Page 5 of Forever with the Mountain Man
Which is how I find myself in the Silver Lodge's kitchen an hour later, packing a cooler with iced tea, sandwiches, and fresh fruit. Dad raises an eyebrow when he sees me loading enough food for two people.
"Making friends with the contractor?" he asks, but there's no judgment in his voice. Vernon Cooper has always encouraged me to be kind to everyone in the community.
"He's working hard in this heat," I say, not quite meeting his eyes. "Seemed like the neighborly thing to do."
"Mmm-hmm." Dad's tone suggests he's not entirely buying my explanation, but he doesn't push. "Finn's a good man. Honest, reliable. Does quality work."
There's something in the way he says it that makes me look up. "You know him well?"
"Well enough. He's been staying here off and on before he moved to Silver Ridge permanently. Quiet, pays his bills on time, never any trouble." Dad pauses in his paperwork. "He's single, you know."
"Dad." I can feel my cheeks heating up again.
"Just mentioning it. Man his age, almost forty, never been married... makes you wonder what he's waiting for."
I grab the cooler and head for the door before this conversation can get any more embarrassing. "I'm just bringing him lunch, not proposing marriage." But having his not-so-discreet blessing feels good anyway.
Dad's chuckle follows me out into the blazing afternoon heat.
When I arrive back at the school, I find Finn exactly where I left him, still working shirtless in the stifling classroom. Sweat gleams on his skin, and his dark hair is damp with exertion. He looks up when I appear in the doorway with the cooler.
"Thought you might be hungry," I say, suddenly feeling foolish. "And thirsty."
He sets down his tools and straightens, wiping his hands on a rag. "You didn't have to do that."
"I wanted to." I set the cooler on one of the new built-in counters and start unpacking it. "Turkey and Swiss, or ham and cheddar?"
"Either one's fine." He reaches for his t-shirt, pulling it over his head, and I try not to feel disappointed by the loss of the view. "This is really thoughtful of you."
"It's nothing." I hand him a bottle of iced tea, our fingers brushing briefly in the exchange. The contact sends a little joltthrough me, and from the way his eyes flicker, I think he feels it too. "Just seemed like the decent thing to do."
We end up sitting on the paint-spattered drop cloths, eating lunch in my half-finished classroom. It's oddly intimate, sharing a meal in the space that will soon be filled with tiny desks and colorful learning materials.
I take a sip of my iced tea. "So,” I chirp, feeling awkward in the silence. “Did you always want to be in construction?"
He's quiet for a long moment, and I wonder if I've overstepped somehow. But then he answers. "Started working construction summers during high school. I liked working with my hands, building things that would last. Went to trade school after graduation, worked for other people for fifteen years before starting my own business."
"What made you choose Silver Ridge?"
"Got tired of the city. Too much noise, too many people, too much..." He pauses, searching for the word. "Pretense. Wanted somewhere real."
"And you found it here?"
His green eyes meet mine. "Yeah. I think I did."
There's something in his tone that makes my heart flutter, but before I can analyze it too much, he's standing up, gathering the sandwich wrapper and empty bottles.
"Better get back to work if you want this finished tomorrow."
"Of course." I scramble to my feet, suddenly aware of how long we've been sitting here together. "Thank you for taking a break. I know you must be eager to get done."
"Not eager to leave," he says quietly, and the words hit me like a physical force.
We're standing close now, close enough that I can see the flecks of gold in his green eyes, close enough to smell the scent that's becoming familiar—sawdust and summer heat.
"Caroline." His hand lifts as if he's going to touch my face.
Then a car door slams in the parking lot, voices carry through the open windows, and the spell breaks. Finn drops his hand and steps back, the professional distance sliding back into place.
