Rock and A Hard Place (Cascade Brides Series) (2 page)
Read Rock and A Hard Place (Cascade Brides Series) Online
Authors: Bonnie Blythe
“So, what’s your name?”
Faith peeked up at the ranger. His features were nearly
indistinguishable in the failing light, but she saw the shine of his
eyes from the flashlight he had pointed toward the ground. “Faith
Conrad. And you?”
“Shane Zadopec.”
“So you’re a ranger around here?”
“Yep.”
She squinted at him. “I know most of them. Are you new?”
“Also yep.”
Grimacing as an unseen rock jolted her bad ankle, she gripped his
hand tighter. “I haven’t thanked you for rescuing me. It was
very timely.”
“I don’t know. If I had arrived a few minutes later, you might
have gotten a great shot of the bear’s gingivitis issues.”
Faith laughed nervously. “True, but a photographer’s gotta do
what a photographer’s gotta do.”
She sensed him staring at her in the darkness. “Are you always so
fool—er,
daring
to get your shots?”
“Ha ha,” she said dryly. “There’s a lot of competition out
there. I like my job and want to keep it.”
“So, your boss expects you to go to these extremes?”
Faith looked up at the orange glow behind the back of the mountain.
“I don’t go to extremes. I just capitalized on an opportunity.”
“Ah.”
She frowned at the note of scorn in his voice, but refrained from
commenting. The guy
had
seriously saved her bacon, and making
a friend who was a ranger—a ranger who had access to restricted
lands—could be a boon.
So be nice, Faith
.
Finally they reached the smooth asphalt heralding their arrival at
the trail head. The rising moon shone off her Nissan parked next to
a Jeep. Faith limped over to her truck and keyed open the door while
Shane handed her the backpack. She set it on the seat, making sure
the pocket holding the camera was pointed up.
The dome light made a little golden puddle in the dark. She looked
up at Shane, wishing she could discern his features. Somehow she
sensed him doing the same. What should she say? Faith knew he didn't
appreciate her putting herself in unnecessary danger, but maybe he
would lighten up. The other rangers in the county knew of her habits
and usually indulged her wanderlust, knowing she wasn't going to go
to any extreme...extremes. She hoped Shane would be as
accommodating.
Faith held out her hand. “Well, thank you so much for helping
today. I really was in a pinch.”
He took her hand and gave it a quick shake. “You shouldn’t go
into the mountains by yourself anymore.”
Faith couldn’t help but send him an invisible glare. A
pparently
not the accommodating type
. “Like I said, I know the area
quite well. Today was unfortunate—for my ankle anyway.”
“So your boss knew where you’d be?”
“Um, I didn't tell him directly. But I left a message on my cell,
so anyone calling would be given my location. And I always carry a
firearm and emergency supplies, so I can assure you, I took
precautions.”
“And you're licensed to carry a firearm?”
Faith knew it was his job to ask questions, be she still bristled.
“Of course. And I'm very proficient.”
Hah, take that,
rangerman
.
“It's hard to be proficient when it's not holstered where you can
get at it.”
She stifled a frown, knowing he had a point.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a card. “This has my
cell number on it. Call me before you head out again. You need to
let someone know where you are at all times.”
Faith reluctantly took the card, figuring it was just part of his
professional spiel. Maybe he was also trying to impress his boss. At
least on that score, she could relate. Faith offered him a chastened
smile. “Well, thanks again.”
“Can you drive?”
She lifted her wrapped left ankle. “Yes.” To prove her point,
she slid into the cab of her truck, fired up the engine, and rolled
down the window. “See? It's an automatic, so no problem.”
Shane looked at her for a long moment before turning and climbing
into his Jeep.
He’s obviously the bossy type.
Sheesh.
Glowering,
she maneuvered her truck around and headed down the forest service
road to the main highway, deciding to have a chat with the other
rangers, encouraging them to let the newbie know what was what. They
knew that
she
knew her way around the bush. The new ranger
would be more convinced if word came from his colleagues as opposed
to her assurances on the matter. Shifting her thoughts to the
amazing images hidden away on her camera, she put the handsome
ranger firmly out of her mind—even though she saw his headlights
in her rearview mirror.
Tall evergreens blotted out the starlight, giving way to scrubby
hills and occasional houses and businesses as she neared John Day.
Bravado wearing thin, she slumped in her seat, looking forward to a
long, hot soak in her claw-footed tub. Her ankle throbbed in
agreement.
Twenty minutes later, she pulled into the driveway of the little
house she rented next door to Merle’s storefront, and parked
alongside the big Dodge Ram he drove. Her boss must be working late.
He usually left right at five.
To her surprise a set of headlights swung in behind her. Faith
turned and recognized Shane’s Jeep. She could've sworn he'd turned
off the road a mile or so back. Rolling her eyes, she clambered
carefully from the cab to meet Shane as he got out of the Jeep. “I
assure you, Mr. Ranger, I’m a big girl and can get home all by
myself.”
Shane approached her, and in the floodlight from the building, she
saw a lazy smile on his face. She put her hands on her hips. “What?”
Leaning against the hood of her truck, he crossed his arms. “I
wasn't following you exactly, I’m just here to see my uncle.”
“Your uncle,” she said flatly.
He nodded.
Faith heard the door of Bascombe Promotions open. She turned and saw
her boss striding out to meet her. His thick white hair and
handlebar mustache glowed in the halogen parking lot light. She sent
a little wave. “Hey, Merle!”
“Faith! Glad you’re back. I wanted to introduce you to my
nephew.”
Faith swiveled her head and looked at Shane. He raised his brows.
Oh, great
. Suddenly, putting the new ranger in his place
didn't seem such an easy task.
“Perfect timing, Shane!” Merle reached him and gave him a bear
hug. “Welcome to Malheur County! You’ll find it’s a lot better
than the valley, though I may be a bit biased.”
Shane laughed. “Thanks. It’s good to be here. I’ve had an
interesting first day.”
Oh, don’t you dare
. Faith sent him a hard look. The last
thing her fledgling career needed was Merle putting the kibosh on
her ability to get decent shots. Between a worried boss and an
overly-zealous ranger, she'd have to be content with taking pictures
of sidewalk weeds. Shane sent her an innocent expression.
Uh huh
.
“I met Faith earlier today out in the bush.”
Merle seemed satisfied with the news and sent her a glance of
approval. “That’s my girl. Always working hard.” He walked
over and put his arm around her.
Faith tucked her injured ankle behind her other leg, hoping he
wouldn’t notice it.
“So, did he tell you?” Merle asked.
She looked up at him, enjoying his familiar smell of leather and the
outdoors. “Tell me what?”
Isn't it enough that I'll have a
fussy ranger dogging my heels at the behest of my boss?
“Shane’s a photographer, too.”
Faith turned to the ranger, her general annoyance with him morphing
into outright fear.
Because frankly, she’d rather face a bear.
Chapter Two
Faith tried not to sulk the next morning as she hobbled into the
office. An X-ray at the local clinic had declared her ankle
sprained—for which she was thankful. It could've been so much
worse. But she was still rankled by the new guy in town. Why hadn't
Merle warned her about his nephew? And why hadn't Shane revealed who
he was once he knew who
she
was? If that wasn't bad enough,
apparently Shane was a photographer, too. No reason to feel
threatened.
Not at all.
Bascombe Productions was a small office in the local strip mall,
which also housed a beauty salon, insurance company, medical clinic,
dentist, and real estate office—pretty much representing the
business end of John Day—not counting the grocery store, gas
station and sportsman shop. Bascombe's specialized in making
brochures, fliers, and other promotional materials, the majority of
which was used to encourage tourism to eastern Oregon. Over the
years, Bascombe's had been hired out by companies small and large,
even occasionally earning government contracts.
While the business did well, she was fairly certain Merle couldn't
afford another employee. Sometimes she even felt her job was
superfluous. She really wasn't doing anything Merle couldn't do
himself, especially since he didn't need to work at all. He was
independently wealthy and Bascombe's was probably more of a hobby to
him than anything.
A part of her wondered if he kept her on out of pity. She doubted he
had big plans to take the company to the top. In fact he still laid
out the brochure as a physical mock up despite Faith's insistence
they use the desktop publishing program on the computer.
Maybe he was lonely. His wife had died many years before and they
had no children. Faith had met him when she was a waitress trying to
keep her family together several years back. It was his big heart
that had offered her a better position, along with encouragement to
seek the Lord. Merle was like a father to her when she had none, but
just because she felt like he was family, he wasn't.
Shane Zadopec, however,
was
.
The walls of Bascombe Productions were covered with framed prints of
Oregon's beauty, from snow-capped mountains, to elk in the mist, to
meadows covered in alpine blooms. Two desks sat kitty-corner to each
other and a small room towards the back housed Merle's private
office.
After turning on all the lights, Faith eased into the chair and
powered on the computer. As it booted up, she sipped her coffee from
the Thifty Mart. She hadn't had a chance to look at the pictures
she'd taken the day before. Last night she been too preoccupied with
a body that craved a hot bath and an ankle that needed ice—and
consternation at how Shane might be a threat to her way of doing
things.
Faith pulled her camera out of her backpack and connected it to the
computer. As she scrolled through each photo, she felt some of her
tensions ease. The photos were good. Merle would be more than happy.
When she saw the bear and cougar shots, she bit her lip. With a
little editing—playing with the contrast and doing some
cropping—they'd be incredible. Surely Merle would feel the same
way.
The angst of an injured ankle and Shane Zadopec dissolved.
The little bell above the door tinkled. Faith looked over to see
Merle walk in, followed by Shane.
Well, there went the peace of
the day
. She rose to her feet. Merle looked his usual colorful
self with his white hair and mustache, leather vest, turquoise bolo
tie and cowboy boots. Shane looked...much better than she
remembered. Black hair cut short, dark eyes, olive skin. Goodness,
apparently a khaki uniform had magical properties.
“Good morning!” she said, hoping her voice didn't sound fake,
because it kinda was. “You're here earlier than usual, Merle.”
Shane zeroed in on her. A slight smile lifted his lips. She nodded
her head coolly in acknowledgment. Now if he would just keep his
mouth shut about her ankle.
“Up and at 'em first thing as usual, I see,” Merle said, smiling
beneath his mustache. “I wanted to show Shane the office before he
headed out for work.”
“Oh,” she said, hoping the tour wouldn't take long. At this
point, five minutes would feel too long—especially as Shane seemed
to notice her discomfiture and was enjoying it.
Merle walked over to her desk. “What are you working on?”
She stepped to one side, allowing him to see her computer screen
while tucking her wrapped ankle out of view. “Got some new shots
yesterday.” Pride swelled in her voice, but she checked it as soon
as she caught a look from Shane.
Merle smiled broadly. “Well, those
are
impressive. Where
did you take these?”
“Strawberry Mountain.”
“That's some luck, young lady. I hope you didn't put yourself in
any danger.”
“Of course not.” She shot a warning look Shane's way. His
sparkling gaze was way too innocent. “That's what the telephoto
lens is for.”
Shane coughed, then blocked his mouth with his fist.
“Why don't you use that cougar shot for the front of the summer
brochure for the Eastern Wildlife Conservation Association. It's
truly magnificent.”
Pleasure made her smile genuine this time. “Thank you, Merle. That
means a lot.” And maybe if she could keep him impressed, he
wouldn't ask his nephew to horn in on her territory.
“Come over and get a look at this, Shane. We could use stock
photography, but I pride myself on only using local images we
capture ourselves. Before the brochure goes to print, we caption it,
stating where the photograph was taken so the reader knows it's the
real deal.”
Shane edged over for a look.
Faith watched his face for his reaction. Surely even he would be
impressed. If he wasn't, she hoped he wouldn't be arrogant enough to
recommend improvements.
He looked up at her. “You framed the shot well, Miss Conrad. But
if I could make a suggestion, you might consider running it through
a filter to give it a more gritty look.”
Her smile froze. “Uh.”
“A gritty look?” Merle asked. “What do you mean?”
Shane's expression was benign, but that fact did not mollify Faith.
“Well, it's difficult to explain. Do you mind if I just try it? I
use this same photo editing software myself.”