Rock and A Hard Place (Cascade Brides Series) (4 page)

She shook her head to dislodge her melodramatic thoughts. Besides,
it was her present, not her past, that was at issue at the moment.
Shane was a new fixture in town. She had to get used to him on some
level—as long as Merle kept her employed.

Groaning at her one-track mind, she drove down the main street of
town and tried to view it as Shane might. She figured he was a city
boy—he spoke with just a hint of an industrial accent. What did he
think of John Day? What was he seeking so far from the bustle of
teeming civilization? Over the years, people who lived here either
had established roots or were trying to flee something. Faith pulled
into a parking slot and shut off the engine.

She should know.

A moment later, Merle's bright red Dodge Ram pulled in alongside
her. Shane hurried to her door and offered to help, making
sympathetic noises about her ankle. She sent him a warning glare,
which only made him smile. Infuriating man.

Once they were all ensconced in the restaurant—wood paneling,
decorative plates lining the walls, and curlicue copper light
fixtures—they perused their menus and ordered. Faith leaned back
in her chair and surreptitiously hoisted her foot onto the chair
seat opposite her, hoping Shane wouldn't notice. She listened to him
and Merle talk about sports, the weather, and work. She kept her
ears perked, still wondering if Merle planned on replacing her
anytime soon. But his comments were too general to increase her
anxiety.

“You're awfully quiet,” Merle said suddenly, turning to her.

“Just listening to you two.” Faith decided she was being
childish. She sent a smile toward Shane. “So, tell me how you
ended up in John Day.”

Shane sent her another one of his enigmatic looks. “I grew up in
Detroit and wanted out of the city.”

Faith cocked her head slightly.
Called it.

“I've worked in Arizona and Idaho, but didn't quite feel at home.
When a job opened in Oregon near Merle, I decided to try out a new
state.”

Faith guessed there was more he wasn't telling her, but she
understood the inhibition. “Are there any other areas on your list
of places to work?”
How long are you staying? Are you a threat?

“I for one hope you'll settle here,” Merle said. “I like
having family close.”

Faith regarded the older man. He didn't often speak of his family.
He'd never mentioned siblings, but he must have had at least one to
end up with a nephew. Was he estranged from a brother or sister?
Faith thought of the sisters she hadn't spoken to in years. They
weren't estranged exactly. They'd just each decided to go their own
way. Had any of them married? Could
she
be an aunt and not
know it? Now
that
was a
discouraging thought.

“What about you?”

Faith looked at Shane, realizing he was asking her a question. “Um,
I came here...when I was eighteen. I lived closer to the valley
originally.”

Nice and vague. Just the way she liked it.

“Why John Day? It's a bit remote for the average person.”

She schooled her expression. “The word remote is the appeal. No
noise, no chaos. Just peace and panoramas.”

Merle smiled. “Sounds like a good line for the next brochure.”
He leaned back in his chair and looked at his nephew. “You know,
it was a place like this restaurant where I first met Faith.”

Faith suppressed a groan, wishing her boss wouldn't bring up old
history.

“She was a waitress in high school, working to support her twin
sisters.”

Here we go
. She inwardly cringed at the unwanted traipse down
memory lane.

“Where do your sisters live now?” Shane asked, pinning her with
his dark eyes.

“Other side of the Cascades,” she said, purposefully ambiguous.
How would it look if she said she didn't really know?

“Let me see if I get this right—the Cascades are the main
mountain chain through the state that separate the east from the
west.”

“Partly,” Faith said, “the Coastal Range near the beach
coupled with the Cascades is what makes the Willamette Valley. The
mountains keep the climate fairly temperate there, while here on the
eastern side—”

“You get the weather extremes because it's more exposed,” Shane
finished with a gleam in his eye. “I read up on it before I moved
here.”

He read up on it. Exactly
. Reminding herself to refrain from
snarkiness, she nodded. “But not everyone can handle the extremes.
I hope you're up for it.”
Oops. Snark alert
.

He grinned. “I'm used to a different kind of extreme from inner
city life, but I think I can handle it.”

“Storms, dangerous animals...”

“Headstrong females...”

She arched her brow in response, then suddenly realized they'd
excluded Merle from their battle of wills moment.

Awkward.

“Headstrong can be a good quality,” Merle said bemusedly.
“Faith's momma was sick, so she worked to help pay for groceries.
Not many teenagers would be that responsible. Around that time, she
entered a photograph in a local newspaper contest and won. I saw she
had an eye for photography, so I offered her a summer job and she's
been with me ever since.”

“Okay, Merle,” Faith said, keeping her tone light, “I'm sure
Shane doesn't want to hear about boring past history.” She stole a
look at the ranger, embarrassed both by rising to his challenge, and
the knowledge that Merle had caught the undercurrent. “I'm sure
he'd rather talk about man stuff—hunting, football—”

“It's technically baseball season and hunting season doesn't start
until the fall,” Shane said, a twinkle in his eye.

Rats
. He'd noticed her lame attempt at misdirection. Might
make him even more inquisitive.

Their food arrived and Faith was thankful for the distraction. After
a quick prayer, Merle and Shane talked about the business,
photography, and current land laws. As each moment passed, Faith
became more and more convinced that Shane would eventually be taking
her place at Bascombe Productions. And why shouldn't he? He was
family. And obviously she was being unprofessional to challenge him
in any way. How could she fight for something that never really
belonged to her in the first place?

She made a face at her food and wished she were home. As soon as it
was polite to do so, she got up and excused herself, pleading
fatigue. Merle seemed surprised. He patted her arm. “I'll see you
Monday, then.”

Shane's surprised expression turned to a frown. She ignored it.

After a quick goodbye, Faith hurried to the entrance as fast as her
throbbing ankle would take her. But before she made it to the door,
Shane was suddenly at her side, making her start.

His smile appeared more cautious than genial. “I wanted to let you
know I'd welcome your company on my routes if you're looking for new
places to shoot. Safety in numbers and all that.”

Faith stared up at him. At his proximity she noticed an amber ring
around the brown iris of his eyes. “Um, well, yes, that would be
nice.” Of course, she didn't need a babysitter when she went on
day hikes. He'd probably ratted her out to Merle after fussing at
her about hiking alone.

He leaned a fraction closer. “I'm heading to the Indian Rock
scenic area tomorrow. It's not restricted, but I was told of an old
mining road most backpackers are unaware of that heads to a lookout.
Want to tag along?”

She
hadn't
been to that area yet. Faith was torn between
capitalizing on an opportunity and wondering what Shane's agenda
might be. That he had one, she had no doubt.

“And it'll be a driving tour. You're not ready to hike on that
ankle yet.”

He had her there. “It was only a light sprain.”

“You should be home with it propped up.”

“I
know
how to care for a sprain.”

Instead of being offended at her peevishness, he grinned. “I
failed to mention I'm also certified in first aid, so should you
need to be carried to your car...”

Faith arched a brow. “I'll be at the office in the morning.”

“I'll see you then.” He held the door open for her.

It took a concerted effort to walk without a limp to her car. She
knew
he was watching. But when she turned around, he was
gone.

Chapter Four

Faith wasn't nervous as she sat in front of her computer the next
morning. Knocking over her coffee, dropping her pen several times,
and constantly glancing at the clock meant nothing more than the
usual Monday mishaps. She wondered if she should brush her hair
again.

Faith grimaced, angry with herself. Mentally, she was suspicious of
Shane—and unsure of her place in his plans when it came to his
uncle. So why did she catch herself checking her reflection in the
bathroom mirror to fluff her hair and reapply lip gloss? So Shane
was attractive. Lots of men were. Good looks happened. It was the
luck of the draw genetically speaking and had no bearing on
anything—unless the genetically blessed wanted to edge her out of
Bascombe Productions.

Clenching her fists, Faith chastised herself for her dark thoughts.
It wasn't
completely
outside the possibility that Shane was a
nice person who wanted to get to know his uncle's sole employee.
Maybe he got bored going along his routes alone. This way he could
have company and assure himself that she was an asset to Merle's
business. Two birds with one stone and all that. And there was the
safety factor she couldn't deny.

Instead of fighting Shane and all his intrusion to her life he
represented, she reminded herself the Lord was directing her life.
She'd asked God for direction, so it was possible Shane was part of
that. If God direction was for her to work elsewhere, then that was
that. But her stomach clenched anyway.

When the bell tinkled above the door, she jumped.

“Good morning, Faith.”

Shane stood inside the door, all uniformed up and smiling. She had
an impulse to pat her hair, and had to stifle it with some
difficulty. “Good morning. Are you ready?”

He nodded.

Merle walked out from his office and greeted Shane. “Where are you
two headed today?”

Faith looked askance at the older man's beaming smile. It was odd
coming from one usually more blustery than sugary.

“Indian Rock. Going to check some of the old mining roads.”

“Should be gorgeous with all the alpine flowers.”

Faith held up her Canon EOS 7D. “That's why I'm bringing this.”

The older man's smile deepened. “You kids have fun now.” Then he
went back into his office.

She sent a sidelong look toward Shane to see if he noticed anything
out of place. He simply held open the door. Faith grabbed her camera
bag and backpack and headed out to where he was parked.

Once they were settled in his Jeep, she released a breath she hadn't
realized she'd been holding. This was simply going to be a routine
photo job. No big whoop. Of course, accompanying a federal ranger
wasn't the norm, generally, but beyond that, she could declare the
trip mundane. She glanced over at the driver. Almost.

Shane fired up the Jeep. While the vehicle was a late model, the
interior was filmed with a light layer of dust and the floor mats
were littered with pine needles and dried mud—just like everyone
else's car in the area.

He turned on his CB radio. “Where we're going there's no cell
service, so we go old school.” He smiled as he patted the
receiver. “This baby is what we'll be using when the zombie
apocalypse happens.”

Faith raised her brows. “The zombie apocalypse?”

“Yeah, you know, when everything goes crazy. Civilizations fall,
anarchy reins, and zombies—”

“
Don't
finish that, please.” She struggled to suppress a
smile, not wanting to encourage him.

He pitched his voice low. “It could happen, you know.”

“Very cute.”

He pretended to be offended. “I can see you didn't read comic
books when you were a kid.”

A reluctant smile slipped past her guard. Whoops. “Alas, no, I
never read comic books.”

Shane pulled out of the driveway and onto the road. “Apocalypse
comics were what got me into forestry, if you can imagine that.”

Her eyes widened. “How?”

“You know the theme of the lone survivalist fighting it out
against his environment, whether it's bad guys or nature...or
zombies.”

She bit back a wider smile. “So you're a loner survivalist type?”

He sent her a rueful grin. “Right now I pretty much just fight
paperwork and regulations. It was much more romantic when I was a
teenager.”

Faith knew all about youthful ideals. “You said you grew up in a
big city. That must've have something to do with it.”

“Yep. I'd had enough of asphalt and noise.”

“Do you ever miss it? City life?”

Shane turned onto the highway. “It's been eight years since I've
been back, and so far, no thanks.” He paused. “I guess I could
always pursue my second interest. Photography.”

Faith stared out at the passing scenery without seeing it, her heart
pounding hard. Was he provoking her or was it a harmless comment?
“Did you take it in college?”

“Just a few classes. It wasn't my minor if that's what you mean.
At this point I'm more of an enthusiast.”

She swallowed and addressed his profile. “Do you have a portfolio?
I'm sure Merle would love to see examples of your work.”

“I plan to show him soon. I'm looking forward to getting his
opinion because he's really got a great eye for that kind of thing.”

Faith felt herself sink in the seat. So Shane didn't represent an
either-slash-or when it came to Merle. He was a double whammy. He
probably wouldn't even charge Merle for his photos. He'd be like a
free employee, which made her a liability. She licked her lips. “Did
you bring your camera today?”