A Kiss in the Snow (Kindle Single) (Fool's Gold)

by Susan Mallery

  Large tables had been set up along the back wall. The food that could sit out at room temperature was set out. Other dishes were either put in the refrigerator or in a surprisingly large warming oven.

  Her aunt introduced her to Kipling Gilmore, the head of HERO. He showed her how the various dots on the map represented different searchers. She located Shep’s tracker. He was moving east, higher into the mountains.

  No wonder she hadn’t heard from him, she thought anxiously. He’d been out in the cold for close to twenty-four hours. So had the teenagers.

  She and Gladys sat with the other volunteers. Various teams called in their locations. The map shifted, colors filling in to show areas that had already been searched. About an hour later, she heard a familiar voice over a speaker.

  “I’ve got ’em,” Shep said, his voice low and strong. “They’re cold and hungry but conscious. There might be some minor frostbite. We’re bringing them in now.”

  Everyone in the office cheered. Nancee inhaled as relief filled her.

  “Let’s get this food heated up,” Gladys called. “Everyone’s going to be hungry.”

  Within a half hour, the first of the search teams started to arrive back at headquarters. Nancee helped set up a buffet line. As each group arrived, she checked the door to see if Shep was back, but it was almost two hours until he walked in.

  He looked tired, and his jacket was covered with snow. Kipling greeted him and the two men went into Kipling’s office to talk. Nancee’s gaze followed as she did her best to see if he was okay.

  She heard people say that the teens were being taken to the hospital to be evaluated. That Shep had been the one to find them. That they probably wouldn’t have survived another night.

  He’d always been someone who got the job done, she thought. Strong and brave—except when it came to staying in one place. Although she knew why he found it difficult to settle down, she’d always had trouble accepting that his past meant he would always leave her.

  He’d told her that this time was different. That he’d made peace with his demons. She desperately wanted to believe him but wasn’t sure she could. Still, after nearly ten years of loving Shep, she didn’t know if she had a choice.

  CHAPTER SIX

  “ARE YOU SURE there wasn’t a bigger one?” Nancee asked, doing her best not to laugh as Shep wrestled a giant Christmas tree into her great-aunt’s living room. He and Gladys had gone shopping for the tree while Nancee had finished up a cupcake order. Now the three of them would decorate the tree together.

  Nancee was, she had to admit, excited about the evening. She hadn’t spent any time with Shep since their day at the Christmas bazaar. He’d been out on the rescue, then had slept for nearly twenty-four hours straight. While they’d texted since then, something always kept them apart. But he was here now, and they would have a nice evening together.

  She’d already helped Gladys get the lights and decorations out of a back bedroom closet. The totes were stacked by the fireplace. Christmas carols played on the small ancient stereo. She had a spicy chicken casserole in the oven, a pie cooling on the counter and a tree to decorate. What could be better?

  Despite the size, the tree fit in the living room perfectly. Gladys wanted it set up in front of the big picture window. The 1940s craftsman-style house had high ceilings on the main level and lots of custom touches. It was a welcoming home, and the Christmas tree only added to the ambience.

  The smell of pine quickly filled the living room, and, for a second, Nancee thought about her childhood Christmases—when her mom had still been alive. These days she saw her dad a couple of times a year. He’d remarried. While her stepmother was a pleasant enough woman, Nancee had never felt close to her.

  “Lights first,” Gladys said firmly. “Then ornaments. No tinsel. I’ve never liked it, so I don’t keep it in the house.” She put her hands on her hips. “You’re going to have to deal with it if you find that upsetting.”

  Nancee pressed a hand to her chest. “My Christmas heart is breaking,” she teased.

  Gladys narrowed her gaze. “I’m ignoring your pain. No tinsel.” She picked up her handbag. “All right. Eddie and I are going to the Man Cave. There’s some ridiculous football game on, and while neither of us care about it, we heard a rumor that Jack, Sam and Kenny are going to be there.” She smiled sweetly. “Kenny always lets me pat his butt.”

  The last statement was almost enough to distract Nancee from the main point of her great-aunt’s statement. “I thought we were decorating the tree tonight.”

  “Not me,” Gladys told her. “You two. I won’t be back until late. You’re going to be here yourselves. Alone. I hope that’s clear. And I’ll make a lot of noise when I come back.”

  Nancee felt herself blushing. “You don’t have to leave. We’re family. We should do this together.”

  “I’ve put up plenty of Christmas trees in my day. It’s time for you young people to do a little work.”

  Shep finished adjusting the tree in the stand. He winked at Gladys. “You can pat my butt anytime.”

  “I’m going to take you up on that.”

  She put on her coat and scarf, then waved and disappeared into the late afternoon.

  Nancee raised and lowered her shoulders. “That wasn’t the least bit subtle.”

  “I’m okay with us hanging out together,” he told her. “If you are.”

  Heat quickened in her belly before expanding to the rest of her body. Some quality alone time with Shep? When had that ever been a hardship? “Sure. It will be fun to put up a tree together.”

  “I’m not that experienced. You’ll have to direct me.” He glanced at the fireplace. “Let me get a fire going.”

  She nodded without speaking, but on the inside, there were a thousand words. Most of them he wouldn’t want to hear. Things like how badly she felt that he hadn’t had a normal childhood with loving parents and presents on Christmas Day. That once he’d gotten out on his own, there hadn’t been anyone to share the holidays with. She and Shep had only been together in the summer. This was the first Christmas they would spend together.

  She briefly wondered if there had been other girlfriends over other holidays, but decided not to go there. Shep had plenty of flaws—the biggest of which was his inability to settle in one place. But when he was with her, he’d never been anything but faithful and attentive. All in, she thought with a smile.

  While she had no way of knowing how many family Christmases he’d had in his life, she would make this one special. A holiday he would remember happily, whatever happened between them. She already had her present for him. She’d had it more than four years, to be honest. Despite everything, when she’d stumbled on a copy of the limited edition of Birds of America by John James Audubon, she’d immediately thought of him. The book had been published in the first half of the nineteenth century and had hundreds of full-color plates. As Shep loved all things from nature, she knew he would be excited to own the book. Funny how she’d kept it all this time, and now she could finally give it to him.

  Once he’d lit a fire in the fireplace, they went to work on untangling lights. There were yards and yards of them—all clear lights that Nancee suspected would twinkle. Gladys struck her as the twinkle light kind of gal.

  “What’s your dad doing for Christmas?” Shep asked as he stretched out yet another string of lights. They laid them on the floor to figure out how many strands they had. Once they were sure all of them worked, they would start stringing them.

  “He and my stepmother are taking a cruise with her family. The Caribbean.”

  “You didn’t want to go?”

  “When they were making their arrangements, I was still under investigation by the FBI and I couldn’t leave town. I didn’t know how long that was going to last, so I didn’t want to make a reservation.”r />
  She plugged in the first set of lights. They lit, and she unplugged them, then handed the string to Shep.

  “You want to start at the top and work your way down,” she told him. “Leave that end plug accessible. There’s a big tree topper that will plug into it.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  His voice was teasing. She laughed. “You did tell me to take charge.”

  “I like it when you take charge.”

  His words made her shiver. Because there had always been chemistry between them, she thought wistfully. And he was the kind of man comfortable with a woman telling him exactly what she wanted. Shep didn’t worry about things like convention. When they were in bed, he was into whatever felt good for both of them.

  “Are you sorry you’re not on the cruise?” he asked, drawing her back to their conversation.

  “No. When the FBI finally said I could leave town I could have tried to book a cabin, but to be honest I wasn’t excited about joining them. My stepmother has a big family, and there would have been a lot of questions.” About what had happened. About what she was going to do next. Talk about not having answers.

  “Gladys and I have always been close. She immediately invited me to join her here. I knew I’d be safe with her.” Safe? She hadn’t meant to say that, but somehow the word had formed.

  “Then I ambushed you.”

  She handed him another string of lights. “That was a good ambush. I still can’t believe you’re here. I guess all those times I talked about Fool’s Gold made an impact. I can’t believe you remembered my silly stories.”

  He frowned. “I remember everything about our time together,” he told her. “Everything you said. I didn’t come to Fool’s Gold because of what you said about the town. I moved here because I knew there was a good chance you would show up eventually. I came to Fool’s Gold for you, Nancee.”

  Shep sure had a way of leaving her speechless, she thought as she stared at him. He had said “I love you” before, lots of times, but this was different. He had changed his whole life just in the hopes of maybe seeing her again. That was powerful. And scary and wonderful.

  They looked at each other for several seconds. She didn’t know what to say. Maybe words weren’t required. Maybe she should just kiss him. Or rip off her shirt. Shep had always been good at picking up on clues like shirt removal.

  He’d moved here for her? He’d waited for her?

  “What if I hadn’t come back?”

  “I would have kept on living my life. There’s nowhere else I want to be but here. I was hoping that would be with you, but if not, I’m still staying.”

  Emotions bubbled inside her. A few rose to the surface, making her happy, sad, excited and scared. It was all too much. This man—he had always been a part of her. Always been someone she loved. But did they belong together? Could she trust that it would work out between them? What if he left her again?

  Too many questions. Too many uncertainties. Later, she promised herself. Later she would take apart his words and figure out what they meant. For now, they would decorate a Christmas tree.

  She handed him the next strand of lights. He took them and smiled.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  MONDAY AT NOON, Nancee found herself equal parts excited and nervous. She walked into Jo’s Bar and searched for a familiar face. Madeline had unexpectedly called the night before and invited Nancee to lunch with a few of her friends. Apparently the women in town did this all the time.

  “If you’re going to stay in Fool’s Gold, you’re going to have to learn to love us all,” Madeline had told her with a laugh. “I’m getting a group together. I’ll keep it small so as not to scare you away.”

  Gladys had told her all about Jo’s Bar. How it catered mostly to women. Rather than pool tables and heavy wood paneling, the place was decorated in pastel colors, and there was plenty of natural light. Generous booths lined two walls, while tables filled up the middle of the room. There were TVs on the walls, but they were tuned to what looked like HGTV.

  Madeline walked in right behind Nancee and greeted her. She pointed to one of the screens. “I have a wonderful husband whom I love very much, but I have to say those Property Brothers are still pretty hunky.”

  “I agree. Thanks for inviting me to lunch.”

  “I’m glad you could come. I know it was short notice, but I suddenly realized how close Christmas is. I was afraid everyone would be too busy if I left it much longer.” She smiled. “Most businesses are gearing up at the holidays. Mine gets quiet.”

  Nancee thought about what Gladys had told her. “You own Paper Moon, right?” The store sold beautiful wedding gowns.

  “I’m a part owner, and I love it. If you’re in the market for something white and lacy, come see me.”

  “I will.”

  Madeline’s expression turned expectant. “Nothing to report? Shep hasn’t proposed?”

  Nancee laughed. “That wasn’t the least bit subtle.”

  “I know. I need to work on that, huh? Let’s go get a table.”

  Madeline chose a large round table, as if they were expecting a big crowd. Over the next few minutes, another eight women joined them. Nancee was introduced to them all. Names and faces blurred.

  She found herself seated between Madeline and a beautiful redhead named Felicia.

  “You work for the city?” Nancee asked, trying to keep everyone straight.

  “I do. I’m in charge of the festivals.” Felicia smoothed her napkin onto her lap. “Towns have different personalities. Fool’s Gold is frequently defined by its annual rituals. Things like festivals anchor us in space and time. They provide continuity and a sense of community. I enjoy my work.”

  Madeline leaned close. “Felicia is crazy smart. She used to do secret work for the government. But she’s lovely and an amazing friend.”

  Felicia smiled. “I’m not sure my government work would qualify as secret.”

  “Can you talk about it?” Madeline asked.

  “Not in any detail.”

  “Like I said. Secret.”

  Nancee chuckled.

  Felicia nodded. “I see your point.” She looked at Nancee. “You used to spend your summers here?”

  “For a few years. Late middle school and early high school. My mom died, and my dad didn’t know what to do with me over the summer.”

  “I’m sorry for your loss,” Felicia said. “The death of a parent is profound. We tend to evaluate our lives differently after something like that. Especially if we’re young. Did you meet Shep here?”

  Nancee did her best to keep her mouth from dropping open. “Shep?”

  Felicia looked confused. “I’d heard you two were together. Is that wrong?”

  “We’re, um, well, it’s complicated.”

  “Male-female relationships often are. Gideon and I have been married for several years, and we still argue every now and then. But whatever happens, I tell him I have committed myself to him and our marriage, so no matter what he’s stuck with me.” She lowered her voice. “Gideon knows that he isn’t trapped. He could walk away. I’m not a parasite—I certainly wouldn’t actually cling to him. But the metaphor of being stuck is very comforting to us both.” She frowned. “I wonder if I should research the biological origin of that emotion.”

  Consuelo, a petite, incredibly fit, dark-haired woman, shook her head. “No, you shouldn’t. You should be thinking about things like baking cookies and wrapping presents. It’s the holidays, Felicia. Save your research projects for January.”

  “What on earth does the month have to do with the feasibility of studying something?”

  “It’s Christmas.”

  “You made that clear. Not that I wasn’t aware of the upcoming celebration.”

  Nancee held in a l
augh. These woman obviously cared about each other, she thought happily. What a wonderful surprise to find this kind of a community in town. They were so welcoming, too. As if they wanted her to feel that she belonged. She found herself wanting to feel that way, too. Maybe permanently.

  * * *

  Out with ski patrol all day. You free tomorrow afternoon?

  The text—a handful of words—shouldn’t have had the ability to get her heart beating faster. And yet here she was—grinning like a fool, all because she’d heard from Shep.

  I am, she texted back. They agreed on a time, then she tucked her phone into her jeans pocket. She was making cupcakes for a big family party. The Hendrix clan was having a get-together, and the matriarch, Denise Hendrix, had ordered four-dozen holiday-themed cupcakes. The baking was finished, and now she was decorating.

  She’d decided on a simple, family-friendly theme. Shelby had mentioned there were a lot of kids, so she’d done a third of the cupcakes in a white frosting with little reindeer on top, complete with red noses. The other cupcakes would have more traditional holly leaves and wreaths.

  While the work kept her hands busy, her mind was free to wander. She found herself thinking about her lunch with her new friends and the evening she and Shep had spent decorating the tree. Both had been fun, but they’d also given her a sense of the possibilities. If she stayed here, she would be able to make a place for herself. She would fit in. At least with the women. As for Shep...well, he still confused her.

  She cared about him. She supposed she always had, and even getting involved with Sean hadn’t changed that. When Shep had told her that he’d moved to Fool’s Gold for her, she hadn’t known what to think. Was he saying that he still loved her? He’d certainly gone out of his way to be with her. Even knowing she was with someone else. He hadn’t shown up in DC or done anything to disrupt her life. Instead he’d waited. Maybe even hoped.

  Theirs had always been a straightforward relationship. They’d met and fallen in love. The problem had been him. Knowing what she did about his past, she understood why he had to always keep moving, but knowing the truth didn’t make it easier to live with.