Healed

by Tess Thompson

  She laughed as she wrapped her bare legs around his waist. “I’m sorry there’s no lace or sexy underwear.”

  “I wouldn’t be able to see them anyway.”

  “Help me out of my sweater.” She lifted slightly.

  With one fluid tug he had her out of her top. By the time she’d lain back against the mattress, he’d done the same with his clothes.

  She moaned. “Make me forget all about those rats.”

  And he did.

  Chapter 17

  Pepper

  * * *

  Pepper opened her eyes to the sight of white wainscoting. The room was quiet, unnaturally quiet. She was naked under a thick down comforter. The spot between her legs throbbed, and her limbs ached. Stone. Her and Stone. Glorious, mind-blowing Stone. Stone and sex. Lots of sex. No, that wasn’t right. It was not just fun, satisfying sex. They’d gone to another level of intimacy, one that included her mind and heart and body. He’d done it. Broken through to a part of her she feared had been killed on that night when her innocence had been robbed.

  She smiled and stretched under the covers. What was this feeling? She was full, as if she’d eaten a good meal. Her body hummed the way it did after a great dance workout. And her mind was as quiet as the snowy world outside the house. She was happy. This was what it felt like to feel completely content. In love. She was in love.

  She looked over to the windows. Sunshine streamed through the glass. She caught a glimpse of blue sky through snow-covered trees. The storm had passed. She rolled over and there was Stone, just visible in the early-morning light. Stone. He slept on his side with his arms in front of him. The lines around his eyes smoothed in sleep and made him seem vulnerable and young. His dark hair sprang up from all directions. A scratch on his neck from her fingernail hinted at their antics from the night before. Morning stubble covered his chin, making him look rugged and tough, although his peaceful breathing told another story.

  She wanted to touch him but kept her hands to herself and watched him breathe instead, remembering the conversation in the darkened room.

  They’d made love for the first time, a feast of limbs and bodies and whispers of devotion and admiration and this utter honesty. She’d been cracked wide open and filled by him.

  Afterward, she lay half sprawled on top of him with her head on his chest and his arm tucked firmly around her shoulders.

  “You’ve told me about that night—the thing you didn’t want to talk about. I’m humbled and grateful you trust me with it.”

  “Me too,” she whispered.

  “Now it’s my turn. If you’re to truly know me, I must tell you the story of my family,” he said.

  “I’m listening.”

  He told her more about his mother’s departure and his father’s breakdown and the ways in which the Hickman children had suffered from poverty and bullying. “One day, I took care of the Miller boys by beating the crap out of them. But we paid for it. We paid dearly.”

  She listened in horror as the story unfolded of the Miller brothers and their revenge. He shared the details of Autumn’s accident. In a halting voice, he told of how the horrible brothers had chased them on a rainy afternoon and nearly killed Autumn.

  “Kyle felt it was his fault. He disappeared. Changed his name. The only way we knew he was alive is that he sent money. Twelve years went by, and it was like our mother’s abandonment all over. Like no one we loved would ever stay. A few years ago, Autumn found Kyle. We went to see him and worked through it all. Even though we didn’t understand how he could blame himself and disappear, we forgave him. We decided to move to Cliffside Bay and be a family—to make up for lost time. Autumn finally was able to move into her new house and start her job. We’ve all been so happy together. Kyle’s wife and family have become our family. The children are a second chance to live the childhood we would’ve wanted.”

  “A happy ending.” She kissed his hand. “You guys made it through.”

  “I thought so, but something’s happened.” He told her about the deaths of the Miller brothers in a house fire. It had been determined an accident, but he’d always worried it had been set by his father. “But it wasn’t him. It was her.”

  “Her?”

  “My mother. Do you remember the day you saved me?”

  “Yes.”

  “She had just approached me on the street. I hadn’t seen her since I was six years old, and there she was. When we sat down with her, she told us what really happened to the Miller brothers. It was her. She did it, not him.”

  Pepper’s body tingled with horror.

  “This is my family. My mother’s a murderer. And now she’s back, and we’re trying to help her.”

  She held him as tightly as her limbs would allow. “Why didn’t you tell me before now? I’ve been spilling my ugly secrets.”

  “It’s the dark. It gave me the courage to tell you. I didn’t want to see your face when I told you the truth about my family. Because if you’d looked at me in disgust, it would have killed me.”

  “I would never look at you in disgust.” She pressed against him. “I understand about shame. I do. But you don’t ever have to feel shamed with me.”

  “This is my family, Pepper. This is who I am.”

  “No, no. You’re Stone. One of the good ones. The best one.” She spoke urgently, determined that he understand. “You’re the man I love.”

  His body went completely still. “You love me?”

  “I do. I was wrong about everything. I understand now how it happened with Rafael and Lisa. You and me—we’re supposed to be together. We’re supposed to love the shame away.”

  “Yes, maybe.”

  She smiled in the dark and played with the hair on his chest. “Now it’s your turn. You’re supposed to tell me how you feel.”

  “I’ve always been better with my hands and body. How about if I show you how much I love you, adore you? How about if I leave absolutely no doubt that I’ve waited for you all my life and all I want to do is make you happy?”

  “Those words did the trick, but if you feel the need to punctuate your meaning with another round, don’t let me stop you.”

  He rolled her over and kissed her and then did exactly what he’d promised.

  Now he stirred and opened his eyes. A split second of confusion, then shock crossed his face before joy spread over his face. “Pepper. You weren’t a dream.”

  “No, baby. I’m not a dream. I’m real.”

  “Did it stop snowing yet?” He yawned as his eyes flitted to the windows. “Is that sunshine?”

  “Yes. Sadly, we might have to go home.”

  He reached for her under the covers, his eyes somber. “No regrets?”

  “Not one. You?”

  “Not one.” He smiled as he pulled her closer. “You’re beautiful in the morning.”

  “So are you.”

  For the next hour, they made love in the light of day with the sun splashing yellow, and Pepper no longer remembered the darkness that had brought them together.

  Around nine that morning, the electricity came on. By that time, Stone had already checked on Mr. Lake and helped him to the bathroom. Pepper showered and dried her hair, then made coffee and prepared scrambled eggs and toast. Stone had gone outside to investigate and get some wood for the fire. When she had everything ready, she took a tray to Mr. Lake’s bedroom. She knocked softly on the door. He called for her to come in.

  Sitting up in bed, he had the television remote in his hand. A news program played on the screen. “I thought I smelled breakfast.”

  She set the tray over his lap and then helped adjust the pillows to make it easier for him to sit up straight. “Are you hungry?”

  “Famished.” He grinned as he spread a teaspoon of blackberry jam on a piece of the sourdough toast. “The news said the whole area was hit but that this particular area got the brunt of the storm.”

  “We had no idea it would get bad so fast,” she said with a shiver.

>   As Mr. Lake ate his breakfast, they chatted about the unlikely blizzard and the feasibility of renting the house for a December wedding.

  “It’s a bit of a crapshoot,” Mr. Lake said. “Now if they wanted to wait until the summer, we’d be a sure bet. I’ll tell you, though, in all honesty, the weather yesterday was a real fluke. Normally we see it coming.”

  See it coming? What good would that do if it ruined Lisa’s wedding? If everyone was stuck in the house on the day of the wedding and unable to get to the church, it would be a disaster. Lisa’s dream of having it here was becoming less and less appealing. She would go home and advise Lisa and Rafael to stick with plan A. The small church wedding and reception at Dog’s Brewery might be exactly the thing to do. She walked over to look out the window. Sun sparkled off the snow and the frozen pond. Tree branches bowed like graceful ballerinas. “It’s so pretty.”

  “Yes, it is. Tell me about your friends and what kind of wedding they want.”

  While he ate his breakfast and took sips of coffee, Pepper told him of Lisa’s discovery of the town and church all those years ago.

  “I felt compelled to come check it out for her. But then we found out there’s no way the lodge could accommodate them. And then we ran into the storm here. So now I’m not sure this is the greatest idea.”

  “I can understand why. But if she decides she wants to rent out the house, just let me know. I’ll give you guys a deal since you and your burly fellow saved my life.”

  “I love this house.”

  “People have been known to fall in love here.”

  “So I’ve heard.” She blushed. I’m one of them. “Why do you want to sell?”

  “Since my wife died, it just feels right to sell it. This was her dream house. We had a lot of good times together here, but it’s painful to be here without her. I miss her every second of every day.”

  “I can understand, but it’s such a wonderful place. Aren’t your children interested in keeping it?”

  “We only have one son. Philip. He never cared for it here. More of a city kid, that one. He works in high tech. Silicon Valley. Never takes a vacation.”

  “What did you do, Mr. Lake?”

  “You ever hear of Murphy’s Burgers?”

  “Sure. They’re all over the Midwest, right?”

  “That’s correct. I opened the first one back in 1960. I was twenty-two years old and didn’t know I could fail miserably. I didn’t, though. This may surprise you, but there’s money in burgers.”

  “Stone’s going to die when I tell him he made a hamburger for the owner of Murphy’s.”

  “Tell him I approved wholeheartedly.” His eyes narrowed as he regarded her from his bed. “You look a sight better than you did last night.”

  “The sun and power returned, improving my mood considerably.” She took the tray from his lap and set it on the table by the door.

  Stone arrived, pink-cheeked and rubbing his hands together. “I have good news and bad news.”

  “Tell us the bad news first,” Mr. Lake said.

  “There’s no way we’re getting out of the driveway anytime soon. There’s about four feet of snow trapping the car.”

  “And the good news?”

  “The phone’s working. I called the local hospital and they’re arranging for a helicopter to lift us out of here.”

  “I have always wanted to ride on a helicopter,” Mr. Lake said.

  “What about the rental car?” Pepper asked.

  “I called the rental company and explained our situation. They’ll send someone to get it once the roads clear.”

  “What about the money? That’ll cost a fortune,” Pepper said.

  “No, they said they’d eat it, given what happened,” Stone said. “We will need to figure out how to get back to Denver, though.”

  “I know just what to do,” Mr. Lake said. “Leave it to me.”

  Chapter 18

  Stone

  * * *

  The medical helicopter arrived around noon with a great flurry of snow and the deafening sound of its engine and rotors. When Stone had spoken to the medical team earlier, they’d debated the best place to land the helicopter and had decided on the flat patch of land between the pond and house. Stone had shoveled most of the snow from the back patio and stairs. He’d also shoveled a walking path from the bottom of the steps to the middle of the yard and marked it with red hand towels from the kitchen. The pilot descended perfectly between the four red flags. Stone watched as the helicopter hovered inches above the snow, then landed on what looked like enormous skis. The door opened, and two men dressed in orange ski gear and snowshoes exited. One of them reached back into the vessel and came out with a stretcher loaded with a pile of blankets. With each man holding an end of the stretcher, they made their way toward him.

  When they reached the bottom of the steps, they introduced themselves as Nelson and Brooks. “Nice path,” Brooks said. “Mr. Lake was lucky to have a former Marine, huh?”

  “I guess so,” Stone said with a laugh. “Come on inside.”

  Pepper had Mr. Lake sitting in a chair with his splinted leg propped up on a stool just inside the patio doors. Nelson and Brooks quickly got him onto the stretcher and tucked blankets around him.

  Pepper leaned over him and gave him a peck on the forehead. “We’ll see you at the hospital.”

  “Will do.” Mr. Lake smiled at her and then Stone. “Thanks for everything, kids.”

  “The pilot will be back for you two within the hour,” said Brooks.

  “We’ll be ready,” Stone said.

  Mr. Lake’s son was on his way from California and would arrive sometime that evening.

  Stone and Pepper held hands and watched from the window as they loaded Mr. Lake into the helicopter. Minutes later, they were gone in a spray of snow and roar of the engine. They waited by the window until the sound of the rotors finally faded, leaving them in the silence once more.

  “This has been an adventure. I’ll say that,” Pepper said. “But I’m pretty excited to go home.”

  “Can’t say I disagree. Although if I had to choose someone to be snowed in with, it would always be you.”

  Pepper laughed and threw her arms around his neck. “You sure know how to show a girl a good time.”

  Several hours later, after making sure Mr. Lake was comfortably settled at the hospital, they returned to the lodge.

  The doctors had advised Mr. Lake to stay overnight. He was elderly, and they wanted to keep a close eye on him. Tomorrow, if the roads were cleared, his son would take him home to Denver.

  One of his nurses mentioned what a splendid job Stone had done on the splint. “You saved him from a whole lot of trouble there.”

  Pepper had beamed up at him, and he felt like a rock star.

  She’d called the lodge earlier to let them know what had happened and asked if they might be able to help them get a new car rental. They’d assured her it was no problem and were glad they were safe.

  The moment they walked into the lodge, Mindy flew across the lobby and hugged them as if they were her long-lost friends. “I was worried sick. When you didn’t return yesterday afternoon, I knew something was wrong. I was picturing you stuck somewhere in the middle of that blizzard and freezing to death. Then the news reported about the power outage on the mountain. When you called this morning, I felt like I could breathe again.”

  “We arrived before it got too bad, and it’s a good thing we did,” Stone said.

  Mindy’s eyes widened with horror when Stone told her what they’d found when they arrived.

  “Poor Mr. Lake,” Mindy said.

  “He’s fine now,” Stone said. “His son will be here this evening.”

  Mindy looked from one of them to the other with an excited gleam in her eyes. “Strangely enough, I have other news. The couple booked for December called this morning and canceled their wedding here. The storm scared the bride’s mother.” Mindy smiled. “So that block of rooms a
nd the reception space is now available for your friend if you want it.”

  “Thank God,” Pepper said. “Because there was no way I could recommend Mr. Lake’s house. Not after what we experienced.”

  “I guess the storm was a blessing in disguise?” Stone asked.

  “As my mother used to say, ‘All’s well that ends well,’” Mindy said. “Come on back. We can get it all booked.”

  They were just wrapping up with Mindy when she got a phone call from Mr. Lake. “He wants to treat you to a week here at the lodge, plus meals. Can you stay?”

  Stone looked over at Pepper. “I can. How about you?”

  “Unless my agent calls with an audition, I’m all yours.”

  Mindy watched them for a moment. “Mr. Lake’s house did its magic, didn’t it?”

  Pepper flushed. Stone laughed.

  “Should we get your wedding booked while you’re here?” Mindy asked.

  “No offense, but I think we might prefer somewhere warm,” Stone said.

  For the next seven days, they spent a large portion of time in bed enjoying each other. They slept late and ordered room service for breakfast. The afternoons were spent exploring town or going on hikes in rented snowshoes. One night, they went to a movie in town and ate popcorn and laughed over slapstick comedy. They dined out at Simon’s two out of the seven nights, but branched out to several others as well, coming to the conclusion that Emerson Pass had a lot of good restaurants.

  And they talked and talked and talked. Stone learned about Pepper’s dreams. She wanted a theater of her own where she could produce plays about women, and a juicy role in a movie or television show she could sink her teeth into. He read this Hedda Gabler play she was so crazy about, which he only vaguely understood. She laughed at him when he said he would have liked it a lot better had it not ended in a suicide. In reparation, he made her listen to country music. One day, he caught her singing one they’d listened to earlier in the shower. It was uncanny how quickly she could pick up on a song.