Page 18 of Beastly Mountain Man

The exchange sat quietly between us until cold finally won.

“I’m going inside before I lose an ear and discover whether frostbite is included in our agreement.”

He opened the rear door. “I’m pretty sure ears fall outside standard rental maintenance.”

“Then your contract needs revision.”

Bear was standing exactly where the door needed to open.

Lucky eased him backward with one broad forearm against his chest. “You could help by not becoming a trip hazard.”

Bear wagged his tail, unconcerned by professional criticism.

“He’s ignoring your expertise,” I said.

“He does that a lot.”

We stepped back into the heated cabin, and warmth moved over my face and hands almost painfully at first.

I shed my coat and crossed to the dining table. Lucky stayed near the kitchen island rather than assuming the invitation to return meant unrestricted access to my workspace.

That small respect kept accumulating.

“You can finish whatever you were doing,” he said. “I need to check one weather update and make a call before I take this guy home for his dinner.”

“I’m caught up.”

His gaze moved toward the laptop.

“That sounded almost painful.”

“It wasn’t painful. Unfamiliar, maybe, but the distinction is important.”

“I’m sure it is.”

Bear dropped the rope beside my ankle, then pushed his head beneath my hand.

I scratched him automatically.

Lucky leaned one hip against the island. “Everything okay with work?”

There were several versions of that answer available to me, including one containing far more information than he currently had any reason to know.

I chose the one that was true without opening the entire story.

“Yes. They’re doing well. That’s been unexpectedly educational.”

“How so?”

I looked at the laptop and then back at him.

“People are handling things before I reach them. That shouldn’t be surprising because I work with talented people.”

Lucky nodded slowly.

“I can see how that would feel different.”

“I like being involved. I’m good at seeing how decisions connect across departments, and I genuinely enjoy the work. The problem is that if I can see six possible places something might go wrong, I have a terrible habit of visiting all six.”