When she was done, he was eyeing her over his glass of water. "I suppose that makes sense. I had hoped we'd at least get to spend the drive home together but you're right. It would be terribly inconvenient to have to drive back here to get your car. Can we at least have breakfast together?"
Despite wanting to refuse, she nodded, and Roland smiled. They were silent for a moment before he launched into the stories about the retreat he had been on last weekend. His boss had taken the entire sales team, they had won some kind of competition she didn't fully understand, on a weekend retreat to celebrate them far exceeding their sales goals for the year. From the stories he was telling it sounded a lot like a boys’ club, and it sounded less like a work event and more like a group of guys doing a lot of drinking in a Vegas hotel. But she plastered a smile and made the expected noncommittal noises and managed to get all the way through dinner.
When they finished eating and Roland's story wound down, he smiled and slapped his hand lightly on the table as if to get her attention. "I have an idea; we came down here so you could see the wonder that is the Lantern Lake Christmas celebration. While all the festivities are running only on Fridays and Saturday nights, I'm told the decorations are still in place on Sundays. It's only a ten-minute walk from here; how about we take a short stroll around the lake? Then we can at least partially see what we came to see? Or would that be too much for your knee? All in all, it would probably be about an hour of walking."
Though her knee was a little stiff she knew she needed to be walking to stretch it out, especially considering all the sitting she did today. "Sounds like a good idea."
His smile grew. "Excellent, shall we head out then?" He slid out of the booth and Claire followed suit.
It was weird the difference between him picking her up from the clinic and now. As he slid out of the booth, he cocked his elbow out so she could slide her hand through it and he began to tell her about all the festivities he experienced when his family had come here when he was a child. This was the Roland she was used to spending time with. Sure, he took business calls more than he probably should, but this easy-going, charming man was the one she had begun dating to begin with. But even as they joked and laughed on their walk to the lake, Claire was acutely aware that the workaholic answer-the-phone side of him was there too. She knew all of this could end the instant he received a phone call. She did not want to allow herself to get sucked in to his charming sales personality again. Otherwise life with him would be an exhausting cycle.
She allowed herself to become absorbed in the pretty snowscape around them, as for some reason it had thankfully stopped snowing for the moment and the ground was still covered in crunchy white snow. When they made it to the lake, Claire could see not only how naturally beautiful it was but all the Christmas lights and decorations up. Large bulbs sitting in snowy grass, the lanterns around the lake with snowflakes hanging from them that were large and almost cartoonish. She could see a large Christmas tree to the left. It was decorated and beautiful even without all the festivities going. Missing this opportunity to see it with all its action made her slightly sad. Though it was nice to see it peaceful and beautiful, as if she was being let in on a secret. As they walked in silence, she took in everything.
"Roland, this is beautiful," she commented as they passed a small raised stage set up to look like a snowed over hedge in a garden.
When she glanced up, she saw Roland smile and puff up, priding himself for suggesting they go for this walk. "It is, isn’t it? Whoever designs this every year does a fantastic job."
After a few minutes, they ran into another set of people. She hadn't expected it, as once they'd reached the lake there had not been anybody else walking around, though it was fairly cold she couldn't blame people. As they got closer, she could see that they were about to come upon a man and a woman who were standing facing each other slightly apart, almost in that awkward first date fashion. The woman had leashes to three different dogs, it looked like a German Shepherd and two boxers. The man had a large, vaguely familiar dog. Just as Claire was having that thought she realized the man was Jared.
With wide eyes, she realized Jared was on a date with that woman with those dogs. He was apparently beginning a relationship because they weren't comfortable with each other yet. The weirdest thing happened: she felt a spike of jealousy shoot through her and it caught her off guard even more than seeing Jared in town. She had no right to him. She had no claim for a man she’d only met two days before. They were friendly and they got along well despite the fact they’d just met. Plus, she was technically still in a relationship with Roland, even though for her, it was over. But there it was, that little spike of jealousy. Part of her wanted to turn Roland around to go in the opposite direction but she feared that would cause more attention, so as they got closer, she tried to be as nonchalant as possible.
She knew the second Jared saw her because his eyes widened as well in a comical expression and the woman with him tilted her head slightly before turning and smiling at Claire and Roland.
"Good evening," the woman with the three dogs said in a friendly tone.
Roland ignored her, pretending they were the only ones on the trail.
Since that would’ve been awkward, Claire returned the greeting, "Good evening." And then the moment was over.
They walked by them and nothing happened, she wasn't even sure Roland recognized Jared. If he did, he certainly wasn't saying anything, though the smile on his face dimmed. After a moment the light came back on and they began chatting about their scenery again. But it felt superficial this time and Claire couldn't help but wonder what Roland was thinking about. Over the course of their walk she had unhooked her hand from his arm and shoved them in her pockets. The silence had grown less companionable as they left the lake.
When their hotel came back in sight Claire knew it was time. She wanted to break up with Roland and not string him along. They had not been together that long and certainly hadn't been out many times but that didn't make breaking up easier.
Taking a deep breath first for courage, Claire cleared her throat. "Roland, I don't think this is working out, you and me, we’re not the right fit. While we enjoy each other's company like on this walk, I think both of us work too long of hours for it to work well as a relationship. It’s great that we’re both workaholics and we have that in common, but two workaholics also means we never see each other so we don't actually get to know if our personalities really mesh. I think it's better if we decide to go our separate ways."
"Are you kidding me?"
Claire hadn't expected outrage. Roland stopped walking and faced her, his face a mask of anger which she felt was disproportionate to the situation.
"No, I'm not kidding. We don’t mesh as well as we'd initially hoped. I think we also both need people who don't work as much as we do. Someone to balance us out." What she really wanted to say was someone who would not take phone calls for work while they were on a date but that would surely cause a fight and she didn't want to do that.
"You're saying because we don’t have matching schedules, we’re a bad fit. What a crock. This is unbelievable. I plan this weekend, you end up screwing it up by getting lost, and then getting into a car accident, but I graciously still pick you up from the hospital. And here you are breaking up with me for my efforts. Classy. Unbelievable. You know what, you're probably right. We’re not a good fit, you just take, take, take and I don't need that in my life." He was practically snarling in her face as he spoke. Once he finished, he pivoted and marched toward the hotel.
His steps were so heated and so fast in comparison to hers that she was sure it now looked like she was walking alone down the street. She was grateful she’d waited until they could see the hotel, otherwise she would probably end up wandering the streets of Lantern Lake trying to find it. While he’d been more aggressive and angrier than she'd expected, his reaction made her more grateful and surer that breaking it off with him was a good idea. His temper
alone was not something she needed.
The five minutes it took her to get to the inn had her body losing a lot of the tension she had not known was building up. If her car wasn’t totaled, she was fairly sure she could afford to get things fixed, and she could afford to stay in the hotel. Somehow knowing she didn't have to deal with Roland made everything else seem not so bad. That feeling only solidified the knowledge that breaking up was the right idea. She couldn't help but wonder whether she should've done it sooner.
~~
When her alarm went off at seven, Claire stretched and was surprised to see no messages from Roland on her phone. She didn't want to see him at breakfast downstairs. She took her time getting ready, dawdling as much as possible so by the time she headed to breakfast it was already eight-thirty, and brought her laptop with her so she could at least check her emails at the table, making it easier to avoid him should he still be there.
Considering breakfast was almost over there was still a decent variety of food and Claire happily helped herself to a full plate before settling in at the table closest to the main area, facing the lobby. While she didn’t want to see Roland check out, she figured having her back to the place he could possibly come from was probably a worse idea. But she didn't see him and eventually she got absorbed in what she was working on. She didn't even realize she had become absorbed until she noticed someone standing across the table from where she sat.
Initially, she was worried Roland was coming to confront her in public with more angry words but looking up, she saw Dottie smiling down at her, with worried eyes. Claire smiled back.
"I just wanted to check on you. The young man I know you are with checked out about fifteen minutes before you came downstairs and he was in a huff. I wanted to see if you were all right." Claire felt her smile fade a little in the worry. What exactly had Roland said to the older woman?
"I'm all right. Thank you for asking. I realized we weren't a good match and Roland wasn't thrilled with that assessment."
Dottie’s snort made it obvious the other woman knew she was underplaying what happened. Nodding, she leaned down to pat Claire's hand and turned and headed back to work.
Claire watched her a moment before shaking her head and focusing on her computer. She wondered what Roland had said or done this morning, no doubt throwing a hissy fit that didn't make sense for a grown adult. She'd seen Roland get angry at service people before and thought it was stress at work, but now that he had blown up at her she couldn't help but wonder if that was simply part of his personality. She’d thought about it last night after she had gone to her room; there had been warning signs about his temper and she had pushed them off.
Her phone began to dance across the table. She snatched it up before it could shimmy off the glossy wood. It was a number she did not recognize but that did not mean much on this side of the state, so she picked it up anyway.
"Hello, this is Claire," she answered in her most friendly and professional voice.
"Hey, Claire; this is Edward over at Sophie’s auto shop. I wanted to let you know that we’ve looked at your car and it’s sort of a good news/bad news thing. Good news is we can fix it and get it up and running for you. Bad news is there are couple of parts that need to be replaced and we don't have them on hand, so it will take a couple days for them to get to us. Also, we can mostly pop the hood back in place but it's never going to look pristine. It'll fit everything fine, but if you look at it in the right light, you'll see little bends. Would you like us to move forward on that or do you want to do something else? A rep from your insurance company walked in a few minutes ago. I can walk him through it the same time as I walk you through it if you want to come down here."
Claire was surprised her insurance company had already sent a rep, but they probably had one local and had dispatched him. Even with that, she couldn't help but frown into the phone. "I would love to go down there but I don't know where it is, and I don't have a ride. I would have to call an Uber and I don't know how long that'll take."
Edward paused and it sounded as if someone was tapping a pen on some paper. "I have an idea. Are you staying at the Lantern Lake Inn?"
She couldn't help the suspicion leaking into her voice as she responded, "Yes."
"Good. If you can wait in the lobby, I can have somebody there to grab you within the next five to ten minutes. He'll be in a beat-up old truck and he can drop you off on his way to where he's headed."
Under normal circumstances, Claire would find that wholly suspicious but considering the way things had been in Lantern Lake she shrugged. This seemed to be par for course in the way they did things here. "Okay, that's fine. I can be in the lobby in ten minutes." She glanced over her laptop at the lobby area. It wasn't as if it was that big of a hotel.
"Great, I'll get off the phone with you and I will let him know. His name is Robert, by the way."
Claire pulled the phone away from her ear and shook her head. She was getting into yet another stranger's car; her elementary school teachers talking about stranger danger would have a field day with this. Shaking her head, Claire closed her laptop and headed up to her room to drop it off and grab a jacket. By the time she came back down there was a man standing in the lobby in his own winter jacket chatting with Dottie.
"Here's Claire now," Dottie pivoted slightly to waive her into their little group. "Claire, this is one of my nephews, Robert. He is one of our vets in the area and I guess he's your chauffeur to the mechanic today."
Robert outstretched his hand so Claire could shake it. "I promise it's not as weird as it seems. Edward, Sophie's husband, runs a farm that's been with his family for generations. I'm about to head out there to check out a sick pig. He knows their appointment’s coming up in half an hour, so he figured I'd be headed out of town anyway.”
"How strangely convenient." She was getting too comfortable in this small town―her sarcastic streak was starting to show.
No one seemed to take offense; in fact, both Dottie and Robert chuckled.
"Well, shall we head out so you can see the damage?" Robert lifted an eyebrow as he spoke and motioned out the front doors were Claire could see a red truck waiting.
Claire nodded in response and the two of them headed outside and climbed in the old vehicle.
"The mechanic is only about eight minutes away, it's on the other side of Lantern Lake, the city not the actual Lake. I know it's confusing. I don't know why they named the cities that way."
They sat in a companionable silence for a few minutes before curiosity got the better of Claire. "Are you by chance related to a Jared who lives in a cabin outside the city?" The resemblance was strong enough between the two men they had to be related. The alternative was a ridiculously huge coincidence
Robert groaned and she looked at him frowning.
"What gruff and mildly insulting thing did he say to you? On behalf of the siblings, I would like to apologize for my brother. I promise he is only ninety percent as gruff and grumpy as he appears. It isn't you he dislikes, it’s all people.”
It sounded like something he was used to saying as if covering for something rude Jared said was a common occurrence in their family.
That threw Claire aback. She had no idea what he was talking about. Jared had been nothing but nice to her. Obviously, he wasn't a people person but that was fine by her.
"What are you talking about? He didn't say anything like that to me." She didn't hide her surprise as she spoke.
Robert blinked and shifted his gaze to her in surprise. "He didn't? Oh, then why do you ask?" Now there was more curiosity than anything else in his tone.
Smiling, she explained to him the ordeal she had been through with the car accident and getting lost and how Jared had taken her in.
By the time she finished his eyes were wide with shock, and he was nodding. "I'm surprised he was so friendly, but he is a goodhearted guy deep down. He said something about being stuck in town because he was doing someone a favor, but he didn’t elabo
rate. I guess it does make sense. I’m surprised he didn't say anything super gruff. Huh."
She couldn't help but chuckle at the vet’s surprise. Jared must be an ornery guy for that reaction to of been so strong. She couldn't help but wonder what kind of trouble he had gotten them into as kids that would make apologizing for him in a put-upon way such a common practice. Before they had time for a longer conversation, he was pulling in to a shoveled parking lot of an auto body shop.
"This is your stop. I'm sorry I am not able to take you back to the hotel, but I spoke with my aunt and she was about to head out to run errands. She said she could come by and pick you up in about fifteen or twenty minutes if that works for you." He handed her a business card with a scribbled cell phone number on the back. "That's her number, so text her one way or another if you want her to pick you up. If you find a different way back to the hotel, that's fine but she'll be out and about anyway so it's on her way."
"Thank you." Gratitude overwhelmed Claire for how friendly and helpful these people were. It could just be this one family, but the fact they would all go out of their way to help a stranger filled her with a faith in humanity she couldn't say she had before. "I really appreciate how helpful all of you are."
Robert gave her a gentle smile as she took the card from him. "Don't worry about it. It wasn’t a big deal to drop you on my way. Jared taking you in is surprising, but we were raised to help people out when we can. I'm sure I speak for all of us when I say we’re glad we were able to be in the right place at the right time to help you out. I can't imagine what would've happened if Jared hadn't been at my house earlier this week hanging out with me and our younger brothers. If he hadn’t been on that roadway who knows how long you would've been out there with no cell service in a crashed car. I think we’re all grateful that worked out."
Lantern Lake Winter Collection: Books 1-3 Page 14