For a place to relax, it wouldn’t be beat. Jackson knew the resort would charge guests an arm and a leg, and visitors would happily pay for the remote luxury and pristine setting.
He’d be long gone by then. To another site, another job. Another couple of years in a remote location. Getting through life one day at a time.
He walked along the edge of the lake, stopping at a tree that had fallen partially into the water. Placing a foot on the trunk, he rested his elbow against his knee and took a swig of the cold soft drink he’d carried. He was alone and liked it that way.
Sara would have loved this place, he thought for the hundredth time.
The familiar ache took hold. He always missed her, but especially at twilight. They’d made it a tradition to have a quiet drink together, just the two of them, before dinner every evening. Even after Sammy had come along, it had been their special time to talk over their respective days, and to be with each other. To shut out the rest of the world and draw their own world around them.
He gripped the can tightly. The ache would get worse as the night wore on. It had been three years, but it could have been three minutes or three decades. With his wife gone it was like a part of himself had been amputated. Which it had—the best part of him.
He could close his eyes and see her—tall and slim with dark eyes and sleek dark hair that cupped her head. She’d been almost as tall as he was when she’d worn high heels. They’d know each other since second grade. Their likes had meshed; their thoughts had run parallel. Their dreams had been the same.
God, the ache was impossible. Some days he thought he couldn’t make it without her. Her and Sammy.
If he closed his eyes, he could see her walking toward him. Hear her sweet voice—
“Mr. Witt, there’s a problem with my water. I can’t find Jeff. Can you fix it?”
Jackson opened his eyes and turned. Instead of Sara’s dark beauty, he confronted the petite blonde Jeff had hired. The petite, pregnant blonde who barely came up to his shoulder.
Irritation rose. What did she want now? If she thought he planned to baby-sit her until Friday, she had another thought coming. He still didn’t know why he’d given her until Friday. She should have headed back to Julian already.
Chapter Two
“What do you want?”
“Someone to fix the water in my trailer. I knocked on Jeff’s door. He said he has the trailer next door to mine, but he’s not there. And I don’t know anyone else to ask. I certainly don’t want you to think I was flirting with someone if I asked for assistance,” Mandy said.
Jackson took another swallow of the soda, his cherished quiet shattered. He scanned her from head to toe, irritated anew at the sight of her. The asperity in her voice was noticeable. He straightened. She was right; if there was a problem, he or Jeff should fix it. No sense opening a crack in a door for any of the men to think it was an invitation.
“What’s wrong with the water?”
“I can’t get any hot. It comes out cold from both faucets. There’s a hot-water heater, but I don’t know a thing about it and don’t know if it’s working properly.”
“Probably needs a new propane tank hooked up.”
She stared at him. Her eyes were darker in the twilight—not deep brown as Sara’s had been, but navy blue.
Navy blue eyes? It had to be lack of light, or altitude sickness. What was wrong with him? She had plain old blue eyes, period.
He sighed over the inevitable and turned to begin to walk back along the shore, then up the slight incline, heading toward the trailers. Despite not wanting her around, he would fix the blasted hot-water heater. A pregnant woman needed warm water.
A shaft of pain pierced him. He remembered how much Sara had liked soaking in hot baths when she’d been pregnant with Sammy. Sometimes he’d joined her, the two of them sloshing water everywhere.
Quickening his pace, he tried to put distance between him and the memories. It took a couple of minutes to realize Mandy Parkerson was almost running to keep up with him.
Jackson stopped abruptly. She skidded to a halt and looked at him, her breasts rising and falling rapidly as she tried to catch her breath. The higher elevation took some getting used to. Exertion wasn’t recommended until a person had become acclimated.
“You needn’t run,” he said.
“I want to see how you fix the hot-water heater. If there’s a problem in the future, I can take care of it myself if I know how.”
“There won’t be another problem before Friday.”
She tilted her chin, meeting his gaze. “I meant beyond Friday—when I’m still here and a valuable member of the team!”
Jackson felt a twitch of amusement. He’d give her credit for being tenacious, if nothing else. But the proof would be in the work and the way she handled herself. He didn’t have time for dilettantes. Tomorrow he’d make sure she realized fully what all was involved. He’d bet she’d be gone by sundown.
He turned back toward her trailer, moving more slowly, conscious of the woman beside him. He’d never had to shorten his stride with Sara.
As they walked along, Jackson’s senses were teased by the floral scent that seemed to float around Mandy Parkerson. It was light and delicate—like she was. It brought home how much he’d missed a woman’s presence in the last three years. And how long the years stretched out, empty and lonely, ahead of him.
Unable to bear the reality of Sara’s and Sammy’s deaths, he’d thrown himself into his work, taking on more and more. Joining Jeff in partnership, he had pushed to build their newly formed J&J Construction to the size it was today. He didn’t have time for friendships beyond the job site, and had no plans to ever get involved with another woman. One heartache in this lifetime was more than he could handle.
Yet for the first time in three years, he was actually looking at a woman. Smelling her scent. Speculating about the true color of her eyes. And wishing she were a hundred miles away.
Innocently walking beside him, Mandy obviously hadn’t a clue about the turmoil he felt. The sooner he got her hot-water heater fixed, the sooner she’d be closed up in her trailer and out of sight—and scent. He didn’t need her to remind him of all he’d lost.
It took five minutes to locate a new propane tank, hook it to the hot-water heater and ignite the pilot light. Once he heard the whoosh that indicated the heater was working, he turned and almost crashed into her. Mandy had been at his elbow every step of the way, watching closely as he worked, asking intelligent questions.
She stepped back quickly, a hint of worry in her eyes.
“It’ll take a while for the water to heat,” he said, wanting to step back, to put distance between them. But the close confines of the trailer didn’t allow that luxury. Why didn’t she move?
“I know. I’ll eat dinner first. Then take a quick shower.” She sighed softly. “I had been
