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It felt like forever. But she wondered why he would ask. Was “greenhorn” tattooed on her forehead? “Long enough to appreciate how special it is.”
“What’s your favorite restaurant?”
“I could be prejudiced, but the best place in town is the five-star restaurant right here at the lodge. The chef is from New York.”
The man leaned an elbow on the high desk that separated them. “What do you like to do here? On your day off, I mean?”
“What’s a day off?” She hoped he would take the remark in a teasing way, but it wasn’t a joke.
“I know what you mean.” He laughed. “But what I’m asking is if you only had a short amount of time here, what would you see?”
“The lake is beautiful. I’m told the fishing is good.” She printed out a summary of the hotel’s daily room rate and policies. “I’ll need your signature and if you could initial the places I indicated…”
“Sure thing.” He scrawled an indecipherable name. “I did some research on the Net and what I found said there are hiking trails and places to camp. Is there any place you would go? Somewhere not to be missed?”
Now she was starting to get irritated. Was he just friendly or hitting on her? That was just…Ew. Or maybe he didn’t get out much. The worst thing anyone in hospitality could do was to show impatience.
“To be honest, I can’t recommend any outdoor activities from personal experience. But we have a variety of brochures and the concierge desk is right across the lobby. Dustin would be happy to help you. One key or two?”
“One.”
She put it in a folder and handed over the packet and receipt. “Third floor. The elevators are right around the corner.” Forcing a charm into her smile that she didn’t feel, she said, “If there’s anything the staff can do to make your stay more pleasant, don’t hesitate to ask.”
“Thanks. It’s starting out great.” He nodded and walked away.
Cam let out a breath and saw Mary Jane Baxter rush around the corner. She stopped short for a second, then just looked guilty.
“I just left for a minute, Miss Halliday. I didn’t think I’d be missed.”
“You never do.”
“I’m sorry.”
That statement should have been followed by something along the lines of it would never happen again. Cam was just about to the point of making sure it didn’t. “Mr. Overton just checked in. Would you please finish up the paperwork?”
“Of course.”
The woman handled people and paperwork flawlessly—when she was there. The disappearing without a word was a chronic problem and needed to be managed, but not when Cam was this angry.
“Are you going to be here for a while?”
“I—” She nodded.
“Good. I’m going to take a fifteen-minute break.”
Cam turned on her heel and headed for the exit and the rear of the property. Breathing deeply of the clean, fresh air, she climbed the wooden stairs up to the second-floor deck. Her serenity spot. She looked down at the green grass and beautiful flowering plants in the fast-growing shadows. It was six o’clock and the sun had disappeared behind the mountains, taking the warmth with it, and that was just as well. She needed to cool off.
Just as the irritation started to dissolve, she heard the sound of footsteps, heavy ones. A man’s walk. There was someone behind her.
“You look ready for a knock-down, drag-out with that railing, but I don’t recommend it.”
Ben. the corners of her mouth turned up, which was a minor miracle. She turned. “And yet again you’re trespassing.”
“I saw you at the registration desk, but you were gone before I could flag you down.”
“So…Stalking?” She lifted one eyebrow.
“More of a house call. Someone to use your words with.”
“McKnight in shining armor strikes again.”
“You look like someone broke the heel off your favorite shoe. What’s up?”
“Same old thing. Personnel insubordination.” She leaned an elbow on the railing. “My clerk at the registration desk disappeared again.”
“Again?”
“I know employees are entitled to breaks. That’s not a problem; someone is assigned to cover the desk for a scheduled break. But with her it’s chronic, unscheduled disappearances. Every two hours she’s gone without a word. It’s flaky and irresponsible. And I might have to let her go.”
“That doesn’t sound like Mary Jane Baxter.”
“You know her?” She should stop being surprised by that.
“From high school. The blessing and curse of a small town.” He shrugged. “She was student body president. Smart, efficient. Every two hours?”
“Like clockwork,” she confirmed.
He looked thoughtful. “Now that you mention it, I recall that she’s hypoglycemic.”
“Can you dumb that down for those of us who didn’t go to med school?”
“Her blood sugar dips and she needs to eat regularly.”
“So it’s a recognized medical condition?”
“Yeah.”
“I’m not a monster who’d keep her chained to her post until she passes out. I can be fair, but only if I know what the problem is.” Cam threw up her hands in exasperation. “Why didn’t she say something?”
“Maybe it’s famous heiress intimidation syndrome. All the symptoms are there.”
“I’m a very nice person,” she defended.
“Then try talking to her like one.”
Cam thought about it and nodded. “Can’t hurt. Thanks for the suggestion.”
“You’re welcome.”
Now that she was calmer, she remembered that he’d planned to flag her down. “Was there something you wanted?”
“Yeah.” For just an instant intensity darkened his eyes and then disappeared. “My sister checked out your tires.”
“And?”
“They’re practically new and she couldn’t find any damage. No evidence of puncture, but the cap was missing. Syd’s guess is that someone deliberately let the air out.” He frowned. “Probably a prank.”
“Is it still considered a prank when a disgruntled employee does it?” Her sigh had an awful lot of defeat in it.
Obviously Ben noticed because he slung an arm across her shoulders. “They’ll come around. Give it time.”
She leaned into him for a moment, soaking up the comfort he offered. Again he made her feel safe, made her miss her big brother. He’d taken care of her in a way her father never had and she missed him every single day. But Ben wasn’t her brother and a hum of awareness vibrated through her that suddenly didn’t feel safe at all.
She pulled away from him. “It’s been almost three months and things here at the lodge are worse than ever. In my experience, people either don’t like me or they pretend to be my friend in order to get something from me.”
“Betrayal leaves a mark.”
She wasn’t going to confirm or deny. “What do I owe your sister?”
“Nothing. She took it to the shop and put air in the tire then brought it back.”
“A house call?”
He shrugged. “Call it public relations. If anyone here at the lodge needs a good mechanic, put in a good word.”
“Okay. Please give her my thanks and tell her that I appreciate what she did very much.” She started toward the stairs. “My break is over.”
She didn’t want it to be over because being with Ben felt like a sanctuary.
“I’ll see you around,” he said.
Not really a good idea. He was right about betrayal. The mark it left on her was about not being able to trust anyone. Ever. That wasn’t much of a problem here, since everyone fell in the hating her camp. So that made her wonder why the hometown hero was the only one in town being nice to her.
Chapter Four
“I put a patient in exam room one. And I use the term patient loosely, if you know what I mean.”
Ben looked at the disgusted expression on nurse Ginny’s face and was afraid he did know what she meant. It was another single woman faking a sprained ankle or wrist or something else as an excuse to put the moves on him.
“Does she have a casserole?”
Ginny grinned, a sign she was enjoying this way too much. “Yes.”
“Okay. Is there a chart?”
“Uh-huh.” She handed it over. “The home phone number is highlighted and underlined and asterisked.”
He looked at the paperwork inside the manila folder. Cherri Lyn Hoffman. Twenty-five. Worked in accounting at the Blackwater Lake power company. Single. Discomfort in right ankle. “Well, I guess we should see what’s wrong with her.”
“Or not.” Ginny headed down the hall to the break room.
“Aren’t you coming with me?”
“You’re a big boy. I think you can handle this.” She kept walking, then turned into the last room and disappeared.
Ben sighed as he knocked once on the exam room door. “Miss Hoffman?”
“Come in.”
He did. In this Victorian house donated to the town and turned into a clinic, the rooms were bigger. There was a sink in the corner and walls filled with charts and posters. One for nutrition, with portions of fruit and vegetables dominating. Another was a skeleton with bones labeled.
The patient was sitting on the paper-covered exam table with her legs dangling. Brown hair fell to her shoulders and teased the tight white T-shirt. Some shiny stuff sparkled on the front of it. A denim skirt the size of a postage stamp hit her just below the curve of her thigh and barely covered her…assets.
He left the door open, then went to the sink to wash his hands. “Hi, Miss Hoffman. I’m Dr. McKnight.”
“Please, call me Cherri.”
And you can call me Dr. McKnight, he thought, but couldn’t say it. “What seems to be the problem?”
“I think I twisted my ankle.”
“Let me take a look.” He sat on the rolling stool and moved toward her, and the very high heels she was wearing. That was the first clue she was faking. He looked at both legs. “Which one hurts?”
“The left.”
He looked in the chart where Ginny had noted that, per the patient, the injury was to the right ankle. “I don’t see any swelling or trauma.”
Cherri stuck her leg out. “Maybe you can feel something.”
He could feel it was a sham without touching her or looking at an X-ray. “Why don’t you walk across the room for me?”
“All right.”
She slid to the step at the end of the table, then stepped to the floor with an exaggerated wince as her right leg took her weight. Turning toward the doorway, she limped on the right leg. After a pivot she came back and favored the opposite side before stopping at the exam table next to him.
She blinked her big blue eyes. “What do you think, Doctor?”
God, he hated this. Several times a week this happened. He wanted to tell her not to waste his time. This wasn’t a game and he wouldn’t order needless diagnostic tests or prescribe medication for a nonexistent condition. But he was a professional and couldn’t say any of that.
“I don’t think it’s serious.” He kept his tone neutral with an effort. “When it bothers you, take over-the-counter medication for pain. Elevate it and alternate cold and heat.”
“Thank you. I’m so relieved it’s nothing serious.”
It was serious, but not in a way she would understand. He stood and headed for the door. “All right, then. Have a good day.”
“Wait.” She moved quickly to stop him. “Don’t I need to see you again? Another appointment? Or something?”
“No. I’m sure you’ll be fine.”
