Mending Places Read Online Free

mighty windy out there.”
    Hanna led him into the office. There was strength and control in his movements, a certain masculine grace that showed body awareness. Bulk was one thing, grace another, and he had both in abundance.
    She seated herself behind the desk. “It just so happens I’ve been looking for a climbing guide. Do you have a rÉsumÉ?”
    “No, sorry, I don’t. I just stopped here on a whim, but I can tell you I have five years’ experience at the Majestic, and I’ve been lead climber the last three. I can give you references.”
    She handed him a pad of paper and ink pen. “Please do.” She studied him as he wrote awkwardly with a left-handed grip. He had the dark coloring of someone who worked outdoors, and his black lashes swept the top of his cheekbone giving him a boyish appearance.
    A WWJD bracelet dangled from his wrist. A Christian. This seemed too good to be true, his stopping by just when she was in desperate need of a mountain guide.
Thank You, God.
    “May I ask why you left your job at the Majestic?”
    His pen stopped midword, and his countenance fell as his eyes flickered with something akin to anxiety. He rubbed his jaw. She didn’t needto be an expert in body language to see that the question had caught him off guard.
    “I have a good track record at the Majestic and never had a customer complaint, but….” He looked at the pen he rolled between his fingers. “Although my reviews were excellent, the manager and I had some … personal differences.”
    Personal differences? What did that mean? Her mind spun with suspicion.
    “I’d prefer you not call him for a reference.”
    She weighed the suspicious information against the bracelet, evidence of his Christianity. For all she knew, he could be a thief or worse. She couldn’t hire him to work with her guests when he was so evasive. She needed someone she could trust implicitly; after all, he would be taking her guests on overnight trips. A wave of disappointment swept over her.
    “Look, I can see you’re uncomfortable about this, so I’ll just tell you straight out.” He took a deep breath and let it out in a puff “The manager’s wife had a … a thing for me.”
    She quirked a brow and watched a flush climb from the crew neck of his black T-shirt to his cheekbones.
    He held his hands palm out. “I never touched the woman, at least, not in that way, but she showed up in my room, and Mr. Woodrow caught her there and just assumed … well, you can imagine.”
    He ducked his head, avoiding her gaze, but instead of evasiveness, she sensed embarrassment. The man could probably have his pick of women. She wondered if he had considered his boss’s wife off-limits or if he had merely found her unattractive. If he was even telling the truth. She watched him rub his jaw again. Sympathy tugged at her heart. A man who blushed so easily couldn’t be that bad. Still, she only had his word.
    He finished writing on the pad and handed it to her. “Here’s my references. I included two of the climbers at the Majestic so you can get a feel for my abilities. I’ve climbed many times with both of them. I alsoincluded my pastor’s number and the man who used to be my foster father.”
    She took the pad, feeling a smidge better about him.
    “Either way, I still need a room for tonight. If you’d like, you can make those calls and let me know later.”
    “That sounds fine.” She led him back to the front desk, signed him in, and gave him a room key. When he left, she went back to her office and looked at the paper again. Even his writing slanted darkly with strength. Her eyes skimmed across the last name on the list. His foster father. She wondered what had become of his real parents.

CHAPTER THREE
 
    Natalie Coombs flipped the dishwasher lever, sealing the door, and pushed the metal button. As the appliance whirred into action, she lifted Taylor from his high chair and set him down on the other side of the safety gate. “Here you go,