An Alaskan Proposal

by Beth Carpenter

  Sabrina tossed a grin over her shoulder as she allowed herself to be dragged away. Leith waved. Yet another reason he was glad he’d brought Sabrina today. Otherwise he would probably be Emma’s designated dance partner for the “Macarena.” Leith watched Emma put her hands behind her head with exaggerated drama. Sabrina was laughing, but she never missed a beat. Turned out dancing was another thing she did well. Not that he was surprised.

  When they’d entered the barn at the start of the wedding, Sabrina had been sitting between Emma and Volta. From the smugness of her smile, he suspected Volta had shared some embarrassing tidbit of his childhood history, and Sabrina planned to hold it in reserve for the next time she thought he needed a lesson in humility.

  She’d already given him a few lessons. Like the one about his disastrous senior year of high school in Scottsdale. He’d fought the move from the moment his mother mentioned it and taken the typical teenage attitude of “you can drag me here, but you can’t make me like it.” And his resentment over moving away from his friends had ensured he didn’t make any new ones. He hadn’t even tried to fit in.

  Sabrina, on the other hand, was doing everything in her power to fit into her new life, and he had to admire that. But that admiration was mixed with misgivings. Nicole had appeared to fit into his life, at first. When they met, she’d been in her outdoor-girl stage, eager to camp and hike with him and post the pictures on the internet. That should have been his first clue, that the hike itself seemed secondary to getting the picture. They’d been dating about a year when she’d decided it was time for Leith to propose.

  She’d stage-managed it all, sending him links to various theatrical proposals, along with her ring size and pictures of her favorite rings. Eventually, he took the hint. He took her camping and proposed to her on the beach at sunrise at Clam Gulch. When she’d realized what was happening, she’d insisted on reenacting the proposal after she’d brushed her hair, done her makeup and set up a camera to “capture the moment.” Of course, the sunrise was long gone by then. She’d never quite forgiven him for that.

  Her next phase was Nicole the Bride. Wedding planning had taken a full year. After the wedding, it was her domestic-goddess phase, with her never-ending list of home projects that ate up all his days off. Fortunately, that one only lasted two years or so. Once she found the job at the bank, Nicole decided upper management was what she was meant to be, which eventually led to the out-of-state MBA, where she became Nicole the Two-Timing Cheater. And now she was getting married again to some poor sap, and she expected Leith to sign papers pretending their marriage had never happened.

  Mercifully, the song ended before Leith could fall further into that pit of regrets. Sabrina dropped into the chair beside him. “Whew. Emma’s wearing me out.”

  “Would you like me to get you something to drink?” Leith offered.

  She looked over. “It’s a long line. May I just have a drink of yours?”

  “Sure.” He handed her the bottle and watched her take a swallow. He would have expected, assuming she drank beer at all, that she would demand a glass. But then, she surprised him at every turn.

  An attractive older woman stopped at the table and put her hand on Dana’s shoulder. “Ursula!” Dana jumped up and gave her a hug. “Sam’s been wondering what happened to you.”

  “We saw him on the way in. The Seward Highway shut down for a while. A motor home rolled and blocked the northbound lanes. They’d dragged it off the road when we went by. It was a mess, but they’re reporting the driver is in stable condition, so that’s good news.”

  “That is good.” Dana turned to the table. “Everyone, this is Ursula, Sam’s auntie.”

  After they’d all exchanged greetings, Ursula smiled at Emma. “I wonder if you’d like to come over and meet my goddaughter, Rory. She’s about your age.”

  Emma jumped up. “Where is she?”

  Ursula pointed to a table across the room. “Over there, with my husband.”

  Sabrina glanced over and then did a double take. “Your husband looks exactly like one of my favorite authors, R. D. Macleod.”

  Ursula smiled. “Come on over and I’ll introduce you.”

  “It’s really him?” Sabrina turned to Leith. “Do you mind if I leave you for a minute?”

  “Of course not. Go ahead.”

  Leith watched Sabrina, even prettier than usual with her cheeks flushed and eyes opened wide in the excitement of meeting a celebrity. While they chatted, Sam returned and made his way to their table, where Ursula held out her arms for the baby.

  Volta came back to Leith, carrying two bottles—one beer and one water. She set the beer in front of him and slid into the other chair. “Cheer up. They’re married now. Your part is done. You can relax and enjoy the party.”

  “Thanks.” He took a sip. “You’re not indulging?”

  “I’m on call later, remember?” She looked around. “Where’s Sabrina?”

  He pointed across the room. “Meeting her favorite author.”

  “Oh. I met him on the way in. I’d heard R. D. Macleod moved to Alaska, but I didn’t realize he’d married Sam’s auntie Ursula until just now when Sam introduced us. He seems like a good guy. Said to call him Mac.” They both watched as Sabrina favored the author with that dazzling smile.

  “You’re still okay with taking Emma tonight? She could probably spend the night with her friend Hannah if you and Sabrina have other plans...” She waited, as though she expected him to confess they were planning to elope that evening.

  “Emma’s fine with me.” He took another pull from his beer.

  “I was talking with Sabrina earlier. I like her.”

  Leith nodded, not paying much attention. When the music changed to an old Chuck Berry tune, Sabrina joined Emma and her new friend on the dance floor. Her skirt swirled around her as she demonstrated to the girls how to do the twist.

  “Emma likes her, too. Are you taking her anywhere next weekend?” Volta asked.

  “Who? Emma?”

  “Duh, who were we talking about? Sabrina.”

  “Why? Do you need me for something next weekend?”

  “No, I’m just curious. This is the first second date you’ve had in a while.”

  Leith raised an eyebrow. “I don’t need you to keep track of my dating history.”

  “I’ve just been worried about you. After Nicole—”

  “I don’t want to talk about Nicole.” And he sure didn’t want to talk about the annulment papers sitting in his desk drawer. “Why don’t you concentrate on your own love life? Which hasn’t been particularly active, from what I can see.”

  “It’s different for me. I’m a mother.”

  “So?”

  “So, Emma needs my full attention right now. I don’t have time to date.”

  “But you have time to interfere with my dating life.”

  “Yes.” His sister grinned. “That hardly takes any time at all.”

  He spotted Carson out there with his wife, doing a pretty mean twist. Then he noticed another dancer on the floor and frowned. The bride’s younger brother had worked his way closer to Sabrina and was eyeing her with interest. Leith didn’t know him well, but well enough to know he didn’t want him anywhere near Sabrina. The song was winding down.

  “Excuse me.” Ignoring Volta’s questioning gaze, Leith made his way to the dance floor just as the band shifted to a slow song. The little girls giggled and ran toward the punch bowl, leaving Sabrina unattended. The guy had moved closer and was talking to her, his head close to her ear. Leith stepped up and took her elbow. “I believe this is my dance.”

  Sabrina tilted her head up at him. “It is?”

  “Yes. Remember? You promised you’d dance the first slow song with me.”

  “O-kay.” She turned back to the stranger. “Sorry. I guess—”

  “T
hat’s okay. I’ll catch up with you later.”

  “Not if I can help it,” Leith muttered under his breath as he took Sabrina into his arms to dance.

  She looked up at him with amused eyes. “I don’t remember you asking me to save this dance.”

  “No, but you don’t want to dance with that guy.”

  “Oh?” She raised her eyebrows. “I thought I just had to appear as your date for the wedding. I didn’t realize you got to run off potential dance partners.”

  “Hey, if you want to dance with him—”

  “What? You’ll chase him down for me?”

  “I doubt I’d have to do that.” He looked over her shoulder. “He’s watching you right now, waiting for an opportunity to swoop in.” He danced them in a partial circle. “He’s the bride’s brother. At a prewedding party, I saw him get slapped and have a drink thrown in his face in two separate incidents, but if you want me to step aside—”

  “Don’t you dare.” Sabrina moved a little closer. “Is he still watching?”

  “Yep.”

  “Kiss me.”

  “What?”

  “Just for show. So he’ll think we’re together.”

  Leith’s eyes drifted to her soft pink lips. “Well, if you insist.” As they continued to sway to the music, he pulled her closer, tilted his head and pressed his lips to hers. He intended the kiss to be brief, but once he felt her lips under his, he didn’t want to stop. She slid a hand behind his head and threaded her fingers into his hair. When he finally broke the kiss, he’d forgotten where he was.

  “Is he still watching?” she whispered.

  “Who?”

  “The guy.”

  Leith looked over. The bride’s brother had wandered over to the bar and was chatting up one of the bridesmaids. “Yeah, still watching. Let’s try this one more time.” And he slanted another kiss on her warm lips.

  The song ended, and a fast number started, but Leith was so caught up in that kiss he didn’t notice until someone bumped into them. Sabrina stepped back and laughed. “Okay. I think I’m safe. Let’s get some punch.” She grabbed his hand and pulled him toward the table at the back of the room.

  Marissa and Chris were there, refilling the punch bowl. Marissa smiled at Sabrina. “Hi, again. Are you having fun?”

  “It’s a great wedding. I think you’ve got a winning venue here.”

  “I’m glad you think so.”

  Sam wandered over. “Say, I heard the early king run has made it to Spot Creek. My shift on the slope starts next Friday, so I wondered if anyone’s interested in getting together for a campout one night this week?”

  “Ryan would love that,” Marissa said. “I have to work Monday and Tuesday, but I don’t think we have anything Wednesday or Thursday. Do we?” she asked Chris.

  “Assuming Oliver and Becky don’t mind feeding the animals,” Chris answered.

  “They won’t. You know Oliver loves filling in.” Marissa turned to Sabrina. “Are you guys interested?”

  “We, uh... That is, Leith and I—”

  “Would love to come,” Leith interrupted before Sabrina could spill the beans that they weren’t really dating. If Marissa knew, she’d probably tell Volta, and she’d commence matchmaking once again. “That is, if it fits Sabrina’s schedule. I’m doing a workshop next weekend, so I can get off midweek.”

  Sabrina checked the calendar on her phone. “Well, I have Wednesday and Friday off, but I could probably trade shifts.”

  “Sounds good,” Sam said. “I’ll send everybody the details. They’re saying it’s the strongest run in years.” He collected two cups of punch and carried them away.

  Once they were alone, Sabrina whispered, “You want me to camp with you and your friends?”

  “I thought you might enjoy actually camping out overnight. If you’d rather not, I can tell them your schedule changed or something, but I thought it might be fun. I have all the equipment we need.”

  “Well, more camping experience couldn’t hurt.”

  “Exactly.”

  “So what do I have to do to earn this lesson? Do you have any more weddings lined up?”

  “I’m sure I’ll think of something. In the meantime, would you like to dance again?”

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  THE SUNNY WEATHER lasted through the weekend. Sabrina took the dog for a walk in the morning and had a fleeting temptation to call in sick and spend the day outdoors, but, of course, she would never do anything to jeopardize her job. If she could convince Walter to recommend her for the management track, this job meant security. And security was what she craved.

  She filled the dog’s water bowl, made sure his favorite toys were available and shut her closet door. She’d learned her lesson Saturday night, when she’d come home from the wedding to discover one of her Bianchis lying in the middle of the living-room floor. Tooth marks spiraled around the leather of the heel, creating a pattern of piercings that almost looked intentional. She was annoyed, of course, but the outrage she would normally have felt at the vandalism inflicted on a pair of exquisite shoes just wasn’t there.

  Maybe this practical Alaska attitude was rubbing off on her. Even secondhand, the Bianchis cost far more than she should have spent on a single pair of shoes, and as a result, she’d felt obligated to wear them whenever they fit the occasion. Now she would never again have to endure their torture for the sake of fashion.

  Or maybe she’d just been in too good of a mood to let it be spoiled by something as silly as a pair of shoes. She’d had a great time at the wedding. The setting was glorious, the food was delicious, and Leith’s friends and sister were a lot of fun. Almost as much fun as his niece. Sabrina had enjoyed dancing with Leith, and she had enjoyed his kisses. A lot.

  Of course, he wasn’t serious. He’d only kissed her to warn off that guy who was hitting on all the women. But if that was how Leith kissed when he wasn’t serious, she had to wonder what it would be like to be kissed by him when he was. Possibly spontaneous combustion.

  Those kisses were both the highlight of the evening and a source of worry. Because if she wasn’t careful, she could easily fall for Leith. He was capable, and funny, and the way he interacted with his niece was adorable. But Sabrina couldn’t let herself get sidetracked. She had one goal: to make the management program. Nothing was going to get in the way of that. Certainly not a few kisses.

  Maybe she shouldn’t have accepted the invitation to go camping with him and the others this coming week. She didn’t want to give him the wrong idea about their relationship. But his friends were so much fun, and she did need more camping experience.

  A glance at the clock on the stove reminded her she needed to go if she expected to get to work on time. She grabbed her bag, which was hanging beside her vest next to the door. She’d noticed last week that on clear summer days, the sunshine warmed the tall western-facing windows at the front of the store and fooled the thermostat into revving up the air conditioner so that her department at the back of the store, under the air vent, was freezing. She grabbed the vest, too.

  Once she arrived at work, she left her purse in her employee locker, slipped the fleece vest on over her Orson Outfitters polo and headed to her department, where she found Autumn hanging up a new shipment of T-shirts.

  “Hey, Sabrina. Can I take lunch now? My boyfriend is meeting me.”

  “Sure.”

  “Nice vest.”

  “Thanks.”

  Autumn looked around. “You’d better take it off, though, before Walter sees you.”

  “Why?”

  “He hates it when employees wear stuff from the competition. That’s probably a Caribou Pass, isn’t it?”

  “No.” Sabrina laughed. She’d seen the Caribou Pass catalog while she was comparing Orson’s products to their competitors. “Two hundred dollars for a vest is a
little out of my price range. It’s ours. I just fixed it up a little.”

  “Cool. When I get back, you’ll have to show me what you did.”

  While Autumn was out, Sabrina finished unboxing the T-shirts and helped a customer choose a jacket. Another woman browsed a little but drifted away without buying. About ten minutes before Autumn was due back from lunch, Walter stopped by. “Sabrina, someone called in sick in the camping department. Would you be willing to fill in for a little while?”

  “Sure.” She moved out from behind the rack she’d been straightening.

  Walter frowned. “What are you wearing?”

  “A fleece vest. It’s always a little chilly back here under the vent. It’s one of ours,” she assured him quickly. “I just tweaked it a little.”

  “The fabric on the pockets looks familiar.”

  “It’s a dog scarf from our pet department. See, I just combined two of our products into one.”

  “Uh-huh. You might want to lose the vest before you go to the camping department so you won’t, uh, confuse the customers.”

  “Sure, okay. I’ll get right to it.”

  “Good. They’re swamped over there.” He didn’t say they weren’t swamped here, but his glance around the department made it clear that was what he was thinking. Her displays had created a modest increase in sales, but clothing was still an afterthought at Orson Outfitters.

  Sabrina dropped off her vest in her locker and hurried to camping, pinning her name tag on as she went. How was she going to convince Walter she was management material when she was tucked away in the back of the store, hidden from customers?

  Tim and two other employees were already assisting customers when she arrived. She waved and hurried to a woman tapping her foot near Tim. “Hi. How can I help you?”

  “I’m looking for those toothbrushes with toothpaste in the handle.”

  “Yes, I saw those right over here.” Sabrina led her to the travel toiletries, then directed another guy who was looking for camping guides to the correct department. She turned to find a mother with two school-age kids waiting.