But when Tom had overheard their conversation and added that after her shift at the inn, Josie went to the bakery to work until way past midnight, Knox thought he would lose it. It was only what Georgia had said that stuck in his mind and calmed him down, but not enough to stop him from confronting her.
So he waited for her to leave, stalking her, bundled up in his coat, seething at how she was working herself to the bone like that. No wonder she looked so tired.
It was well past two in the morning when she finally emerged from the bakery with the owner, Tony Alman. Well into his sixties, Tony had a jovial face all the time, even in the dead of night it seemed.
They talked a moment, Tony adamant about something, before Josie finally sighed and nodded and they got in Tony’s car. A true gentleman, Tony drove her to her place, and Knox followed at a distance, reassured there were still good people around. It would have been folly for her to walk home at this hour on the deserted road. How many times had she done it? The thought fueled his anger.
Tony dropped her by the road and Knox passed them, driving until he found space to turn and head back. Josie was gone, probably already inside her house when he parked at the curb. Her driveway was as snowed in as before with only the trail that Josie made each morning and night showing someone lived there.
Knox hesitated. Should he go and confront her? It wasn’t his life, and after all, she was just an employee. She wasn’t under his care. Or was she?
Cursing, he shut the engine and got out of his truck before he could think more into his actions. There was no way in hell he would be able to sleep after finding out what he had. As he waded through the snow, he tried to find the right words to confront her, but none came. He was lucky that despite the clouds, there were slivers of moonlight reflecting on the white banks, making it possible to see in the darkness. When he rounded the trees, he saw the cabin. Although Georgia was right when she’d called it a shack. How was this tiny hunting camp still standing? Even in the moonlight could he see how damaged and run down it was.
The flickering of candlelight reflected on the frosted windows. When he realized she didn’t have electricity, Knox started moving again until he reached the door and knocked on it. “Josie! It’s me, Knox. Spencer Knox. Open up.” He realized his voice sounded harsh, and the situation was more than a little strange. It was the middle of the night in the silent forest. He probably looked like a stalker—the dangerous man he knew he was. But not to her.
Immediately his anger deflated, and he sighed, regretting his foolish impulse. As he was about to turn away, the door opened, and Josie’s pale face appeared.
“What are you doing here at this hour? Are you lost?”
Words seized in his throat when he saw the bluish bruises under her eyes caused by utter fatigue. In the dark of the night, her skin was paler than usual. Seeing her on the brink of collapse made his anger surge again. “I need to talk to you.”
She blinked but didn’t move, holding the weathered door half-closed as a barrier between them.
“I’m not going to touch you, Josie. You have my word. And I’m a man of my word, I assure you. Please.”
Still she hesitated. “Let me put on my boots, I’ll join you outside…”
“Josie. Please let me in. It’s too cold to have a conversation out here.”
A few seconds passed before she finally stepped back and silently indicated for him to enter.
One glance inside made him clench his jaw in indignation. The cabin was even smaller from the inside. It was a single room, with the bare essentials. The tiny bed in the corner looked more like a cot than a proper bed. On the small counter was a basin with a few dishes. Near the fireplace was a couch that had surely seen better days, and with the blankets on it, Knox suspected that she slept there most of the time. It was slightly warmer inside than it was outside, and that was probably because they were shielded from the wind. The ancient frosted windows didn’t keep in the warmth from the fire either. Everything was clean and tidy, but he could see the run-down nature of the place. The shack would break apart with the first major storm. How it had survived until now was a miracle. He also didn’t know how she’d survived in these conditions for so long.
His attention returned to Josie who was standing proud and defiant in front of him, challenging him to say anything about the state of her home. Instead, he turned and went to the fireplace, quickly bringing the kindling to a blaze, not that it would do any good, there were just too many places for the cold to get in. Only then did he glance back at Josie who hadn’t moved an inch since he’d entered.
He could have gone to her but decided that reasoning with her would be the best approach. He sat on the frigid floor, his back to the stone fireplace and gestured for her to sit on the couch in front of him.
Her head held high, she made her way to the sofa and sat. He knew for a fact she was cold and it made it difficult for him not to snatch her away to his place. The idea surprised him but wasn’t to be ignored. Instead, it whirred in his head.
They held each other’s gaze for a while, as Knox searched for the right words. “I suspected you were running yourself into the ground but certainly not to this extent. I know about your jobs at the inn and the bakery.”
Her eyes dimmed as her glance slid to the dancing flames. “You came here in the middle of the night to state the obvious?”
“I came here in the middle of the night to try and understand why you’re exhausting yourself like this. Do I not pay you enough? Is that why you can’t afford a decent place?”
“Where and how I live is none of your concern.”
Knox cursed under his breath, seeing he was going about it all wrong. He had never worked so hard at keeping his calm with anyone before, and still, he was failing. “Don’t tell me this is what you want for your life! No electricity, no running water, and even with the fire going, it’s still cold as fuck.”
“Don’t you dare judge my decisions. I’m doing the best I can!”
“At what is that exactly? Living life the hardest way possible? Seeing how long you can continue like this before you collapse or die?”
For a moment, Josie closed her eyes, either trying to shut him out, or regain some sort of control over herself.
“You think I didn’t see how exhausted you were when you walked around town, or when you came into the shop? Georgia told me that you were going through a difficult time. But this isn’t difficult, this is complete self-destruction.”
At Georgia’s name, Josie’s eyes flew open with definite panic in them. “What did she tell you?”
