Page 25 of Cody (Maine Silver Foxes)

C ody

I pulled my truck in between a jeep and an orange El Camino that looked as old as I was and turned it off.

I sat there for a minute, all kinds of shit clouding my mind that I couldn’t seem to work through.

I was frustrated over the whole situation with Alina, knowing that I wanted more from her, but disgusted and confused about feeling that way.

And I was horny as hell, because apparently spending the night between her legs hadn’t been nearly enough time.

Dinner with Tina the night before had ended up the same damned way that my dinner with Brandy had.

Both ladies were nice company, but a polite evening of small talk that I didn’t really give a shit about wasn’t how I wanted our evenings to end.

They were fuck buddies.

Nothing physical had occurred for reasons that didn’t make a lick of sense to me.

In the past it hadn’t taken me long to get in the right mood, but the only hard-on I’d gotten was on my way home, and that had come from thinking about my last night with Alina.

The sex between us had been intense, primal, and mind-altering.

Yeah. I could admit that to myself. It didn’t make me happy to realize Alina had somehow crawled through my commitment issues and burrowed her way deep into my heart.

I didn’t love her, but I loved spending time with her, and it had been a damned long time since I’d wanted to spend time with a woman for anything more than to scratch an itch.

I hadn’t fucked anyone since that night with Alina.

Hell, not since the day I’d first had a taste of her down at the brook.

That had to be some kind of record for me, at least in recent history.

How was it possible that a woman I barely knew had gotten so close?

And so fast? Her admission about instant attraction had made me analyze our first meeting.

She’d said that she’d felt the same thing that I had and had admitted that it had never happened to her before.

Damn. My gut warned me that this was the beginning of something I didn’t want to face.

I gave my head a vigorous shake to rid myself of the unwelcome thoughts that were surfacing and reached for the door handle to exit my truck.

I had a job to do. Best I got my head in the game.

King had tasked me with giving the crew on the mountain project a refresher on safety, which amounted to relaying the steps they needed to take before they began cutting down trees.

Most of the men had been doing this for a while but there was a handful of newbies, and it was a good idea to make sure they were all on the same page.

Felling trees was a dangerous risk no matter how experienced you were.

A group of men were clustered together, smoking, talking, and drinking coffee as they waited for me to join them.

Once one of them noticed my approach, they all turned my way and grew silent, probably wondering what was so important that they couldn’t start work until I arrived.

They looked annoyed and antsy. The older guys would probably complain when they realized why I was there.

Something I could understand but didn’t give a shit about.

“Morning.” I got a few acknowledgements back as I halted next to the bucket truck.

“King said to wait for you before we got started.”

I nodded at Kent’s comment. “Yeah, he wants me to go over a few things since we have a few new men on the crew.” I ignored the muffled complaints and made brief eye contact with the six men in question.

They were dressed appropriately and appeared to be experienced loggers.

King wouldn’t have hired them if they didn’t have experience, but that didn’t mean shit.

Not all logging companies followed safety rules, and King was a stickler for safety.

Accidents happened, but if it was something that could have been avoided, he didn’t give second chances.

I ran my gaze over the group, halting on Steve.

He’d been on the crew since the beginning.

“What’s the first thing you do before you begin cutting?

” To fell a tree safely and efficiently there were basic steps put into place to keep everyone safe.

That also included any structures that were close by.

Nothing said carelessness like getting injured or destroying property.

“First, we assess the tree, look for any obvious hazards like rot or decay that could cause the tree to collapse. Check for loose bark and broken branches that could fall during felling, determine the tree's natural lean. We assess the area surrounding the tree and move any property out of the way that could be damaged. If there’s a building nearby, we make damned sure the tree falls in the opposite direction.”

A couple of the men chuckled at his last comment. Satisfied with his answer, I moved on. “What’s next, Kent?”

“I didn’t raise my hand,” he joked.

I glared at him until he answered.

“Gather the necessary equipment like chainsaws, safety gear, and wedges. Yada, yada, yada.”

Good enough. I nodded and set my gaze on Don. “After that?”

“Plan our escape route in case something goes wrong because of an incorrect cut, kickback, or the tree falls in the wrong direction. Maybe we missed an entanglement from another tree.” His gaze darted to Bill. “Maybe someone didn’t properly assess the tree’s condition.”

I caught Bill’s glare when he gave Don the finger. Everyone knew Bill had made an error in judgement the year before that had ended up costing Don his old Chevy. Don was still holding a grudge. Not that I blamed Don. The truck had belonged to his father and had sentimental value.

I moved on. “What’s next, Bill?”

He didn’t hesitate. “Make the notch cut to direct the fall.”

The notch cut was a wedge-shaped cut that directed the tree's fall. I crossed my arms and kept my eyes on Bill. “Keep going.”

“Then make the felling cut to carefully control the tree's descent.”

The felling cut completed the process by severing the remaining wood.The notch cut and the felling cut were two separate but critical cuts made to guide the fall of the tree. Bill was right on both counts.

“What happens after the tree hits the ground?” I cut my eyes to Mark.

“Depending on why we’re removing the tree, we move the branches and cut the trunk into manageable sections, or we load the logs into timber lorries for transport.”

I nodded, satisfied. “These steps are important to ensure safety for not just yourself but everyone here. I don’t need to tell you what will happen if you get sloppy and cut corners. You want to keep your job and your life; you don’t get lazy and take chances. Any questions?”

“Are we gonna have a test later on?” Paul asked with a cigarette dangling out of the corner of his mouth and smoke curling up in front of his eyes.

Amused snorts followed, and I quickly wiped the smirk off of Paul’s face by snapping, “Only you.” He sobered at that and frowned, studying me as if trying to figure out if I was joking or not.

Logging was a dangerous job, and he knew better.

Hadn’t he lost his uncle in a logging accident eleven years ago?

I didn’t mention it, but if I’d have had to guess by the change of his expression, he was thinking about it now.

The men broke away to go to work, while I thought about my next stop before I joined King and our team at a site where the owners wanted the land cleared for a house.

The Dobson brothers had finished Dotty’s porch, and I wanted to inspect their work.

I wasn’t looking forward to it. I hadn’t seen Alina in a week, and during that week she’d been in my fucking dreams and on my mind constantly.

I’d even rubbed a couple off with her on my mind.

Thinking about her made me horny as hell, yet I couldn’t seem to get in the mood when I was with Tina or Brandy.

As for Evelyn, I’d warned her what would happen if she tried any more of her shit.

We were done, permanently. I would never want to hurt a woman, but there were legal channels I could take that would only embarrass her once the news spread like wildfire in our small town.

I was pretty sure she’d finally gotten the message. I wasn’t interested in her or, it seemed, anyone but Alina. I’d convinced myself that it was only because I hadn’t been able to fuck her out of my system. It was easy to think like that, but my gut warned me that I was just fooling myself.

The truth was I had it bad for Alina. She was perfect for me. Built for me.

My phone buzzed as I returned to my truck. I dug it out of my pocket and glanced down to see King’s name flash across the screen. “Yeah?” I opened the door and slid behind the wheel.

“Are you still on the mountain?”

“Yup. Just about to head to Dotty’s.”

“That’s why I’m calling. I already took care of it. The Dobson boys did a good job.”

Damn. I didn’t know if I should feel glad or disappointed that I wouldn’t have to go.

The thought of having to see Alina again weighed on my mind, the feeling fluctuating between reluctance and enthusiasm.

Maybe this was God’s way of helping me stay away from her.

I snorted. It was more likely King’s intervention because he knew I was struggling with feelings that I didn’t welcome.

I was relieved, but I didn’t thank him for it. “I’ll head your way then.”