She missed him. Oh, it was dumb to miss a stranger, but it had been nice to work beside him yesterday. It was going to be a long couple of days, but she'd never be idiot enough to admit that to him. He was off working his job and most definitely not thinking about her.
He was a quiet man. When he spoke, she listened because it was important. He didn't feel the need to fill the silence with small talk or chatter. Instead, he could just be. And after the noise of the city for so many years, she had to admit it was nice to share a comfortable silence with someone else.
Pulling the four-wheeler into the lot at Briney's, she parked and entered through the back door, shoved her toboggan and gloves into her jacket pockets, and hung her winter gear on a peg near the door. She focused on her work and the hours ticked by. Losing herself in a job had always been easy. She didn't have to think about her troubles or the big decisions that were headed her way. The only important thing at that moment was the customers' happiness.
At nine o'clock, Briney waved her back to the office. "Phone call," he said before bustling back up front to take care of the lingering patrons.
She frowned and fingered the curled cord, then sank into the cushion of the plush chair behind the desk. "Hello?"
"Hey, it's Aanon."
What those words and that voice did to her insides. Fluttering took her stomach, and she smiled before she could help it. "You checking on the homestead?"
"Maybe."
"Everyone is still alive. We had a small kitchen fire but only the edges are a little singed."
Silence.
"That was a joke," she said, leaning back into Briney's chair. "Really, everything is fine. Billy came over today and helped me out, and he's coming by again tomorrow, too, to make sure I can manage everything … " The line had gone completely silent. "Aanon? Are you still there?"
"Yeah, sorry. I'm still here. Just really tired is all."
"Are you okay? I mean, you sound pretty down."
"Look, I just wanted to let you know I'll be coming back early. We're finishing up the construction project tomorrow so I'll be home by tomorrow evening."
"Okay. Is there anything else wrong? You just sound, I don't know … bummed or something."
"I'm a little stressed about getting all the work done around the place. Especially now that you are there. Between working out here and trying to use these last couple of weeks of decent weather to my advantage, I guess I just feel like I'm running around like a chicken with my head cut off."
"Gross. Well, tell me what you need done and I can help. I might not know how to do everything right off the bat, but I'm a quick learn." Suddenly, talking to him on the phone about things to do around their home felt very intimate, and heat crept up her neck. Thank the powers that be the man couldn't actually see her blush through the old phone. His voice sounded raspy and tired and so sexy she ached to see a little more of that damned tattoo he kept so well hidden.
"Nothing you can help with. I don't want you straining yourself while you're pregnant, Farrah."
"Hmm, well Billy's mom might be coming over tomorrow to teach me how to preserve so you'll be able to check that off the list. And we packed the rest of the vegetables from the greenhouse into the root cellar this afternoon. Also, I made ninety-four dollars tonight so I have half of next month's rent saved up, so boom."
He chuckled, and the sound reverberated through the phone and set chills down her arms. "Yeah? What else did you do today?"
She smiled as his voice relaxed. "Billy gave me tips on how to potty train a wolf, which haven't worked so far, but I'm going to check out a book from the library this week so I can turn her into a proper doggy. Also, I'm pretty sure Wildman's sells dog collars, so I'm going to get her one."
"Those dogs are working animals and don't need collars."
"Snore. I've never had a pet before, and I want to get her one with a nametag and everything."
There was a smile in his voice when he said, "Fine, get her a danged collar if you want to."
"Are you at a motel right now?"
"Yeah, I just got off about an hour ago. All right, I'm going to let you go before Briney fillets me for keeping you."
"Please. I don't know if you know this, but Briney is actually a real softy."
"I don't believe it."
"Aanon?" she said before he could hang up.
"Yeah?"
"I'm really sorry about your dad. He sounds like he was a good man."
There was a beat of silence before he sighed. "Thanks. He really was. Goodnight, Farrah."
"'Night," she said before he hung up.
There she sat, twisting slowly in the office chair and rubbing a light fingertip over her lips like she'd been kissed.
He'd called just to let her know he was coming back early.
Chapter Five
Farrah stood on the gate to the cattle pen, watching the herd munch hay that littered their enclosure. Nine cows, one surly bull, and four spring calves.
Luna barked at any of them that traveled too close to Farrah's perch on the bottom of the gate, and her droopy ear flapped with the motion. Her yips were overpowered by the engine of a truck, and Farrah's heart thumped against her chest. A red Ford pulled through the trees, and she tried not to let her disappointment show. She'd wished for another truck. Waving, she met the newcomers in front of the house.
"I'm Marilynn," Billy's mother said, holding out a hand for a strong shake.
"Farrah, nice to meet you."
"I hear you need some guidance on the ins and outs of preserving, and I came to help. I brought my own supplies so I can get the rest of mine done too while I'm here, and that way I don't lose a day of work."
"Perfect," Farrah said with a grin.
Momma hadn't ever had much use for preparation, and instead relied on food donations from a local church. Growing up, she'd never prepared for winter like all of the other families had done, and there was many a season she and Momma came out skinny as rails. She remembered the hunger of Alaskan winters, and as long as she lived, she didn't want to be caught unprepared for one again.
Marilynn was friendly. An easy talker and patient teacher, she found all of the supplies for preserving in the big house's kitchen. The older woman even tracked down a battery operated radio and cranked a local station while they worked.
Between sanitizing glass jars and lids, the endless cleaning and cutting of vegetables and fruit, and the thorough heating of each container of food before stacking them neatly in the root cellar, Farrah was exhausted by the time six o'clock rolled around. She needed to stop working on the homestead and get ready for her shift at Briney's.
There was no definite time that Aanon would be back, and the chance of a surprise appearance kept her searching the mouth of the driveway for his old Chevy. With no sign of him, she tied off the dogs and hopped the four-wheeler into town.
Briney's was bustling. Cooper Landing wasn't a big town, but it seemed many of its residents liked to gather at the tavern to let off steam after a long day of work. Between Briney and herself, they kept the bar taken care of, sandwiches made for the hungry customers, and tackle sold to fishermen preparing for a winter of ice fishing on Kenai Lake.
Ben showed up around ten, and his friends followed shortly. She was in the middle of serving an old regular a whiskey and coke when Aanon ducked through the door and took a seat at the bar.
"Hey," she said, leaning against the counter so he could hear her over the chatter of the busy room.
His smile was slow and smooth. "Hey, yourself. Came by to see when you get off. Thought I'd load the four-wheeler in the back of my truck and give you a ride home."
Home. The word from his lips sounded so warm and inviting.
"You have a ramp for it?"
"Yeah, I have one in the back."
"I get off in about an hour. Is that too long to wait?"
"Nah. I'll hang out with Ben and the guys until you close up."
"Aanon!" Ben shouted across the bar with a big, half-drunken grin.
Aanon turned to leave but Farrah grabbed his hand. It was warm and calloused against the smoothness of her palm. The touch of his skin against hers made her body temperature rise just under the surface. Cheeks burning, she let go his hand and apologized. "I don't know why I did that."
With a frown at his hand that lay open on the counter, he asked, "What do you need?"
"I was just going to tell you that you could cut loose tonight. With your friends, I mean. I could drive you home, you know"-she pointed to her stomach-"because I'm default designated driver and all."