One Snowy Night (Sweet Home, Alaska #1) - Patience Griffin Page 0,19

than him when you were kids.”

Surprised, she glanced at Donovan for a split second before answering Rick. “I just have better depth perception.”

“I’m the one who taught her how to shoot!” Donovan complained. He could’ve told her he’d qualified for Expert in the Corps, but he didn’t.

Rick nudged the tray toward her. “Please have something. I don’t like to eat alone.”

Yeah, Donovan had heard his friend use that line many times on unsuspecting females. Rick oozed charm. And suddenly, Donovan got worried. If Rick spent too much time around Hope, she’d fall for him, like all women did.

“She better go.” Donovan approached Hope, not to hug her good-bye but to take the dog.

“Yes. I need to get home.” Reluctantly, she handed over Boomer before starting for the door.

“Hold up,” Rick said. “Donovan will see you out.”

Donovan gave Rick the I’ll-set-you-straight-when-I-get-back look before handing the puppy off to him.

“Yeah, I’ll walk you out,” he said, following her. “For protection.”

“I can take care of myself,” Hope said over her shoulder.

“Humor me, then.” Donovan hurried around her and held the door open.

“Suit yourself.”

He walked her out to her beat-up Honda Civic. “It was good to see you.” It wasn’t, really. The encounter made him feel uncomfortable on so many levels.

“Sure.” She knew he didn’t mean it. “Good-bye, Donovan.”

Her words were firm and felt final.

Fine by me. He walked back to the lodge, shivering from the cold.

Rick was waiting at the door. “Now that girl is a good reason to stay.”

For you or for me? Donovan shook the thought away. Long ago, he’d told Rick all about Hope, and he was certain Rick would never go after someone Donovan was interested in.

But Donovan wasn’t interested. Not since the day Beau died. He walked into the kitchen and grabbed an unopened bag of Doritos.

While he pulled out a handful, he glanced down at a small slip of paper lying on the counter and picked it up. A bill from Piney. Figured. This whole debacle was costing him in more ways than one. Tomorrow, he’d have to go to the Hungry Bear to pay his bill, plus inform Piney that she’d better stop delivering groceries out to the lodge. And she better stop meddling, too. But he wouldn’t admit how badly her delivery person had thrown him.

Donovan went back into the living room and sat on the dilapidated sofa.

“Hey.” Rick set down his half-eaten Pop-Tart. “I’m going to throw some numbers together for what it would cost to remodel this place.”

Donovan couldn’t care less about crunching numbers.

Rick pulled out a pad of paper and wrote furiously, mumbling all the while. “You can use the winter to fix things up. Work on the inside.” He looked up at Donovan. “Are you handy around the house?”

Begrudgingly Donovan answered, “I used to help my grandparents and my dad with stuff. So sure, I’m pretty handy.” He’d helped his grandfather build the back porch, and when he was needed, he was happy to help the homesteaders around Sweet Home.

Rick tapped his list. “I’ll drive to Anchorage tomorrow for supplies.”

“Good. Can you bring back some groceries, too?” That way Donovan wouldn’t be forced to go to the Hungry Bear.

“Shouldn’t you support the local economy?” Rick said. “Besides being the right thing to do, it’s a good business practice. It’ll build up goodwill with the folks of Sweet Home.”

“You don’t understand,” Donovan said.

Rick set down his pen. “Explain.”

Because Donovan had shared so much with Rick, he was honest with him now. “It’s Hope. It’s too hard seeing her.” It’s digging up old feelings—good times and grief.

“Listen,” Rick said, “this might be good for you.”

“No. Don’t start in on personal growth again. I’ve had a lot of it these last umpteen years in AA.”

“It might be time to deal with Hope and your brother’s death, is all I’m saying,” Rick said. “Maybe you should go with me to Anchorage.”

Rick didn’t have to say the rest: You need to catch a meeting.

“I will.”

“Now, can we get back to figuring out what we’re going to need in order to update the lodge?”

Donovan looked around with new eyes. “I don’t know. Maybe we should get an interior decorator in here to update everything. For staging.” Yes, restore the place for selling purposes only. The best time to sell would be late spring, not October with winter already here.

“Do you know anyone in town who could help with decorating?” Rick asked.

“We could ask the real estate agent.” Courtney Wolf from high school. “Let’s put that on our