Cedar Hollow (6 page)

She took one last look in the mirror and decided that aside from the goose-egg on her forehead at her hairline, she looked pretty presentable. Definitely much better than she’d felt when she’d woken up. She made her way downstairs and wondered if she’d find anyone in the
kitchen at this hour. She wasn’t sure where else Mrs. Owens spent her time, but wanted to make sure to let her know that she was running to town.

The kitchen wa
s empty when she walked in, Cassidy crossed over to the coffee pot, placing her hand against it. Thankfully it was still hot.

“Can I get you something
, dear?” Mrs. Owens voice came from behind startling her. She jumped as she spun around to face her. Did she have some sort of sixth sense to know when someone was in her kitchen?

“I was just about to head to town to meet with Mr. Woodard.” Cassidy explained
“I was going to fix some coffee before I left.”

“Oh please, let me get that for you.” Mrs. Owens smiled as she opened a cabinet and retrieved a travel mug. She poured the coffee, adding cream and sugar just as Cassidy had
done the other day. Mrs. Owens was very observant. Cassidy figured that came naturally after spending forty years running a bed and breakfast. It was a shame that she was already a widow and without children or a family of her own. Cassidy knew she was doing the right thing by staying, despite having to put up with Ben Riley in the process. Mrs. Owens deserved to keep her home.

“Will you be home for dinner?” Mrs. Owens asked with exaggerated casualness. Cassidy knew what she was really asking was whether or not she would be back
at all.

“Yes, I’ll be back for dinner.” Cassidy assured her and she could see the relief on her face.

Cassidy plugged her cell phone into the console as soon as she was in the car and realized with dismay that she didn’t have any cell service up here on the mountain. She wondered how many messages she would have once her phone came back to life. She didn’t have too long to wonder. About a mile from the house her phone began pinging repeatedly indicating that she’d had quite a few missed calls and voicemails. When the phone finally stopped she hit the voice activation button on the console.

“Voicemail.” She said, then listened as her messages played for her. There were three from Roger, each more frantic than the last. Mr. Belfour hadn’t been happy with being put off last week and Roger was just beside himself. The last message was from Becca asking Cassidy what time she expected to be back today. Cassidy considered the situation carefully for a few minutes and then decided to just jump into the fire.

“Call Becca.”
She instructed and the phone dialed, Becca picked up on the second ring.

“It’s about time.” She said as a way of greeting.

“Glad to see you missed me.” Cassidy laughed.

“Not as much as Roger, the poor boy is lost without you.” Becca laughed
. “You should see him wandering around the office looking like a lost puppy. It’s kind of sad, actually.”

“Well Roger is just going to have to be lost for a little while longer. I’m staying for a few more weeks.” Cassidy knew there was no point in beating around the bush.

“Excuse me? I must have misheard you. Did you say a few weeks?” Becca sounded incredulous.

“Apparently the will has some bizarre stipulation that I hav
e to live on the premises for thirty days before I can assume the property.” Cassidy explained.

“What kind of crap is that?” Becca asked.

“I don’t know, apparently my uncle was a very ‘particular’ man.” Cassidy said, using the adjective everyone else had used to describe her uncle. She still wasn’t entirely sure what that meant.

“Cassi
, what am I supposed to do about Mr. Belfour?” Becca asked exasperated. “He wasn’t too happy with our little stunt Friday, I’m not even sure if he bought it.”

“Becca
, this is something I need to do. I have like a million vacation days saved up, so I’m going to use them. You’ve helped me close countless deals, I know you can do this. And you can have the full commission. This one is all you.”

There was a pause on the other end of the
line, she knew she’d hooked her with the words “full commission”.

“You really think I can do this?” Becca asked sounding unsure.

“I know you can.”

“Okay fine.” Becca conceded. “So tell me about
New Hampshire.” She said switching from business partner back to best friend. Cassidy proceeded to fill her in on everything that had happened since she’d arrived in Cedar Hollow.

“You like him!” Becca exclaimed when Cassidy had finished her story.

“No I don’t!” Cassidy immediately denied it. “This isn’t about Ben, it’s about Mrs. Owens. That place is her home.”

“How old is he?” Becca pressed.

“I don’t know, about thirty I guess, my age.”

“Is he cute?”

“That’s beside the point.”

“That’s exactly the point! You like him.” Becca accused again.

“That’s ridiculous! He’s absolutely awful, haven’t you heard anything I’ve said.”

“I’ve heard everything, even the stuff you’re not saying
.” Becca insisted. “You wouldn’t be staying if you didn’t like him.”

“Mrs. Owens…”

“If this was only about her you would just arrange to have her hired as a cook at one of our resorts. You’d get her set up in some fancy penthouse suite to absolve yourself of any guilt about having the house torn down. This is about him.”

“I
... no… That’s not it…” Cassidy stammered.

“I can’t believe someone has actually gotten to you. No one ever gets under your skin. He must be pretty special.”

“He’s a judgmental, rude… impossible man!” Cassidy insisted.

“He sounds perfect for you.” Cassidy could hear the laughter in Becca’s voice.

“I’ve got to go.” Cassidy said as she pulled up in front of Mr. Woodard’s office. “My phone doesn’t have service up on the mountain, but I’ll try to check for messages anytime I come to town.”

“Okay.” Becca said cheerfully
. “Don’t forget to send me an invite for the wedding.”

Cassidy hung up to the sound of Becca’s laughter. She really had no idea what she was talking about. Sure she found Ben attractive, who wouldn’t
? The man was practically sculpted out of stone. But that didn’t mean that she liked him. Her decision to stay was entirely for Mrs. Owens benefit, Ben Riley was a deterrent, not a perk.

She finished her business with Mr. Woodard fairly quickly. He was visibly shocked at her decision to stay, but once he’d recovered it was only a matter of signing a few papers and the deed was done. She left the law office a
nd headed to the hardware store. Mr. Woodard had told her that there wasn’t a clothing store in town, the closest was about forty miles away, but the hardware store carried some work boots and clothes, which is what she was after.

Cassidy still wondered why Ben had not woken her to work in the gardens again this morning. Was he so sure she was going to leave? Is that
why he was so hostile toward her?

Ben didn’t want to lose his home and a
pparently he thought she was some sort of cold corporate shrew who foreclosed on families and stole their property, someone who wouldn’t care about helping him save his home. That wasn’t who she was at all, and she was going to show him that. She was also going to show him that she could carry her own weight, she wouldn’t be the drain on their resources that he predicted. Maybe once he realized that she was there to help then the animosity would be gone. Cassidy wondered what would be left behind if the animosity wasn’t there.

Cassidy found a pair of work boots in her size and a few pairs of jeans. They weren’t the designer jeans she had at home, but they fit and were sturdy. She also bought a package of cotton
t-shirts in dark blue so she wouldn’t put on another impromptu wet t-shirt contest unintentionally.

As she placed the items on the check-out counter she couldn’t help but feel a little self-conscious at the way the girl behind the counter was staring at her.

“You’re the Miller girl aren’t you?” The clerk whispered. She was about Cassidy’s age, with dark brown hair and tanned skin. She looked anxious.

“My name is Cassidy St. Claire.” Cassidy corrected. Did everyone around this little town call her “the Miller girl” when she wasn’t around
?

“A word of advice, Miss St. Claire.
Don’t trust Ben Riley.”

“
Of course it was an accident.” Cassidy could hear Mrs. Owens placating voice coming from the kitchen as she entered the front door.

She walked into the kitchen and Ben and Mrs. Owens turned to face her.
Ben looked frustrated. Without a word he turned and walked out the back door. She got the distinct impression that they’d been talking about her.

“Cassidy
, dear, how was your afternoon?” Mrs. Owens smiled brightly.

“It was nice, thank you. I met with Mr. Woodard and told him that I’d be staying the month.”

“Oh!” Mrs. Owens eyes lit up. “That’s wonderful, dear, we’re so happy to have you!” Cassidy could see the relief clear on her face and she felt confident about her decision to stay.

“Can I help with dinner?” Cassidy offered, immediately putting to action her plan to be as useful as possible.

“Actually, I have a lasagna in the oven. It should be ready soon, if you wouldn’t mind keeping an eye on it. I have some things I need to attend to.” Mrs. Owens replied vaguely.

“Sure.” Cassidy agreed.

“Please don’t wait for me. If dinner is ready before I’m back just help yourself.”

Mrs. Owens left Cassidy alone in the kitchen and disappeared into the front room. Cassidy felt odd sitting alone in the kitchen, but realized that if she was going to be staying here for the next month she needed to make herself at home.

She rummaged through the cabinets looking for some coffee, but really she just wanted something to do. She found a cabinet filled with jars and vials of powders and dried leaves. She picked one up to examine it.

“Careful, use the wrong herb and you won’t wake up.” Ben’s voice made her jump.

“I was just looking for coffee.” Cassidy quickly explained, putting the jar down.

Ben walked up to her and reached behind her opening the cabinet to her right. He leaned so close she could smell his aftershave
. She leaned back, pinned between him and the countertop. He retrieved a metal canister and handed it to her.

“Coffee.”
He half-smiled and she could feel her heart racing from his proximity. “Be careful playing around with Mrs. Owens herbs, she’s really into all-natural remedies so she has all kinds of stuff up there. A pinch can cure a headache, a dash can kill you.” He winked, and she gulped nervously, not sure what to say.

Just then the oven timer dinged. Saved by the bell. Ben stepped back allowing Cassidy to pull away and retrieve the lasagna from the oven.

“Mrs. Owens said to eat without her.” Cassidy said putting the lasagna on the stove.

“Then let’s eat.” Ben said grabbing some plates and carrying them to the stove. Cassidy opened a drawer looking for a spatula, but found only dish towels. She turned to the next drawer but Ben had already opened it and was handing her the spatula.

“Thank you.” She practically whispered taking the spatula from him. Their fingers brushed and she felt an electric current run up her arm. Did he feel it to? She glanced up at him nervously and found that he was watching her. Her stomach did a somersault. Quickly she looked away and served up the lasagna, focusing intently on her task.

Ben grabbed the plates she’d filled and carried them to the table. He poured two glasses of water setting them next to the plates then he sat down and waited for her to join him.

“You’re uncharacteristically… friendly tonight.” Cassidy observed as she took her seat.

“I guess I deserved that.” Ben laughed. “I really didn’t think you’d stay.” He told her honestly.

“So I take it you already know how my meeting with Mr. Woodard went.”
Cassidy said annoyed.

“I heard you tell Lucy.” He explained calmly.

“Oh.”

“I’m not stalking you.” He smirked.

“I didn’t say you were.” She said defensively. They ate in silence for a few
minutes, Cassidy wasn’t sure how to navigate this new territory. If she was going to be staying she wanted to find some sort of common ground with Ben.

“Why didn’t you think I would stay?” Cassidy finally asked, breaking the silence.

“I already told you that last night. Your … background… didn’t lead me to believe that you were in the business of helping people keep their family holdings.” He tried to hold back his bitterness, she could tell, but there was something under the surface. She wanted to know what it was.

“I was eighteen
when I got my first job in a hotel.” Cassidy divulged, she decided if she wanted to learn more about Ben Riley, perhaps she needed to share a little more about herself. “I was on my own and I got a job as a desk clerk. Moved up to night manager after a year. It was a small hotel in Daytona Beach. Great location, but aging. The family that owned it just didn’t have the capital to fix it up, modernize it, keep up with the competition. They were going under.

“
Langston Holdings bought the hotel my second year there. They kept me on, along with most of the staff. But with the funds they pumped into that old place they turned it around. Redecorated, remodeled, updated. Within a year it was a brand new hotel. Transformed in front of my eyes. It was nothing short of a miracle.”

“Is that the speech you give people when you’re trying to buy their property?” Ben asked coldly. He hadn’t been swayed by her story, if anything it had closed him off.
He seemed hostile again.

“No.” Cassidy stumbled, she hadn’t expected that reaction. “I’m just trying to explain to you that I’m not in the business of closing down hotels, I’m in the business of breathing new life into them.”

“Nice tag line.”

“It’s not a tag line! It’s the truth. That old hotel I worked for was on its way to shutting down. If it hadn’t been bought, the family who had owned it would have been bankrupt, instead they were paid nicely
. They were happy to sell.”

“Is everyone happy to sell?” He challenged. Cassidy thought of Mr. Belfour, but it was just an errant thought. Selling was in the best interest of these small business owners, even if they didn’t see that at first. It was Cassidy’s job to show them that, and she wasn’t going to let Ben Riley make her feel bad about that. He just didn’t understand.

“It’s in their best interests.” Cassidy said calmly, regaining her composure. Becca had been right about one thing, no one had ever been able to get under her skin like he could.

“It wasn’t in my father’s best interest.” Ben said gruffly standing from the table and carrying his plate to the sink. Cassidy sucked in a surprised breath, finally a scratch on the surface.

“Your father owned a hotel?” Cassidy questioned quietly as she joined Ben at the sink with her own plate.

“No.”

He wasn’t going to say anymore. She didn’t push. There was something in his eyes, something painful and dark.

“I’ve got an early morning.” Ben said and without another word he headed up the stairs leaving Cassidy alone in the kitchen again.

“Goodnight.” She said to the empty room as she put the dishes away and headed up to bed.

When Cassidy’s alarm woke her at five the next morning her plan didn’t seem so brilliant anymore, but she pulled herself out of bed and dressed in the jeans, t-shirt and work boots that she’d bought in town the day before. She didn’t bother with make-up this morning, but she did generously apply some of the sunblock Ben had given her. She first braided and then twisted her long blonde hair into an efficient bun. She was going more for functionality than fashion today. After brushing her teeth, she skipped down the steps feeling rather proud of herself and her little plan.

Mrs. Owens was in the kitchen when Cassidy
entered, she was mixing something in a bowl and humming to herself cheerfully.

“Good morning
, Mrs. Owens.” Cassidy said pleasantly. The startled woman spun around to face her looking more offset than Cassidy had ever seen her before, she took in Cassidy’s appearance and her look of shock changed to confusion and then quickly settled into an amused smile.

“Well Cassidy don’t you look…” She hesitated at a loss for words.

“I know.” Cassidy laughed. “I planned to help Ben in the gardens again today so I figured I better dress the part.”

“Oh.” Mrs. Owens looked frustrated and a little disappointed.

“Unless you needed help around the house.” Cassidy added quickly. She’d never seen so much range of emotion from Mrs. Owens, she normally seemed so tranquil.

“No
, dear, of course not, I’m sure Ben would appreciate the help.” Mrs. Owens smiled reassuringly. “Would you like some breakfast first?” She offered.

“Well…”

“Now, dear, if you’re going to be working out in that heat all day you need something in your stomach. Please at least have a bowl of cereal.”

“Okay, but let me get it.” Cassidy insisted. “I don’t want to interrupt you.” She walked toward the pantry to retrieve the cereal.

“It’s really no trouble.” Mrs. Owens insisted, looking a little frustrated again. Cassidy imagined that Mrs. Owens wasn’t accustomed to letting people do for themselves, but she was determined to prove that she could carry her own weight.

“Really, I’ve got it.” Cassidy smiled holding up the box of cereal.

“Oh well, okay.” Mrs. Owens relented.

Cassidy ate quickly and then headed outside in search of Ben. She found him in the shaded part of the yard, bent over the short leafy plants that he had shown her the other day.

“Aren’t I supposed to be blanching those?” She asked casually and was rewarded with the look of surprise on Ben’s face when he glanced up and saw her standing there with her hands on her hips. She smiled sweetly down at him, enjoying the moment.

“What are you doing out here?” He asked frowning.

“Carrying my own weight. So did you get the twine or are you going to send me into that deathtrap you call a shed again?” She joked. He didn’t laugh, and she regretted her joke when she saw the shadow cross over his eyes.

“I’m almost done here.” He said pointing to the finished row.
There were still several rows to be done.

“Well you can either show me how and let me finish, or I can stand here and watch you finish.
Up to you.” She smiled at him again wondering what happened to the playful side she’d seen briefly last night.

“Fine.”
He huffed and then proceeded to show her how to fold the leaves over the heads of cauliflower and tie them with the twine.

“Easy enough.”
Cassidy said agreeably and quickly set to work. Ben stood brushing the dirt from his knees and watched her for a moment.

“Are you just going to watch me?” She asked laughing nervously.

“No, um, I’ll be right over there.” He pointed a few rows over and she nodded, wondering why he was acting so weird.

This chore she liked
; it was easy enough. She meticulously folded and tied the leaves, moving down the row and surreptitiously stealing glances over at Ben. She watched as he moved up and down the rows of plants, checking and picking vegetables, filling a wheel barrow as he went along.

Their morning passed in companionable silence. She noticed that Ben never moved too far from her, always staying in sight. A few times he caught her watching him and once or twice she caught him watching
her. After a while they were exchanging shy smiles across the garden anytime their eyes met. For a man who had claimed not to like her too much, he sure did flirt.

“All done?”
He asked standing over her as she tied the last plant, she shielded her eyes to look up at him and nodded.

“What’s next?” She asked standing and brushing her hands on her jeans.

“Pumpkins.”

“Pumpkins?”

“Yep, it’s time to plant the pumpkins. Hope you’re not scared of heights, Miss St. Claire.” He smiled at her with that challenging mischievous smile and she was intrigued.

“Not at all
, Mr. Riley.” She followed him to the edge of the hill and looked over the side. The hillside gradually sloped down over several stepped layers of tilled soil. There was a narrow ledge pathway at the bottom and then a rather steep drop off the side of the mountain. She looked at him questioningly.

“High
, isn’t it?” He smiled, with laughter dancing in his eyes again. He was challenging her.

“Yes it is.” She replied calmly.

“That’s why we use this.” He told her walking over and picking up a harness. It was just a few simple straps connected to a thick braided rope that was run through a pulley system.

“So basically you want to tie a rope to me and throw me over the side of the mountain?” Cassidy questioned playfully.

“Basically.” He smiled.

“Let’s do it.” She agreed.
She saw the surprise and then admiration cross his face. He hadn’t expected her to go for it. She’d impressed him; she liked that.

He helped her into the harness, tightening the straps around her legs and waist, checking them to make sure she was secure.

“Ready?” He asked.