The Doctor's Nanny Page 20
Since your plans were canceled you could go home after the week’s up and avoid the sermons.
No. Uh-uh, no way. She wasn’t going to do that. Her canceled plans and pitifully small means of transportation to Deadwood Mountain were not some sort of cosmic curse. She’d get there, stay for a week, write a review and spend her two weeks’ vacation touring Alaska as intended.
It’s an itsy-bitsy, teeny-weeny, red-and-white striped—
A combined panic and frustration-fueled whimper escaped her, echoing off the glass in front of her face.
“Sorry to keep you waiting, folks.”
The pilot who’d emerged from the Deadwood Mountain Lodge plane greeted the group with a lift of his gloved hand. He gave them a brief, lopsided smile, and Alex frowned. Why did he strike her as familiar?
The man had a mop of dark hair raked back from his forehead in a messy, I’m-a-guy-and-it’s-just-hair kind of style. A short, neatly trimmed beard covered the lower half of his face and held a distinguished hint of gray on his chin beneath his lower lip.
Never fond of beards, Alex had to admit the facial hair didn’t detract from the pilot’s looks. He was ruggedly handsome and considering the tiny lines that fanned out from his eyes like he did his share of squinting in the sun, she guessed him to be in his late-thirties.
“Hey, Dylan. How have you been?”
The pilot’s expression warmed at the greeting called by one of two older gentlemen waiting by the gate.
“Ansel, good to see you again. Walter.” He shook hands with both gentlemen, his tone lowering as he said a few words Alex couldn’t make out.
Shifting away from the men, the pilot raised his voice again. “Could I have everyone’s attention? Thanks. First off, welcome to Alaska. My name’s Dylan Bower, and I’m your pilot as well as your fishing and bear viewing guide during your stay at Deadwood Mountain Lodge. I, ah, just noticed we’re missing someone. Well, we’ll find him shortly, but until he shows let’s get down to business. You three,” he said to three men standing off to the side, “are going with Sam here.” Dylan indicated another man standing in the background near the gate door. “Sam, will fly you to the spike camp, introduce you to the hunting guide who will be with you the three days you’re there, then fly you back to the lodge to finish out the week. So, if you’d like to come introduce yourselves to Sam…”
Dressed in camouflage pants and carrying thick coats, the three men stepped forward. Their luggage included rifles in soft black cases.
From the research she’d done in preparation for her article and review, Alex knew hunting was not permitted in the vicinity of the lodges so as not to attract bear or other animals. A spike camp was typically a series of tents or cabin-like structures set up in a specified hunting area forty-five to sixty minutes away from the lodge. Once the kill was made under the license of a trained guide or assistant guide, the hunters would fly back to their lodge and their prize transported for them for processing. Businesses here had the act down to a science. No meat was wasted, and no animal population overly hunted.
Alex waited patiently for the instructions to continue, and prayed for their pilot to say Sam and the hunters would be taking the red plane outside, that there was a nice, large plane to transport the remaining guests to the lodge.
While the hunters and Sam talked, Dylan Bower scanned the terminal again, skimming over her position near one of the airport’s metal support beams. In an instant his gaze jerked back to her, and the furrow between his eyebrows deepened at whatever thought shot through his head.
Hmm, not a good sign, that. Instead of the friendly smile of welcome he’d used with the older men, Dylan looked at her as though he could instantly tell she was going to be a nervous flier. No pilot liked that confidence killer.
Tell him size matters, that oughta help.
Squirming beneath the intensity of his gaze because it was so direct, her heart picked up speed when Dylan extracted himself from the men and moved toward her with a purposeful stride.
Alex straightened from her slouched position and tried to smile even though her stomach was knotted up like a hangman’s noose.
She had to do this. With her family in Tennessee having a baby boom and her mother trying to set Alex up with every single guy she knew—or else badgering Alex to agree to date her lovely but boring, couch potato boss—reviewing the lodge was the perfect way to avoid yet another confrontation about why she wasn’t married and pregnant since her brothers had recently discovered love or the joys of fatherhood.
Still, Lord help them all if she died before giving her mother grandchildren!
Her pilot’s long legs carried him across the coffee-stained carpet at a rapid pace and when Dylan finally stopped in front of her, Alex had to tip her head back quite a bit to maintain eye contact. He was a tall drink of water. Not to mention attractive. Looking at him wasn’t a bad way to spend the week. So maybe if she focused on him instead of the size of the plane, she could get through this?
He gave her a slight smile, one she returned with way too much nervous enthusiasm considering she had a rule about getting involved with anyone associated with the business being reviewed.
“You’re not what I expected.”
CLICK TO READ A HERO IN HIDING.
TENNESSEE TULANES SERIES
HER SNOWBOUND HERO
THE REBEL’S SECRET BARGAIN
HIS BABY PROPOSAL
THE DOCTOR’S NANNY
A HERO IN HIDING
Ivy James Books
Contemporary Romance Novels
THE STONE GAP MOUNTAIN SERIES
THAT SOUTHERN SUMMER NIGHT
BLIND MAN’S BLUFF
HER UNWANTED PROTECTOR
REDEMPTION ROAD
THEIR SECRET SNOWBOUND CHRISTMAS
OWEN’S RETURN
THE REDEEMING LOVE SERIES
HER REDEEMING LOVE
HIS REDEEMING LOVE
REDEEMING US
MONTANA SKIES SERIES
HER MONTANA COWBOY
HER COWBOY SHERIFF
PROTECTING THE SHERIFF’S DAUGHTER
COWBOY MEETS HIS MATCH
MONTANA CHRISTMAS
SECOND CHANCE HERO
* * *
TENNESSEE TULANES SERIES
HER SNOWBOUND HERO
THE REBEL’S SECRET BARGAIN
HIS BABY PROPOSAL
THE DOCTOR’S NANNY
A HERO IN HIDING
* * *
OTHER BOOKS:
The Crash Before Christmas
Return to Eden
Ivy James is the alter-ego of Kay Lyons, who now focuses on sweet/clean and wholesome contemporary romance and romantic suspense. For more information about Ivy’s slightly sexier novels (or to find Kay’s clean and wholesome versions of them as well as her latest titles), please go to Ivy James Author/Kay Lyons Author. Or, find her at one of the following:
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AUTHOR BIO
Ivy James is the alter-ego of Kay Lyons, who now focuses on sweet/clean and wholesome contemporary romance and romantic suspense. For more information about Ivy’s slightly sexier novels (or to find Kay’s clean and wholesome versions of them as well as more new titles), please go to Ivy James Author/Kay Lyons Author. Or, find her at one of the following:
@KayLyonsAuthor (Twitter)
Kay Lyons Author (Facebook)
Author_Kay_Lyons (Instagram)
Kay Lyons, Author (Pinterest)
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