“I hear you.”
They arrived in town, and Tawny parked in front of the Mountain Diner. It was cute place with a blue and red awning. They hopped out and rushed inside. Since it was a little past noon, the place was quite crowded.
“Looks like ski season is in full swing,” Tawny said.
Which was why Mike had to go into work today. In the summer, Cassidy wondered if either of the men would be around much. Before she could think about that, the hostess seated them by a window.
Cassidy looked out over the street. “Wildwood is a lot bigger than Thomas Ridge.”
“Is that a good thing or a bad thing?” Tawny asked.
“Mostly good. We only have two eating establishments in town, one gas station, two grocery stores, and one bank.”
“That would be hard to find work in a place like that.”
“For sure. It’s why ourpeoplegrow their own food.” She didn’t want to use the wordclanin public.
“Zach said you have solar power for your electricity and you collect your own water?”
“We do. It’s cheaper that way. Not only that, we can’t rely on the town to always be there to do repairs if need be. I think that’s one small reason why Doug decided that I’d be the perfect mate.”
“Merging your families would benefit him?”
“Yes.”
The waitress came over and asked what they’d like to drink. Cassidy ordered coffee as it would help warm her up. Tawny said to make it two.
“They have great hamburgers here, if you’re into that, though almost everything on the menu is good.”
Cassidy looked it over and had a hard time deciding. In the end she went with the hamburger and then had to flag down the waitress to tell her what she'd like.
“Do you ever worry that the Franklins will come after you?” Cassidy asked.
“Sometimes, but I keep vigilant. When I’m at the shelter, I feel safe. Trent was in prison, which means fighting is not foreign to him. As for Brett, he’s one of us.”
Cassidy wasn’t sure when she’d ever feel totally safe again. Maybe after she mated with Zach and Mike.
Once their meal arrived, Tawny tried to fill her in on the rest of the Granger family, but Cassidy wasn't sure she'd remember everything. One thing was clear, all of the Grangers helped each other fight whatever battle came their way.
Needing to take a break from all the food, Cassidy leaned back and looked out the window again, watching the few folks willing to be out in the cold to shop. She was about to turn back to Tawny, when Cassidy spotted someone who looked familiar.
“Is something wrong?” Tawny asked. “You looked like you saw a ghost.”
“No.” She pasted on a smile. “I’m good.”
Cassidy didn’t want to say anything until she was sure. If Sherman Watts, who was Doug’s right-hand man, was in town, she was in big trouble.
Cassidy chanced looking out the window again but didn’t see him. At first, she thought she’d imagined him, but how many really tall, big men with shoulder length, stringy black hair were there? Maybe her anxiety had caused him to appear in her mind’s eye and that he really hadn't been there.
They finished their meal, paid, and then left since Tawny didn’t want to be away from the center longer than necessary. When they reached her car, Cassidy glanced around again.There!It was Sherman Watts.Shit, shit, shit. How had he found her?
Cassidy kept her face averted from that side of the road until Tawny was well-past the main town. Her mind sped. Now what was she going to do? If Sherman was here, he must have learned that she was in town. No telling how long it would be before Doug showed up with his entourage.
If they learned from the locals that Zach Granger had a new woman, there would be no way for him to fight all those wolves. Doug was the type to do his homework. He’d know that Zach worked as the forest ranger. It would be easy for them to search the forest and take down Zach.
Cassidy’s stomach soured. She had to do something, but what?
* * *