by Marie Force
“We were worried when we couldn’t find you,” Sarah said.
“Where were you?” Henry asked, sipping from a mug of coffee. At some point, Noah’s youngest brother had grown a full beard that made him look older than his twenty-four years.
“I went to dinner at the Pig’s Belly and got stuck there when they closed the road because of the accident,” Noah said. “I came home as soon as the road opened. I’m sorry you guys were worried about me.”
“We didn’t think you’d mind if a few of us crashed at your place,” Vanessa said, leaning into him.
He put his arm around his sister. “Of course I don’t mind. When did you guys get here?”
“Around five o’clock this morning,” Ally said. “After Gray called last night, the four of us jumped in Ally’s car and came up together.”
“Where’s Jack?” Noah asked.
“Skiing in Wyoming,” Sarah said. “We left a message for him.”
Emma came in the mudroom door with her daughter, Simone. They went straight to Grayson, who embraced them both. “Is there any news?” Emma asked her fiancé.
“Nothing since I last talked to you.”
“Can we go there?” Noah asked.
“Mom thought it might be better for us to wait here,” Henry said.
“Better for who?” Noah asked.
“Us, I guess?” Sarah said.
“Let’s go,” Noah said, glancing at Gray, who nodded in agreement.
“I can’t bear to sit around here any longer,” Gray said.
“Some of you guys come with me,” Noah said. “I’ll drive.”
They trooped out of their mother’s home and got into two vehicles to drive to the hospital.
Ally, Sarah and Vanessa came with him. Henry went with Gray, Emma and Simone.
“Did someone tell Cabot?” Noah asked.
“Oh, um, is that like a thing now?” Sarah asked.
“I think so.” It had primarily been a flirtation, but from what Izzy had told him about it, Noah had a feeling she’d want Cabot to know about the accident. “Do one of you have a number for Wade?” Izzy had met Cabot at their cousin Wade’s wedding to Cabot’s daughter, Mia, in Boston last June.
“I do,” Vanessa said.
“I’ll call him in the morning.” Noah pressed the accelerator to get them to the hospital. In the back of his mind was something he was supposed to do, but damned if he could think of anything other than getting to his sister as fast as he possibly could.
At eight, Brianna went around blowing out the candles she’d foolishly lit, thinking they’d started something special the night before that would continue now that they were back in Butler. After he’d left earlier, she’d ventured out to the grocery store to get what she needed for chicken Marsala, one of several dishes she could make reliably without much difficulty.
The Marsala was now a thick, gelatinous mess, the pasta had gone rubbery, and the too-familiar ache in her chest was back with a vengeance.
It was one thing to be a fool once. But when it happened repeatedly, that was on her and her piss-poor judgment when it came to men. She should’ve kept Noah in the pain-in-the-ass category, where he’d been before they left for the Pig’s Belly.
Standing in the living room window, she looked out at the snowy landscape and wondered why he’d said he’d come and then didn’t show.
You’d think she’d be used to being disappointed by men after what she’d been through, but alas, you’d be wrong. She hadn’t expected this from Noah. Despite how they’d begun as adversaries on the job, they’d connected on a deep, intense level last night, and to think he might’ve been playing her to get her into bed made her feel sick.
Moving away from the window, she went to the kitchen, flushed the ruined dinner down the garbage disposal and put the pots and pans in the dishwasher. After starting the dishwasher, she locked the doors and shut off the outside light she’d put on for a man who wasn’t coming.
She changed into her warmest pajamas and went to bed, pulling the covers over her head to form a cocoon.
Maybe he’d been in an accident, or his truck wouldn’t start. He didn’t have the number at the rental, so he couldn’t call her. She preferred the possibility of him being injured to him having stood her up out of callous disregard for her feelings.
After last night, Brianna wanted him to be different. She wanted him to be what he seemed and not some illusion that disappeared like a wisp of smoke up a chimney, never to be seen or heard from again.
It wasn’t as if he could avoid her when they still had at least two more months to go on the inn.
Her loud groan echoed through the bedroom. “This is why you don’t sleep with colleagues, Bri, because when they stand you up, you have to see them every day at work.”
God, this sucked so bad. She hated the awful feeling that came with this kind of disappointment. After the horrors that’d ended her marriage, she’d become accustomed to keeping crap like this to herself, but she needed to talk to someone. She came out from her blanket cave and reached for the portable phone on the bedside table.
Before she arrived in Butler, she hadn’t used a landline in years.
Her cousin, Dominique, answered on the third ring. “Hey, is this my cousin calling from Antarctica?”
“Not quite, but I think it’s colder here than it is there. Are your kids in bed?” Her cousin had gotten married two years before Brianna and had two kids, a four-year-old daughter and a son who was two.
“Out cold, and I just poured myself a glass of wine. I’m glad you called. I was thinking about you today and wondering how it’s going up there.”
“I was going to text you this week, but my Wi-Fi has been acting up.”
“I don’t know how you can stand not having cell service.”
“It’s been an adjustment.”
“I’d die,” Dom said with typical bluntness. “How’s the job going?”
“It’s okay. It’ll be better when we can move completely inside and get some heaters.”
“I also couldn’t do that. I hate being cold, and so do you.”
“It’s horrible. I have so many clothes on that I can barely move.”
“Better you than me, girl. I loved the latest pictures you sent, though. It’s going to be beautiful when it’s finished.”
“Yeah.”
“What’s wrong, Bri, and don’t say nothing, because I can hear it.”
“I did a bad, bad thing.”
“Do tell.”
“I slept with the contractor.”
“The bitchy guy you hate?”
“Yep.”
“Um, you’re gonna have to tell me how that happened.”
Brianna relayed the story of Mrs. Hendricks playing matchmaker and the evening she and Noah spent at the Pig’s Belly.
“It sounds like you had a blast.”
“We did.”
“And you finally got back on the horse. How was it?”
“Excellent. Not at all awkward, and I didn’t cry like I thought I would if I ever did it with someone other than Rem.”
Dom made a spitting noise. “Don’t even say his name to me. And PS, fuck him and the rail he rode in on. Tell me more about the cranky contractor.”
“His name is Noah Coleman.” She’d referred to him simply as The Jerk to Dom in prior conversations.
“Is he hot?”
“I had no idea how hot he is because he’s always wearing forty layers at work.”
“So, you had a great time and got stuck at a place called the Pig’s Belly overnight. Why do you sound like shit?”
“Because he was supposed to come for dinner tonight and pulled a no-show.”
Dom groaned. “Damn it. And here I was starting to like him.”
“Me, too.”
“And you have no idea where he is or what happened?”
“Nope.”
“Can you call him?”
“I’m not calling him. To hell with that.�
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“If something came up, could he have called you?”
“I don’t think so. The landline in this house is in the name of the owner, who lives in New York, so Noah probably doesn’t know who owns the house.”
“Well, there you have it. Something happened, and he had no way to get in touch with you. Don’t think the worst until you know.”
“I’m kinda preprogrammed to think the worst.”
Dom made the spitting noise again. “You’re not saying his name, but you’re talking about him, and he is nothing to us. He’s less than nothing. He’s dogshit on the bottom of our oldest pair of shoes.”
Brianna giggled. “Tell me how you really feel.”
“I have, many times since he turned out to be an epic douchebag.”
She certainly had, but she’d also been by Brianna’s side during the worst of it, and there was no doubt she’d saved Brianna’s life with her unwavering support. At one point, Dominique had gone four days without seeing her own family while she stayed with Brianna through the darkest days of her life.
“I know it’s almost impossible for you not to, but don’t go to the worst-case scenario until you know what happened tonight, okay?”
“I’ll try not to.”
“He sounds like a nice guy.”
“He can be. He can also be an epic PITA. But I saw a whole new side of him last night, and I liked that side. I want to believe it’s real.”
“Until he shows you otherwise, you can believe it. I’m sure he’ll have a good explanation.”
“I love how you’re so sure, and you don’t even know him.”
“I know you, and there’s no way in hell you would’ve slept with him if you hadn’t felt a connection. Especially since it’s the first time you’ve been with anyone since the asshole.”
“I did feel a connection. Noah kind of endured a similar thing with his wife, who slept with his foreman and best friend.”
“Ugh, why do people do shit like that?”
“I don’t know, but we bonded over our shared experience with suck.”
“Give him a chance to explain himself, Bri. He might have a perfectly reasonable explanation for not showing up tonight. You’re living in a cell phone wasteland where misunderstandings go to fester.”
Brianna laughed at how she said that. “True. It’s just so hard to have faith in anyone anymore.”
“I get that, but you can’t blame him and every other man for what one fucking psycho did.”
“I’m working on that. Thanks for talking me off the cliff.”
“That’s what I’m here for. No matter what happens next with Noah, we need to celebrate that you blew the cobwebs out of the tunnel and got your groove on with someone new.”
Brianna nearly choked on a laugh. “There were no cobwebs in my tunnel.”
“If you say so.”
“Let’s talk about something other than my cobwebs. Tell me about my niece and nephew. What’s the latest?”
They talked for another half hour about the kids, Dom’s job as an insurance agent, her husband’s legal practice and the progress on the inn.
Brianna was yawning by the time they agreed to talk again soon so she could tell Dom why Noah hadn’t shown up for dinner.
“Give him the benefit of the doubt,” Dom said as they were ending the call.
“Yes, ma’am.”
“And let me know what happens.”
“You’ll be the first to know.”
“Love you, girl,” Dom said. “I’m so happy you’re back in the saddle.”
“And I have the saddle sores to prove it.”
They were both laughing when they said their goodbyes.
Brianna felt a thousand times better after talking to the cousin who’d been her best friend her entire life. Dominique had helped put her back together after the shock had begun to recede and her new reality set in. Dom’s husband, Joe, had represented Brianna in the ugly and ongoing divorce proceedings. She credited Joe with saving not just her sanity, but also trying to rescue her from financial ruin. If Joe had his way, Rem would be the one ruined by his deceit, not Brianna.
She went to the kitchen to refill her water glass and noticed it was snowing—again. How did people who lived here all the time stand the endless snow for months on end? It would drive her crazy to deal with that kind of snow for so long.
Wherever Noah was tonight, she hoped he was okay and hadn’t ended up down the side of the mountain or something equally awful.
Chapter Nine
“What if the worst thing that happened to you turns out to be the best thing that has ever happened to you?”
—Joe Dispenza
Noah finally got to see Izzy at almost seven o’clock in the morning and almost wished he hadn’t been allowed in. She was so bruised and swollen, she barely resembled herself and was attached to beeping machines that freaked him out.
His mom was leaning over the bed rail, stroking Izzy’s long hair and speaking softly to her daughter.
“Mom.” Noah whispered so he wouldn’t startle her. “How is she?”
“She was awake a minute ago,” Hannah said. “She doesn’t remember the accident.”
“I suppose that’s a good thing.”
“I’m glad to see you. We were worried you’d crashed, too, when we couldn’t find you.”
“Sorry you were worried. I went to the Pig’s Belly, and when the accident shut down the road, I just stayed put there rather than try to drive around the mountain in the snow.”
“What took you over there?”
“Long story.” He glanced at his sister again and then looked away, not able to bear the sight of her so banged up. “Should I call Wade and ask him to get in touch with Cabot? The others weren’t sure if it was a good idea.”
“They’ve spent some time together. Cabot would probably want to know she’s hurt.”
“I’ll take care of it.”
“Will you ask Emma to call Ray, too? He must be wondering how we are. Tell him he can come here if he wants to.”
“I’m sure he’ll want to be with you, Mom.”
Hannah shrugged. “If he wants to.”
“Don’t be so used to doing everything on your own that you can’t lean on him when you need the support.”
“I’m almost afraid to rely on him.”
“I get that, but he seems like a solid kind of guy.”
“Your father did, too, until he wasn’t.”
“Are we under any obligation to call him about Izzy?”
“I suppose we probably should.”
“I’ll take care of that.”
“Thanks, Noah.” She glanced up at him, and he noted how exhausted she looked after the sleepless night. “Were you at the Pig’s Belly by yourself?”
Usually, he’d hold out on her, but he wanted to tell her something that would make her happy. “Nope.”
“Anyone I know?”
“Nope.” Right in that second, he remembered he’d made plans to have dinner at Brianna’s house and had completely forgotten after he arrived home to the news about Izzy. “Ah, shit.”
“What?”
“I had plans last night and forgot after I heard about Izzy.”
“I’m sure you’ll be forgiven when your friend finds out where you were.”
“I hope so.” He hated that he’d disappointed her after how her ex-husband had treated her. Unfortunately, he didn’t have the phone number at the house she rented, so he couldn’t call her.
Fuck.
Noah was sure the whole town probably knew by now who’d driven off the road. He hoped she’d forgive him when she heard it was his sister. “I’d better go make those calls. Do you need anything?”
“No, I’m good. Thanks.”
“I’ll be back to check on you in a bit.”
“I’ll be here.”
Noah went to the waiting room and asked to borrow a cell phone from one of his siblings who had Wade’s number.
&nbs
p; “Emma, Mom was wondering if you could call your dad and tell him he’s welcome here if he’d like to come.”
“I’ll do that. I’m sure he’s waiting to hear something.”
Ally gave Noah her phone after putting through the call to their cousin.
Noah walked out of the ICU so he wouldn’t bother anyone.
Wade answered on the third ring. “Hey, Al,” Wade said. “How’s Izzy?”
“It’s Noah, and she’s hanging in there.”
“Glad to hear it.”
“We thought Cabot might want to know.”
“Mia called him last night after we heard the news about Izzy. Somehow, he already knew about it. He’s coming up today from a meeting he was at in New Jersey.”
“Okay, thanks for letting him know. We weren’t sure whether we should call him or what’s up with them besides being friends. You know how Izzy plays it all close to the vest.”
“I do, and we weren’t sure we should call him either, but Mia said we should tell him and let him decide what to do, so that’s what we did.”
“Good call. Thanks, Wade.”
“We’re all praying for Izzy.”
“Thank you.” Noah had a lump in his throat when he ended the call with Wade and put through another to Carlo, dialing his employee’s number from memory.
When Carlo answered, he sounded hesitant, probably because he didn’t recognize the number.
“It’s Noah. I’m calling on my sister’s cell.”
“Hey, what’s up?”
“I won’t be at the site today. One of my sisters was in a bad accident the night before last, and I’m with my family at the hospital.”
“Oh, damn, was she the one who went off the mountain road?”
“Yeah.”
“Sorry to hear it, Noah. Is she going to be okay?”
“Eventually. Do me a favor, will you? Ask Brianna to call me on this number?” He had a phone he kept in his truck for emergencies outside of Butler, but since he was working in town now, it wasn’t charged.
“Yep, will do. I’m on the way into Butler, and I’ll pass along the message. Anything else?”
“Keep everything moving at the inn. I’m not sure when I’ll be back to work.”
