Drake hadn’t deserved that. He was a good guy—the best. Before the logging incident, I’d planned to spend the rest of my life with him. I’d loved him. I still loved him. But Dad had known something. He would never have led me astray.
I rang Teagan again and held the phone up to my ear. “Come on, Teagan. Pick up. I’m not in the mood to play your games today.”
Voice mail again. Damn it. I wasn’t sure why I had a soft spot for her. Her selfishness and games drove Drake nuts. But I knew it was Teagan’s way of protecting herself. Her parents had been as shitty as they came. If I had been in her spot, I hoped someone would try to help me—a true friend.
When I asked if I could stay with her, she’d been hesitant at first but then agreed. Since I arrived, though, I’d only seen her the one time when I arrived. Then she’d taken off with Donnie.
That meeting had been awkward, almost strained. I needed to find another place to stay. Maybe I’d go to the hotel.
Inside the bar, the crowd cheered. I felt like a serious creeper, standing on a shaky wooden crate with my head just above the windowsill, watching. Teagan was in the back with her boyfriend, Donnie, who had rubbed me the wrong way since day one—nearly three years ago—and rang a ten on my creep-o-meter. I’d have to walk through the whole bar just to get to her. She’s doing this on purpose. Or maybe she’s just being Teagan. The thing was, with Teagan, I never knew. With a frustrated sigh, I blew out a breath.
“Hey, Lex. Who are you spying on?”
The deep voice took me by surprise, and I jumped with a scream and fell off my perch. Pain shot through my ankle. “Ouch!”
Why me? Why?
The circumstances looked much worse than they were—an innocent situation gone terribly wrong. All I’d wanted was to avoid the man who still affected me in more ways than he should. And now that man was standing less than two feet away. My skin danced with the familiar electric current that left my head buzzing.
Be strong.
The crate had given me a nasty scrape on my calf. Damn it. It was superficial but bleeding nevertheless. I knew I shouldn’t have worn shorts that day, but the weather was unseasonably warm. I looked around to make sure no one else had heard my shriek, buying some time to pull myself together. Judging by the racket inside, I had most likely escaped additional embarrassment.
I gave another quick scan around us to make sure no one else was there. Skagway had a local gossip newsletter that went out on a weekly basis via email. The Twiner sisters ran it like world-class paparazzi. Sometimes, for red hot news, there were even special editions. They had a knack for being in the “worst” place at the “best” time.
Every. Single. Townsperson. Was. On. The. Subscription. List.
The people of Skagway enjoyed the gossip. Hell, even I read it. When my email pinged with the newsletter each week, it called like a beacon.
Jean-clad legs I was all too familiar with stepped closer. “Need a hand?”
The deep timbre of his voice still made me weak in the knees. It was deep and husky and took manly to a whole new level. Already my resolve was weakening. I would have to read my father’s letter again to reinforce my walls. I carried the note around with me in case I ever felt the need to call Drake, which was often.
The men in New York City were nothing like Drake. They were too refined, lacking the edge—the wildness—Alaska infused in the men who lived here. Drake was savagely protective, romantic, strong, and loving all wrapped up in one ridiculously hot package.
I glanced up, meeting those warm chestnut eyes I remembered all too well. His dark hair was still short like I remembered. I swallowed and said, “Drake.” My voice cracked.
Yeah, I sound nervous. Stay calm. Drake knows you. He knows you better than anyone.
I cleared my throat. “I wasn’t creeping. I was waiting for Teagan.”
“Why not come in? She’s inside with Donnie.”
That was the million-dollar question. “Umm… I… You know…” I gave up and stood. Immediately, I felt the blood trickle down my leg.
Ugh. I need to get this cleaned up.
Drake leaned against the post and crossed his right leg over his left. He was all muscle. “Let’s get you fixed up. I’ve got a first aid kit upstairs at my place. We can take the back stairs.”
I took a step back. “I’ll be fine. I can walk.”
Drake looked at my leg. “Ol’ Man Ro
oster is talking with the Twiner sisters out front. If you go that way, you’ll pass right by them.” He shook his head. “I’m sure that’ll give them something to talk about for a while. You’ll be the star of the weekly Twiner Tellings newsletter.”
His smirk caused me to take a deep breath. He knew I hated being in the newsletter. Hated it. And in the two years I’d been gone, Drake had only been in it once—for something inconsequential. I’d secretly scoured it for any news about him. Was he seeing someone? Don’t think about that. It doesn’t matter.
Lurking outside the Red Onion was not how I wanted the Twiner sisters to find out I was back in town. The rumors would be rampant. And if truth be told, now that I had him near, I wasn’t ready to be without him again.