Huntsman - Morgan Brice Page 0,11

looked at Russ like he was some kind of hero.

Russ shrugged. “A buddy of mine had to fly up to Saranac for business, and he brought the parts back with him, so we didn’t have to wait on snail mail.”

“Wow. Thank you. I appreciate you calling in a favor for me.”

Russ snorted. “Since Justin’s one of my poker buddies, it’s more like I’ll be doing him a favor in return by not whupping his ass at cards…at least, on the first hand,” he added with a grin.

Liam looked both interested and hesitant. Russ felt more sure than ever that something—or someone—had scared Liam badly. He didn’t think either of them were up for anything more than being friends right now. But when you’re the new guy in town, and you don’t know anyone, it’s good to have a friend, right?

“Well, thank you for everything,” Liam said, meeting Russ’s gaze with those fascinating, amber eyes. Russ had sworn he was going to keep his distance, but Liam’s eyes could make a man forget those kinds of promises.

“You’re very welcome. And I, er, threw in a tune-up—on the house—to make sure everything keeps working right,” Russ said.

Liam seemed to relax, just a bit. “Thank you, again.”

“Would you like to get coffee sometime?” Russ blurted. His wolf gave a smug chuff, managing to get words out of Russ’s mouth before his human brain caught up.

Liam looked uncertain, then managed a hesitant but real smile. “Sure. Dr. Jeffries told me a lot about Fox Hollow on our walk, but I’ve still got lots of questions.”

“Drew and I aren’t natives, but we’ve been here for more than ten years, so I think I can come up with some of those answers, and if I can’t, Sherrie and Nelson who own Bear Necessity Coffee can fill you in,” Russ replied, aware that he was smiling broadly and probably looked like a maniac. He hadn’t smiled like that since… He fought not to let the light go out at the thought of Anthony’s death.

I don’t want to explain Anthony’s death, not right off the bat. And I don’t want Liam to think anything he did caused my mood change. Hell, it’s just coffee.

He is our mate. Make it more than coffee. I will get a rabbit if I need to, his wolf offered.

Russ chose to ignore his wolf for the moment. “Tomorrow’s Sunday. The library is usually closed. Do you want to meet up in the morning?”

Liam nodded. “That would be great. And I’d like to hear your impressions of the library and the community programs and the festivals. Dr. Jeffries told me a lot, and I’ve read the websites, but I need to know the lay of the land, so to speak, before I wade into planning for the summer.”

“I can fill you in.” Russ’s smile brightened naturally. The community programs put on by the library and the Institute were some of the things he and Drew enjoyed the most about Fox Hollow.

“Okay then,” Liam said, with a shy smile that made Russ swallow hard. “I’ll see you tomorrow. Say, nine?”

“Nine’s good.”

Since Kerrie had already handled check-out, Russ opened the bay door and walked Liam to his car, parked just outside, then waved as he drove away. Russ glanced around, but neither Jimmy nor Steve, his other mechanics, seemed to be paying any attention. That helped, since Drew—and probably Kerrie—were going to be paying a lot more attention than Russ wanted. They had both made some subtle and not-so-subtle comments about learning to enjoy life again after loss.

That sort of thing always seemed like good advice—until someone aimed it at him.

Since it was Saturday, they closed the shop early. They weren’t open on Sundays even during tourist season unless there was an emergency, which could happen since Fox Hollow was a helluva long way from the next nearest auto center. Russ was glad to have the time off, not just to have coffee with Liam, but also to sort out his jumbled thoughts.

He cleaned up his bay as Jimmy and Steve finished straightening their area and wished them both a good rest of the weekend. Then he changed out of his coveralls and folded them up to take with him and wash. Drew had already headed out to the cabin they shared to get ready for poker night, which generally involved beer, burgers, and snacks.

Tonight, Russ felt a restlessness that for once didn’t have anything to do with his wolf. His thoughts were in turmoil, and