Scent of Cedar, page 4
part #1 of The Friendly Beasts of Faraday Series
If it wasn’t for spending Sunday with her family, she’d never have left the peaceful atmosphere of her home. Regardless of her teasing Juniper about choosing the location of Faraday because it was close to skiing, she loved her Victorian house. There wasn’t a single thing about it she wanted to change.
One sunny day last week, she’d walked into town and gone to the bank and post office before venturing home to find the camel waiting for her by the front porch steps.
Although she’d been terrified of Lolly at first, she’d eventually been brave enough to go outside and meet the beast in person.
Lolly was like an overgrown puppy, eager for attention. She loved it when Cedar scratched her neck and rubbed her face. The first time the camel had softly blown air on Cedar, she’d braced herself for the animal to spit on her. When Lolly grinned and nuzzled her hand, she happily lavished her with affection. In truth, the camel had been good company for Cedar. Not quite ready to immerse herself into the lives of those who lived in Faraday, she could socialize with the camel without any expectations or obligations.
Cedar spent one morning researching everything she could find online about camels. She’d learned Lolly was a Bactrian camel, sporting two humps rather than one like her Dromedary counterparts. Because Bactrian camels came from Mongolia and the Gobi Desert in China, they grew shaggy coats to withstand extreme cold and then shed it in the warmer months to acclimate themselves to desert temperatures.
Curious about the camel and how she came to live on her neighbor’s property, Cedar wondered about Mr. Bolton. He seemed rather aloof, or perhaps downright rude. Wasn’t greeting a new neighbor something people did in a small town?
In fact, other than speaking to a teller at the bank, the window clerk at the post office, and the people who’d warmly welcomed her at the church service she’d attended, Cedar had been left alone. She’d half-expected an entourage of people to parade through her house, nosy for news and giddy for gossip to spread about Faraday’s newest resident.
Instead, she’d been able to relax and get used to living life at a much slower pace. She loved her home, loved the warmth and comfort it provided.
The snow storms had even been enjoyable. She’d flicked on the gas fireplace, curled up on the couch, and watched snowflakes float down from a gunmetal-hued sky. She’d been half-tempted to go outside and try her hand at making a snowman, but she refrained. No doubt, Lolly would have trotted over to see what she was doing and ended up stomping all over the snowman. Then again, Lolly seemed quite intelligent. Maybe she should have given it a try.
In her twenty-nine years of living, Cedar couldn’t recall ever building a snowman. Her parents were far too busy for such nonsense and Cedar rarely saw her grandparents who were equally as flawed when it came to such endeavors.
This year, Cedar could celebrate Christmas however she liked. She’d already decided where she’d put a tree and tried to figure out the type of decorations she’d need for her house. Past years, she’d always been far too busy to fuss with decorations of any type. Her parents had never put up a tree or even hung stockings for her and Juniper.
This year, Cedar was determined life would be different. As she drove back to Faraday from Portland, she mused over the possibilities of packing as much fun into this holiday season as she could.
She was just a few miles from Faraday when the SUV made a strange, screeching noise. Alarmed, she thought about pulling over then decided to continue to the town’s lone garage. She’d seen it the day she’d walked to the post office.
The noise changed to a high-pitched whine, causing Cedar to cringe and clench the steering wheel. The vehicle had been driven less than three hundred miles since it rolled off the assembly line, so there shouldn’t be a thing wrong with it. However, the wretched squeal emanating from beneath the hood said otherwise.
When she turned down a side street near the garage, her car emitted another horrendous squeal accompanied by a hot, burning smell. She coasted into the garage parking lot and turned off the ignition. She’d barely rolled to a stop when the small front door to the large building swung open and a man in grease-smeared coveralls strode her way.
Cedar had to work to keep her jaw from dropping open as the hunky mechanic approached her. He could have been the poster child for Bad Boys United. Everything about him looked edgy and dangerous, from his tousled hair that curled around his face to the brooding eyes and full bottom lip that rested in what appeared to be an alluring pout.
“Sounds like you’re having a little trouble,” he said, when she gathered enough sense to roll down the window.
Robbed of the ability to speak as she stared at the man who was even more handsome up close than he was at a distance, she numbly nodded.
“I’ll take a look.” He walked around to the front of the vehicle as she popped the hood.
Cedar got out and wrapped a cashmere scarf around her neck to block the cold breeze blowing around her. From the oyster-colored sky overhead, it looked as though it might snow again. She wouldn’t mind being cozied up by the fire in her house, with nothing but her neighbor’s wandering camel to keep her company.
She shoved her hands into her pockets, wishing she’d remembered gloves, and stood behind the mechanic. Her perusal began with his long legs, traveled up to his broad shoulders and took in his head of rich, dark brown hair. When he turned and looked at her over his shoulder, her heart thudded to a stop before leaping into an accelerated beat.
The man definitely appeared wild and untamed, but was undeniably good looking in a rugged, incredibly masculine way. A hint of scruff on his cheeks, and a slight cleft in his chin only added to the bad boy persona. Although she envisioned him with gray and brown eyes, his eyes were pale green, like the foam churned up by the sea along the coast. She’d never seen anyone with eyes that color and couldn’t help feeling thoroughly intrigued.
The mechanic wiped greasy hands on a rag he tugged from the back pocket of his coveralls and stepped away from her vehicle. “You’ve got a busted drive belt. It won’t take me long to fix it if you want to wait.”
“That would be fine. Thank you.” Cedar glanced from him to the still-open hood. “It started making a noise a few miles out of town.”
“It’s a good thing you didn’t have far to go then.” He opened one of the big garage doors. “I’ll have you drive it inside to work on it.”
She pointed to her SUV. “A belt on a new vehicle shouldn’t break, should it?”
“No, it shouldn’t. How long have you had this?” he asked as he walked her back to the SUV and opened the driver’s door for her.
“Only a month. It doesn’t even have three hundred miles on it.” She slid behind the wheel and turned the key in the ignition as he dropped the hood. He walked backward into the garage and directed her as she drove inside.
Once she stopped the SUV, she got out and watched as he lifted the hood once again, admiring the way his coveralls stretched over his shoulders. Her gaze dropped lower as she tried to imagine what he’d look like without the baggy coveralls. Mindful of her thoughts, she chastised herself for allowing her imagination to wander, but not before he gave her a strange, knowing look.
“You can wait in there,” he said, motioning to a side door.
Afraid he’d caught her ogling his form, Cedar retreated to the waiting area. Taken aback by the sight that greeted her, she stood just inside the door, gawking at the décor.
Bench seats from old pickups, recovered in black and white leather, served as couches, softened with bright red throw pillows. A glass-topped coffee table was made from a variety of spare parts like gears and bolts that had been welded together inside a metal frame. A clock made from old wrenches welded together hung on the wall above an exterior door that led to the parking area. Hooks made from bent wrenches offered customers a place to hang coats and hats. A sign painted on a piece of sheet metal stated, “I can’t fix stupid, but I can charge for it,” and showed a silhouette of a wrecked car.
Cedar’s gaze lifted to a spiral chandelier made of spark plugs. “Who is this guy?” she whispered to herself as she took a seat and continued to study her surroundings. The walls, painted a deep crimson red, contrasted to the black and white tile floor, giving the place a retro feel. Overall, the space was warm, welcoming, and smelled of new tires, black coffee, and motor oil.
Cedar looked through a stack of magazines, shocked the mechanic offered not just typical car and sports titles, but also a few publications geared toward women.
Unable to concentrate, she pretended to thumb through a decorating magazine while casting glances through the large glass window into the garage where she could see the mechanic working. If even a handful of men in town where as sinfully handsome as this guy, she might have to venture into Faraday more frequently.
She really hadn’t seen many people in town. Even at church, she sat in the back and saw few faces, especially since she left before most of the congregation even rose from the pews. If the mechanic attended the community church, she’d most likely missed seeing him.
Cedar was staring into space, trying to decide what a guy like that was doing buried in a town like Faraday when the mechanic came into the waiting area. “You’re all set. That belt shouldn’t give you any more problems. It should be warranty work at no expense to you. I’ll need to fill out a few forms to submit.”
“No, it’s fine,” Cedar said, rising to her feet and moving over to the counter where the mechanic tapped information into a computer system. “I’ll pay for it and deal with the warranty issues another day.”
His brows furrowed together, but he nodded and continued entering information into the computer.
While he rattled off the work he’d done, printed a bill, and slid it across the counter to her, she had the hardest time forcing her gaze away from the temptation of his full bottom lip. Her fingers twitched, begging to run through his hair. One coiled lock, in particular, fell forward, dangling just above his left eye. He didn’t seem to notice as he continued talking about the repairs and expense. Cedar leaned forward, hand easing upward as the desire to brush aside that curl nearly overtook her.
At the last minute, she placed her hand on the counter and lowered her gaze to the bill. “This looks reasonable, Mr…”
“Riggs. I’m Rhett Riggs and this is my garage.” He gave her a warm smile. “Welcome to Faraday. What did you say you’re doing here in town?”
Cedar returned his smile as she fished her wallet out of her handbag. “I didn’t say.”
“If I had to wager a guess, I’d say you’re on your way to Mount Hood to ski.” He grinned at her. “I couldn’t miss the skis and boots in the back of your rig.”
“That would be an easy assumption,” she said, unwilling to tell him the skis belonged to Juniper for a reason that defied her ability to comprehend.
She ignored the way his smile sent butterflies jitterbugging in her stomach and glanced at the total on the bill again. “This seems more than reasonable. Thank you.” She took cash from her wallet and handed it to Mr. Riggs.
If he was caught off guard by her paying cash, he hid it well as he wrote “paid in full” on the receipt, made a copy for her, and then placed the money in a cash box he unlocked beneath the counter.
“Would you like me to keep a record of the work, in case you have more problems?”
“I’m sure everything will be fine. It was probably a fluke,” she said, pondering what would happen if she leaned forward a few inches, placing her lips dangerously close to his. Would he kiss her? Laugh at her? Run into the garage and hide behind a stack of tires?
Where were these ludicrous thoughts coming from?
Clearly, Cedar needed to consider building a social life. She’d been deprived of one since she broke up with Richard Valmont six months ago, not that the two of them actually spent much time working on their relationship. Richard was the top executive in the marketing department. An alliance between the two of them made them a powerful couple at the company, even if all they ever discussed was work and a date meant they ate takeout together while strategizing plans for an evening.
No, it had been years since Cedar had gone out with someone just for fun. Perhaps the electric charge snapping in the air between her and the hunky man on the other side of the counter was all in her head. From the easygoing demeanor of the mechanic, she highly doubted he shared her interest or attraction.
Cedar made a mental note to accept one of the blind dates Juniper continually offered to make on her behalf. What could it hurt? It would certainly get her back into the dating world, which was what she obviously needed.
“I don’t think I caught your name,” the mechanic said as he held open the door to the garage and walked her to her vehicle where he’d parked it outside.
“I didn’t give it to you,” she said with a saucy grin. “Maybe next time I break down I’ll tell you.”
He opened the driver’s door and held it as she slid behind the wheel. “I hope you don’t break down again, but I’ll look forward to seeing you another day.”
“Me too, Mr. Riggs.” She smiled and fastened her seatbelt.
“Call me Rhett.” He grabbed a business card from his pocket and handed it to her. “Or just call me.”
Aware of his blatant flirting, Cedar couldn’t help but blush at the intense look on his face as she took the card and nodded once before she drove toward home. The brief notion of doing something to her SUV just so she could see Rhett again flit through her mind.
“You need to get a life, girl,” Cedar chastised herself as she pulled into her driveway and saw Lolly waiting for her by the door. “One that involves more than social calls by a camel.”
Chapter Five
Snow fell in big wet flakes outside as Rhett plugged in a string of lights, pleased they all worked. He proceeded to string them around a stack of tires in the waiting area of the garage. The graduated size of the tires made it look like a tree, especially with the gold star he’d placed at the top of the stack. The lights draped around the tires, adding to the festive look. He circled the base tire with a length of fluffy green garland and stood back to survey his work.
“Not bad,” he muttered as the bell above the door jingled and Drew Miller hurried inside, stamping snow from his boots and brushing it from the shoulders of his coat.
“Hey, man. Got your mail here,” Drew said, handing Rhett a stack of mail then turning to look at the tree. “Now, that’s what I call a tree. There’s nothing like the smell of rubber to say ‘Merry Christmas’ and spread some holiday cheer.”
“You are full of it.” Rhett chuckled as he set the mail on his counter. “Want a cup of coffee?”
“I’d love one, but I can’t stay that long. With the snow coming down like this, I’ll be late getting off work as it is.” Drew pulled off his gloves and rubbed his hands together to warm his chilled fingers.
“Here, take this,” Rhett said, pouring coffee into a Styrofoam cup. He held it out to his friend.
Drew accepted it and lifted the cup of steaming brew up to his face. “Thanks. This might help me make it until my lunch break.”
“It’s an awful day to have to be outside. I can’t believe the temperature dropped so fast,” Rhett said, pointing to a thermostat on the wall. “It was thirty degrees when I got here this morning, but now it’s barely ten degrees out there.”
Drew took a long sip of the coffee then held up his hand toward Rhett, as though he tried to push back his words. “Don’t tell me. It’s easier not to know.”
“Well, don’t freeze out there, man. If you need somewhere to warm up, come back here.”
“I appreciate the offer, but I told Mom I’d have lunch with her at the café.” Drew took a long drink of the coffee then sidled toward the door. “Is your new neighbor still whining about Lolly?”
“No. I haven’t heard a peep out of her after the sixteen messages she left the weekend she moved in. I also found two testy notes taped to the door, but I think she gave up on forcing my hand where Lolly is concerned. Actually, I’m surprised she hasn’t already packed up and moved to greener pastures.” Rhett knew he should have gone over and met the woman, apologized for Lolly’s intrusive presence, and made nice with his neighbor. But after the past disastrous neighbor experiences, he didn’t see the need to waste his time or energy.
“She’s probably looking for a new place right now.” Drew sipped the coffee then studied Rhett a moment. “Have you met her yet? I haven’t heard anyone in town say much about her. Even Mom hasn’t met her yet.”
Rhett shook his head. “No. I haven’t seen her. Then again, it’s dark when I leave and dark when I get home. If you listen to the gossips, they are convinced she’s some sort of eccentric recluse who never leaves her house. If I’m lucky, I’ll never have to deal with her in person.”
“Probably for the best,” Drew said. He drank the last of the coffee and tossed the cup in the garbage can by the door. “Thanks again, Rhett.”
“Anytime. I’ll catch you later.”
“Yep. We’re meeting at Seth’s place this week, right?”
“That’s the plan. He’s promised to serve burgers while we watch the latest Spider-Man movie.”
“Sounds good.” Drew yanked on his gloves and rushed back out into the storm.
Rhett watched his friend walk down the street then turned his attention to draping garland and lights along the edge of his front counter. He didn’t know why he bothered, but Uncle Will always decorated the house until it looked like a warehouse storing Christmas decorations had exploded. He refused to admit it, but Rhett enjoyed Christmas decorations. Decking the halls made him feel close to his uncle, even if the old man was no longer around to enjoy them.
He’d just hung a garland above the door leading into the garage when a squealing sound drew his gaze outside. A familiar-looking SUV turned down the street and headed his way. Although he felt bad for the woman whose new vehicle appeared to be a lemon, he couldn’t muster any disappointment at the opportunity to see her again.
