Her heart sank at learning he’d be living on the premises for more than just the weekend, but she tried to focus on the coordination sharing a key might require. “No. A copy will be fine.”

“That’s what I thought,” he said and cracked the first smile she’d seen him wear. He was getting in the house right away and would have his own key, and she’d be taking care of the bird. That he was gloating annoyed her, but she had to admit that his smile absolutely transformed his face. He was much more handsome than she’d wanted to acknowledge—in a dark-lord-of-the-underworld sort of way. She thought of all the beautiful people she’d encountered in Los Angeles and believed he could easily hold his own.

She’d been able to compete in that arena once, too. As far back as she could remember, people outside the tight-knit Mennonite community in which she’d been raised had gushed about her beauty, even though her parents had done everything they could to downplay it. They and the other members of their church believed it put her at risk of losing her soul through the sin of vanity. But she didn’t have to worry about that anymore. She’d lost all the beauty she’d once had.

“Welcome to Silver Springs,” she said, her voice as frigid as the wind whipping at his clothes. He hadn’t bothered to put on a coat before climbing out of the car. Getting the key hadn’t been as quick as he’d obviously expected.

Instead of being offended by her response, he chuckled as he strode off. She didn’t even know his name. But that was fine with her. If he did anything wrong, Maxi could deal with it. She didn’t plan on interacting with him again.

His presence only meant there was now someone on the property she’d try to avoid.

Two