by Kay Correll
She eyed Nick when he returned from the kitchen. “What’s that for?” She looked at a plastic bag in his hand.
“It’s an ice pack. We need to ice that ankle to keep down the swelling.”
“You want me to put ice on my foot when I’m not even fully warmed up yet?” She narrowed her eyes.
“You really should. Found some ibuprofen in the cabinet. Brought you two. It will help with inflammation.”
She couldn’t decide if she was cross at him or grateful. But ice on her ankle sure didn’t sound very nice…
“Here, you can have this too.” He handed her a glass. “Hot buttered rum. I would have made you hot tea, but I figured this is what you really need.”
She reached for the drink and took a sip of the golden liquid. She sighed as a welcome warmth spread through her. The whole getting warm thing was interrupted when Nick unceremoniously peeled the afghan off of her foot and placed the ice pack on it. She grimaced.
He sat down beside her and slipped his arm around her shoulder. She resisted moving away, but only because the warmth of his body felt so nice against her. That was the only reason. For sure.
“You going to be okay?” His low voice wrapped around her like a beloved old quilt.
“I’m fine. Really. Getting warmed up, and my ankle is better now that I’m not walking on it.”
“I still think you need to get it checked out.”
He tightened his hold on her, and she couldn’t help it, she leaned against him and closed her eyes. “I will.”
The warmth and the sips of rum finally overcame her. Her last thought as she dropped off to sleep was how good it felt to be right here. With Nick. With his arm around her.
And she could have sworn she felt him kiss her forehead, but that was probably just a dream.
Chapter 14
Annie moved her head, drifting in the in-between stage of sleep and wakefulness. Her neck had a crick in it that finally coaxed her into opening her eyes. She looked right into the sleeping face of Nick Chambers. As she struggled to chase the sleep from her thoughts, she realized she was lying right up next to him, almost on top of him, cuddled up on the couch.
She started to pull away, and he tightened his arms around her, muttering something in his sleep. She held her breath, trying to think of how to extricate herself without waking him up.
He stirred slightly and opened his eyes part way. A lazy smile spread across his face. “Morning.”
“Uh… morning.” She started to pull away.
“Couple more minutes.” He closed his eyes and his breathing steadied again.
How could he smile, talk, and fall right back asleep? She rested her head back on his shoulder and laid there listening to his breath, feeling his heart beating strongly against her. She should really get up. Maybe make some coffee. A couple more ibuprofen for her ankle would be a good choice too.
But still, she rested against him. The sounds of his breath and the beating of his heart lulled her back to sleep.
Jason had gotten up at first light to start the long process of clearing the roadways and walkways at Sweet River Lodge. He jumped off the snowplow he’d been using to clear the roads at the lodge and grabbed a snow shovel. The storm had dumped so much heavy, wet snow. Roads around town were closed, and people staying at the lodge were sure to be headed for the dining room since no one was going anywhere right now. He needed to get the walkways cleared.
Trevor and Connor came racing up to him. “Grams said we can play some outside, but we have to stay where she can see us. We’re gonna build a fort.”
“Sounds like a great idea.”
“Good thing Momma let us stay here last night. It’s more fun here when it snows.” Connor threw his arms wide.
Jason looked up as a couple came out of a nearby cabin. A young boy raced excitedly back and forth along the edge of the driveway. The boy skidded to a halt as they approached.
“Morning.” Jason nodded at them. “I’m still working at getting the walkways cleared.
“That’s no problem.” The man smiled at him. “We were going to get one last day of skiing in today, but it looks like that’s not going to happen.”
“Nope, the roads are pretty much shut down right now.”
“Hey, you wanna help us build a fort?” Trevor looked at the boy.
“Can I?” The boy’s eyes lit up. “We don’t have snow on Belle Island. That’s in Florida.”
“I don’t know.” The woman looked uncertain.
“They’ll stay within view of the lodge. I’ll keep an eye on them, and I’m sure my mom is watching, too.”
“Please, Mom?”
“Okay. But stay with these boys and don’t go where I can’t see you from the dining lodge.”
The boy turned to Trevor and Connor. “I’m Bobby. I just learned to ski. This is my new stepdad, AJ. He taught me. I was really good at it, wasn’t I, AJ?”
The man laughed. “You were, Bobby.”
“I’m Connor, and this is Trevor. So you don’t have any snow where you live?”
“Nope. And snow is like the best thing ever.” The boy danced from foot to foot in his obviously new snow boots.
“Come, let’s go get started.” Connor raced off to a spot near the entrance to the dining lodge with Trevor and Bobby scrambling to keep up with him.
The man turned to him and reached out a gloved hand. “We’re the Hamiltons. AJ and Courtney.”
Jason took the man’s hand. “Glad to meet you. I’m Jason Cassidy.”
“So Nora is your mom?” Courtney asked. “We met her when we checked in.”
“Yep. She is. Those two rascals are my nephews.”
“Well, it looks like Bobby is having fun even if we couldn’t make it to one last day of skiing. What do you say, Courtney? Want to go get some hot coffee and breakfast now?” The man took the woman’s hand in his.
She took one more look at the boys and smiled up at AJ. “I do.”
AJ laughed and leaned down and kissed her quickly. “You’ve gotten pretty good at saying those words since the wedding.”
She laughed. “I guess I have.”
Jason watched as the couple headed to the dining lodge. Courtney held onto AJ’s arm as they navigated the snowy path. AJ said something to Courtney, and she threw back her head and laughed, the sweet tones of it drifting back toward him in the crisp air.
He turned back to the job at hand, thrust the shovel into the snow, and tossed the wet snow off of the pathway.
Nora looked up as Jason walked through the door to the lodge, stamped the snow from his boots, and crossed over to the reception desk.
“I’ve got the road to the lodge plowed, not that the main road is cleared, but I still need to finish shoveling the walkways.” He grabbed a coffee mug from the sidebar near the reception area and filled it from the always-waiting coffee urn.
“I’m worried about Annie. I can’t get ahold of her.” Nora stared at her cell phone again as if that would make her friend magically call.
“Probably just bad cell service.” He wrapped his hand around the warm mug.
“She’s not answering her house line either.” She frowned. It wasn’t like Annie not to check in after a storm. They had an agreement. She worried about Annie ever since she’d moved to the cabin and lived out there all alone.
“Maybe the house phone is out, too? That was quite a storm we had.” Jason took a sip of the hot coffee, still cradling the mug in his hands. His cheeks were red from the wind, and his hair was tousled.
She wished he’d wear a hat when it was this cold, but he rarely did. Her mothering failure, or his stubbornness, she wasn’t sure which.
She walked over to the window and checked on the boys “Looks like they made a new friend.”
“Yep, Bobby. He and his folks are staying here. AJ and Courtney Hamilton.
“Oh, they are in having breakfast now. They seem like a nice couple. They already said they had plans to come back here again next y
ear.”
He laughed. “You turn just about everyone into a repeat customer, don’t you?”
“I try.” She stepped away from the window. “I am worried about Annie though. I called the shop and Lindsey answered and said Annie wasn’t in yet, which is unusual.”
“Maybe she can’t make it out of her drive. We really got hammered with snow last night. These spring storms can be brutal.”
“Lindsey said Annie’s car was still parked outside the shop. Maybe I’ll walk over to Nick’s cabin and see if he knows where she is.”
“No need. His SUV isn’t there. No tracks. I don’t think he made it back here last night.”
“So maybe she’s with him? Maybe he drove her home?” Nora didn’t like the sound of that, because if he drove Annie home and he wasn’t back here at the cabin, it probably meant he was still with her?
And what did that mean exactly?
“Jason, I hate to ask you this, but could you take the snowmobile over the ridge to her cabin and check on her? I’d do it myself, but I’m dealing with panicked people who can’t get out today and a bunch of cancellations from people who can’t get here for the weekend.” Annie’s cabin was a bit of a drive by road, but not very far over the ridge. There was a small footbridge over Ponderosa Creek where Jason could cross.
“Sure. I’ll do that if it will make you feel better. I know you worry about Annie out there alone.”
She was actually more worried about Annie out there with Nick right now…
Jason took one more long swig of coffee and set the mug on the counter. “I’ll call as soon as I find out anything. I told the Hamiltons I’d keep an eye on the boys, though.”
“I’ll watch them. Thanks, Jason.”
Nora kept busy with people trudging into the lodge for breakfast with questions about the roads and answering calls from other people wondering if they’d be able to make it in for their weekend reservations. She glanced at the clock in the lobby yet again. She pulled out her cell phone to make sure she hadn’t missed a call from Jason.
Finally, her phone rang, and she snatched it off the reception desk. “Jason?”
“Mom… I… uh…”
“Tell me.” She didn’t like Jason’s tone of voice.
“Well, I’ve found Nick’s SUV. It’s… it’s at the bottom of a ravine, partially submerged underwater.”
“What?” Her pulse raced and she reached up to rub her temple.
“There’s no one in the SUV. But, Mom? I can see the path where it slipped down the hillside. Lots of broken trees and branches.”
“But no sign of Nick or Annie?”
“I… uh.”
“Jason, just tell me.”
“Well, I found Annie’s backpack at the side of the stream. I already called the sheriff. I’m going to head to Annie’s now, and if she’s not there, I’ll start looking. The sheriff said they’re backed up with emergencies and calls.”
“I’m coming over.” Nora looked around in a panic, trying to remember where she put her coat.
“No, don’t. The roads are terrible. Let me go check. I’ll call you as soon as I get to her cabin.”
“Thanks, Jason.” Nora clicked off her phone, still not certain that she shouldn’t just get in her car and head over to Annie’s, but Jason was probably right. The roads would be nearly impassable for a while until the plows could get out and get things cleared.
Annie.
Where was she? Was she okay? Nora’s heart squeezed in her chest. She couldn’t bear to think of Annie stuck out in the storm… or worse.
Nick woke up to a tingling sensation in his arm. He slowly opened his eyes and let his mind process where he was. It felt familiar, yet foreign.
At Annie’s.
He glanced down at her sleeping soundly beside him. He wanted to move his arm to relieve the pins and needles tormenting him, but he couldn’t bear to wake her. The corners of her mouth turned up in the tiniest of smiles, and she sighed in her sleep. He tightened his hold of her, thankful she was okay after last night’s ordeal.
He peeked over and saw the fire had died down to just a few embers. The cabin had cooled off substantially. Maybe the electricity had gone off. He scanned the room for any sign that would tell him the electricity was on or off.
Nothing.
The sound of a snowmobile closing in on the house made him stir and try to slip his arm from around Annie. He still needed to get her to town and get her ankle checked. If people were out on snowmobiles, maybe he could flag someone down for help. Annie murmured in her sleep and curled up on the couch as he carefully sat up.
At the sound of pounding at the door, Annie’s eyes flew wide open. He quickly stood. “I’ll get it.”
He crossed to the door and tugged it open.
“Nick. You’re okay.”
Nora’s son stood in the doorway. What was his name?
Annie limped up behind him. “Jason, come in.”
Jason, that was it.
“I came over the ridge to check on you. Mom was worried. I found Nick’s car at the bottom of the ravine. Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. Just hurt my ankle a bit.”
Jason entered the cabin, and Nick closed the door behind him. “We need to get Annie into town to get her ankle checked out.”
“The roads aren’t cleared yet but should be soon. I’d take her on the snowmobile, but it’s a pretty rough ride.”
“I’ll wait.”
Nick paused, considering the options. “But we don’t have a car here to bring you to town.”
“I’m sure Mom can come get you as soon as it’s clear. I’ll call my friend, Gabe. He’s got his plow out working with the road crew. I’ll have him let me know when the road is clear here. And I’ll have him come plow your drive, too. We’ll get you to town as soon as we can.”
“It’s not an emergency or anything. I’m fine.”
“Look at your ankle.” Nick eyed Annie’s foot.
“Oh.”
Her foot was swollen and purple. He crossed over and wrapped an arm around her waist. “Back to the couch. You should stay off of it.”
He got her settled on the couch. “I’m going to make coffee. Jason, you want some before you head out?”
“That sounds, great.” Jason shrugged off his jacket. “I better call Mom and let her know Annie is okay.”
Jason called Nora and after talking to her, handed the phone to Annie. “Mom wants to talk to you. I think she just needs to hear your voice to believe me that you’re really okay.”
“Nora, I’m fine. No really. I am.” Annie leaned back on the couch and held the phone up to her ear.
Nick smiled and headed to the kitchen to make the much-needed coffee.
Chapter 15
Annie clumsily maneuvered the sidewalk with her crutches and entered Bookish Cafe with Nora hovering at her side. “Nora, I’m fine. Really. You heard the doctor. It’s just a sprain. He’s got it all wrapped up.”
“You shouldn’t be working. You should be home resting.”
“I’ll sit behind the register.” Annie wasn’t going to admit to Nora that her ankle was throbbing again, nor did she have any plans on taking the pain pills the doctor had prescribed.
“I wish you’d go home. I’ll take you.”
“I’m fine.”
Nora scowled. “Well, I’m coming back about four and bringing you back to my cabin for the night. I don’t want you out there alone, hobbling around.”
“I’ll get my car fixed and drive myself back to my cabin. I’ll be okay.”
“You hurt your right foot. You’re not driving.”
Annie sunk onto the stool, leaned her crutches against the counter, and looked at her foot. Nora was right. She wasn’t going to be able to drive until her foot got a little better. “Okay, I’ll take a ride. But can you bring me back to my cabin? I just really want to stay there.”
Nora sighed. “There is no use arguing with you. Okay, I’ll take you home. But I’m
going to bring something for your dinner and you have to promise me you’ll try and stay off your foot.”
Annie smiled at her friend. She’d be the exact same way if Nora was hurt. “Okay, I promise. Now you get back to the lodge. I’m sure you have a ton of work to do. I’ve taken up too much of your time. But thank you for dropping Nick off at the car rental and taking me to the doctor.”
“I thought I’d have to physically throw him out of the car to keep him from going to the doctor with you.” Nora rolled her eyes.
“He was acting a bit overprotective.” Annie smiled.
“A bit? Well, that’s one way to put it.” Nora tugged on her gloves and turned to Lindsey. “Make sure she takes it easy. Call me if you think I should come get her.”
“Hey, I’m sitting right here.” Annie tapped on the counter.
“But I trust Lindsey’s judgment more than yours.” Nora gave a small wave and walked out of the door.
Nick pulled his rental car up to his cabin. The road to the lodge had been cleared. He wanted to get cleaned up then go into town and check on Annie. He’d called her and she’d said the ankle was sprained, but she was fine. She was at work, of all things. The woman did not know how to take it easy.
Jason was hard at work a few cabins over, shoveling the pathway. He was torn between heading inside so he could ask how Annie was doing and helping Jason with the snow. Jason had come and rescued them after all. Duty won out and he headed over to where Jason was working.
“Got another one of those snow shovels?”
Jason looked up. “You don’t have to do that.”
“I want to.”
“Well, I’m not going to say no twice. There’s another shovel leaning against the snow plow over there on the road.” Jason pointed to the plow.
Nick grabbed the shovel and started in. Before long, he was hot and sweaty. He’d forgotten what hard work it was shoveling wet spring snow. They kept at the chore until every cabin had been cleared and they ended up at the lodge.
“I really appreciate the help.” Jason leaned his shovel against the railing and stretched his arms out.
