providing for my child, and building the business I’d been dreaming of. My plans had been derailed, but I’d be a shit sailor if I wasn’t still pushing forward. The goals I’d set had been delayed, but that meant I had more time to find investors and study the way the local tourism industry was growing.
Flying for the Gagnons would get me more hours in the air and a chance to become even more familiar with the terrain. Avgas wasn’t cheap, and this way, my flight hours and the cost would be on the lumber company’s dime. I’d take every chance I could to fly, prickly bosses or not.
