Page 3 of Real Shadows
And now, driving through the great state of Montana, I was almost to my destination, and, hopefully, new life.
A life where I didn’t fear every shadow.
Chapter 2
Xander~
North Dakota in July could be just as warm as Florida. The sweat dripping down my face and back could attest to that.
But I loved it.
The winters in North Dakota didn’t leave much room for outdoor work or activities, so during the warmer months, I relished in the physical activity working construction brought on. Yeah, technically, I was a contractor and owner of the company, but that didn’t mean I had let the titles turn me into being lazy and out of touch with the manual labor side of things. I still loved working with my hands no matter how many hours I spent behind a desk.
Eight years ago, I had only been twenty-two-years-old when a horrible snowstorm had claimed the lives of both my parents. They had been victims of a car accident caused by a tourist who had been inexperienced at driving in the snow. The accident had taken her life too, but, at the time, that hadn’t felt like a consolation. My parents had been taken from this world too soon, and it had taken me years to rid myself of the hate and resentment. The pain and sadness of their loss was still there, but I’ve managed to learn to live with those dormant emotions that made random appearances every now and again.
With that horrendous loss, I had been willed everything my parents had owned. Being the only child, it had all fallen in my lap. Including my father’s construction company. Daniel Raynes had been the muscle behind Raynes Construction and Sela Raynes had been the brains behind everything else. My parents had been a phenomenal pair, and I could only hope that they were the same dynamic duo up in Heaven.
It had been a struggle to deal with my grief and the change of direction in my life, but my best friend and childhood buddy, Trevor Craig, had done his best to get me through those dark, struggling times. I had just graduated from college and had been ready to move to New York and start my life as a financier. I had degrees in business and finance and had been ready to take on the world. But with the loss of my parents, maintaining what my father and mother had built mattered more to me than a high-profile career in New York. Overnight, my priorities had changed, and I’ve not regretted one day of my decision since then.
However, the need to sustain my parents’ legacy had left me little time to do what most small-town folks did, and that was marry and have a family. The first three years after my parents’ deaths, I had spent every waking minute learning the business from the ground up, and keeping the company from dipping into the red. I had learned that the winter months consisted more of maintenance and repairs due to the harsh winters. And I had learned that the summer months consisted of building the town folk’s dreams as fast as I could, while still giving them quality work.
And while I eventually got the hang of things and felt comfortable enough to believe I was making my parents proud, the family thing had still been on the back burner of my life. Trevor had gone and married his wife, Karla, a few years ago, and they were working diligently on kids. Or so, Trevor keeps telling me when I ask him why he looks so tired all the damn time.
As for me, I kept my dalliances casual, and never with a woman from town. Brant was too small to date a local without the expectation of marriage after the second date.
No.
If I needed to get laid, I spent the weekends in Grand Forks or one of the other larger neighboring towns. It was less messy that way. Plus, while I didn’t have any objections to getting married, it was hard to date women you’ve known all your life and looked at as little sisters.
I knew, sooner or later, I was going to have to get on board with some serious dating, though. I just wasn’t in a hurry just yet. I was only thirty. I still had a good five years left before I started to feel the panic about my own mortality.
“Be careful. You might get your suit dirty.” I didn’t even turn around. I stuck my arm out behind me and greeted Trevor with my middle finger. I heard his chuckle. “You’re such a charmer.”
I smiled, finished measuring the stud gap, and turned around. “What the hell are you doing here? Because you sure as shit weren’t invited.” I asked.
Trevor smiled, showing me all his perfectly straight teeth. “I don’t need an invitation,” he retorted. “I’m a goddamn delight. I know I’m always welcomed here.” Trevor Craig was not a goddamn delight, but he was always welcomed here.
I pulled the hand towel from my back pocket and wiped my face. “No,” I countered. “Yourwifeis a delight andshe’salways welcomed here.”
This time, he flipped me off, but he was still smiling. “Seriously, though,” he teased. “When are you going to get it through your thick head that you’re the boss, Xan? Hire someone for this shit.”
I was currently working on extending my personal home shed, and I wasnotwearing a suit. “Probably because all my guys are currently getting their asses kicked by three different projects that need to be finished by the time the first clouds start to roll in,” I replied. I reached down, grabbed my bottle of water and took a swig, before adding, “Besides, it’s a goddamn shed, Trev. If I can’t do something like an addon to my shed, I have no business wearing that suit you know I don’t ever wear, asshole.” He just smirked. “So, what are you doing here?”
Trevor just let out a rough laugh, and I eyed him as he ran his hand over the back of his neck. A nervous gesture, for sure. “Uh, I stopped by to invite you over for dinner,” he answered, and my guard shot up like a cannon.
I narrowed my eyes at him. “Since when have you ever come over to officially invite me over for dinner?” I asked. “Usually one of you just shoots me a text with an open invitation.”
Trevor ducked his head and grimaced. “Well…Karla’s hoping to butter you up with all your favorites so-”
“No,” I said, stopping him. “No, no, no, no, no, Trev.” I shook my head for emphasis. “I am not letting her set me up with another blind date th-”
The asshole laughed. “No, no,” he chuckled, “it’s nothing like that.”
“Sure, it’s not,” I deadpanned. Karla had an unreasonable fear that I was going to die a lonely, old man even though I assured her that wasn’t the case.
Trevor stuck his hands in his front pockets and just smiled. “I swear,” he promised. “While sheisgoing to try to butter you up for a favor, it’s nothing like that.”
I cocked my head at him. “What is it, then? A new addition to the house? A remodeled kitchen? A better-looking husband?”
