Operation Valentine (Hazel Oaks Resort Book 1)

by Kelsey McKnight

  Nat was a military brat? Well, that made sense. He could see her marching around as a kid, making sure all her Barbies were ready for inspection. The boarding school he’d gone to had tried to instill the same values of order and efficiency in him, but it had done the opposite. He’d rebelled against that kind of structure, so much that he moved every two years, always trying to keep his options open and avoid the feeling of being boxed in. And here, looking up at him with her clear eyes, was his polar opposite. It was almost laughable that they were in the same spot when they lived their lives so differently.

  Then the elevator doors opened and the Kents appeared, dressed appropriately, but not exactly dripping with enthusiasm. They’d both shown up, so beggars couldn’t be choosers, but they looked like strangers walking toward him, not even glancing at one another. He hadn’t expected them to be holding hands and waxing poetic about their newly revived relationship, but it wasn’t exactly inspiring confidence.

  “Good afternoon,” he greeted merrily, hoping some of his good mood would spark something in them.

  “Hi,” they said in unison, distantly, evenly.

  “I hope you guys are ready to get some fresh air.”

  “We aren’t going to be on the mountains or anything, right?” asked Mina, adjusting her pastel purple scarf.

  “No, just an easy stroll. We’ve had a mild winter, so many of the animals are coming out of hiding early,” he explained, opening the heavy lobby doors for them. “If you enjoy today, we can certainly set up a longer excursion to one of our lookout points.”

  “Lookout points?”

  “Let’s just say there’s one I think you would really like but it is a bit of work to get there. Although, trust me, it pays off in the end,” Hudson promised. He really did think Mina would enjoy the particular one he had in mind. It was a gem of a place tucked into the side of Black Mountain, featuring a wonderful view of Lake George via the glass of a perfectly tended greenhouse that was kept at a balmy temperature all year round. He didn’t take all his guests there, but he’d certainly take the Kents.

  “And I’ll just be tagging along today,” Nat added with a smile. Her face seemed softer, a little more open without her usual red lipstick. He hadn’t noticed before how easy it was to see her displeasure for his words or actions when there was such a vibrant color to showcase his faults.

  “Wonderful,” Mr. Kent said, rubbing his hands together. “Let’s get started.” He then reached into his pocket pulling out one glove. He groaned. “Oh, I must’ve left the other one upstairs or dropped it along the way. I’ll be right back.” He turned and headed toward the elevator.

  Mrs. Kent watched him go and then shook her head. She turned back to Hudson and Nat. “I’m so sorry about him. He’d lose his head if it weren’t attached.” She turned back and looked at him again. “I better go help him. He can never find anything without me.”

  “Then I guess it’s a good thing he has you,” Nat said with a polite smile; the one Hudson knew as one of her many guest appropriate expressions.

  Mrs. Kent headed toward the elevator, leaving him and Nat beside the double glass doors of the lobby.

  Nat reached out a hand and placed it on his forearm, her red nails contracting sharply with the navy blue of his coat. “Hudson, I wanted to apologize for yesterday. I didn’t mean to imply you couldn’t do this job. I just wanted to do whatever I could to make things go smoothly. Besides, since I’m coming with you, I’ll be able to write a recommendation about this excursion. You can use it when you apply to the California location.”

  “Well, actually, that sounds great. But now I’m nervous with the great Natalie Keller watching over me. This better be the best nature walk of my life. Tell me, if I do something wrong, will I be flogged or simply sent home without Terry’s cooking?” he asked, teasing her. He wasn’t used to her being in an apologetic mood and didn’t really know how to interact with her when she wasn’t being her usual, tight-laced self.

  She dropped her hand and took a step back. “Forget it, I was just trying to be nice.” She stuck her hand in her pocket again and then looked in the direction of the doors that led to the offices. “I forgot something. I’ll be right back.”

  Hudson rubbed his temples as she walked away. He’d messed up yet again. Sometimes his humor was a gift, and other times it gave him a headache. Nat had apologized and offered to write him a recommendation, then he had to open his big mouth.

  He really needed to give her a break and cut back on the teasing. She may be uptight, but she was so good at her job and cared more than anyone else. It seemed it was now his turn to apologize, his least favorite pastime.

  *

  When Mina, Marvin, and Nat had returned, Hudson led the way out the double glass doors and down the paved path that rounded the side of the hotel. It would go around the garden maze and let off near the swimming docks on the edge of the lake. From there, he would take them to the tree-lined path he liked best, the one a little bit farther off than the others the junior adventure coordinators usually used.

  “How was your morning?” Nat asked, falling in beside Mina.

  “It was fine. I enjoyed the spa.”

  She flipped her notebook open and made a note. “If you’d like, I can set up different spa appointments throughout your stay with us.”

  “I think I’d like that. It’s been ages since I’ve felt truly pampered.”

  As Nat began listing off the various spa amenities, Hudson stepped alongside Marvin and lowered his voice. “Hey, how’s it goin’?”

  “It’s goin’,” he said, sounding a little tired, or maybe bored.

  “Was dinner okay?”

  “The food was great.”

  “And things with your wife?” he pressed, making sure Mina and Nat were still going over manicures and facials.

  Marvin toyed with the zipper of his puffy blue jacket. “I tried the book thing and it didn’t pan out. For the past few decades all she’s read have been medical journals. I like a good spy novel, something with some action and mystery.”

  “Okay, so she’s not a pleasure reader, nothing wrong with that. We just need to broaden things a little. How about movies? Hobbies? She likes to garden, maybe you can focus on that?”

  “I already had the landscapers set her up a nice plot in the yard back home but it’s not like I do it with her.”

  Hudson was beginning to see why the pair was struggling in the romance department. Marvin at least seemed almost apathetic to his marital issues. If books as a talking topic didn’t pan out, why not go for another one? Small talk was easy, and he didn’t see how Marvin had survived more than fifty years of his life without using a conversation starter like, see any good movies lately?

  “You could always offer,” Hudson said, deciding that bringing up Marvin’s conversational shortcomings wasn’t going to get either one anywhere.

  Marvin nodded a little and kept walking.

  The group was coming up to the lake, which was frozen, but cut with a few spidery cracks that made it clear skating or taking a tour wouldn’t be a good idea. He wished it was either one or the other. In the summer, when the lake was warm and so clear he could count the smooth stones at the bottom, he could spend hours on the shore.

  He’d spent a lot of the past July on sailboats with the instructor, a bear of a man named Finn, and kayaking along the coast. On some parts of the lake, there would be pockets of pure life, waterlily forests with fish and dragonflies. He’d miss the crisp, fresh water when he made it to Cali.

  “What a beautiful lake,” Mina sighed as they hit the shore.

  “Careful,” he warned. “The rocks may be slippery.” Then, he had an idea. “Maybe you should hold hands, just in case.”

  Mina and Marvin glanced at each other like the idea would have never crossed their minds, then they intertwined their gloved fingers. Hudson shot a look at Nat, who seemed very impressed.

  “Good thinking,” she whispered as the Kents began walking ahead
of them, leaving a trail of footprints in the pristine show.

  “Not exactly a lie; it can be a little slick.”

  Nat’s foot suddenly went out from under her and she caught herself before falling. Hudson grabbed her arm to steady her. “See? Slippery.”

  “If one of them falls and breaks a leg, Mr. Sutton won’t be pleased,” she said, the previous flash of humor gone from her voice.

  “I’ve never lost a guest, Nat. And look, they’re holding tight to each other. I did good.”

  Mina was leaning heavily on Marvin as they walked, each pointing out stones to the other and telling them to watch their step. While they could seem distant, it was still clear they cared about each other’s well-being.

  “Then I guess you can let go of me,” Nat said, looking down at his hand.

  “I don’t know. Maybe you’ll be the one to break my prefect record. Besides, I told them to hold on to each other. Wouldn’t it make sense if we did too?”

  She stared up at him, her wide hazel eyes giving away nothing, then she sighed. “Fine.”

  “You have the most beautiful sigh. Is that particular one reserved just for me or do you use it all the time?”

  “Now, Hudson, what kind of woman would I be if I just went around sighing at every man I came into contact with? Really. It’s just when I’m around you.”

  “I’m touched.”

  He then tuned to check on the Kents. They weren’t in the best spot, so he called out to them, “Take five steps inland, please.”

  The ground over there was firmer and smoother beneath the snow. While he’d never lost a guest, never even had one seriously injured, he didn’t want to risk it, especially in front of Nat. He had her recommendation on the line. Though, if he was honest with himself, something he was beginning to wish he avoided, he’d wanted to impress her.

  “So earlier you said you were thinking of outing ideas?” she asked as they followed the Kents at a respectable distance to give them space. It seemed like they could be talking, and to his pleasure, they were still holding hands. It made him wish he was holding hands with Nat.

  “Yeah, I was batting a few things around. I was thinking we could go down to Glens Falls for a day trip. Maybe we could set up some tickets for a show there or an afternoon at that winery.”

  “Both could be good,” Nat said, flipping her notebook open again. “Dinner and a show to break up the outdoors stuff, plus, they could see each other all dressed up. That would certainly help in the romance department. The orchestra there is fantastic.”

  “You like the orchestra?”

  “I was a part of the orchestra in school…well, at all my schools.”

  “That’s a weird way to say, elementary, middle, and high.”

  “No, I literally mean all my schools.” She slipped the notebook back into her pocket and kept her hands there. Her cheeks were pink with the cold, but her eyes sparkled as she talked. “We moved around a lot when I was a kid, since my dad was in the Air Force. There weren’t a lot of constants in my life, but music is something that’s universal.”

  “What do you play?”

  “The violin.”

  “Were you any good?”

  She smiled. “I haven’t played in a few months, but I’m sure I could wow you.”

  “Sounds like you just offered me a private concert.”

  “No way,” she said, the shake of her head making her ponytail bounce. The strands of red in her strawberry hair were more pronounced in the sunlight. “I don’t really play for people, mostly myself.”

  It was strange to think he’d never really seen her out like this, so relaxed and free from her personal constraints. She’d never smiled so easily or given so many details of herself before. Hudson needed to figure out how to keep her in that moment of peace.

  “Okay, so you’re a musical genius. What other things are you ridiculously good at?”

  “Come on, I don’t want to brag.”

  “It’s not bragging if I’m asking. Give me your stats.”

  She snorted. “My stats? What am I, a baseball card?”

  “Were you interested in sports?” he asked.

  “Not officially. I swam a lot, but never in a competitive setting. I really focused on the violin since the moving meant I couldn’t exactly get a school sports career off the ground. How could I make a varsity team or get time on the field when I might have to leave in the middle of a season? It really wasn’t worth it.”

  “You know, the picture you’re painting of your childhood sounds pretty depressing.”

  “It wasn’t!” she said quickly. “Did I hate having to move all the time? Of course. But I got to see and experience so many places and cultures. I speak five different languages I picked up along the way, and I have friends on four different continents… It was a wonderful way to grow up.”

  Her words weren’t sharp, more like she was in a daze, flipping through her memories. In fact, the smile on her face didn’t seem forced. It reached her eyes and with the sun behind her, the lake by her side, not a trace of make-up on her face, she was the most beautiful he’d ever seen her. He wanted to take a picture of it, to hold on to this moment for when she said or did something that drove him crazy. He just wanted to remember her like this with passion making her glow.

  Hudson needed to backtrack before she clammed up again. “That sounds so exciting,” he managed to say.

  “It was. I’m all traveled out though, at least when it comes to living in new places. There are so many places I’d still like to see but I love the idea of having one spot to come home to once the trip is done.”

  He wanted to know more about this person he felt he didn’t truly know at all. This new woman with friends everywhere, who played the violin and dreamed of seeing the rest of the world she hadn’t as a kid. He had been pretty sure she’d never leave Lake George if she could help it, and each new layer she revealed was a surprise.

  “Where did you live?” he asked. “Outside of the US I mean?”

  “Germany, Spain, Japan, and Belgium.”

  “Wow. That’s pretty awesome. I haven’t really traveled much out of the US.”

  “Where are you from?”

  “My family is from California, but I went to school in Colorado.”

  “Which college?” she asked eagerly. “One of my friends grew up on Peterson Air Force Base, so I’ve been to the state before.”

  Hudson wished he’d kept his mouth shut. This was going to be a downer. “Not college, military boarding school.”

  Her brows knit. “Really?”

  “Really. From fourth grade to high school graduation.”

  “That’s…that’s…”

  “Weird?” he offered in a tone he hoped kept things light. “I know. I don’t exactly strike you as the boarding school kinda guy, but yeah, that’s what my family did. Every generation went to some sort of boarding school. I just wasn’t a fan of it.” Hudson had to look away from her. All he saw in her gaze was confusion, like she was trying to figure him out, her eyebrows furrowed, her mouth open slightly like she’d be asking more questions. No, not on the schedule for today. That was quite enough about his past. “Hey, look, there’s the path into the trees.”

  *

  Nat

  Nat wasn’t sure how things had gone from lighthearted to heavy so fast. She was actually beginning to have a little fun talking to him, but to hear he’d grown up in a military boarding school and hated it made her heart clench. She appreciated and respected the military and felt it had actually made her a better person. Her brothers had followed in her dad’s footsteps and were serving too. They loved the life. But at the same time, she also knew it wasn’t for everyone. She had several friends growing up who despised the rules and regulation. She couldn’t imagine how hard it would be to live that life for so long and to hate it.

  Instead, she focused on the path ahead not the pity he clearly didn’t want from her. Towering trees dusted in snow framed the faint path which
had seemingly been untouched since the flurries. The way the evergreens and spruce trees were covered in powdery white made her think of Christmas and the taste of hot chocolate and the scent of cookies baking. They all glittered in the sunlight, shining like diamonds, and dripping with icicles.

  The land around Lake George had always been a gorgeous wonderland. It was why people came from all around to spend time on its shores. But even after working there for so many years, knowing the lodge inside and out, Hudson had managed to take her breath away with one short walk through the trees. She couldn’t believe all of this beauty had been right in her own backyard; she had just been so focused on other things and didn’t realize the world around her.

  “This is gorgeous,” she said to Hudson. She’d lowered her voice as if the sound of it would make the snow fall from the branches, which in all reality probably wouldn’t ruin the scene at all, just add to the magic.

  “Isn’t it? Summer is great by the lake, but you can’t beat a scene like this in winter.”

  The Kents were still ahead, their voices rising as Hudson and Nat drew near. They seemed to be doing okay as far as she could tell. But for the next few moments, she allowed herself to forget about her mission and just live in the now. She sort of felt like a Victorian-era chaperone, trailing a courting pair of lovers as they took their weekly stroll.

  When they stepped beneath the canopy made by the trees, they were surrounded by the sparkle of snow, walking on a bed of glittering pine needles. The world was quiet there, save for the voices of the Kents. Every so often the breeze would shift some branches, letting flakes fall from overhead. It was like being inside a living snow globe.

  “You act like you’ve never been out here before,” Hudson said with a laugh.

  “Terry and I just started running outside. Before, I could only get her on the treadmill. Typically, I run near my apartment and…well it doesn’t look anything like this.”

  Then she turned to Hudson, suddenly completely in awe of him. This idea, this path, it had been all him. Yet again he showed her he was more than capable, he was creative. “Hudson, I misjudged you. This is incredible. I can’t imagine not falling in love looking at something like this.”