by Kris Bryant
“Absolutely not. I want you to relax. Keep Wally company. I’ll have dinner ready in no time.”
I sat and watched Brynn work. She was quick, and quiet, and I didn’t want to interrupt her. She sliced cheddar cheese, a crisp apple, and handed me a plate. I was so happy to have food.
“Can I give Wally any of this?” Wally was on the other end of the couch watching me. I could tell she wasn’t happy with the idea, but she couldn’t tell me no. At least not about this.
“Okay. You can give him an apple slice, but that’s it. I don’t want to spoil his dinner,” she said.
Once I had food in my stomach, I wanted do something except sit and wait for Brynn to serve dinner. I opened up my laptop and downloaded the incriminating photos of the poachers. Even though they were taken from far away, I found several where the men’s faces were clear and recognizable. I also transferred the photos from my phone to the laptop. They were lower quality, but I included them in the file anyway. I dug inside of my bag until I found a flash drive. I uploaded the pictures and had it ready for Brynn right when dinner was ready. Great timing.
“I asked Lara Ridgley, that state trooper, to come over tonight after her shift. I hope you are comfortable talking to her.” Brynn sat in front of her plate.
“That’s fine.” I had freshened up after my nap, but I was still in need of a shower. I was sure all of the leaves were gone from my hair, but I didn’t feel clean. “I have all the photos saved to the flash drive. Maybe her department can read the fuzzy license plates. The camera on my phone wasn’t on the highest quality setting.” I dug into my steak and moaned. “Brynn, this dinner’s fantastic. It’s exactly what I needed.” I stopped talking until I cleaned my plate.
Brynn smiled at me the entire dinner. After taking care of Wally, she asked to look through the photos before Lara stopped by. We grabbed our drinks and sat on the couch with plenty of room between us. I had to move the laptop over just so she could see them better. She concentrated hard on the photos and I took the time to study her. It was hard not to stare at her generous mouth, or the way her lips parted slightly as she concentrated on studying the photos. They were so red, and only marred by the tiny scar that nicked the corner of her bottom lip. I wanted to kiss it because it was perfectly imperfect. When she turned to face me, I realized I was too close and slowly leaned back. We heard a car pull up.
“I don’t know these guys, but hopefully Lara does.” Brynn’s shoulders relaxed when she looked out of the window. “She’s here.”
I stood for no other reason than I felt like I was in trouble. Law enforcement made me nervous. I’d never broken any law except for parking in the wrong spot. I smiled when I saw the trooper. She was a beautiful woman with long brown hair and a nice smile. She walked to me and reached out to shake my hand.
“So nice to meet you, Kennedy. I’m sorry you had such a horrible experience today, but I’m glad you made it out okay. We’re going to do everything we can to catch these guys.” She took off her brown jacket and hung it on the back of a chair. She was comfortable here. There weren’t any rings on her fingers, or any jewelry on her at all. “I missed dinner?” She smiled at Brynn who shrugged at her.
“I invited you but you were too busy having dinner with the mayor or the governor or somebody like that,” Brynn said. She winked at Lara. Winked at her! They were too familiar with one another. I bet they dated.
“I just couldn’t get out of it. You know what these things are like,” Lara said.
“That I do.” They smiled at one another again. “If you’re hungry, I can fix you something.”
“So, I have a flash drive with all of the photos that you can take back to the station with you.” I was a jerk for interrupting their memories, but I was tired of watching them flirt back and forth.
“Oh, yes. So let’s talk about where you were and what happened.” Lara sat next to me on the couch and scrolled through the photos. I told her everything I could remember from what they were wearing, to the tattoos on their arms and necks. She asked about their accents and mannerisms, things that couldn’t be determined from pictures alone. She was thorough and smart. I learned a few interviewing tips from her.
“Do you catch a lot of poachers?” I asked.
“Unfortunately, a lot of them get away, so whenever we do catch them, we’re careful and ensure we do everything by the book. Thank you for these photos. You were brave to do this and come forward. I’m glad you got away before anything happened.” She put her hand on my forearm in a reassuring way.
“I was stupid for going out there alone in the first place,” I said.
“No, you weren’t. For the most part, this area’s relatively secure,” she said.
“Yeah, but this area has never met Kennedy Wells,” Brynn said.
I shot her a mean look. It was hard to keep it because she was smiling at me. A small dimple high on her left cheek appeared that I hadn’t noticed before. I decided not to fight the truth. I turned to Lara. “She’s right. I’ve had nothing but bad luck since I landed. Not even kidding.”
“Oh, are you the one who had the encounter with the moose?” she asked.
“Does everybody know?”
Brynn busted out laughing. “I told you it was a good story to tell at our potluck dinner.”
“I didn’t think you were serious,” I said.
“Kennedy, don’t worry. I know it was an awful thing to experience, but it was tame compared to a lot of things we see and hear here. Don’t let Brynn get under your skin like that. She’s just teasing.” Lara shot a grin at Brynn. “Maybe we should talk about what happened when she first got here.” Lara dropped that bomb and both Brynn and I pounced at the same time.
“Don’t you dare—” Brynn scrambled into the living room.
“Tell me everything.” I planted myself between Brynn and Lara. I shuddered when I felt Brynn’s hands playfully pull my elbows back until my back was pressed against her body. Her laughter in my ear made me shudder. She was too close and my body betrayed me.
“Let’s keep in mind that I was twenty years old. I didn’t know any better,” Brynn said.
“Are you kidding me? Like I’ve known any better? Oh, please do tell, Lara.”
Brynn groaned and threw herself on the couch in pretend agony. “Go ahead. Destroy my cool factor.”
Lara rubbed her hand over Brynn’s short hair. “So we get this call about somebody stuck in a Porta Potti at one of the trailheads. My partner and I were a few miles away. We got to the site and see this Porta Potti on its side completely ripped to shreds,” Lara said.
Brynn groaned again and hid her face under a pillow, interrupting the story.
“Oh, don’t stop. This is too good.” I leaned forward to encourage Lara.
“Well, the call came from inside the Porta Potti. Apparently this new, wet behind the ears ranger got chased by a bear and that was the only place she could get to safety. Never mind that her truck was twenty feet away and definitely safer than a plastic box. The bear tipped over the Porta Potti and tried to rip into it. Eventually, it left. By the time we got there, a sweet, albeit angry, Brynn was covered in crap and angrier than I had ever seen anybody before.” Lara paused to laugh at the memory while Brynn continued to groan. “We had to pry off the top to get her out. It beat rolling it over again because when the bear tipped it, it fell on the door side. Brynn wasn’t happy with the idea of rolling it one more time.”
“I wish I could have seen it.” I laughed at the image of Brynn covered in waste and super pissed off.
“Oh, it gets better. She crawls out and yells every profanity I’ve ever heard while stripping down to nothing. She didn’t care that we didn’t know her or that my partner was a guy. She took everything off and marched over to her truck and washed off with several bottles of water and an old T-shirt.”
Brynn dramatically punched the pillow that covered her face. “It was the worst thing ever. I took a million showers with strong soap. It took for
ever to get the smell off. To this day, I refuse to go in any kind of outhouse,” she said.
“After she cleaned up the best she could, she came back over to us and introduced herself wearing a tank, a pair of boxers, and waders. She was so unbelievably cute,” Lara said.
Another shared look between them. I was starting to feel like a third wheel. “Suddenly my moose story isn’t that bad,” I said. Brynn’s story won, hands down.
“Not at all. And that’s just the beginning,” Lara said.
“Okay, okay. We’re done here. Let’s focus on Kennedy and a game plan,” Brynn said. That sobered us up.
Lara slipped back into professional mode and told us what her department was going to concentrate on and what I should do. She also recommended that I stay with Brynn because nobody knew I was there.
“And I want in on this, Lara. I want you to keep me posted and if you need more people out looking, I can recruit some of the rangers. They hate poachers too,” Brynn said.
“Here’s my business card. If you remember anything else, please text me or call me, day or night. Okay?” Lara smiled at me and handed me her card. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Brynn frown and I didn’t know if it was because Lara gave me her card, or that I accepted it with a smile on my face.
Chapter Sixteen
“I’m going to try to send out other rangers for the calls that come in.” Brynn turned her truck into the sanctuary’s parking lot. Wally stood up between us when we slowed down.
“Oh, I don’t mind going with you. Please, don’t let this whole thing get in the way of you doing your job. Plus, I can call it research. I can work from anywhere.” I pointed to my messenger bag. “On-the-go-office. I’m used to it.”
“Don’t worry about it. Truly. We help one another out all of the time. Everybody’s aware of the situation. We’ll find these guys. I promise. We’ll still go out on some rescues, but just the small ones. Like Owlie,” Brynn said.
“Oh, I missed his release. How did he do?” All because I couldn’t handle the fact that Brynn rejected me. That would’ve been a great photo.
“He did well. He hopped around and at first I wasn’t sure he was going to fly, but eventually he stretched out his wings and took off. It was beautiful,” she said.
“I’m sorry I missed it.”
Brynn nodded. “So let me drop Wally off and we’ll grab the Jeep and start making our rounds. If you want, we can even swing by the wharf if you need to interview anybody.”
“Let’s make today about the sanctuary. I have more than enough information and interviews to write my fishing article. I’m in it for photos at this point,” I said.
I petted Wally good-bye and waited at the Jeep for Brynn. When she returned, she walked down the ramp toward me, confident and strong. I watched her the entire time. She knew I wanted her. She knew the effect she had on me. I decided not to hide it anymore. The decision was hers. Either she would act on it or not.
“Ready?” She stopped in front of me.
I wanted to reach out and straighten her tie, but I refrained. “I’m ready.”
* * *
The morning was spent hitting all of the trailheads near the sanctuary. Brynn was keeping an eye out for the two trucks with distinctive trailers. I couldn’t imagine they would show up knowing there was an eyewitness out there. I know if I did something illegal and somebody saw my face, I would be long gone.
Lunch break was in town, surrounded by a lot of people. I’m sure Brynn did that so that we wouldn’t have a repeat of our last attempt at lunch. The one where I rubbed against her and I felt her kiss all the way to my core. Our conversation was light and was more about our jobs.
“Do you see yourself working for the magazine for the rest of your life?” Brynn asked.
That was a difficult question. I wanted to, but I also hated the idea of that being my only identity. Being away from the limelight, I was so used to made me think about my decisions. Did I want the kind of relationship Mandy and Lisa had? Was I even capable of that kind of love? Watching them stirred feelings inside of me and reminded me there was more to a relationship than sex. There was trust, communication, loyalty, all of which I had little to no experience with even though I was thirty-one.
“Yes and no. It would be hard to have the career I have and settle down with somebody. I would have to sacrifice, and let’s face it, I’m not the kind of girl who likes to sacrifice.” Even as I said those words, I doubted them. I had it in me to love somebody unconditionally, but I was afraid it was buried so deeply that I wouldn’t ever find it. “What about you? Is Alaska forever? Would you ever want to move back to Florida or somewhere else?”
Brynn slowly twirled the almost empty coffee cup in her hands. “I’ve been here a long time, but I like it. It has the small town life, the love thy neighbor mentality. And I love my job here. I love animals. I was going to school to become a veterinarian at Florida State.”
“Did you think about going to school here for that? The university probably has a good program given that ratio of wild animals to people is a million to one,” I said.
Brynn laughed. “It’s not that bad. Besides, I have a lot of hands-on experience. Tina’s a great teacher. She’s patient with me. I help her out whenever I can. Most of my job is out in the field, though, where I’m fumbling along,” she said.
“You never fumble. You’re so good with animals and you seem so sure about everything you do,” I said.
“Not everything, but thank you. I’ve toyed with the idea of going back to school. Not that any of my credits would transfer. I’d have to start over.” She grabbed the bill before I even saw the waitress drop it on the table.
“I have an expense account. You should at least let me buy you lunch since you are carting me around everywhere,” I said.
She shook her head at me. “Nope. My idea, my treat.”
I wanted to ask so many questions, but I didn’t want her to know that I had been snooping on the internet and found out more about her than she had admitted to me. Maybe she would never tell me. The reporter in me hated that, but the woman in me understood. Not everybody wanted their dirty laundry out there, especially me.
* * *
“Do you want me to start a fire?”
I looked up from my laptop and stared at Brynn. I was completely engrossed in writing. I wasn’t working on the fishing story, but a journal where I started writing my thoughts and experiences in Alaska because I didn’t want to forget anything that happened. It was different for me and even though I wasn’t a great communicator in person, I could write my raw, unedited emotions well. It took a few seconds to process what she asked.
“Sure, if you don’t mind.” I looked at the clock and couldn’t believe it was already nine.
Wally was playing with an empty paper towel roll in the kitchen. I could watch him for hours, but I knew that I had to stay focused. My time was limited. Both of my stories were progressing, but I wanted to take a step away from them. Brynn had been unusually quiet at dinner. I figured she had things on her mind, so I mentally checked out. For two hours, I had been writing a journal of my time spent here from my first harrowing hours until right before Brynn’s lips touched mine the first time. I was at a good stopping point.
“Would you like a cup of tea?” I asked. After arguing like an old married couple at the grocery store earlier this evening, Brynn agreed to let me buy the first round of groceries.
“That sounds great,” she said.
I put the kettle on the stove and watched her build a fire. She made making a fire seem like an art form. The placement of the logs and the kindling was perfectly symmetrical, so very different than mine. I decided right then that I would never attempt a fire again unless it was the apocalypse and I was the only one left. Who was I kidding? I’d probably be one of the first to die. Alaska picked me up by the scruff, shook me, and showed me I was no match for her. I was a city girl through and through.
“What are you smiling abo
ut?” Brynn asked.
I laughed because my thoughts were ridiculous and she probably wouldn’t understand my sense of humor. “I was just thinking about the one and only time I built a fire.” I was rewarded with a smug smile. “I know, I know. I will never even think about that here. Your cabin’s immaculate. Are you sure you want this tornado of a woman in your place?”
“Are you kidding me? I live with a raccoon. You’ve got nothing on him,” she said.
The night before, Brynn made me shut my door and gave me earplugs. I told her I didn’t need them, but she told me to take them anyway. I quickly learned the real reason Brynn’s cabin was spotless with little décor. Raccoons were nocturnal and Wally liked to play hockey in the middle of the night with things that weren’t nailed down. I couldn’t get the plugs deep enough in my ears. He kept slipping his little paw under the door, jiggling it just enough to make a soft bumping noise. I finally opened it. He sniffed around the room and climbed over me several times which freaked me out so I turned on the lamp by the bed. Raccoons in the day were cute. Raccoons at night? A little scary. Thankfully, my luggage and personal items were stored in the closet out of his reach. Eventually, he grew tired of me and left the room. I fell asleep with the light on.
“You’ve never seen me when I’m sleep deprived. Or close to a deadline,” I said.
“Aren’t you close to a deadline now?” She poked the fire and brushed her hands on her jeans. Even dressed casually, she looked great. I was in pajama bottoms and a sweatshirt. If she wasn’t interested in me, I wasn’t going to waste my energy trying anymore. My long hair was piled high on my head, and because my eyes were tired, I was wearing my glasses. Not the cool librarian ones, but the nerdy I need to see everything in my peripheral vision ones that almost magnified my face. I was the exact opposite of sexy right now.
“I have time. Both stories are practically done.” I sat up a little higher when she sat on the couch, her knee brushing mine. She put her hand on my knee apologetically and I shivered at her touch. “I’ve been thinking.” I wanted to ease into this idea so I took it slow and gave her a nice smile.