Jack moved the paper closer to Kaeden.
Kaeden stepped back. “I don’t know anything about planning activities like this, Jack.”
“All the more reason for you to rely on your team. The interns are nearing the end of their program so they should have a good idea of what to do and how to make things run smoothly, and the employee from the lodge will know the area and what’s available. All you need to do is oversee them and trust they can get the job done.”
He shoved the paper at Kaeden one more time.
Well, fuck.
Kaeden took the paper.
He looked down at the names and contact info for the interns. Below it was a budget for the activities that made him wonder again why Jack Sutton thought it was a good idea to treat them all to this trip. The man had to be off his rocker to spend this much on his employees. And frankly, that made Kaeden more than wonder why the man seemed to feel the need to pay the people who worked for him to like him.
In Kaeden’s experience, when your boss tried to be your best friend, it meant they were hiding who they truly were, and usually for good reason. He wondered what Jack was trying to compensate for.
Whatever it was, he didn’t want to know. He was a keep-your-head-down and do-your-own-work kind of guy.
Kaeden had two days to pack for the trip and research activities they could do in Breckenridge during the summer months. And figure out how he was going to pretend to be having fun and bonding with his coworkers without losing his ever-loving mind.
* * *
Joy Wilson gave a final wipe to the large oak table and went back to the kitchen with the cleaning spray and dishtowel.
“All set,” she said as she tucked the cleaning supplies under the counter. “Anything else you need me to do?”
She looked over at Carl Pederson, her boss at the Trembling Tree Lodge in Breckenridge. She liked the man a lot. In fact, too much. He and his wife made it all too tempting to stick around much longer than she knew she should.
Especially lately since Evelyn had taken a bad fall and was recuperating. Joy could see the strain weighing on Carl. He wasn’t at all used to handling the lodge without Evelyn by his side. Joy had been trying to pick up the slack as much as possible, but she didn’t have the skill to make the homemade breakfasts that Evelyn did. She and Carl were running into town each morning for baked goods from one of the local bakeries and putting out coffee.
Truth was, she should be moving on. She had already stayed in Breckenridge too long. The thought of trying to find another place to work and get paid under the table, and a place to crash that she could afford, made her want to curl up in bed and stay awhile.
Another week. She could stay another week.
She hated that she couldn’t give Carl notice. She never gave notice when she left a job or town. She took off in the middle of the night, leaving a note that she had to leave for a family emergency. It was sort of true. And it was best for her if she just left without anyone knowing, without questions about where she was going.
Carl was scratching at the back of his head when he spoke. “Actually, there is something you could do for me.”
Why did she have the feeling she wasn’t going to like this?
If she was signaling her reluctance in any way, Carl didn’t pick up on it.
“We’ve got a large group coming in Sunday. They’ll be taking over the whole lodge. A company retreat, I guess. Anyway, they asked for an employee to be on hand to work with the person who’s organizing their events and things. Just someone to answer questions and get them local information, things like that. Normally Evelyn does that…”
He didn’t really need to say more. Carl wasn’t a people person. He mostly handled maintenance and groundskeeping and all that around the lodge. It was Evelyn who chatted with the guests and made sure they felt welcome.
In a past life, Joy would have been closer to Evelyn in personality. Nowadays, not so much. “I don’t know, Carl. Um, maybe Eric could do that?”
To his credit, Carl only offered raised brows at the suggestion.
Eric was a high school kid who helped out around the property. He was a good kid, eager and he knew the area well since he’d lived here all his life. But the seventeen-year-old was also awkward as hell and couldn’t really bring himself to talk to people he didn’t know. It had taken him a month to say hello to Joy when she arrived on the property six months back.
She sighed. “How long will they be here?”
“Two weeks. By the time they leave, Evelyn should be back on her feet so it’s really just this one time you’d need to do it.”
Joy nodded, even though she knew she couldn’t stay the entire time. Knowing she was going to let this man down was a physical blow to her chest. He’d been better to her than all the other people she’d worked for in the last two years.
The others hadn’t offered a place for her to stay. They hadn’t treated her like it was no big deal that she needed to work under the table. They hadn’t paid her a fair wage in spite of that.