“I’m looking forward to a productive working relationship, too,” Wade said. “Now, if you two will excuse me, I need to speak with the mayor. Kelsey, I’ll look for a text from you about getting together when I return to town. Mason, I’ll see you at lunch.”
Mason waited until Wade had walked away before resuming the conversation.
“You’re not joining us for lunch?” His hands remained hidden behind his back. “That’s disappointing.”
Something about his shy, introverted grin intrigued Kelsey. Was he flirting? Another image of Trip raced through her mind, swamping her in guilt. Stupid guilt. Trip was a boy toy, not a boyfriend.
“Unfortunately, I’ve got a conflict today.” She gripped her purse strap near her shoulder. Mason hadn’t done or said anything unusual, yet she had a hunch he was a man with an agenda. “I’m meeting a client shortly.”
“Speaking of which, may I have your business card?” He tucked his thumbs in his front pockets. “I’m going home for a couple of weeks, but when I return to oversee the construction, I’ll need a decent rental. Perhaps you can help me find a good lease.”
Ah, that was it. He’d heard about her from Wade and needed an agent.
A week ago, she’d have been grossly disappointed that he wasn’t flirting. Today she could barely muster regret.
It was official. Trip had screwed her up.
“The long-term rental market isn’t huge here, but I’ll dig around a bit.” Kelsey riffled through her purse to retrieve a card. “Here you go. Email me your wish list and then I’ll see you when you return.”
“Great, thanks. Am I embarrassing you if I say my outlook on living here just got a whole lot brighter?” Once again Mason’s generous smile seemed flirtatious. It didn’t exactly reduce her to jelly, but a little something bloomed in her chest. A little something was better than nothing.
Still, Trip’s tip about not responding to perceived initial interest flared, causing her to project a professional, polite smile. “You’re very kind, Mason. I look forward to working with you. Have a great lunch, and please tell Wade I said good-bye.”
She walked away, glancing back over her shoulder in curiosity. Mason, who was still watching her, waved. Flustered, she waved back and then hustled to her car.
Perhaps Wade’s project could result in a romantic payoff after all. Of course, the tiny blip of interest she felt about Mason paled in comparison to the whole-body sensations Trip aroused. But Trip wasn’t available for anything more than a roll or two—or five—in the hay. She would not prove Maura right by allowing the shallow, physical, lusty thing between Trip and her to steer her off course.
Trip returned from leading three climbers up a cliff face, bothered by some of the chatter he’d overheard about Wade’s latest plans. Rather than change out of his rock climbing clothes, he immediately settled behind the desk and made a list of elected officials and relevant board members to contact. Maybe there were wetlands on the property, or maybe he could persuade the Open Space Council to convince the town to buy and preserve the land. Anything to hold up the deal or make it less attractive to Wade.
Setting aside his list, he decided to load another GoPro clip from last March onto the Backtrax Facebook page. A death-defying reel taken when he’d shot over and cleared a fifteen-foot-high cliff face before making a perfect landing into twenty inches of fresh powder and then ripping through it to the bottom of the run. The footage looked almost as awesome as he’d felt flying through the air and snow.
“Hey, Avery and I are grabbing dinner.” Grey stood in the doorway of the back office. “Want to come?”
“Nah, you two go ahead. I’m just getting into this stuff now.” Trip nodded at the wad of cash on the desk. “When I’m done, I’ll log those fees and tips into the system and then stick them in the safe.”
“Keep your tips.” Grey strolled over to stand behind him and view the footage. “Man, I missed out after the accident. Can’t wait to get back out there.”
“Me too!” Trip glanced up. “Hey, I want to talk to you later about Wade Kessler.”
“What about?” Grey’s hands rested on his hips.
“He wants to build some kind of mall and office park at the northwest corner of town if he can coax the owners into selling.”
“Oh, hell no.” Grey ran one hand through his overgrown hair.