Winter Wonders

by Delia Latham

  That wasn’t fair, and she was ashamed of the thought. Not once in the few days she’d known him had Brady come across as judgmental or pious. Not a single time had he attempted to preach at her or make her feel like a horrible sinner that he had to save.

  Since when were ministers so incredibly handsome, kind, and utterly perfect, anyway? If Brady were the kind of man she expected pastors to be, she would have bitten off her tongue before asking him to so much as walk her down the block. Yet she’d pretty much roped him into joining her for a day of shopping that would begin and end with them closed up in a vehicle together. She’d be a captive audience should he decide to go all preachy.

  Maybe Kai hadn’t taken on the entire effect of her concussion. She seemed to have suffered a bit of personality disruption herself. Hopefully it wouldn’t be permanent, and she could get back to being the same cynical, inquisitive, professional, and completely untouchable woman she usually presented to the world.

  Despite her misgivings, Winter was gratified by Brady’s obvious admiration when she answered his knock on the door. His sapphire gaze swept her from head to toe, but didn’t linger anywhere it shouldn’t.

  For a moment, he seemed downright speechless but finally smiled right into her eyes. “You look mighty pretty, Miss Winter Wonder. I’m thinking I ought to head on back to my place and spiff up a bit…change clothes…polish my shoes…maybe get a facelift.” He winked when Winter chuckled. “Something. I mean, I clearly don’t look spiffy enough to be seen with the likes of you.”

  Winter ran a hand down his arm. His comment gave her perfect reason to do so, and she was dying to see if his long-sleeved pullover was as luxuriously soft to the touch as it looked. It was, and she forced her fingers away from the sensory pleasure. “You look perfect, preacher guy. Besides…” She struck a dramatic pose, put her chin in the air and flicked her hair off her shoulder. “Haven’t you heard? A man should always stand in the shadow of the woman he’s with.”

  Laughter burst from his lips in a pleasant rush. “Is that so? Well, there’s no doubt I’ll be doing that today.”

  “Don’t let her yank your chain, Brady.” Her brother followed his voice into the living room. “My sister’s a diva. Be strong, man. Be firm. Be—” Winter landed a hefty punch to his upper arm, and he reacted with exaggeration. “Ouch! Be careful. She swings a pretty solid right hook.”

  Brady chuckled. “I intend to be careful, believe me. I’ve already spotted the danger signs. How are you doing, Kai?”

  “Actually, not bad at all. My borrowed headache is a lot better today. I think I may go outside and wander the grounds…maybe take a walk on the beach.”

  “Just don’t get any ideas about taking that van anywhere, Kai Wonder.” Winter gave her brother a narrow glare. “You can’t drive until Dr. Rafferty says so.”

  “Far be it from me to risk Dr. Rafferty’s displeasure.” Kai grinned. “I’d much rather make the lady smile.”

  Winter blinked. Really? Kai had never outgrown being awkward with women. As a teen, he’d been gauche and miserable around girls, especially if any attraction existed. She’d worried about him, and their mother assured her that time would ease her twin’s discomfort, but even now, Kai mostly avoided females. He was handsome, smart, hard-working, and maybe the sweetest man Winter knew. Yet he spent almost every evening alone, never dated, rarely attended a party or any other social event—and absolutely never, ever voiced a comment that revealed any interest in a woman.

  “Well, she’s certainly the one who’s opinion matters right now.” Brady smoothed over Winter’s shocked silence while she busied herself snapping her chin back into place. “And besides, even if she weren’t holding you prisoner in Cambria, making Julia Rafferty happy would be a good thing. She’s a wonderful woman, and her smile is worth winning.”

  Winter’s tummy tightened. Not that it mattered what Brady thought of the doctor, of course. It certainly didn’t matter to her.

  “Are we ready, then?” Brady narrowed his gaze. “Are you OK? You look a little strained.”

  Winter wanted to melt through the floor. Why was she frowning? Surely not because he’d sung Dr. Rafferty’s praises?

  She forced a tight smile. “I’m fine, just…an errant thought, I guess. Yes, we should get going.”

  “Want to ride along, Kai?” Brady asked.

  Winter held her breath. She adored her brother and he’d always been welcome to go wherever she went. Yet she hadn’t invited him along, and now that Brady had, she found herself wanting to give Kai some kind of signal that he should turn down the invitation.

  “Thanks, but I really want to explore the grounds here at the lodge.” Kai wandered into the kitchen area and started opening and closing cabinet doors, looking for who knew what. “You kids go on and have fun, ya hear?” He winked at Winter, and she gasped. He knew! “I think I can trust you with my sister. You’re a preacher, after all.” Kai laughed.

  Winter managed a little chuckle.

  Brady didn’t. Kai’s comment, clearly intended to be humorous, brought out her escort’s sober side. He manufactured a smile along with them, but Winter noted a bit of a withdrawal. Brady’s firm, well-defined lips had thinned and tightened. His jawline was rigid and both hands curled into fists. He relaxed the uptight posture almost as soon as she spotted it, but Winter was a journalist and trained to be observant. She’d seen what she’d seen.

  They said goodbye to Kai and made their way to Brady’s car. He opened the door for Winter and made sure she was settled in comfortably before rounding the hood to the driver’s side. He took time to look her way and give her a smile that said he was glad she was there. Only then did he start the engine and send them on their way.

  His gentlemanly way of seeing to her needs touched her. She’d gone out with a lot of guys—most of them strictly as a professional courtesy—but never experienced this delicious feeling of being cherished, along with the certainty that her comfort truly mattered. Brady accomplished both of those things without making a show of it. He wasn’t putting on airs or trying to make an impression. His sincerity and concern for others was real. Somehow Winter knew that to be true, even though she barely knew Brady Merckle.

  He almost seemed more angel than man.

  With the thought, a memory surfaced—somewhat fuzzy, yet clear enough to take her back to the day and time.

  Her eyelids weighed ten pounds each, and what was going on with her head? Was it wrapped in cotton? She managed to pry her eyes open just as the slight heaviness around her head loosened and lifted away, and…it was red. Red wings…a bird. A cardinal?

  She was dreaming. Had to be. Surely she wasn’t quite awake yet. Why else would a cardinal have its wings wrapped around her head like that? It was too much to think about.

  Dazed and scarily confused, she blinked and tried to take in her surroundings, even if it was only some kind of dreamscape. She lay on the ground, surrounded by lots of trees in a huge variety of species. So…the woods, then. Why was she in the woods?

  She turned her head, grateful to find the movement didn’t make her sick. That’s when she saw the man standing over her, his sapphire gaze on her face. He possessed the most beautiful aura. The kindest eyes. The gentlest overall demeanor. Ever.

  What a face to wake up to! The stranger epitomized perfection. His looks, his eyes…everything about him. Combined with the odd semi-vision of something flying away on pretty wings, he put her in mind of angels. Or maybe…had there been another suggestion of angels while she lay…wherever she was…trying to wake up?

  Did she have a voice? She tried, and was pleased to find she could speak. “Are you…an angel?”

  “Winter? Honey, what is it? What’s wrong? Winter!”

  She blinked. Brady’s insistent voice had pulled her back from a time and place she’d completely forgotten—but it was real. A memory, not something in her imagination. After the plane crash, of course. Brady and Miss Angie had both been there, and this place in h
er mind…

  “Talk to me, Winter!” The urgency in his voice snapped her back to the present.

  Brady had pulled to the side of the road. One hand gripped her shoulder. Her chin was cradled in the other. A long furrow creased his forehead, and his eyes had taken on a deeper, darker hue, like the ocean in the grip of a violent storm.

  She must have really zonked out on him. But she didn’t have time to be embarrassed. “You really are an angel, aren’t you? An angel man.” Winter rested the fingertips of one hand on his cheek. “Anela ke kanaka.”

  

  

  Brady released her shoulder. He meant to let go of her chin as well, but somehow his fingers found their way to the curve of her cheek and refused to be denied the silky softness of her skin. Angel? No, not him. But he was a man, and in that moment, all he could see, feel, or think about was the gorgeous woman at his side.

  “I’m no angel. Don’t believe that for even an instant.” His voice croaked and cracked like a lovesick frog. He tried to downplay the emotion-laden moment with a grin that felt out of place and time. “Where did you go? You were so still, Winter. You—your pulse…” He cleared his throat of a painful knot. “You gave me quite a jolt.” I thought I’d lost you, just when I’ve finally found you.

  Winter’s eyes widened. Her lips parted. “Oh, Brady…I really gave you a start, didn’t I? I’m so sorry.” She laughed softly. "My pulse is always unpredictable. My doctor’s been known to have a hard time finding it too. But I assure you, I am alive and well.”

  “That’s a good thing.” Brady tried to smile, but he wasn’t quite there yet. “You survived a plane crash, lady. No way am I going to let you die in the front seat of my car. What would that say about my driving?”

  A trill of genuine laughter sent a thrill all the way to Brady’s soul.

  He ran one finger down the line of her cheek before reluctantly taking his hand away from her face. As he pulled back onto the highway, he glanced her way. “I’ve never heard of an ‘angel man,’ but whatever that is, I’m not even close.”

  9

  He turned to watch the road ahead, but Winter’s gaze burned his face. She studied him openly. No sideways glances for this one. Her gaze roamed as if she were trying to commit him to memory, and Brady felt the path of that gaze like a physical touch. A subtle tingle beneath his skin. A tiny fire of awareness that threatened to burst into flame.

  When at last she turned to face the road, relief flooded his body…along with an intense and profound disappointment. A sense of loss. He already missed her touch.

  “At the crash site.” Winter spoke so softly he had to strain to hear. “I felt the cardinal’s wings around my face and head, and I opened my eyes just in time to catch a glimpse of red when it flew away. Then I saw you standing beside me, watching me through those incredible eyes, and…” She hesitated, and Brady resisted the urge to turn and look her way. Somehow he knew that would be the wrong thing to do. “I remember thinking you were beautiful, and that you must be an angel.”

  Brady swallowed hard and then forced a chuckle. “You must’ve been dreaming, Winter. First of all…I appreciate the compliment, but…beautiful? Me?” He chuckled. “I was there, and I saw the cardinal—I was dumbfounded, to be honest. I’ve never seen anything like it. As for angels, I can believe they were there.” He broke off, remembering the golden glow around Miss Angie, the gossamer wings that appeared and then disappeared. “I know they were, and I believe God sent them to keep you and Kai from serious injury in that crash. But believe this, Winter, because nothing’s ever been truer. Brady Merckle is not an angel.”

  His passenger took another minute to slide her gaze across his face, leaving that electric tingle in its wake. Finally, she drew a deep breath and reached across the seat to run her fingertips along his cheek, from temple to chin. “Well, then, that’s settled. You’re not an angel. But you’re pretty close. When I saw you standing there, looking down at me, I felt safe and protected, despite having hurtled out of the sky and crashed onto the ground almost at your feet. To be honest…” She looked away and then back at him. Her cheeks had pinked, but she didn’t let embarrassment stop her. “I doubt a real angel would have given the comfort that you did, with that gentle aura of yours, and I mean that with all my heart. You’ll just have to deal with it, Brady Merckle.” She hiked her chin and brought out a playful smile—a deliberate attempt to shed sentimentalism and lighten the mood. “When I think of you, I’ll always feel the flutter of wings and wonder if you’re really an angel.”

  Brady shook his head and gave her a playfully mocking eye roll, but his mouth simply would not be denied a smile.

  A moment later, she shocked him again.

  “What?”

  Her entire mood had changed in a split second. Brady raised both eyebrows. What was she on about now?

  “Population eighteen? Are you kidding? Is that even a real place?”

  Brady grinned and whipped the car to the left.

  The tires squealed and so did Winter, but Brady managed to make the turn onto Harmony Valley Road—barely, but without mishap.

  “Hold onto your hat, pretty lady. Harmony is indeed a real place, and I think we have time for you to see what it’s all about.”

  He turned left again and parked in front of an old post office. Four other vehicles were scattered along the length of the community.

  “This is it. What you’re looking at on this street. Welcome to Harmony, population eighteen.” He chuckled. “From what I hear, that’s a combination of nine people and nine cows.”

  Winter’s eyes widened. “Oh, Brady. I love it...it’s quaint and quiet and…perfectly perfect.”

  He laughed, despite what her wide-eyed excitement did to his heart. “I like it too. I come here often, when I need to calm my spirit. Come on, I’ll show you around.”

  They walked past the post office and made a turn onto a short path that led to a small plaza.

  Brady pointed straight ahead. “That’s the pottery store.” He turned in a half-circle. “There’s the café. We should come here for lunch before you go back to Cornelius Cove. I wish we had more time today, but I can give you a mini-tour anyway.”

  “I’d like that.” Winter spoke in a hushed tone as Brady led her back toward the road. “There must be so much history in this place.”

  “There is.” He pointed out a large, two-story structure. “Harmony started with a cheese factory that produced over a thousand pounds of product a day. For whatever reason, it eventually ceased production. Later, the Diamond Creamery took over the factory. That lasted for many years, but eventually, it also petered out—sometime in the late 1950s, I believe. Now the old buildings are home to businesses where artisans create and display their work. Some amazing artists work out of Harmony. The pottery store displays some awesome talent, as does the glassworks shop. In fact, come on. We have time for you to see that.”

  They crossed the narrow road and entered an old building with a rusty metal roof. A few blown glass pieces brightened the area around the door—windchimes, plant stakes, and a few other small items.

  Brady held the door open for Winter, who stepped inside and gasped.

  “This is unbelievable,” she breathed. “Who would’ve thought to find something so vibrant and breathtaking hidden away in a place like this?”

  The shop was filled with stunning blown glass art, from small jewelry items to furniture pieces. Brady’d seen the shop a hundred times, but given the fact that Winter appeared downright mesmerized, he did a double take, trying to see the place through first-time eyes.

  She was right—it really was kind of unbelievable.

  He smiled. “Some of the most wonderful gifts come in small packages, don’t they?”

  Winter didn’t answer, clearly captivated by all the bright baubles.

  Brady was captivated by Winter.

  She seemed to belong in Harmony. Dressed in a style that bespoke flower children, beaded ro
om dividers, and fringed hair accents, she might have been born and raised in the small community of artisans.

  He’d seen her on KCCN a few times, and yes, she was undeniably attractive. But here…with her hair down, dressed in her own unique style, and without the mask of sophistication she wore in front of the camera, Winter shone like the brightest star in a night sky. Not a trace of haughtiness stiffened her spine or froze her smile. Those gray-green eyes hid nothing of her feelings. They sparkled with life and interest.

  Had he simply run into her in this little Harmony shop, he would not have recognized her as the news anchor for KCCN.

  “What are you thinking?”

  He blinked. She held a pair of blown glass earrings in one hand. With the other, she pushed a strand of long, blonde hair over her shoulder. A smile lit her face, even as she narrowed those beautiful eyes.

  “I was thinking that you seem to belong in Harmony. You love it, don’t you?” He didn’t wait for an answer. “I can tell, because you’re glowing.”

  “I am?” She laughed, a husky gurgle of merriment.

  I can’t imagine ever growing tired of hearing your laughter. “You are.” He held out a hand. “Let me see what you’re looking at.”

  Ignoring his hand, she held the card up to her ear. Bright blues and purples and greens sparkled in the overhead light. “What do you think?”

  He slid the card from between her fingers. “I think they were made for you.” He headed for the register. “You go on, look around for another minute or so, while I pay for these.”

  “Brady! I can get them myself.”

  “Allow me, please? I’d like to get them for you. Something to remember me by when you return to your anchor desk in Cornelius Cove.”

  “Like I could ever forget you.” She seemed uncertain for a moment, as if she wanted to say something more. Instead, she lifted one shoulder in a half shrug. “All right, then, if you insist. Thank you, Brady.”