A Sweet Alaskan Fall

by Jennifer Snow

  Pride and happiness made him sigh with relief, and he ignored the slight uneasiness he felt in the pit of his stomach at the thought of saying goodbye to his favorite neighbor.

  Things had changed slightly between them in the last twenty-four hours. He’d felt the shift. Had she felt it, too? Of course it would happen now, when he was leaving. Whatever odd attraction had developed between them was too late.

  Life decisions could not be made based on a woman who found him annoying as hell.

  CHAPTER SIX

  THE MAN WAS definitely in his element.

  Montana watched with amusement as Lance signed autographs for a group of female tourists. The professional snowboarder was well loved in Wild River and he didn’t seem to tire of the attention. He hadn’t revealed much about his past, but she knew from the media that he’d been raised by his father who was also his former snowboarding coach. The man had pushed his son beyond his physical capacity to train and be the best. It had bordered on child abuse, and Lance had eventually fired his father and hired a new coach. The two men hadn’t spoken since, but Ralph Baker hadn’t made it a secret that he expected his son to fail in that year’s winter competitions. A legend in his own right, Lance’s father was interviewed almost as much as Lance was, even though he wasn’t directly involved in the sport anymore.

  But despite Ralph’s criticism of his son in the media, the community rallied around their star athlete, and Lance deserved to enjoy the praise and respect he received. Even though he was technically aligned with SnowTrek Tours’s direct competition, it wasn’t a big deal to Montana. North Mountain Sports Company could have the snow legend as their new spokesperson. SnowTrek Tours wasn’t focused on snowboarding adventures anyway.

  “Sorry about that,” Lance said as the women reluctantly moved on. “I don’t even know how they always recognize me.”

  Montana raised an eyebrow. “You’re shitting me, right?” As if his signature platinum-blond hair wasn’t enough, the logoed Olympic clothing he wore everywhere was a dead giveaway. “You look like you’re photoshoot-ready at any moment. Of course people recognize you.” And even if they didn’t know he was a superstar on the slopes, Lance wasn’t struggling for female attention. At six foot two and a hundred and seventy pounds, with permanently tanned skin and light green eyes, he was a head-turner.

  “Are you saying I need new clothes?”

  “I’m saying if you want a night out without adoring fangirls, you might want to consider a change of wardrobe.”

  Lance looked like he was considering it, then shook his head. “Not going to happen.”

  “I didn’t think so,” Montana said with a laugh.

  “So, your first training course started last week, right?”

  Impressive that he remembered. Maybe he wasn’t completely self-absorbed after all. She’d agreed to meet him for drinks that evening, despite her better judgment, as he wanted to make it up to her for bailing on dinner Saturday night. “Yes. A group of eight. They’ve all completed at least ten skydives but none are experienced BASE jumpers, so I expect to have eight students turn into about five by middle of next week.”

  Lance leaned on his elbows. “Are the two activities really that different?”

  “Absolutely. Jumping from a plane, you have time. You free-fall long enough to get your bearings, get used to the sensation, remember your training. BASE jumping is fast and dirty. The free fall is short, and you need to be alert at all times. The way you position your body, your reaction time—it all matters.”

  “I don’t think I’ve ever met a woman who is more badass than I am,” he said, taking her hand in his.

  Montana shifted on the wooden bench. It wasn’t the first time he’d made such a comment, and it left her feeling uneasy. She knew what attracted him to her was just that—her adrenaline-seeking, extreme-sport ways, but she wasn’t that woman anymore. Not entirely anyway. “So, what came out of New York?”

  Lance shook his head. “I’ve signed NDAs on top of NDAs. Man, this corporate side of things is shit. I just want to snowboard.”

  “The price of fame.” Montana’s cell chimed on the table. She took her hand back and reached for it. “Sorry, it’s Kaia.”

  Lance immediately sat back in the booth as she read quickly.

  Camp is going great! First official campfire is tonight. Miss you! Xo

  She responded, Great! Love you! Have a fun night.

  Knowing her daughter was having fun helped to soothe the sting of not seeing her. Still, she left the phone on the table, in case Kaia texted again. “She just left for camp last week. For a month.”

  Lance nodded. “Cool...”

  “It is. For her. I’m freaking out, but this will be good for her.” She’d been reminding herself of that every few minutes since the bus drove away.

  Lance scanned the bar. Clearly uninterested.

  “My talking about my kid really weirds you out, doesn’t it?”

  He shrugged. “Nah. I just...kids are just not something I get.”

  Some days their seven-year age gap was a massive crater between them. Or maybe just their situations in life. Lance was still traveling the world and competing in high-level sports. Montana was learning to adjust to small-town, normal life. “Well, you know I’m a mom...”

  “Yeah, I try not to think about it.”

  Wonderful. This thing with Lance was going nowhere fast. She’d known it all along, but his lack of interest in her beyond her past, exciting career was telling. It had been fun at first, and she’d thought she was okay with just having fun, but facing the inevitable breakup speech, she realized she’d been hoping for more.

  Maybe not exactly from Lance...but someone. Which meant, maybe she was ready to put herself out there. Try a real relationship.

  Across the bar, a champagne-bottle cork popped, catching her attention. Eddie sat in a booth with several members of the state troopers office. They were all hollering and cheering. Clearly celebrating.

  And it must be over something really good. She’d never seen that look of pride and happiness on Eddie’s face before.

  “Friend of yours?” Lance asked, his obvious dislike of the uniform evident.

  “My neighbor.”

  “Your neighbor’s a cop? That’s no fun.”

  “It’s not so bad.” Eddie had actually been really great when she’d gone missing in the woods months ago. He’d helped Tank and the search and rescue team get into her apartment when no one had heard from her, and his quick thinking bringing one of her pillow cases to the search site for Diva to get her scent was probably what saved her life. She hadn’t forgotten that. Eddie had played a huge role in her being found that day.

  She watched him laugh and joke with his coworkers now. He had a nice smile. Genuine. Not one ounce of cockiness in his entire body, which was different from someone in his position. Cops needed to be cocky. They dealt with assholes and criminals, putting their lives at risk for the job daily. But Eddie seemed like the most sincere, nonegotistical man she’d ever met.

  He was a good guy.

  Maybe that was her hesitancy to get close to him. He was good, and the verdict was still out on her.

  “Hey...you still with me?” Lance waved a hand in front of her face, and she reluctantly turned her attention back to her date.

  Her last one with Lance. She couldn’t continue to date him when she didn’t see a potential future with him. She was quickly realizing she didn’t want to waste any more time.

  “Yes, sorry. What were we talking about?” From the corner of her eye, she saw Eddie being dragged toward the dance floor by a woman she didn’t recognize. They took turns taking swigs directly from the champagne bottle as they moved in time to the music. His hips swayed, and his feet definitely moved to the beat.

  Shit, Eddie could dance, and he looked like a lot of fun when he loosened up..
.

  “I was asking if the launch site would be open on time.” Lance said, his gaze drifting past her to a group of women in a nearby booth staring at him.

  “Yes, we are on schedule.” That’s all he would get from her. Her loyalty was with Cassie and making their new venture a success. She didn’t trust Lance. He could easily be relaying information back to the executives at North Mountain Sports Company, and Montana wouldn’t put Cassie’s company at risk from her biggest competitor.

  His cell phone rang, and he glanced at it. “Sorry, I’ve got to get this,” he said, picking it up.

  “Take your time. I’m going to the ladies’ room.” Then she was calling it a night. Entertaining herself with Lance was okay, but maybe it was time to start thinking about what she wanted long-term.

  Her gaze drifted toward Eddie again as she climbed out of the booth and headed toward the restrooms.

  Was Eddie long-term?

  Maybe once she ended things with Lance, she could explore that possibility. Take things slow. Get to know him. See how things progressed. She didn’t have to rush into something new...but she didn’t have to try so hard to prevent something from happening between them, either.

  Her step felt lighter as she rounded the corner in the bar and...came up short at the end of a long line of women waiting for the restroom.

  There was no way she was standing in a lineup of twenty women when the men’s room was free. Tank kept the place spotless, including the men’s room, and besides, at one time she’d been part owner of The Drunk Tank, and that gave her special privileges to break the rules, didn’t it?

  Walking past the waiting women, she opened the door to the men’s room and went inside. She ignored the surprised-looking man standing at the urinals and dove into a stall. She peed quickly, and he was gone when she reemerged. She took her time as she washed her hands, then fixed her hair in the mirror.

  What should she say to Lance? Saying it was over would imply that they’d had something more serious than they did. Saying she didn’t want to see him again seemed a little harsh... Maybe she shouldn’t say anything at all and just say no to any future date requests.

  If there were any. Remembering the look on his face when she’d mentioned Kaia, maybe they were on the same page. Maybe he wouldn’t ask her out again, anyway. Either way, he was leaving soon to train full-time with his snowboarding team and wouldn’t be back until Thanksgiving.

  Yeah...letting things ride might be the easiest way to play it.

  Exiting the bathroom a minute later, she ran into Eddie on his way in. He laughed, shaking his head. “Why am I not surprised to see you come out of there, Montana?”

  She blinked. “Since when do you call me by my real name?”

  Eddie’s slightly drunk smile got wider. “So, you do like it?”

  She shrugged. “I don’t hate it as much as I pretend to.” Nope, she was not flirting with Eddie. At least not while she was on another date. She cleared her throat. “What’s going on at your table?”

  “A celebration.”

  “Yeah, the drinking champagne straight from the bottle kinda tipped me off to that. What are you celebrating?”

  “My promotion. I got accepted to the Alaska Bureau of Alcohol and Drug Enforcement.”

  “Wow! Congrats! No more trail-security detail for you.” Impressive. He’d only been on the force six months, and already he was moving up the ranks.

  “And no more listening to my horrible guitar playing for you.”

  She smiled. “That’s definitely a plus. You’ll be too busy with the new job to pursue your music career?”

  “Oh, no. I’m not giving up my calling just yet. I’ll just be in Anchorage,” he said, studying her.

  Her smile faded. “You’re moving?”

  Eddie nodded. “In two weeks.”

  “Shit, that’s fast.” Eddie drove her batshit crazy as a neighbor, so why was she suddenly feeling sad that she wouldn’t have to tell him not to call her Danger anymore?

  Too many familiar things changing around her at once, that was all. Kaia gone to camp. A new career. A break-up-sorta-thing with Lance about to happen, and now Eddie moving.

  “You okay?” he asked.

  “Yeah! Fine!” Too enthusiastic.

  “You’re not actually going to miss me, are you?” The flicker of interest in his expression made her wonder if she might—and if maybe he might miss her. Could Erika be right? Was he into her? The attraction had been evident the other night, but was it more than that?

  “I don’t know.” Why had she said that? She should have said no. She should have lied.

  He leaned against the wall. His body moving close to hers. The smell of champagne and his soft, inviting cologne lingering in the air between them. “So, you don’t exactly hate my guitar playing.”

  “It will be the thing I miss the least,” she said. Her eyes took in his muscular forearm next to her head.

  “What will you miss the most?” He leaned even closer. One step toward him, and she would be close enough to kiss him...

  “I felt safe having you next door.” Where the hell had that confession come from?

  Eddie looked just as shocked. His gaze met hers and held. Her entire body tingled, and all of a sudden she was seeing everything everyone else already had. Eddie was not the guy she chose to pin him as. He was sexy and strong and sincere and honest...and just the littlest bit exciting right now. “Are we having a moment?” he asked, his expression searching hers.

  They weren’t not having a moment, but it was too late. He was leaving. In two weeks.

  She forced herself to look away from his intense gaze. “Good luck in Anchorage, Eddie,” she said and walked away from him before she could do something dumb like admit she might actually like him.

  * * *

  “HEY, WANNA RIDE?” Sanchez asked, sticking his head out of his truck window as he drove past Eddie on Main Street an hour later.

  “Nah, it’s a beautiful night. I’ll walk.” Might be one of the last late-night strolls along Main Street he’d have for a while. And the fresh air would help soften the hangover he was no doubt in for the next morning. He wasn’t a big drinker, so the mix of champagne and shots that evening would definitely take their toll.

  “Okay, man... Congrats again. You deserve this opportunity. Try not to fuck it up.”

  Eddie laughed. “That’s my goal.”

  Heading toward his apartment building, he took a moment to appreciate his surroundings. Wild River had been home to him for so long. Even after his grandmother and mother and sisters moved to different areas of Alaska outside of the resort town, he’d stayed. The vast, beautiful wilderness combined with the modern, hip vibe of the tourist town had made it a perfect place to live.

  But now it was time to move on. Time for a new chapter.

  His cell phone chimed, and he read the text from his sister, Katherine.

  Congrats, bro! You’re almost as cool as me now.

  Praise in his family was hard to come by, so he’d take it.

  He tucked the phone into his back pocket as he passed SnowTrek Tours. He’d probably miss this part about his current position the most. Patrolling Main Street during the day and catching a glimpse of a certain brunette working inside.

  Montana’s reaction when he’d told her he was moving had surprised him. He’d expected her to have popped her own bottle of bubbly at the news, but she’d actually looked disappointed.

  She’d felt safe having him live next door. Damn, what an unexpected confession.

  He shook his head. She was probably just worried that the new neighbor might be worse. The devil you know, and all that...

  He slowed his pace seeing her a few blocks ahead, walking with Lance.

  Damn. Don’t turn around.

  The last thing he needed was for her to think he
was stalking her. Again.

  Her voice floated back toward him, and it was a sound he would miss. Sharing an apartment wall, he heard it whenever Kaia was around and recognized its absence when the little girl wasn’t.

  Clearly, Montana was struggling with her new life, but she was determined to make the best of it. He admired that. Admired her.

  At first, he’d been concerned for Tank and Kaia and Cassie... Montana’s intentions hadn’t rung true for him, but she’d proven to be here for all the right reasons, despite how tough it had to be to be unable to do the one thing she loved most.

  She was amazing. Putting her daughter first. Her new venture with Cassie first.

  He watched her with Lance, and his heart fell. She deserved so much more than that self-absorbed athlete.

  Man, he had it worse than he thought he did. Maybe it was for the best that he was headed to Anchorage. At least he wouldn’t have to watch her fall for the wrong guy.

  A shadow to his left caught his eye, and he turned to see a figure head into the alleyway between the bakery and flower shop. He walked a little faster and saw a man dressed in jeans and a dark hoodie reappear across the street, several paces behind Montana and Lance.

  The man was watching them.

  Eddie picked up his pace, fighting to get a look at the man’s face, but the darkness in the shade of the buildings prevented a clear view.

  But the gun the man held was visible enough in the bright beam of the streetlight.

  What the hell?

  His pulse quickened and adrenaline flowed through him. His training kicked in, and he started to run as the man lifted the gun, pointing it toward Lance and Montana.

  “Montana!” he yelled, as he approached.

  She and Lance stopped and turned, and a glance toward the man with the gun had Eddie diving...

  Next he was free-falling, his body shielding Montana’s as they hit the ground.

  He felt the bullet pierce his skin before he heard the shot. Searing pain at the base of his spine radiated throughout his entire body as his consciousness wavered.