Once a Marine (Those Marshall Boys)

by Loree Lough

  She’d turned a skittish, homeless mutt into a happy, well-adjusted pet.

  Protected the feelings of the once-timid teenage boy who had a crush on her.

  Met her fears head-on, enrolling in self-defense classes that no doubt roused painful and terrifying memories.

  Treated her always-needy, sometimes-selfish parents with loving respect.

  Pretended Rose wasn’t the least bit nosy and gossipy.

  Despite his excuses and protestations, Zach had a pretty good idea what life with Summer might be like. He should have kissed her tonight. Should have told her how much he admired all she’d survived…and overcome. Should have confessed that he’d fallen for her—a little bit, anyway—when their fingers touched that first day, and that he’d been falling a little more every day since.

  She didn’t need his protection. He got that now. But he needed her like he’d never needed anyone before.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

  “I CAN’T BELIEVE you put this off until the eleventh hour. Aren’t you the gal who has everything bought and wrapped and shipped by Thanksgiving?”

  Summer didn’t have the heart to tell Justin that she had been 100 percent ready for Christmas before he asked her to keep him company at the mall.

  “I postponed it this year so you wouldn’t have to go through the last-minute craziness alone.”

  “Please,” he said. “I wasn’t born yesterday.” Laughing, he added, “But thanks. I love having a friend who’s always looking out for me.”

  “It’s only fair,” she said, reminding him of the countless hours he’d been there for her.

  They’d each filled four huge shopping bags, and lugging them—two in each hand—had grown exhausting.

  “These plastic handles are giving me blisters,” she said. “Why don’t we stow this stuff in my trunk, and I’ll treat you to lunch?”

  “I say…which way to the parking lot!”

  Since Justin was in the mood for Italian, they walked to Ti Amo’s. “I can’t believe we lucked into a table by the window,” he said, flapping a napkin across his lap. “This place is always hopping!”

  “So what’s your family doing this Christmas?” she asked, opening her menu.

  “Same as always…dinner at Jammagramma’s followed by a present-opening frenzy.” He closed his menu. “I know what I want. How ’bout you?”

  “I’m thinking the fettuccini con fungi. I can heat up the leftovers for supper.”

  “No, silly. What are you doing for Christmas?”

  “Believe it or not, Mom and Dad might fly in for a couple of days.”

  He looked skeptical. And how could she blame him? She’d need a calculator to add up the number of times her parents reneged on their promises.

  “I know, I know,” she said dully. “But a girl can dream, right?”

  “Well, if they do their usual no-show, you know you’re welcome to join us. Mom is dying to see for herself how you’re doing.” He leaned forward. “When I told her how you hardly limp at all anymore, thanks to your self-defense classes, I thought she’d crack the windows, hoo-haaing.” He leaned back. “How’s that going, by the way?”

  They’d been best friends for years. What he was really curious about was how things were going with Zach.

  “Oh, I don’t know. It’s all so…complicated. One minute I’m head over heels. The next I’m looking for ways to avoid him.”

  “Seems pretty simple to me. You like him. He likes you. Anything else can be worked out. If you’re honest with one another.”

  “I wish it was that simple. For one thing, he loves kids. And kids love him.”

  Justin nodded. “So?”

  “So you know my history.”

  “The doctor never said it was impossible or out of the question. I know, because I was there when he broke the news.”

  Summer didn’t reply.

  “Can I read this pregnant pause—if you’ll pardon the pun—to mean you haven’t told him?”

  Summer only sighed.

  “Oh, good grief,” he said, drawing the attention of the couple at the next table. He lowered his voice. “Well, in my opinion, you need to get it all out in the open. Soon. And if the big, strong ex-marine can’t handle the truth, take a hike.”

  “Former,” she said.

  “Former what?”

  “It’s former marine, not ex.”

  “Semantics.”

  She grinned. “Unless you’re a marine.”

  The waitress took their order, and when she was out of earshot, Justin said, “I’ll top your unless with an until. Until you tell him everything, I refuse to listen to any more of this…this speculating.”

  She sipped her water.

  “You know I’m right, Sums.”

  “Yeah.” She sighed. It really wasn’t fair to judge Zach based on how he might react.

  “All right, I can see you’re just dying to tell me all about him.”

  So she told him. About the tight relationships between him and his sister, his parents, and the cousins—raised like brothers on the family ranch. About his attachment to the land his great-grandfather had purchased decades ago.

  She told him about Zach’s self-defense skills, and the gentle way he instructed his students. About his beautiful eyes and charming smile…and that heart-stopping, dream-inducing kiss at the fund-raiser.

  “Wait,” Justin said after their food was delivered, “did you just say hoedown? With banjos and Jew’s harps and fiddles?”

  “Don’t be a hater,” she teased. “I’ll have you know they raised nearly three thousand dollars for Firefly Autism.”

  “Impressive.” He bit off the point of a pizza slice. “But seriously? What sort of dancing does one do at a hoedown, anyway?”

  “Two-step, jig, reel, clog…” Summer paused, remembering the way she’d felt in Zach’s arms as they waltzed across the floor.

  “But enough about me,” she said. “What’s new at the shop? Which movie stars have you given styles to lately?”

  “Please. You know I’m not a name-dropper.”

  But that didn’t stop him from listing a dozen starlets and box-office icons who’d sat in his chair at Buzz.

  “I have to tell you, Sums, I’ve never been happier. And it’s all thanks to you.”

  “Me? I can barely operate a hair dryer!”

  “Don’t be modest. Without that loan, I could never have done it.”

  “Stop. You had some bank financing. In time, you would have built—”

  “That’s crazy talk, and you know it. In this market? I could never have competed with established salons. I’m where I am today because you had faith in me.”

  “Knock it off, will ya? I forgot to tuck a pack of tissues in my purse, and I hate blowing my nose on these scratchy paper napkins. Besides, you paid me back ages ago.”

  “Still…”

  “Subject’s closed.”

  “Okay, just one last thing, and we shall never speak of this again. You’re a prize, Summer Lane, and you deserve the best. So put this ex-and-or-former marine to the test. Tell him your story. And don’t leave out a single detail. If he’s anything but 100 percent supportive…” He drew a finger across his throat. “Over. Done. Gone. Got it?”

  Justin’s words stayed with her as they drove home. She thought about what he’d said long into the night, too. Because he’d been right. Zach had a right to hear everything. The sooner, the better.

  For his sake and hers.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

  ELLEN MARSHALL WAS in her element.

  She wore a red gingham apron with green trim, and insisted that everyone at the long trestle table wear a belled Santa hat, just like her own.

  “Your china is just beautiful,” Susannah said. “It’s things like this that sometimes make me wish Harrison and I weren’t such nomads.”

  The Lanes had once owned a perfectly nice house. Zach knew because he’d seen pictures of it on Summer’s mantel. He liked them, but cou
ldn’t muster any pity, because in their hopeful quest for stardom, they’d deprived their only daughter of countless childhood memories. Their regrets, in his opinion, were a consequence of their egocentric choices.

  “And all this family,” Susannah cooed, surveying the two rows of Marshalls, passing ham and candied yams, biscuits and butter back and forth. “Oh, what I’d give to host just one function like this!”

  It was kind of amazing, Zach thought, that Susannah hadn’t scored a leading part, because she was playing the I’m-so-deprived role to the hilt.

  Nate, the only Marshall cousin still living on the Double M, turned to Rose. “So did I hear right? You’re letting Alex go to Winter Park without you?”

  “I can’t believe I said yes, either. He leaves tomorrow.” She punctuated the statement with a tiny whimper.

  Alex pretended not to notice. “Yeah, a bunch of us on the yearbook committee are gonna spend a couple days skiing.”

  “What,” Nate kidded, elbowing him, “Vail’s slopes aren’t good enough for you guys? It’s where all of us learned to ski. Isn’t that right, Zach?”

  “It’s where you and Sam learned to ski. All I learned was how to slide down the entire length of a mountain on my butt.”

  “Aw, don’t be so hard on yourself,” their cousin Sam put in. “You didn’t crash into any trees, and got to the bottom fast. Pun intended.”

  Laughing, Zach decided he must have inherited his mother’s love for big family gatherings, because he seldom felt more content than when surrounded by grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins and friends like Alex and Rose.

  And Summer. Seated directly across from him, she was engaged in an animated conversation with his grandmother.

  She looked especially pretty today in a red sweater dress that flattered her creamy skin and curvy figure. When he’d met her months ago, her dark waves barely covered her ears. Now, shiny chin-length curls bounced as she talked and laughed. While searching for facts about her past, he’d seen her professional head shot, taken before the assault. Long, shimmering tresses draped over one shoulder, giving her a sexy yet sophisticated look. During the impromptu lunch with her folks, Susannah had shown him a myriad of photos: Summer’s high school graduation portrait; Summer in the marching band, a silver flute pressed to her lips; ten-year-old Summer on a California beach, arms raised in an exuberant ta-da! as the pigtails above her ears dripped with seawater.

  Nate cleared his throat. Loudly. And when Zach met his cousin’s eyes, he realized he’d been caught staring at Summer. He’d been on the receiving end of that mischievous expression enough times to know that if he didn’t act fast, his cousin’s on-your-butt jokes would seem tame by comparison.

  “So, Nate, when do you leave for Nevada to pick up the new horses?”

  Nate’s crooked smile said, “Okay, I won’t zing you…yet.”

  “That trip’s on hold. At least until the weather’s more predictable.” He buttered a biscuit. “Why? You want to tag along?”

  “You don’t want him tagging along,” Sam said. “He’d choose all the ones nobody else wants. Swaybacks, old nags, blind in one eye… If he had his way, he’d adopt them all.”

  His dad and uncles weighed in, recalling the feral cats, lop-eared rabbits and injured birds he’d tried to turn into pets.

  “And what about that two-legged lizard he snuck into his room,” Ellen said. “Went in to change his sheets and thought I’d die of fright when it wriggled out from under his pillow!”

  John laughed. “And the wolf spider he taught to do tricks.”

  “Gimme a break,” Libby said. “Only trick that arachnid could perform was eating the flies Zach caught in the barn.”

  From the corner of his eye, Zach saw Summer’s smile fade, and he hoped it wasn’t because she’d read something personal in their kidding remarks.

  Ellen put the refilled biscuit basket in front of Alex. “So how many kids are you skiing with?”

  He helped himself to two and reached for the butter. “Last I heard, thirteen.”

  “Uh-oh,” Nate said. “Better talk somebody into staying home.”

  Alex rolled his eyes. “I don’t believe in all that superstitious stuff.”

  “Okay, but if a giant tree falls down and blocks the slope, don’t come cryin’ to me.”

  After the table was cleared, everyone gathered in the family room. Tidy stacks of festively wrapped packages surrounded the fifteen-foot tree. As usual, Zach’s dad played Santa and doled out the gifts.

  “Did you tell her what to buy?” he whispered to Libby as the Marshalls unwrapped presents from Summer.

  His sister shook her head. “I’m as amazed as you are.”

  Everybody knew Libby was into scarves. Long, short, fringed or plain, a body couldn’t go wrong adding to her collection. But how had Summer known that his dad collected first edition novels, or that his mom was always on the lookout for unique, colorful teapots?

  Summer oohed at Libby’s gift of notepads that said SUMMER in fanciful letters, ahhed at the tin of homemade fudge from his mom, said an enthusiastic thank-you for the framed photo of Keeper Zach had given her. When the unwrapping frenzy ended, Zach held open a big plastic bag as Libby stuffed it with ribbons and bows and tissue paper. He did his best to hide his disappointment, because there hadn’t been a “To Zach, from Summer” package among the gifts she’d delivered.

  “Don’t look so hurt,” Libby whispered. “I’m not supposed to give you your present from her until everyone else has left.”

  “Why?”

  “I have no idea.” She glanced around, a conspiratorial grin on her face. “But Summer sure was keyed up about it.”

  Knowing that she hadn’t forgotten—or worse, deliberately overlooked him—raised his spirits. “Oh, you’re a big help.”

  “Okay. All right. I’ll give you a hint. But just one.” Libby cupped a hand beside her mouth and said, “It’s square.”

  Grinning, Zach wiggled his eyebrows. “So what time did you say everybody is leaving?”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

  “HOPE I’M NOT calling too early.”

  “I’ve been up since six,” Summer said. “I’d ask what you’re doing up so early, but I’m guessing former marines always rise with the sun.”

  “Yeah. Old habits die hard.” He traced his finger along the matte-black frame. “I meant to call yesterday to thank you for the gift, but Dad got me involved in a shelf-building project in his workshop. If I’d known it would be a two-day job, I might not have been so quick to volunteer.”

  “Ah, to store all those new tools your mom gave him for Christmas.”

  He heard the smile in her voice and found himself smiling, too. “You should see the honey-do list she tucked into his Christmas card. He’ll be busy until next December, making flower boxes and matching swings for the front porch.”

  “The house already looks like a postcard. It’ll be even prettier when he finishes.”

  “Speaking of pictures…” he said, gazing at the photograph. He could almost inhale the scent of Blue Spruce, and if he closed his eyes, Zach could hear the distant screech of bald eagles and the wind whistling through the scrubby Gamble Oak. She’d captured more than the sooty sky and snowy mountaintops. It was, in every way, the essence of the Double M. “I can’t thank you enough. When did you take it?”

  “That day when Libby and I went riding.”

  “I have to admit, I’m sorry she found the place.”

  “On my honor, I didn’t tell her where it is!”

  “I believe you. She thinks she got away with something, following me all those times. Even if I hadn’t seen hoof prints in the snow, I would have heard her, sniffling and sneezing behind me.”

  “Well, I’m glad you like your gift.” She paused. “It got kind of crazy on Christmas, what with the steady rain of wrapping paper and bows. I hope I remembered to tell you how much I like mine.”

  “You did. So…Libby tells me your agent set up anoth
er job for you in Boulder?”

  “Right. Radio commercials for a home improvement company. And a used car dealership. As long as I’ve been out of work, I can’t afford to be picky.”

  The call-waiting signal beeped, and he asked Summer to hold. Zach had no idea why Rose would call him, let alone at this early-morning hour.

  He had a hard time understanding her hysterical rambling.

  “He’s lost. They’re all lost. No one has heard from any of them. It’s been hours.”

  Alex and his ski buddies? Missing? Zach’s heart hammered.

  He summoned all the calm he could muster. “Rose,” he said, “where are you? At home?”

  “Yes. Yes, I’m home.” She whimpered. “Has anyone ever survived an avalanche?”

  The word hit him like a punch to the gut. He ran the few facts he knew about avalanches through his mind. Snowpack usually kept the snow from tumbling downhill. But winter storms, like the one that passed through last week, would weaken the pack. If Rose hadn’t misunderstood the phone call, any number of things might have caused the avalanche, from the echo of a human voice—or in this case, a dozen exuberant young voices—to a single skier’s shifting weight. Most came and went, unnoticed by anyone. Some merely terrified winter sports enthusiasts, leaving them to escape unharmed. And others were deadly. Having witnessed a few from a safe distance, Zach hoped Alex and his friends managed to sidestep this one.

  “Oh, Zach. I’m at my wits’ end. I don’t know what to do. The officer said… I think…”

  He could ask for specifics, but in her state, it wasn’t likely she’d provide lucid answers. Best-case scenario, the call woke her from a deep sleep, and she’d misunderstood the report.

  “Oh, why did I let him go? I had a funny feeling about this trip. If something happens to Alex, I’ll never forgive my—”

  “Just sit tight, okay, Rose? I’ll be there in ten minutes.”

  He clicked back over to Summer. “That was Rose. She says there’s been an avalanche in Winter Park.”