What The Heart Finds (24 page)

And
yet there was diversity. People traveled through on their way to and
from the lodge. Lodge employees came and went, offering different
romantic opportunities. She wondered if that was how Eric managed to
get such a reputation. There couldn't possibly have been enough women
in town to satisfy his needs. Especially since he never actually
dated anyone, just slept around. Maybe he made his rounds with the
tourists and the lodge employees.

She
pushed aside the weird twinge of jealousy. If it wasn't for everyone
he had shared himself with, he wouldn't be the man she had finally
met. And that man was pretty incredible. He had to be amazing if he
was on her mind as much as he was. She probably hadn't thought about
all the guys in her life as much as she thought about Eric. And his
penetrating gray eyes, his easy humor, his infuriatingly charming
smirk. His willingness to stand up for her, to take the brunt of
some of her humiliation. Without even a blink. He had just done it.

Because
he was just that... good.

It
was no wonder Maude and Anna had been so quick to defend him. Maybe
they were the only people who had actually gotten the chance to know
him. The only ones he had let behind the reputation. Maude because
she just... knew everything. And Anna because he had loved her.

Lena
went to make a pot of coffee, needing something to do.

That
was an easy one to figure out. Anna was small and delicate, like
someone who needed caring for. And on top of that, she seemed
incredibly sweet and at ease.

She
was nothing like Anna. With her taller frame and capable aura. She
was always projecting the image of a strong, confident woman.
Certainly not one who needed a man, or anyone else for that matter,
to take care of her. On top of that, she was uptight and rigid and
snarky.

She
wasn't the kind of woman Eric would fall in love with.

Lena's
head jerked back, shocked by her own thoughts. Why did it matter what
kind of women Eric fell in love with? She certainly didn't want him
to fall in love with her. She was leaving. Anyone developing any kind
of strong feelings would just complicate things. And she decidedly
liked things... uncomplicated.

A
noise from below stopped the pacing she hadn't been aware she had
been doing. She moved toward the door, pressing her ear against the
seal. The music had been turned off and Eric was talking to someone.
His strong, deep tone carrying up the stairs. She couldn't hear the
voice of whoever he was talking to, or make out what they were
saying. She moved over toward the window, peeking out at the front
lot, expecting to see someone or see a car. But there was no one.

Whoever
he was talking to must have been inside the shop with him. Maybe
someone needed their farm equipment worked on. The thought was
accompanied by a swelling of hope. Like maybe a part of her wanted
him to take another day away from working on her car. To give her
another day with him.

Lena
shook the thought off. That was ridiculous.

She
turned to move back to the bedroom, unsure what to do with herself,
when she heard yelling from below. She turned, curious and made her
way toward the door. She put her ear against the seal again,
listening. And then she heard her name. Eric calling her name.

She
pulled the door open tentatively, feeling nervous. Who could possibly
be down there that she would need to talk to? Or want to talk to?
Everyone in town hated her.

“Lena,”
he called again.

She
felt her pride build back up. She wouldn't be caught hiding away,
pretending to ignore her name being called.

“Yeah?”
she called back, trying to peek around the curve of the stair but
seeing nothing.

“Can
you come down here for a sec?” he called, a strange tone to his
voice. Amusement? Or relief? A bit of both, maybe?

She
took a deep breath and pulled her shoulders back, moving down the
stairs. Slowly. Much more slowly than she needed to, but she was
going. When she stepped off of the bottom step, she expected to see
Eric standing there. She glanced around and found him, instead,
buried under the hood of her car. She looked at him with her brows
drawn together. Why would he call her down and then immediately get
busy doing something else?

“Eric?”
she called, her voice questioning.

But
he didn't move from inside her car. Lena shook her head, turning
around. What the hell was going on?

“Way
to answer your email,” a voice said.

Lena
turned, her heart jumping into her throat, suddenly acutely aware of
her sweatpants and tank top combination, her hair wild around her
face, her bare feet.

Because
there standing in the open garage door, was Hannah Clary-Michaels.

Twenty

“Hannah?”
she asked, disbelieving. “What are you doing here?” she
gasped, looking at her boss' wife like she couldn't possibly be
there. But she was. Her unfair, curvy frame, heavy of hip and breast
with a usually small waist, rounding a bit in her early pregnancy, in
pair of jeans and a simple white shirt. Her waist-length black hair
that she had braided to one side of her head, her gray eyes staring
her down.

“Well
I was checking Elliott's emails,” she said, a strange twinkling
to her eye. “because he's been avoiding telling me the truth
about what happened to you. So I was seeing for myself.”

“Oh
god,” Lena groaned, hanging her head guiltily.

“I
got as far as you last few emails,” she said, shaking her head.
“My husband was pretty good at covering his tracks. But you
seemed really freaked out. And when you didn't answer my email...”

“I
just saw it this morning,” she said, glancing over at Eric who
was pretending not to listen.

Hannah
looked over at Eric, rolling her eyes. “Why don't you and I go
somewhere more private?” she asked, moving toward the back of
the garage and climbing the stairs easily. Like she had been there
before.

Lena
followed behind her, wondering if maybe she and Eric had ever hooked
up. They had grown up together. It sort-of made sense if they had.

“Oh
wow,” Hannah said, looking around. “He actually renovated
this place.”

Lena
moved in behind her, feeling clumsy and small. “Do you want
some coffee? I just made it.”

“Have
we met?” Hannah smiled, moving to sit on top of one of the
stools.

Lena
went into the cabinet, pouring a coffee and handing it to Hannah,
black. Like her husband liked it as well. She took her time making
her own, not exactly wanting to have to have the conversation she
knew they were about to have.

“So
you're sleeping with Eric,” Hannah asked, making Lena choke on
her coffee.

Alright,
maybe they were going to have a different, equally uncomfortable
conversation. “Um...”

“Relax,”
Hannah smiled. “I don't blame you. He's... unnecessarily good
looking. Always was.”

“Right,”
Lena said, leaning against the sink, keeping space between them. They
weren't girlfriends. They had always had a very professional
relationship. “He's been... persistent,” she decided
carefully.

“That
sounds like him. So,” she said, leaning on the counter top.
“why does Elliott have you in Stars Landing?”

Lena's
head fell backward, taking a deep breath. “I think that's
something you should ask him.”

Hannah
smiled. “I'm asking you. I figure this way, if it's really
cute, I can still pretend to be excited.”

Lena
debated lying. Coming up with some quick cover story to satisfy
Hannah but protect Elliott. But Hannah's cunning face suggested she
shouldn't even try it. “He sent me here to stay at the inn,”
she said, hedging.

“I
saw that much,” she said, her tone a bit impatient. “why
did he want you to stay there?”

Lena
put her cup down. She really didn't have any way around telling her.
So she might as well just get it all out and on the table as quickly
as possible. “He wanted me to stay there and record some of my
observations,” she said, Hannah raised a brow at her that
suggested she get to the point. “because he wants to buy it...
for you.”

Hannah's
eyes went wide for a second, looking wistful and happy, leaving Lena
feeling a bit envious. What must it be like to realize you were loved
that much by someone?

“Oh
my god,” she said, laughing. “Emily is going to freak
when she finds out.”

“Yeah,”
Lena said, smiling a bit. “she does have... a bit of a temper.”

“She
kicked you out?”

“Yeah.
I mean... in her defense, she caught me breaking into the computer at
the check-in.”

“Jesus,”
Hannah said, shaking her head. “My husband didn't have any clue
what he was getting you into, did he?”

Lena
smiled, rolling her eyes slightly. “Not at all.”

Hannah
looked down at at her coffee for a moment, her eyes far away. “It
really was a nice gesture of him though. Don't you think?” she
asked, looking up with a smile.

“Yeah,”
Lena agreed, nodding. “it was really sweet.”

“He
has a good side underneath all that big boss man veneer.”

“Does
he know you're here?”

Hannah
looked over at the clock, nodding. “Right about now he will,”
she said, looking back at Lena. “I had Tad tell him.”

“So
we should expect to see him blazing into town in a few hours?”
Lena asked, feeling dread at the prospect.

“No
he's got a big meeting today. And I told Tad to tell him I just
wanted to see my parents,” she laughed.

Lena
smiled, “Is it healthy to have that many lies between you?”

“Hey,
he started it,” she said, finishing her coffee. “I just
don't want to ruin his surprise for me. I'll come clean someday.
So...” she said, her eyes looking mischievous. “you
look... different.”

Lena's
eyes went wide, looking down at her clothes with dismay. “I...
um... my clothes....”

“It's
not that,” Hannah said, waving a hand. “you just seem...
I don't know... happier I guess.”

“Oh,”
Lena frowned. “I think I just needed a couple days away. You
know... relax.”

“Lena,”
Hannah said, her tone more serious. “you forget: I had your job
before you. I know how stressful it is. And how unappreciative
Elliott can seem sometimes. Working all those long hours every day
starts to wear on you. You get...”

“Uptight,”
Lena filled in, starting to really hate the word. Hate how accurately
it described her.

“I
was going to say... consumed. You forget that there is a whole world
outside of work. There are movies to watch, and friends to catch up
with, and men to... enjoy,” she winked. “So I am glad you
are... enjoying yourself.” She paused for a second, moving to
get herself another cup of coffee. She was just as bad a coffee
addict as her husband. “So what's the story between you two?
How did you meet?”

“When
my car broke down,” Lena supplied, feeling the sudden urge to
share. “He was...”

“Charming?
Sexy? Undeniable?”

“Insufferable,”
Lena laughed. “And then Maude dragged me to this cheese
tasting event thing at Sam's farm...”

“You
saw Sam?” Hannah broke in, excited. “How was he? And his
wife? What is she like? I only got to meet her once,” she
gushed. Taking in Lena's raised brow, she smiled. “Sam was my
high school boyfriend,” she explained. “I went to stay
with him for a few days a couple years ago and I met Annabelle for a
split second.”

“Anna
is a sweetheart. Actually, she dated Eric and Sam at the same time.”

“What?”
Hannah asked, her eyes squinting like that didn't make any sense.

“Yeah,
I know. They're so different. But I guess she was having trouble
choosing between them,” she shrugged then looked down at her
coffee. “Eric was in love with her.”

“Eric?
In love?” Hannah asked.

“Yeah,”
she said, her tone almost sad. She cleared her throat quickly,
shaking the feeling off. “but anyway... Maude left me at the
farm...”

“Because
she wanted Eric to drive you home.”

“Exactly.
And then I felt bad for him so I bid on him at the bachelor auction.
I bid a dollar,” she said and Hannah laughed, a sweet, musical
sound. “And then he just... pursued me I guess.”

“Not
even you stood a chance,” she said, smiling.

Lena
felt the words stick on her tongue for a moment before tumbling out,
quick and embarrassing. “Did you and Eric ever...”

“No!”
Hannah laughed again, her face getting pink in the cheeks. “Oh
god no. No. I was hung up on Sam since I was little. Eric and Sam
always sort of had a grudging respect for each other... so Eric
wouldn't have tried to cross that line.” There was a strained
silence for a moment before Hannah spoke again, her words careful.
“So is it... just sex? Or do you guys have... feelings?”