Her Mountainside Haven
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Jo McNally
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HarlequinChapter One
Monica clutched her broken arm to her side. The old barn was in splinters all around her. She was alone. The Shadow was gone. But she’d learned long ago that monsters lurked everywhere. This wasn’t the end...just a pause.
Jillie Coleman sat back in her office chair after typing the last line of her latest book. She let out a soft grunt of surprise when her dog plopped her heavy head on Jillie’s now-available lap.
“I know, Sophie.” She scratched behind the Rottweiler’s ears. “I never thought I’d finish this one, either.”
Her editor would probably be thrilled to see a book delivered within two weeks of its deadline. Two weeks after the deadline. Still...that was pretty good for Jillie. Her agent would be less impressed, but she imagined Lisa would be secretly relieved it wasn’t worse. She suspected both her publisher and agent adjusted their due dates to accommodate Jillie’s love of the last-minute adrenaline rush that had propelled her through the past month. When she was pushing up against a deadline, that do-or-die feeling shoved all other thoughts from her mind. She had to live inside her fictional world. There were monsters there, but she was always the one in control.
She stretched, and her body popped and groaned in protest. She checked her smart watch, wincing at the time. She’d pulled an all-nighter without even realizing it. No wonder Sophie was staring up at her with those round, dark eyes, tongue lolling out in a sloppy grin, her butt wiggling back and forth on the floor. Sophie wanted her morning walk. Jillie stood, arching her back in another creaking stretch.
“I hear you, girl. The backyard will have to do for now. I need to get this manuscript sent off. And I need coffee. Not necessarily in that order.”
Her office was in the lower back corner of her A-frame mountain home. It had been built in the late 1960s to serve as an upscale “camp” by the original owners. The family came to Gallant Lake to ski back in the days when the Gallant Lake Ski Lodge was open and thriving. But the old ski complex had been boarded up for a decade now, leaving the next generation of owners with an A-frame too remote and inconvenient to use. When Jillie saw it listed for sale four years ago, she knew it would be perfect, since isolated and very private had been at the top of her wish list.
She opened the back door and sent Sophie out to romp in the large fenced-in yard behind the cabin. The black-and-tan dog stopped at the bottom of the steps and looked back at her in obvious disappointment.
“It’s this or nothing, dog. Go do your business. We’ll take a proper walk together in a few hours, I promise.”
Jillie made a pot of coffee and checked to be sure the manuscript file was complete with her most recent edits. It was still a bit draft-y, but it was a solid start and would give her editor plenty to work with. She hit Send, copying her agent and her assistant, Nia. With any luck, this second book in the Monsters in Shadow series would be released sometime in the following year. The only thing that moved fast in the publishing world was an author on deadline.
Sophie came back inside, staying close at Jillie’s heels as Jillie ate breakfast and took a shower to wake herself up. She’d grab a long nap this afternoon, but there’d be no rest until this dog burned off some energy. Jillie pulled on jeans and a heavy sweater against the chilly October air, laced up her well-worn hiking boots and grabbed a knit hat. By the time she zipped her jacket, Sophie was leaping around her legs, whining and crying to get going.
It was a near-perfect fall day in Gallant Lake. The foliage was at peak, or perhaps just past it, in a showy palette of bronze, gold and crimson across New York’s Catskill Mountains. From the house, she had spectacular views of the lake—and Gallant Mountain beyond it—through the triangular two-story wall of windows facing east. When she got to the base of the wraparound deck and stepped onto the walking trail, the lake was nearly hidden. It managed to peek through the trees occasionally in all its sapphire glory.
Jillie imagined the streets in the village of Gallant Lake would be crowded with tourists on a brilliant Friday like this, especially right before a long weekend. She did a quick mental inventory of her pantry, thankful she had no need to go anywhere near the stores until next week. The sleepy town she’d loved when she’d moved here was growing into a booming resort town. It was good news for the residents. They’d been struggling to survive before the Gallant Lake Resort had been refurbished by her friends, Blake and Amanda Randall. The Randalls turned it into a five-star destination for weddings, events and of course, autumn-leaf-peeping. Luckily, most businesses had survived the downturn caused by the recent pandemic. They were bouncing back this year busier than ever.
The extra people made Jillie even more of a recluse. As far as she knew, no one—not even the locals—had ever recognized her as bestselling horror author J.L. Cole. She’d told a trusted few...very few. She threw a stick for Sophie to chase. But that wasn’t her biggest worry. It was the press of people...strangers...that made her chest feel like it was in a vise when she was in town. So far she’d managed to deal with all the new people in Gallant Lake by watching her timing and relying on her friends. Winter was coming, which was always a quieter season.
Sophie barked at something up ahead on the trail. Jillie whistled, knowing the dog would never leave her alone for long. They were a few hundred yards behind the cabin now, climbing Watcher Mountain. No worries about wandering off the property, since the A-frame came with forty acres of mostly wooded land. Her neighbor to the north and west was the State of New York, so no worries about people building houses in the state forest. To the south was the abandoned ski resort. She’d heard it had been foreclosed on, but everyone figured the bank was going to be stuck with that wreck for a long time. The slopes were overgrown, the equipment was rusted in place and the lodge itself was looking shabby. Jillie basically had the mountain to herself—just the way she liked it.
She whistled again for Sophie, frowning when she didn’t hear the dog crashing through the woods toward her as usual. There was another bark, from farther away. Jillie rushed ahead. If Sophie decided to chase after a deer, she could end up chasing it right onto state land. Bowhunting season for deer had started, and some hunter might decide to stop Sophie cold.
Jillie broke into a run, thankful she’d been faithfully hitting the treadmill at home. She heard another bark. Good, it was off to the south, toward the old ski resort. Being private property, there’d be less of a chance of hunters being around. Sophie sounded closer. And more agitated.
Jillie reached into her jacket pocket, making sure she had her can of bear spray handy. There were a good number of black bears in the Catskills. They were usually more active in the springtime, but it wasn’t unheard of for one to wander through her woods. Black bears were far less aggressive than their western cousins, and could usually be scared away with a bit of noise as long as there weren’t any cubs around. The time of year made cubs unlikely. Jillie was ready to defend herself and her dog. Sophie’s barks were high-pitched and angry now, as if she had an animal cornered. Jillie sprinted up the trail and around a bend in the woods, giving a war cry as she got closer, just as she’d been taught by the local park ranger, Holly Avery.
But it wasn’t a bear that Sophie had treed. It was a man. A tall stranger in street clothes and an overcoat, with thick waves of blond hair. Jillie did not lower the can of bear spray.
It was bad enough Matt Danzer was halfway up a damn tree, trying to escape some probably rabid killer dog. Now his humiliating situation was being witnessed by a crazed woman who’d just come screaming—literally—out of the woods at him. She had a knit cap on, and dark hair fanned out behind her as she ran at him. In her hand was the biggest can of pepper spray he’d ever seen. Oh, crap...
“Wait!” He held up his hand, nearly sliding out of the tree and into the jaws of the dog who was still baying at him. “Don’t!”
She slid to a stop twenty feet away, her eyes wide, scanning the area as if she expected to see more guys in camel coats and dress shoes in the trees.
“Sophie...come.” Her voice was low, but firm. The dog immediately stopped barking and trotted to the woman’s side, casting Matt a malevolent glare every few steps. Clearly, this woman was not here for his protection. She gave the beast a look and Sophie sat abruptly next to her. The woman’s shoulders slowly rose and fell as if taking a deep breath before she looked up at him.
“Who are you?” Unlike when she spoke to the dog, her voice was more than just firm. It was hard. On guard. And her hand still held that big-ass can of spray. Was that thing even legal?
“My name’s Matt Danzer. Can you—” he gestured toward the can “—put that away?”
She looked at the spray as if she’d forgotten she even had it, then lowered her hand.
“You’re trespassing.” She looked at his attire, and he was pretty sure he saw a smile tease the corner of her mouth. “And you look ridiculous.”
Matt grimaced. It had been his idea to drive straight to the lodge to inspect the new purchase after dropping his brother at their tiny rental house in Gallant Lake. Only to discover that he’d been hoodwinked. The website for the foreclosure auction said the old ski lodge needed “updating.” The place was an overgrown disaster. This whole day had been a disaster. And that was before a giant dog chased him up a tree.
“I didn’t expect to be...up here...today.” He nodded at the dog, whose eyes hadn’t left Matt for a second. “Is it safe for me to come down?”
“Sure. As long as you leave once you do. This is private property.”
Matt slid toward the spot where the trunk split, then jumped to the ground. She flinched when he did—his first clue that she might be as frightened as she was angry. He stayed close to the tree, avoiding making direct eye contact with the dog, who was giving out a continuous low growl. He worked at keeping his voice as calm as possible.
“I’m sorry I alarmed you, but I’m actually the new owner of this property.”
She stepped back. “You are not. This is my land. And the only other private property near here is the ski lodge, and it’s in foreclosure.”
“I know. I just bought it.”
Her mouth dropped open. “You...you couldn’t have...”
“Let me correct you. I shouldn’t have. But I did. The bank put it on an online foreclosure auction, and I had a moment of bad decision making.”
Understatement of the century. But it still might serve its purpose for his brother.
The brunette’s dark eyes narrowed on him.
“I’ll look into that, but I can assure you that we are standing on my land right now. You need to go.”
The red-eye flight, the long drive from LaGuardia, listening to Bryce whining the whole way, the discovery that he’d bought a lemon of a ski resort and being chased up a tree all caught up with Matt’s temper. “I don’t even know who you are, lady. Why should I believe you about property lines?”
Her whole body went still at his sharp tone, and the dog growled more loudly. Both woman and dog were on edge. She straightened her shoulders and stood with feet apart and head high. A definite power pose, but he had a feeling it was just for show. Her eyes were wary.
“Who I am is the lady with the bear spray and the big dog.” Matt hadn’t forgotten about either one of those things. She rested her hand on the dog’s head. “My name is Jillie Coleman. And this is my land.” She nodded toward the direction he’d come from. “The property line is about thirty yards that way.”
He frowned at that news. The gravel access road ran up this side of the property, and he remembered that the property line sort of zigzagged. But did the road? Which he was pretty sure was less than thirty yards away. This day got better and better. He nodded.
“Okay. I’ll take a look at the survey and make sure I...”
“You don’t need to check your survey!” Her voice cracked like a whip. “I know every inch of my property and I’m telling you that you’re trespassing.”
He held both hands up, keeping an eye on the agitated dog who was giving him the stink eye right now. Sophie was still sitting but was visibly trembling with the clear desire to tear him limb from limb. He took a slow step toward his property.
“I’ll just be going now...” He took a few sideways steps, then swallowed hard and turned away. Jillie didn’t seem the type to sic her dog on a retreating stranger. He hadn’t gone ten feet when she blurted out a question.
“What are you going to do with the land?”
He faced her again, noting she was pocketing the bear spray at last. He wondered how many bears there actually were around here. He had the sense Jillie was extremely nervous, if not downright frightened, even though, as she pointed out, she was the one with the damn bear spray and a dog. She didn’t want him there, but she wasn’t running away. And now she was demanding answers. He gave her a reassuring smile.
“We’re reopening the ski resort.” Unless the lodge fell down first. “Hopefully, we’ll have people on the slopes this winter. Do you ski?”
Jillie’s expression fell so quickly he thought for a moment she was going to burst into tears. “Open it? To the public?”
“That’s the general idea, yeah. But there’s a lot of work to be done first.”
Her face had gone white. Her shoulders fell. The dog looked up in concern, letting out a soft whine. Matt didn’t know what to say to make her feel better. For some reason he wanted to try.
“I can make sure you and your family get free passes for the first season.”
She blinked a few times, then seemed to force her body to straighten again.
“That won’t be necessary. Just make sure you educate everyone, including yourself, on where the property lines are.”
Her expression made it clear that she expected him to get moving, so he gave her a nod and turned away. He’d managed to annoy a neighbor in less than an hour—that was a record. He needed to find Bryce and check out the so-called “holiday rental cottage” he’d found online. Hopefully, that was in better shape than the ski resort he’d found the same way. He resisted the urge to look back at Jillie Coleman as he walked.
Matt flipped properties for a living, and never cared much what the neighbors thought while he was working. When they saw the end result and the positive effect it had on their property values, they were usually happy enough. But he did care when they acted as if they were afraid around him. His new neighbor was definitely afraid. And that didn’t sit well at all.
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