by Jaclyn Hardy
Rachel typed a few things into the computer, then nodded. “We have one more room. I can give you a discount—”
“No discount. I’ll pay what everyone else is paying.” Stuart pulled out his credit card. “Besides, I already stayed here for free last night.”
“Yeah, on our floor.” Rachel took his card. “I still feel bad about that, by the way.”
Stuart laughed. “Don’t. It’s the first time I’ve slept in for years, and adding all the extra blankets from the closet definitely helped make it more comfortable.”
“I’m glad.” She handed him a key. “You’ll be at the end of the hall to the left. Dinner is at six.”
“Thanks.” He turned to find Heather still talking to her dad, so he grabbed his stuff and took it up to the room. He’d only been in the main parts of the hotel since it had been finished. The room he’d be staying in was small, but the decor gave a nod to the time period when this mansion had been built. He’d have to check everything later, but for now, he wanted to get back down to find Heather.
She sat curled up on a chair in the lobby studying a rather thick book. Her homework. Maybe he should just let her get that done. Going to the pond could always wait. He turned to leave.
“Oh, hey, there you are. I was beginning to think you’d decided to take a nap.” Heather shut her book, keeping a finger in it as a bookmark. “Did you still want to check out the pond?”
Stuart nodded toward the book in her arms. “Are you sure you don’t want to study?”
“Want to? No. Should? Probably, but it’s hard to get into when my sister loves to burst into the room at random times. And studying down here is almost impossible.”
“If you’re sure . . .” Stuart stopped. “Give me a sec. I need to grab my thicker coat.”
He walked over to Rachel’s desk, checking to make sure Heather had gone back to studying. “Hey, do you still do rentals for skates and stuff?”
“We have a few things. What are you looking for?”
“Thomas and a few others said the pond wasn’t frozen enough to go ice fishing on, but I want to check it out myself tonight. Then I remembered you were offering rentals on skates for a while.”
Rachel raised her eyebrows. “Not frozen enough? My dad had to go save a horse that had gone out into the middle of it yesterday. It’s definitely frozen. The wind has been too cold for anyone to want to go outside so we have a room full of skates. You’re welcome to go find some.”
“Thanks.” Stuart opened the room behind the main desk and searched the rows of ice skates. He found his size, then grabbed a few that looked to be around Heather’s size. She was still busy studying when Stuart left the room, so he handed Rachel the keys and crept through the kitchen, waving at the staff as he went by. “Hey, guys. Don’t mind me.”
He ran the skates out to his truck, then went back in through the kitchen. His shoes were snowy, so he had to stop and clean them.
“Oh, hey, Stuart. Did I need to sign for a delivery?” Patrick stood nearby holding a clipboard.
“Uh, no. Sorry. I’m just trying to surprise Heather and had to use a back exit.” He stood up straight. “Wait. I didn’t miss a delivery that was supposed to come out here, did I?”
Patrick chuckled. “I wondered the same thing. From what I could tell on this sheet, you weren’t supposed to bring anything until next week.”
“Well, I guess we’re good then. Oh, and if Heather asks, I was never in here.”
“I never saw you.” Patrick went back to his clipboard, and Stuart moved around the chefs who were preparing dinner for the night.
Heather looked up when Stuart approached. “Ready? Wait, isn’t that the same coat you were just wearing?”
“Uh . . .” He looked down. “Yeah. I realized I left the jacket in my truck. Ready to go?”
Heather slammed her book shut and stood to stretch. “Let’s go.”
The pond wasn’t too far from the hotel, but it took longer with the snow covering the roads. They pulled up and parked in the small parking lot next to it. Stuart wanted to pull out the skates right then, but he figured he’d check the ice first. If a horse really had gotten onto the pond, it could have weakened the integrity, and he didn’t want to go plunging into freezing cold water.
He walked out onto it and stamped his foot. “Seems solid enough. What do you think?”
Heather hesitated. “You’re sure it’s fine?”
“Come on. You’ll see that it’s okay. We can go out about twenty feet and fish there.” He held out a hand for her to take.
She finally took it and walked toward him. “Seems solid enough to me. So what were your friends talking about?”
Stuart shrugged. “Like I said, they love adventure too much and driving up an icy road with a drop off on one side is right up their alley.”
“They can do that if they want. I prefer this one.” She glanced around. “This is a perfect place to come and hang out. Look, there’s even benches over there.”
“Yep, this is perfect for fishing, swimming, or whatever. In fact . . . hold on.” He led her over to one of the benches. “I’ll be right back.”
He went back to the truck and grabbed the skates from the backseat of his truck. He stopped at the edge of the pond and put his on, then skated over to Heather with the other pairs. “I wasn’t sure which pair was your size.”
Heather grinned and jumped up. “You didn’t. I haven’t skated in so long.”
“Well, today is your lucky day. Sit down and I’ll put it on for you.” He pulled off her boot and tried the first skate. “How is that?”
Heather stood and stamped her foot. “Feels good. How’d you know what size?”
“I’m psychic. And I peeked inside your shoe before I picked one.”
“Ah.” While she tied that skate, he helped her put on the other one. “It’s been forever, so you’ll have to bear with me for a bit.”
Stuart took both of her hands and pulled her up. “That’s what I’m here for. We’ll take it slow.”
As they took the first few steps, it was more Stuart gliding and Heather being pulled behind. Heather couldn’t help giggling as she tried to keep up with him.
“Sorry, I’ll get it. I was actually pretty good when I was younger.” She squeezed his hand as she lost her balance. “Sorry.”
Stuart laughed. “You don’t have to keep apologizing. It’s not quite like riding a bike. Close. But not as . . . slick.”
“You’re truly inspiring. You know that, right?” Heather took a step and somehow stayed upright. A few more steps, and things clicked. She let go of Stuart’s hand and tried a few glides by herself. “I did it!”
“Keep going. I’ll catch up.” Stuart’s voice was farther behind than what Heather expected.
She twisted around to see where he’d gone and almost lost her balance. Stuart had stopped and had his phone out, recording her. “You didn’t catch that last part, right?”
“Of course not.”
“Stuart. Delete it.”
He laughed and shook his head. “Keep going. Let’s see if you can do a spin.”
“You do it first.”
“Okay.” He tucked his phone in his pocket, then glided past her, speeding up as he went. When he had enough momentum, he spun. “Like that.”
Heather blinked. “I can barely stay upright, and you want me to go all figure skater?”
“You said you used to be good, right? Could you do the spins then?”
“Well, yeah. But that’s when I went ice skating every week with my family.” Heather could almost feel the thrill from the first time she managed to do a sit spin. It had taken months to master.
Stuart skated over to her. “Okay, we’ll wait a bit then.”
Heather took his hand and they skated around the small pond before stopping next to the bench where her boots sat. Stuart sat down to rest, but she was finally getting the hang of it. She didn’t know when she’d be able to do this again, and the sun was beg
inning to set. She wanted to take advantage of the fact that she was here now.
The air froze her cheeks and burned her lungs as she made another trip around. She angled her skates just right and spun in a wide circle, then used her toe pick to shoot her off the ground into a flip. She landed and spun one more time before realizing what she’d just done. Maybe it was more like riding a bike than what Stuart thought.
She turned to find Stuart standing there with his jaw dropped. The phone in his hand seemed forgotten as he stared over it.
“I remembered how to spin,” she called.
“I see that.”
Heather skated back, her legs burning with exertion. It would be a miracle if she managed to get out of the bed in the morning. She started back toward him and didn’t see the drift until too late. Whatever grace she’d had in that flip was completely gone as she landed hard on the ice.
“Heather!” Stuart’s voice rang out, followed by the sound of his skates coming closer. “Are you okay? Hey, did you hit your head?”
Heather grabbed a handful of snow next to her and rolled over, hitting him in the face. His look of concern quickly turned to surprise and shock. Heather gasped for air as she laughed. The wind had been knocked out of her but getting him with snow had been too tempting.
Stuart grabbed a handful of snow and threw it at her, hitting her neck. “Here I am, making sure you’re okay, and you repay me by throwing snow?”
“I’m—sorry. But—your—face,” Heather forced out. She rolled over, trying to stand. Her feet kept slipping out from underneath her, making it even more comical.
Stuart held out a hand to lift her, but she was laughing to hard. He finally lay down next to her. “You’re a little crazy. You know that, right?”
“You just noticed?” Heather took deep breaths, trying to get her breath under control. The adrenaline that had come from doing the flip and then falling shortly after had begun to fade, leaving a dull ache in her knee and ankle. She’d be fine but getting back to the bench was going to be fun.
“So . . . when you said you were pretty good when you were younger . . .?”
“I won a few competitions. But then I got older and the medical field became more fascinating to me.”
Stuart rolled over and propped himself up. “Do you regret it?”
“Nope. I still love what I’m doing. I just wish I’d stayed in better shape. I’m going to feel this tomorrow.”
“Probably.” He pushed up to his knees. “The sun is about to set, which means the wind should be picking up any minute. We should head back.”
Heather rolled over but getting up wasn’t an option. Stuart slid his arms around her waist and pulled her up that way. She turned to face him, conscious of how close they were standing. She reached up to brush the snow off his hat, and out of his hair. Her breath caught when he pushed hair away from her face and ran a thumb along her cheek.
Stuart leaned down and brushed her lips with his. They were cold, but a wave of warmth ran through her as she wrapped her arms around his neck, drawing him closer. Time seemed to pause while they stood there in the cold air. All the worries of school and where she’d end up faded away. She just wanted this moment to last forever.
A wolf howled in the distance, shattering the silence. Stuart broke away, caressing her cheek again. His arm slid down her back, sending shivers through her as he took her hand. They stopped at the bench to change out of their skates.
Heather’s mind was a swirl of emotions as she fumbled with the icy laces on the skates. Now that they were done skating, she realized just how cold she was. Her fingers could barely move, but she finally got the skates off. Standing on solid ground in her boots felt strange as she walked back to the truck.
Stuart took the skates from her and put them in the back of the truck. Heather leaned her head against the headrest and closed her eyes.
“Are you sure you’re okay? You went down pretty hard.” Stuart started the truck.
“I’m fine. Just exhausted. My head didn’t hit the ice, but I’m going to have a few bruises tomorrow.”
Stuart pulled out and headed back to the hotel. His hand found hers and squeezed. “Did you have fun?”
“More than I’ve had in a long time. Thank you.” Heather smiled weakly, then closed her eyes again. It took too much effort to keep them open.
“I’m fine. Really.” Heather pushed away from her mom and went to the stairs to take her coat up to her room. Except the stairs were three times longer than she remembered. Maybe she’d take it up later.
“But sweetie, you look pale.” Her mom put her hands on Heather’s cheeks and looked into her eyes. “Your pupils seem fine.”
Heather sighed. “Mom. I didn’t hit my head. I already told you that. I know the symptoms for a concussion.”
“And doctors are more likely to be the ones who insist they’re fine, but they’re not.” Mom led her over to a couch. “You rest here. I’ll see if they will bring your dinner out to you.”
Heather glanced over at Stuart, pleading with her eyes.
“It’s okay. I’ll help her into the dining room. Why don’t you go save us a table?” Stuart wrapped an arm around Heather’s waist, holding her tightly to him.
If she wasn’t weak in the knees before, she was now. Even after ice skating for a couple of hours, he smelled good. Heather shook her head. Maybe she wasn’t okay. “Hey, Stuart? Maybe I need to stay on the couch for now.”
He led her over and sat down, pulling her legs up onto his lap, making it easier for her to lean her head on his shoulder. “Where’s your phone? We should text your mom.”
“It’s in my pocket.” Heather pulled it out and sat up long enough to send a text, then laid her head on his shoulder.
The lights had been turned down low when Heather opened her eyes again. She must have fallen asleep after they sat on the couch. Stuart was asleep next to her, but otherwise the lobby was empty. Her dinner sat on the coffee table in front of her.
She carefully leaned forward and picked up the bowl of salad and a fork. The croutons had given up being crunchy hours before. It was probably better that way. She didn’t want to wake up Stuart. No, not better. Soggy croutons weren’t her favorite. But she choked them down. After sleeping off the grogginess, she was starving.
When the salad was finished, she pulled out her phone and found her notes. It was finally quiet, and she had a lot of studying to do. She’d gone through several pages of anatomy notes, when her phone buzzed with a new email.
Another hospital wanted her to interview with them. In Tennessee. She tried to feel excited. This was one she’d hoped for. But all she could think of was how far away it was from Idaho. Did she really want to leave this behind? True, this could be just a Christmas holiday fling. But that’s not how it felt. Suddenly this guy snoring next to her on the couch had become someone she didn’t want to be without.
Heather stared at him for a moment, before closing out her notes. She pulled out the list of hospitals she could choose from. There were a few close by. She bit her lip, and before she could talk herself out of it, she applied for them. If it was meant to be, it would happen, right?
Stuart stirred next to her and sat up. He rubbed his neck and looked over at Heather. “What time is it?”
“Uh . . . it’s past midnight I think. You should go get some sleep.” Heather curled her legs up so he could move.
“You should too.”
Heather shook her head. “I just slept for a while. I’m going to study until I’m tired.”
“Need some help?”
“I’m good. You go to sleep.”
Stuart stood. “I would argue, but I’m beat. See you in the morning.”
He leaned down to kiss her lightly, then stumbled up the steps. Heather sighed and went back to her notes. She could deal with her feelings later. Right now, she needed to study the correct steps for simple surgical procedures.
Stuart made sure he had everything he’d packed an
d zipped up his bag. He needed to get over to the house to accept the delivery and get the generators turned on so he could get some heat going inside.
He grabbed the key and went downstairs to check out. The breakfast crowd was just starting to trickle into the dining room. He’d find a table as soon as he checked out and took the bag out to his truck.
“Hey, Patrick.” Stuart set the key on the counter.
Patrick looked up from his computer. “Oh, hey. Rachel told me you stayed last night. How’d you sleep?”
“Amazingly well. I got to sleep in two days in a row. Getting back to my early hours just might kill me.”
“I must say that’s one reason I’m glad Rachel went into this business instead of insisting I go into the ranching business. Long hours, but at least I can sleep in on the days I don’t have to watch the front desk.”
Stuart laughed and picked up his things. “I’ll be back in for breakfast. If you see Heather, have her save me a spot.”
“Will do.”
The weather had warmed up a little since the day before, but the wind was still cold. Stuart hoped the heaters his dad had rented would be enough to keep them warm while they worked. The sooner he could get the heating done, the better.
None of Heather’s family had come down to breakfast yet, so Stuart went for the continental breakfast instead. He grabbed some fruit, a couple of bagels, and some sausage and sat down.
“Now, that’s what I call a balanced breakfast.” Heather laughed and sat down next to him. “Dad already ate and he’s gathering whatever tools he can find in the car so he can be ready. I think you made his day inviting him to help.”
Stuart chuckled. “Hey, I’ll take any help I can get.”
Heather popped a grape into her mouth and waved her mom and sister over to sit with them. “I may stay behind. I have a lot of studying to do and not a lot of time left to do it.”
“Want me to help? I mean, I don’t know any medical terms, but if you have cards or something, I could run through them with you.”
