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“Empire? Renters? Dude, she’s the first person to ever rent from you and we’ve only got that one property. What kind of sad empire is that?”
“Haven’t you ever heard of passive income, man? It’s called diversifying. Do you want to be doing back-breaking labor when you’re seventy? Or do you want to build up some properties and let the money come to us? It’s called having a vision, Hardy. And you’re gonna ruin it with your shitty attitude.”
“Fine, whatever. If you want to deal with Miss Priss, then that’s on you.” I hold up my hands. “But how are we gonna get any work done around here without offending her sensitive ears.” I cross my arms and watch the wheels spin in his head.
“I’ve got it,” he snaps his fingers, “we’ll chop the trees old school.”
“Wait, what?”
“Yeah, man. We always talk about how we want to run this company like it was back in our great-grandfather’s day, right? We’ll dig out the axes and knock these trees down with hard work and muscle power.” Owen smiles.
“First of all, that’s gonna take forever. Second of all, axes still probably make too much noise for that one. Why don’t you let this go? She can go back to the city and we can get back to real work.”
“This is important to me, Hardy. Let me talk to her, at least let me put out the offer. If she still wants to go, then at least I tried, right? Besides, I don’t think you mind a sexy little firecracker living next door for a while, would ya?”
He’s got me there.
“Fine.” I sigh. “You go talk to her and see if her delicate ears can deal with axes. In the meantime, I’m gonna start loading these lengths on the trailer.”
“You got it.” Owen breaks out into a grin.
He rushes off to the other cabin before little Miss Huffy can drive away. I mean, another income would be good this time of year. And, if Owen really can build this into a rental empire, I shouldn’t interfere. Besides, it’s been a long damned time since there’s been anything but testosterone and sawdust around these woods. She might be a pain in the ass, but she’s a sexy pain in the ass, so I wouldn’t mind if he managed to get her to stay.
3
Owen
Hurrying up the hill, I expect Mary to be revving her engine and squealing her tires to get out of the driveway, but her car is empty. I walk up the steps to the deck and see that the snowy roof has a big bald patch right over the door. Looking down at the floorboards, it’s easy to see that the big blob of snow landed right on Mary.
Well, that’s two strikes. Hopefully, I can turn this thing around before we completely strike out and our first ever renter shuts down my vacation property with a scathing one-star review.
I lightly rap my knuckles on the door and wait, but she doesn’t answer. Maybe I should leave. She could want privacy. Instead, I push the door open and cautiously search the open concept space for her.
“Knock-knock.” I kick the snow off my boots and step inside.
Mary is crumpled on the floor; her suitcase is toppled beside her and she’s crying. In her hand, she’s gripping a handle that looks like it’s supposed to be attached to her luggage, but instead, she’s waving it around like a little white flag.
“Hey now, what’s wrong?” I quickly cross the floor and sit next to her. “Aww, c’mon don’t cry.”
Mary lifts her steamed up glasses and wipes her mittened hand across her eyes. “Nothing. It’s stupid.”
“You’re clearly upset. It’s not stupid if you’re crying. Is this still about the noise? ’Cause I’ve got a solution for ya…” I can’t stand to see her broken like this. I wrap my arm around her gently and, to my surprise, she leans in against me.
“No, it’s not just the noise. It’s everything,” she wails. “I was supposed to come up here and write my best book yet. But then the snow fell on me, and that jackass friend of yours, well, you heard him.” She sniffles searching my face for understanding.
“Yeah, that’s exactly the right word for Hardy. Honestly, he just thinks he’s a grizzly bear. He’s pretty growly most days, but just between you, me, and the walls, deep inside he’s a big teddy bear.” I smile down at her.
She doesn’t look convinced.
“And then, when I went to leave,” her chin trembles and more tears fall down her face, “I ripped the handle off my suitcase. I drove two hours to get here and now I’ve gotta turn around and drive another two hours back. This wasn’t supposed to go this way,” she mumbles.
“You’re right. We didn’t do a good job here, and I’m sorry about that. In hindsight, I should’ve shoveled off the roof before you showed up. And, I know the noise isn’t ideal, but I worked it out with Hardy and we can cut down the trees we need with axes instead. And, here,” I pluck the handle from her hand and pull the suitcase over to my lap, snapping it back in place, “see? Good as new. Nothing to cry about.”
