Julianna Morris - Jake's Biggest Risk

Hannah shifted her feet.

In the five days since she’d first talked to Lillian about leasing Huckleberry Lodge to Jake Hollister, she’d learned plenty about him. Some had come from a telephone conversation with Andy and the rest from Lillian, who was dazzled at the thought of meeting someone famous. Yet Hannah wondered if she would stay impressed with Mr. Hollister once she got a dose of his bad manners.

“It’s all right, isn’t it, Hannah?” Andy asked anxiously. No doubt he was accustomed to working with temperamental artists who flew off the handle at the slightest thing. Hannah had a healthy temper as well, but she couldn’t afford to try breaking the lease agreement.

“Don’t worry, I’ll deal with it,” she assured him, though she already regretted agreeing to clean house for her new tenant.

Andy smiled his awkward smile. “Good. I’d hate it if I wasn’t welcome in Mahalaton Lake.”

“No chance of that. But since I’m not needed here, I’m going to check on Danny.”

“I... Oh, sure. I’ll probably leave as soon as Jake is unpacked, so take care.”

“You, too.”

She hurried away with her bucket of cleaning supplies. Silver Cottage—the living area over the four-car garage—was a very nice home, with a third-floor family room, two bedrooms, lots of closets and a splendid kitchen. Best of all, it had a spacious living room and a deck with a view of the lake. When Great-Aunt Elkie was alive, she’d rented out Silver Cottage to skiers instead of Huckleberry Lodge. It wasn’t that she’d needed the income; she had just liked having people around.

Danny was lying on his stomach on the living room floor, drawing a picture, their golden retriever next to him.

“That’s a great dragon,” Hannah said.

He shrugged, a small pout on his mouth.

“Don’t be upset about Mr. Hollister,” she murmured. “He got hurt awfully bad a while ago. You saw him limping, didn’t you?”

Danny didn’t look up. “Uh-huh.”

“Well, sometimes people in pain don’t feel very friendly.”

“But if he doesn’t feel good, why couldn’t I help?”

She sighed. How did you explain adult pride to a child? “Maybe he wants to prove he can do it himself. Remember when you were mad at Grandpa because he wouldn’t take the training wheels off your bike as soon as you wanted? It’s kind of like that.”

Understanding dawned in his eyes. “Oh, I get it.”

“Good. We should both be understanding of Mr. Hollister and remember he doesn’t want people bugging him. Deal?”

“Deal.”

Her son stuck out his hand and they solemnly shook.

Danny returned to his drawing and Hannah was relieved that he seemed happier. Badger got up and followed her around as she took care of various chores. She’d gotten the retriever as a puppy when they moved from town to live on Great-Aunt Elkie’s property, and he’d grown into a magnificent dog with reddish-gold fur and a calm, protective nature.

She was fixing dinner when a knock sounded on the door. Badger let out a sharp yip, his ears perked forward; it was his someone-I-don’t-know bark.

“I’ll get it,” she called.

But Badger and Danny both beat her to the door and she heard her son give a friendly greeting to their visitor.

“Uh...yeah. I need to talk to your mother,” said a deep male voice.

Hannah wrinkled her nose. Jake Hollister .

“Is there a problem?” she asked as she turned the corner into the entry area.

“Not at all. I just wanted to ask if there are any restaurants that deliver out here from town.”

She thought about the sacks of groceries she’d seen in the trunk of Andy’s car. On top of which, she had put one of Luigi’s menus by the kitchen phone.

“Luigi’s delivers pizza on the weekends, but when things are slow he’s willing to send someone out on other days. If nothing else, he’ll usually come himself at closing time. I’ll get their number for you.” She brought another copy of the menu to the door and gave it to him. If Hollister had let her show him around Huckleberry Lodge, she would have pointed out both the phone book and the menu, along with other things he might need. Still, the guy was in pain, she could see it in his face.

Jake left with a low, almost grudging “Thanks.”

When they were alone, Danny looked up at her. “Maybe he’s just hungry, Mommy. It makes me grumpy, too.”

Hannah ruffled her son’s hair. “I know, but don’t forget we aren’t going to bother Mr. Hollister. We’re going to let him have peace and quiet so he can rest and get better.”

Danny crossed a finger over his heart. “I’ll be good.”

* * *

YOU’RE A DAMNED FOOL , Jake thought as he walked back to Huckleberry Lodge with the menu Hannah Nolan had given him. The doctor had warned him not to overexert himself, so naturally he’d insisted on driving alone to Mahalaton Lake from Seattle and had sent Andy packing.

And now he’d offended his landlady to the point she probably wanted to drown him in the lake.

He collapsed on the couch and glanced at the menu without much interest. Ironically, the doctors had urged him to eat nutritious, high-protein meals, but the crap he’d been served at the hospital was barely edible—even the limited diet he’d shared with the Inupiat had been better.

Or maybe it was just the environment. He’d grown up in the far corners of the world with his mother and they’d always eaten native when feasible; Josie believed you couldn’t learn about a culture if you didn’t eat their food and sleep in their beds.

With pain throbbing in every inch of his body, Jake let the menu drift to the ground.

Maybe he’d try ordering something later.

Much later.

CHAPTER TWO

THE NEXT MORNING, Jake woke as the sun was rising and realized he had fallen asleep on the couch.

He was stiff, but some of the pain had subsided and a fine view greeted him through the windows overlooking the lake. The snowcapped peaks beyond were reflected on the water’s surface and he stared out for a while. Where was his impulse to capture the view in a unique way? Taking pictures had been his driving force since childhood, yet he had zero desire to start working.

God .

Maybe it was too pretty. That must be the problem. Why he’d ever agreed to doing a damned book on the northern Cascade Mountains was beyond him. The Cascades had been photographed to death; there was nothing new or unusual about them. He was going to be bored out of his skull.

But even more important...how was he going to put his trademark adventurous stamp on the book? The thought of people rolling their eyes and saying he’d lost his touch because of the accident was unacceptable. And he’d already faced that scenario once before.

Jake gritted his teeth.

He had never intended to be a traditional photojournalist. He’d gone to the Middle East to help out an acquaintance whose wife was having a difficult pregnancy, but after receiving the Pulitzer, at least a dozen interviewers had asked, “How will you top this?” Hell, “topping” pictures of people killing each other was the last thing he was interested in doing.

His stomach rumbled and he got up.

Andy had insisted they stop and buy groceries in Mahalaton Lake, so Jake made his standby in all climates and altitudes—a peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwich. It wasn’t inspiring, but cooking was not one of his skills. He always kept peanut butter in his backpack while traveling, and it wasn’t bad on most local breads.

Munching on the sandwich, he wandered around the lodge. The spacious sunroom off the kitchen had tall windows on three sides, providing a view of the lake, the guesthouse and the wooded drive leading in from the road. A huge master bedroom suite was on the opposite side of the house. Other main floor rooms included a well-equipped utility room, two powder rooms, a library and formal dining area. Upstairs there were additional bedrooms and baths, with a family room in the center, and beneath the house was a half basement that provided storage.