“Yes, please. I want to hear all the inside secrets of the park,” Kendall said. “Oh, and can we take the Reservoir Trail? I read that the old rock wall that served as part of the reservoir for the original 1898 inn can still be found there on the side of the mountain.”

  “Okay, then. Come on. Let’s get moving. We have a lot of ground to cover.” It seemed that she’d misjudged Kendall. Maybe she wasn’t so bad after all.

  Chapter Twelve

  Ivy sighed heavily as she saw the sporty SUV pull up to the ranger station. She recognized it as belonging to Cassie, the landscape designer from out of town that she’d had the confrontation with earlier that day. She’d finished showing Kendall around less than an hour ago. It seemed that the parks department had brought in several resources to bid on the revitalization of the lodge and some areas of the park. All the staff had been buzzing about it, but Ivy loved this park and didn’t think it needed revitalizing at all. It might be aged and weathered a bit, but it was perfect as the natural wonderland it was.

  Cassie bounded out of her vehicle, designer sunglasses on and colorful printed scarf trailing behind her. “Ranger, so good to see you again,” she said in an overly cheery voice.

  Forcing a tight smile, Ivy muttered a greeting. Here we go again. She was dreading having to lead this excessively energetic, narcissistic woman around and listen to her critique every inch of the landscape. She noted the flashy leather boots Cassie was wearing. This would probably be a shorter tour than planned.

  “Shall we head out?” Cassie asked, indicating the start of one of the hiking trails with a sweep of her arm. Without waiting for a response, she started off down the path.

  Ivy stuffed her hands into her pockets and trudged along behind her, her scowl deepening with every enthusiastic comment Cassie made about remaking this perfect park into her own artificial vision. This was going to be a miserably long tour—so much different than the one she’d given Kendall.

  “Have you read through my bid?” Cassie asked over her shoulder.

  “Not my department. I’m a state park ranger.”

  “What does a state park ranger do?” Cassie asked with a flirty lilt in her voice.

  “I’m a wildlife professional. I protect the land by ensuring park visitors adhere to wildlife rules. I’m responsible for educating the public about the guidelines and regulations of national and local parks.”

  “Like park law enforcement?”

  Ivy shook her head. “I don’t arrest people. I educate them.”

  “You gave me a ticket, though. So, you must have some authority.”

  Ivy nodded. “The authority to ticket people like you, who don’t respect the land. I participate in search-and-rescue missions when necessary, and apparently, I now give tours to landscapers as well.”

  Cassie stopped and sat on a nearby bench. “Educate me.”

  “What do you want to know?”

  “Tell me about the lodge. When it was built and opened to the public.”

  All things that Kendall already knew. She’d been telling the truth about the bid and Cassie.

  Ivy remained standing as she proceeded to give Cassie a brief overview of the history of the lodge. “It was originally built in the late 1800s as a Victorian resort.” She recalled Kendall calling it a castle in the sky. Very appropriate description.

  “So, it’s really old, huh?” Cassie pulled Ivy from her thought. “Rather than redesign it, maybe they should just tear it down and build something more modern.”

  “It’s a landmark.” More like a local treasure. Cassie would probably never understand its significance. “It’s already been rebuilt several times, due to unfortunate circumstances. The lodge underwent a major renovation and expansion that ended in 2015. It’s structurally sound now, and it’s unlikely to be torn down for a rebuild in the near future.”

  “You know what they say about old bones.”

  “What’s that?” Ivy waited for Cassie’s response before giving her own opinion.

  “They’re brittle and break easily.” Cassie shrugged.

  “I disagree.” Ivy shook her head. “I consider old bones to be a strong foundation.”

  “Guess that depends on the way you look at the half-empty glass.” Cassie certainly wasn’t an optimist. If she was awarded the contract, the lodge would suffer. Ivy walked farther down the trail. “You ready to see more of the park?”

  Cassie shook her head. “No. I think I’ll go back to the lodge. These boots won’t work for the trails.” She took one off and wiped the dust from the leather top. “I still need to check in.”

  “Okay. I’ve got a few things to check out here. Just let Susan at the desk know if you want to continue the tour at another time.”

  Ivy turned and headed farther down the trail. She probably should’ve offered to walk Cassie back to the lodge but didn’t really want to waste any more time on someone who didn’t appreciate the lodge or the surrounding nature. It would take her a few minutes to shake the negative vibes she was currently feeling. Each and every step of the tour for Cassie, even though it was short, had been painful.

  She now understood a little more about Kendall and her comment about Cassie leaving a bit of destruction in her wake. The news that Kendall was gay was interesting, more interesting than it really should be, but she wondered if the information Kendall had provided about her broken heart was a deterrent or just exactly that, information. She’d been waiting for so long to connect with someone who respected nature the way she did. Why did it have to happen with someone who had a clearly displayed warning sign above her head?

  But why was she even thinking about that at all? She was here to do her job, not romance a park contractor, which is exactly what Kendall would be if she got the bid.

  As soon as Ivy entered the lodge, Susan rounded the counter and rushed toward her. Pulling her aside, she whispered in her ear, “It appears the lodge is overbooked.”

  “What?” Ivy glanced at Kendall, who was waiting patiently at one end of the counter, and then at Cassie, who was waiting at the other with her hand on her hip. “How did that happen?”

  “Seems that cute little designer, Kendall, has a partner who showed up as well.”

  “I’m aware. I’ve already met her.” An unfortunate experience at best. “She’s a real piece of work.”

  “Only one room was reserved for them, and I’ve already given it to Kendall. So, her partner doesn’t have one.” Susan moved closer. “Are they romantic partners as well?”

  “According to Kendall they aren’t any type of partners anymore.”

  Susan smiled widely. “She told you that?”

  Ivy nodded. “Don’t get any ideas. She only told me because Cassie showed up, and she hadn’t expected her to.”

  “Well, now we have an issue. Do you think that Kendall can stay with you?” Susan asked.

  “What?” Ivy raised her eyebrows. “No. Absolutely not. Have her stay with you.”

  “I don’t have room at my place.”

  “Neither do I. My place is a one-bedroom, remember? That would put one of us on the couch.”

  Susan crossed her arms and looked at the two women at the counter. “What are we gonna do?”

  “They’ll just have to share the room. Their company, their issue.”

  “You know that will be a very awkward position for them.”

  “Awkward for them? Just think how I’ll feel if I have to put up a total stranger.” Ivy let out a low grumble. “This whole situation is unbelievable. I don’t even know Cassie, and I hate her already.”

  “That’s a very strong word you’re using there.”

  “I know.” Ivy closed her eyes and let out a sigh. “I’ve only heard a little about her from Kendall, and now that I’ve actually met her, I can see that it could all be true.”

  She heard Cassie raise her voice and move aggressively toward Kendall, who didn’t back away. Shit. This situation was about to explode. She rushed toward them.

  Chapter Thirteen

  “I can’t believe you tried to steal this bid from me.” Cassie moved quickly into Kendall’s space.

  Kendall’s adrenaline rushed as she stood her ground. “It’s my bid. I wrote it and I sent it in. You didn’t even want to bid this project.” She knew Cassie would try to take this from her.

  Cassie glanced at Susan and several others in the lobby, who were now watching them. “That’s not true. I just let you take the lead on it.”

  “Oh, yeah? Why don’t you tell me about your presentation—how you plan to revitalize the lodge?” No way was Cassie prepared for the magnitude of this project. Kendall wasn’t sure she was either.

  “I’m not telling you that. It’s confidential. You’ll steal my ideas.” Cassie gave her a tight-lipped smile.

  “Your ideas.” Kendall scoffed. “If you have anything in that little bag of tricks, you got it from me.” Kendall looked around her. “Did you bring your new girlfriend to help?”

  “No. I’m here alone.”

  “Didn’t want her to see the cutthroat side of you, eh?”

  “She’s busy with her own job.”

  “Really? My needs never outweighed yours when we were together.” What was that about? Cassie had required twenty-four-seven attention from Kendall.

  Kendall caught a glimpse of Ivy and Susan as they rushed by them and went behind the counter.

  Susan tapped a few keys on the computer keyboard. “Ladies, I’m sorry to interrupt, but we have a slight problem.”

  “What?” Cassie snapped.

  “There she is.” Kendall gave her a tight smile. “The real Cassie.”

  Cassie cleared her throat. “I’m sorry. What’s the problem?”

  “Only one room was booked for your firm, and we don’t have any others available. So, either you two will have to stay together, or one of you will have to find a room somewhere else in town.”

  “I was here first. I’m already checked in.” Kendall wasn’t going anywhere. This was her bid.

  “Well, I paid for all your work, and I’m not leaving.”

  “I earned every penny we made. You couldn’t even run the copier.” Kendall had been the bones of the company and had created all the designs. Cassie was the wrapper and mostly handled sales.

  Cassie flipped her gaze to Susan. “Does the room have two queen beds?”

  Susan shook her head. “One king.”

  Ivy stepped forward and put her arm around Kendall. “You can stay with me like we originally planned.”

  They all fell silent and stared at Ivy until Susan grinned. “Great idea. Problem solved.”

  Cassie glanced from Kendall to Ivy and then back to Kendall. “You sure didn’t waste any time, did you?”

  Kendall bit her lip, letting Cassie think the worst of her. She didn’t like giving in, but she couldn’t stay in the same room with Cassie. Not after what she’d done to her. The way Cassie had broken up with her had been so heartless and callous. And she’d done the same with their professional partnership.

  “Key.” Cassie held out her hand.

  Kendall narrowed her eyes as she took the key from her pocket. “I need to get my stuff first.” Thankfully she hadn’t had time to unpack.

  “I’ll help you.” Ivy reached out her hand.

  Kendall’s hand tingled as Ivy took it and led her down the hallway to the room. Kendall handed Ivy the keycard, and she swiped it in the door and opened it.

  “Thank you for that.” Kendall shook with relief as she held back tears. She’d escaped Cassie’s proximity with Ivy’s help—with Ivy’s help. How had that happened?

  “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that, but I couldn’t watch her attack you any longer.” Ivy paced to the other side of the room, creating some distance between them. “She seems like a horrible person.”

  “She is.” Kendall was relieved to be out of the situation. “And don’t be sorry. I really appreciate you stepping in. It was getting ugly.”

  “I meant what I said. You can stay with me if you need to. It would get Susan, and my parents, off my back and keep Cassie off yours.”

  “Why are they on your back?”

  Ivy rolled her eyes. “They’re always trying to set me up with women they know.”

  The lightbulb went off in Kendall’s head. Now the hard sell when she’d checked in made sense. “So, if we pretend to be together, Susan will leave you alone, and Cassie will get a taste of her own medicine.”

  Ivy nodded. “My thoughts, exactly.”

  “Do you think we can pull it off?” After their first meeting, experiencing fallout from Ivy’s rigid rules, Kendall had been skeptical about getting to know Ivy at all. But after the time they’d been forced to spend together earlier today, she’d found Ivy to be a wonderful, caring person who was passionate about nature. She now understood the reasons behind the rules.

  “I think we can. How hard can it be?” Ivy pulled up the handle on Kendall’s bag and rolled it toward the door. “I don’t have a whole lot of room at my place. It’s only a one-bedroom cabin. One of us will have to take the couch.” It was sweet that Ivy hadn’t immediately relegated her to it.

  “No worries on that. I have a friend who lives in the area that I can stay with.” She’d have to take Noah up on his offer after all. Kendall plucked her phone from her back pocket and began to text him.

  Cassie showed up. The lodge is overbooked. I need to stay with you after all.

  She waited for a minute for a response before typing more.

  Is that okay?

  Bubbles appeared on the screen, and soon a message came through.

  Absolutely. Come on.

  “He’s fine with it.” It might be uncomfortable at first, but she would steer clear of any romantic memories he brought up, and hopefully they would easily cruise back into the friendship comfort she adored. “We’ll have to be discreet about it. We don’t want everyone knowing I’m not staying with you. That would look suspicious.”

  “Right…and we’ll have to spend time together after work hours and develop a story of how we met previously.”

  Kendall bit her lip. “Oh, yeah. I didn’t think about that. We don’t want people thinking this is just a quick hookup.” Playing the part of Ivy’s girlfriend might be harder than actually making the contract bid. She’d have to work around it somehow.

  “True. Everyone here knows that’s not my style.” Ivy’s cheeks reddened.

  That was good to hear. Kendall hadn’t slept with anyone she hadn’t gotten to know a bit first. She glanced at Ivy, taking in her silent strength paired with her pink cheeks. Actually, a good roll in the hay with Ivy would probably be fun.

  Ivy opened the door and waved her forward. “After you, sweetheart.”

  “Thank you, honey.” Maybe it wouldn’t be much work after all. It was nice being treated with kindness and respect.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Ivy had tingled all over as she’d stepped forward and put her arm around Kendall. She didn’t know what had come over her, but she hadn’t been able to just stand there and watch Cassie cut her to shreds. She’d been in shitty positions before, not exactly like that one, but similar. Ex-girlfriends could be vicious.

  She tried to shake her anxiety as she walked Kendall to her car. “Are you free for dinner?” Her cheeks burned as she continued on this unknown journey. She’d never been good at connecting with women.

  “Yes. I am absolutely free.” The excitement in Kendall’s eyes made Ivy even more nervous. “Why, Ranger Patterson, are you asking me out to dinner?”

  “I guess I am. In the name of research, that is. I mean, to get our stories straight.” It was best to keep this as professional as possible, but there was nothing professional about how she was feeling.

  “Right. Yes, of course.” Kendall didn’t sound quite so energetic. “We have a lot to talk about.”

  “Dinner seems to be the appropriate time. Unless you want to do it now.” She really needed a little time to get her own feelings in check. This was a ruse. Kendall wasn’t really her girlfriend. No matter how exciting it felt to have a smart gorgeous woman by her side, it was all a masquerade.

  “No. Dinner is fine. I have to get my things over to my friend, Noah’s, and settle in there.”

  “Noah Cramer?” Ivy was sure there wasn’t another Noah in the area.

  “Yeah. You know him?”

  “He boards my horse. We hang out at the arena sometimes.” How crazy was it that they actually knew someone in common.

  “Oh. You ride?”

  Ivy nodded. “It’s easier to get around this terrain on horseback sometimes. Other than on foot, it’s the best way when searching for lost hikers. The ability to cover more ground in less time is essential.” However, trail access wasn’t always easy with a thousand-pound equine. “You?”

  “Not so much anymore, but Noah’s family had horses and he and I rode a lot together when we were younger.”

  “We should go for a ride while you’re here.”

  “We should.” Kendall’s voice rose in excitement. “I’m sure Noah has a gentle old mare I can take out for a bit.” Kendall’s eyes widened. “That can be our connection. We both know Noah. We can say I came to visit him.”

  “And maybe he had a party.” Ivy finished Kendall’s sentence.

  “We clicked at the party and spent some time together while I was here. That’s how you and I got to know each other.” Kendall threw up her hand for a high five.

  Ivy slapped Kendall’s hand. “Great idea.” Excitement bubbled inside. “Pick you up at six?”

  “Sounds perfect.” Kendall smiled widely.

  Ivy grinned, tingling again. She was beginning to wish that she actually had met Kendall at a party a long time before now.

  She could see Susan watching her from the lobby doors as she walked back to the lodge. She’d have to figure out something to tell Susan or just bring her in on the secret. She’d be ecstatic that Ivy was involved in some sort of relationship, even if it was fake. She couldn’t lie to her. Inevitably, she’d screw up the story, and Susan would call her on it. Plus, Ivy needed Susan’s help in keeping up appearances. Someone else had to have some knowledge of the relationship for it to look real.