Page 29 of Mountain Boss

I usethe last of my strength to climb onto my bunk, the height feeling taller than it was last night.

Kneeling, I straighten the layers of clothing on the plywood before lying on top of them.

I took some Tylenol with my multivitamin after dinner.

My body still aches, but at least I won’t get scurvy.

I pull my blanket up as I settle on my side.

It takes some shifting and some rearranging of shirts, but I find a position that doesn’t actively hurt.

Staring into the darkness, I think about my boss.

About how I might actually hate him.

I slide my palms together, entwining my fingers, and close my eyes.

I’ve been on my own since I was nineteen.

I’m used to it.

I should be used to it.

My fingers tighten around each other, pretending I have someone’s hand to hold other than my own.

Maybe it’s the darkness outside.

Maybe it’s the quiet.

Maybe it’s the fact that I’m literally stranded here.

But here, tonight, I feel a whole lot lonelier than I have in a long time.

Chapter 24

Sterling

I pauseat the open cabin door, the feminine voice inside claiming my attention.

I’ve been looking all over for Courtney, so walking into the guest cabin she’s occupying isn’t spying. It’s work.

I cross the threshold.

“Well, I’m sorry. If someone had done this sooner, it wouldn’t hurt so much.”

Wouldn’t hurt?

What the fuck?

I stride through the cabin, following the sound of her voice to the bathroom at the back.

Who’s with Courtney in here?

“Just a little more,” she coos.

I turn into the small room. “Who are you?—”

Courtney lets out a shriek of surprise as something falls from her hand into the toilet’s open tank.

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