Page 1 of Mountain Dreams

One

Cody was loading his tools into the bed of his pickup truck when his phone buzzed. He looked at the screen and smiled. “Cody here.”

“Cody, hi. I’m glad I caught you,” said Avery, the receptionist at Sawyer’s Ridge Resort and his brother’s girlfriend.

“Hey, pretty lady. What’s up?” Even though she was taken, he still liked to flirt with her, mostly to piss off his older brother. Besides, he couldn’t help it. Flirting was in his nature.

“There’s someone here who’d like to talk to you.”

He glanced at his watch and frowned. It was almost five o’clock on Friday, and he had just finished working for the day, or so he’d thought. He prayed it wasn’t some guest complaining about their cabin. He’d already spent the whole day fixing leaky faucets, sealing windows, and making other repairs.

“Now?”

“She says it’s important.”

She? He would always make time for a she. “Okay. I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

After he hung up, he finished putting away his tools and climbed into the driver’s seat. As he drove away, he mentally cataloged their current guest list. Most were families or couples who’d come to the Smoky Mountains for the peace and quiet. There was also a rowdy group of guys who’d come for a bachelor party weekend. If it wasn’t a guest, who was she, and why did she want to see him?

A few minutes later, he pulled into the parking lot of the resort office. He took a quick glance at himself in the rearview mirror and saw a few paint flecks in his hair. Earlier he’d done some touch-up painting at one of the cabins. He looked like this at the end of every workday—stained and disheveled—and there wasn’t anything he could do about it on such short notice. Whoever the woman was, he hoped she wouldn’t mind his appearance.

He hopped out of his truck and sauntered up to the entrance of the resort. Every time he entered the office, he felt a sense of pride at what his family had accomplished. They’d grown from a small resort with only a few cabins to fifteen cabins, and they planned on building more in the spring. His parents had opened the resort ten years ago, and he and his siblings had carried on in their name. As always, he felt a twinge of sadness at his parents’ absence. He shook his head to clear it and prepared to greet his visitor.

She was standing with her back to him, looking out the floor-to-ceiling windows at the beautiful mountain view. Still, he would have known her anywhere. Her silky blonde hair fell to her shoulders and flicked up at the ends. She was wearing a puffy black coat that cinched in at the waist, blue jeans that hugged her in all the right places, and black snow boots with fur trim. She looked like a mountain dream, one he’d had too many times to count.

“There you are,” said Avery, greeting him.

At the sound of her voice, Madison spun around and faced him. Her expression contrasted gravely with the peaceful picture she’d made from behind. Her lips were set in a straight line, and dark smudges were underneath her red-rimmed eyes.

“Madison? What is it? What’s wrong?” His first instinct was to pull her into his arms, but he shoved his hands in the pockets of his jeans instead.

“Cody, thank God you’re here. Can we go somewhere and talk?”

She’d obviously been crying, and her voice shook.

“Of course.”

“I don’t mean to interrupt, but you can use Jax’s office,” Avery suggested.

Madison looked conflicted. Whatever the problem, she obviously didn’t want to chance anyone overhearing.

“My cabin is right up the road. We can go there.”

After a brief hesitation, Madison said, “Your cabin will be fine.”

He held out his hand to lead her out, but then he quickly dropped it. She wasn’t his to touch, and he’d have to keep reminding himself of that. “Come with me.”

As they passed by the front desk, Avery watched them with a look of concern and curiosity. He’d mentioned Madison to her once before, and he wondered if she’d remembered and had made the connection. Not that it mattered. All he cared about was hearing what Madison had to say. What had shaken her up so much that she’d come to see him and not her fiancé?

They went outside, and she followed him to his truck. He opened the passenger door and was about to give her a hand up, but she grabbed the overhead handle and lifted herself in.

After he got behind the wheel, he glanced over and saw her sitting stiffly, her gaze pointed straight ahead and her hands clutching her purse so tightly they’d turned white. It killed him to see her so distressed, but she seemed inclined to wait until they were in his cabin to talk.

He turned right out of the parking lot and went down the hill to the first crossroad. Then he turned left, and the road climbed again. He passed a few guest cabins until he came to his cabin at the top of the bluff.

“Mountain Dreams,” Madison said, reading the wooden sign out front.

“Um-hmm.”