“I understand, sir.” The pit boss added nervously, “The eagle has landed.”

Then the two men laughed like he’d made some great joke.

Meanwhile, Rob was growing impatient. These dudes were jawing while he needed to get his five bills and get back to the tables. It was right back to Texas Hold ’Em for him. Screw Seven Stud.

Finally the mysterious suit left. The pit boss unlocked the safe and counted out Rob’s chips. “We don’t usually raise the credit limit like this. Not without running it through corporate.”

“I’m good for it.” Once he saw those stacks of blue and red, only then did his shoulders begin to loosen. He could feel the weight of them in his hand already.

“You’ve got some timing, hitting us up when one of the Fairview suits was in.” He handed off a pretty little tray of chips. “Mister Fox is here all the way from New York.”

Rob took his money and grinned. “I told you I was lucky.”

Eighteen

“Is everything all set?” Laura cornered her sister as she emerged from the kitchen into the main tavern. “You’ve got enough food? Dan texted me about an hour ago.” She checked her watch. “They stopped in Fresh Pond for gas, which would put them here by four o’clock.”

“What? You meant they were coming today?” Sorrow waited a beat, then grinned evilly. “Of course, everything’s all set. For the thousandth time, we’re rea—”

A shadow crossed the window—a large white van, pulling into the lot. “Oh my God, they’re here.” The day had finally arrived—the History Network people had come to start filming—and if that weren’t good enough, an old colleague of hers was acting as producer. She ran out to the lot to greet them.

People were spilling from the van door, and it was like she was back in the city, seeing the array of tattoos, wildly dyed hair, and a showcase of tattered clothing that’d probably cost a fortune. She glimpsed an impressive amount of gear stowed in the back—mikes, boom poles, cameras, lenses. It was a total thrill.

“Hey, guys,” she called, and cursed herself for sounding like such an eager goofball. She tempered her voice and expression to play it cool. “Come on in. Have a beer on the house before you get settled.”

Sorrow appeared on the porch to shoo them inside, but Laura had her eye on the driver, still in the van, fiddling with his phone. It’d been years since she’d seen him, but that profile was instantly recognizable—her old pal, Dan Harper. Finally a door slammed, and he walked around the van to her, beaming. “Hey, stranger.”

She felt the grin pop back onto her face, bigger than ever. “Danny, I can’t believe it.” They’d once moved in the same San Francisco circles but had lost touch after he moved to Los Angeles.

He took her hand, letting his eyes rove blatantly up and down her body. “Laura Bailey. As I live and breathe.”

She tugged her hand away. “Easy, sailor. I’m not that cheap.”

He barked a laugh. “You haven’t changed one bit.” He leaned in to buss her on the cheek. “Seriously, it’s awesome to see you. I’m so happy we could make this work out.”

“You’re happy? I couldn’t believe when I saw your name.” After planning had begun in earnest, she’d been shocked when, cc’ed on an e-mail message, one of the names had popped from the rest. “How’s life in Smell-Ay?”

“You Northern California types are such snobs.” He shook his head in mock dismay. “Watch it, or I won’t share any of my celebrity gossip.”

“You’ve got gossip?” She motioned zipping her lips. “I will not be denied.”

Bear appeared, walking from the lodge to the tavern. “You going to make the man sleep out here?”

She and Dan shared an amused look. “Meet my dear father.”

Her dad simply grunted and continued his way into the tavern.

Sweeping an arm toward the porch, she added in a mockingly formal tone, “Mister Daniel Harper, would you like to come in?”

“As long as I don’t have to sit down.” He rubbed his lower back. “The drive was fine till I hit the mountains. Thirty miles an hour of this.” His hand snaked through the air, gesturing the twists and turns. “Good thing I don’t get carsick.” When a woman emerged from the passenger van, looking rumpled and slightly green, he added, “Unlike Kat, here.”

She gave the woman a sympathetic look. “The drive is pretty, but it can be winding.”

“Can be?” Kat raked a hand through her spiky black hair and croaked, “Is there a place I can lie down?”

Sorrow had been watching from the porch and, seeing she was needed, jogged down the stairs. “I’ll show her a room.”

“Can’t Hope show her?” Laura did a quick scan through the tavern windows for their new employee. “I thought she was going to be waiting tables for you. Isn’t that why tonight’s special is lasagna—anyone can serve it up?”

Hope might’ve proved knowledgeable about environmental issues, but when it came to actual helpfulness, so far she was pulling a goose egg.

Sorrow hedged. “Well…I told her…”

“And you were headed out tonight. You can’t take two hours off?” Laura gave her a stare down. She couldn’t take time off, but at least her sister could. Sorrow had been working so hard, as if she’d sensed just how important this all was to Laura, and she wanted to reward her sister with some downtime. “I thought you had plans with Billy.”

“We did. We do. But Hope was nervous about going it alone, especially with all the new guests. Speaking of which…” They both glanced at Kat, looking green and wobbly.

“You go,” Laura said. “Get the woman a bed and some ginger ale.”

Dan put a casual arm around her shoulders. “I’m hoping you have something a little stronger for the rest of us.”

“Right this way.”

“Wait a sec.” He stopped and, with a concerned glance back at the locked van, asked, “Will our gear be okay out here?”

“What?” It took her a moment to get what he was saying. “Ohh. Danny, this is Sierra Falls. The only thing that’ll break into your van is a raccoon, or a bear maybe.”

Worry flashed across his face, and Laura had to laugh. She’d always thought he was cute—they’d even had a couple of dates back in the day—but in his funky black-framed glasses and pretend-vintage concert T-shirt, he was more metrosexual than manly-sexual. She’d become so accustomed to the brawny mountain men that the cool LA club vibe just looked helpless. Almost comically out of place. Dan had a sharp wit, but she doubted he’d know what to do if faced with anything baring sharp teeth.

Oddly, it gave her a stab of affection for him…for all of them. It made her realize that she’d made the right decision coming home, but also just how much she’d missed her city friends. She leaned in for another hug. “It’s so great to see you.”

Gravel crunched as another vehicle pulled into the drive—a red pickup. Even through the windshield, she could discern the grim set to the driver’s jaw.

Eddie and his impeccable timing.

Just like his timing with that stupid tree. He’d thought he could seduce her by showing her a couple of stupid birds’ nests. And damn the man, he almost had. He’d taken her hand, and she’d felt his touch like a pulse of electricity. She’d been too shocked to pull away, too curious to see if the feeling faded, if it’d just been surprise—not attraction—that’d surged through her. But that warmth had intensified. The sweep of his hands down her arms had left her weak, hot and shivery both. No, it’d definitely, unfortunately, been attraction she’d felt.

And now he was showing up, here. Just when she was hitting her stride. He pulled in right next to where they were standing. Total Neanderthal move.

He got out, and his eyes flicked ever so briefly—and disdainfully—over Dan. “Evening,” he said in a tight voice.

She bared her teeth in a smile. “Miller time again?”

He only shrugged, and she told herself it wasn’t hurt that’d furrowed his brow.

The contrast between him and Dan was pronounced. Her old friend looked like he belonged in some grungy, ultrahip LA nightclub, while there went Eddie, seeming like something out of a Levi’s ad. As he walked into the tavern, she had to look away.

But that brought her attention to the back of his pickup instead. Yet again, he had ten tons of gear in the back. Did he ever clean the thing out?

A small slash of color caught her eye. Stepping closer, she registered what she was looking at and felt it like a punch in the gut. It was a small red sneaker.

A child’s sneaker.

Did he have a kid? She glared at the door he’d just walked through, as if that might offer some clue. Did this explain where he was always off to? Was he paying regular visits to his mistress and secret love child?

She smothered her extreme response. Why should she care?

The film crew was here. She knew the producer. Her world was taking off. She wouldn’t let Eddie ruin her moment—she’d been looking forward to this for weeks. More than that, she’d worked her butt off to make it happen.

“Come on.” She tucked Dan’s arm firmly in hers and led him inside, headed toward his friends who were settling noisily into a booth.

“I’ve had my fill of the crew for the moment,” he said, steering her away. “I’ve spent the past two hours forced to listen to their arguing.”

“Here, then.” She pointed him to a seat by the window and dashed behind the bar for two bottles of beer. She wasn’t normally a drinker, but right then, she was in the mood for a change. “Arguing, huh?” she asked as she returned to the table.

“Oh, yeah.” He cracked open both bottles, then handed Laura hers. “The only time they shut up was to tweet.”