He rolled onto his knees and sat up. She was lying beside him on her back, that aggressive white fluff across her like a thin blanket. She stared up at him in shock. “Apparently you still can’t hold my weight.” She raised her hands to the sky above to dust the white snow off her sleeves.
“Oh I can hold your weight.” He didn’t give her a chance to react and grabbed her raised hand and in one quick motion he pulled her up to her feet and over his shoulder; option number two. Against her objections, he carried her straight to the cabin. Unfortunately he didn’t have the key and was forced to drop her to her feet by the door.
“It’s freezing out here,” she complained, only half-heartedly, while she fished the key out of her pocket doing a little jumping dance. Her hands trembled as she tried to stick the key in so he took it and quickly unlocked the door.
They stepped into the dim cabin. A small, old-fashioned one room kitchen/living room combo with a fireplace against the far right wall and a couch facing two overstuffed chairs, each garnished with a knitted afghan folded neatly across the back. The room was pulled together by a large hand weaved and braided rug and an old baggage cart transformed into a coffee table. The kitchen was a small nook with small wooden cupboards that wrapped in a “U” shape with hand built tall stools and a small log table and matching chairs. There was a door on the far wall that was likely the bedroom.
They quickly tore off their shoes and Marc rolled up the rim of his pants so the wet wasn’t sticking against his leg.
Kate flicked on the lights. “Brrr,” she trembled.
“There’s the adult in you,” he teased.
“I think I need a hot shower.” She headed towards the door on the far wall and turned suddenly. “You’re not going to leave on me are you?”
“How do you suppose I do that?”
She shrugged looking reluctant to leave. “I had fun today Marc.” She smiled at him and disappeared behind the door.
He’d had a fun time too but it would have been even better if he hadn’t missed the meeting. Marc rubbed his hands together to warm them. The meeting. He pulled his cell out of his shirt pocket and dialed his uncle.
His uncle answered on the first ring. “Marcus, where are you?” Now he was sounding a bit exasperated without Marc’s presence. The man had been nothing but unreadable since he returned home.
Marc quickly explained the short version of where he was and of course his uncle was willing to do the meeting without him. His voice almost sounded relieved. Relieved. It didn’t make sense. He hung up feeling more confused as usual. He was starting to feel as though he would never understand. Was he reading into all the situations differently because of his father’s warning?
Considering the possibility, weighing the options like balancing a scale in his head, Marc crossed the thick wood plank floor.
He formed a teepee of kindling, carefully balancing the wood tips together over the coal bed comparing the working progress with that of his uncle, always on the edge of collapsing. He opened a newspaper, crumpled it up like the heavy feeling he got every time the teepee he built between him and his uncle caved in. An old tin match holder was tacked above the fireplace filled with little wooden matches. He took one and lit the paper and the flames wrapped around the kindling sneaky and determined, just like his uncle had been acting about this deal. He tossed some logs on top, shaking his head and deciding he needed a distraction. This game could play in his head all day long and he would be no closer to a solution.
Soon the fire was blazing and he rubbed his hands close by to warm them up. This was a nice cozy getaway, a romantic or even a family getaway that would draw a different crowd of people looking for a down to earth week retreat in the summer or winter instead of an all-inclusive resort. People who were attracted to having quality time, with no television, no computer; he checked his phone; and no Wi-Fi instead replacing technology with the shelf of games on the far wall and a corner reading nook. By the front large window, sat two antique parlour chairs angled toward the cream sheer curtains. Two bookcases met in the corner with a large variety of books available to read. That was like his own personal haven, a mug of coffee and a copy of “Uncle Tom’s Cabin.”
Marc turned towards the games. This was more Kate’s department. Monopoly, Clue, Risk, Scrabble...ahh Scrabble, that was a game he was good at. He pulled it from the shelf and carried it over to the refinished planks of the baggage cart surface. They were going to be here at least a couple hours while that little teen arranged pickup. When this was sorted he was going to talk with the manager and find out if their driver didn’t pay attention when he was learning the ropes to land them here without a way out for a couple hours. How irresponsible and infuriating. He, as a business owner, would appreciate such details mentioned about his staff and service.
Marc unpacked the contents of the game−board, tiles, holders, and recalled doing that exact same thing with the woman naked in the shower. Whoa! That jarred his insides alive again forgetting about whatever his name was and their predicament.
He literally shook his head. He had to build a strong wall to slam those thoughts away while they were together, alone and showering in this romantic cabin. Kate had made her feelings for him clear at the resort not two weeks ago and no matter how deep his feelings were for her...or his sexual desire...he had to respect Kate. They weren’t in their late teens anymore sitting about her house, after her mom had died and her days at the resort were less. She might have had a twin the same age that could have shared the responsibility, but Peyton sure had been lacking in motherly instinct. He remembered when the young twins were sent home with the flu and there was vomit spilling out everywhere. Peyton was a mess, freaking out, gagging, so totally out of control that Kate sent her to stay with Sydney who had moved in with Haylee’s grandmother. One diaper change later and Peyton was back home hiding in her bedroom. Kate had all these little young eyes looking up at her for guidance and a responsibility no sixteen year old should have to take on. But she jumped right into the role of dressing the kids, feeding them, making lunches, cleaning, watching her dad and making sure he was up and dressed for work, even if he didn’t make it half the time and then sneaking over to the resort when one of the staff called cause when he did make it in, but was too drunk to work. That was where Kate’s true handiwork showed, when she would show up and sneak around taking on all her dad’s duties with the help of staff hiding it from his parents so at the end of the week he would still get a paycheque to buy groceries.
Kate was never one to sit around but after all that working, and school, she had always curled up with him in the family room to play games. A lot of the times she would fall asleep in his arms and since her father never came home he would stay with her. That was the beginning point of his father over-stepping into his life, after a lifetime of living with a man who was too busy to give him two seconds of his time and then all of a sudden he had an awful lot to say when Marc stopped coming home every night. His mother worried too, but for an entirely different reason. She worried out of love and for his future. She worried of having grandchildren too early, whereas his father worried about his reputation. But none of their worries stopped him. He talked with his mom to ease her worry, although he was sure it didn’t and he faced his dad for the first time ever. He loved Kate and she had been there throughout his childhood when he needed her and he fully intended on being there with her when she needed him. And he had every day until after high school when he went off to University. Even then, he was with her as often as he could return home. Until one day she wasn’t there.
He heard the bedroom door open. He’d been sitting on one of the comfortable overstuffed chairs facing the entrance flipping a scrabble piece between his fingers. He looked up.
Kate was wearing a white robe with what, he was sure, was nothing underneath. That brought a whole mountain of images of what transpired between them after her sisters all retired for night and exactly what he assured his mother wasn’t hap
pening. Her hair was much longer when it was wet, the water pulling the curls into long wavy strands. She held her wet clothes in a bunch in front of her. “There’s another robe in there if you want a hot shower to take the chill off.” She smiled. “It feels amazing.”
We could have conserved the water. He shook his head when she turned away and watched her cross the room, her feet hiding behind fluffy white slippers. She draped clothes by the fireplace then turned and saw the Scrabble all laid out ready to play. Her face squished together looking disappointed. “You were always better at this than me.” She recalled.
“I remember.”
She eyed him suspiciously. “So you assume you’re going to automatically beat me now?” she questioned.
He shrugged, but gave her a little half grin that told her that was exactly what he was thinking, even if it wasn’t true. He liked to watch the spark come alive in her eyes.
She gasped. “You do!” She accused shaking her head. “Well, if you are having a shower get on with it,” she shooed her hands at him. “I will see what’s in that welcome basket to nibble on and when you get back we will see who conquers.”
He stood holding his hand out towards Kate. “I accept that challenge,” he said and when she shook his hand the tender warmth of her tiny fingers wrapped around his own sent sparks through his whole body. He recalled, as he closed the door behind him, how difficult it was to play Scrabble when they were teens without tearing off the others clothes. How the hell were they going to do it with only robes on? Maybe he would take a cold shower.
Chapter Sixteen
When Kate heard the door to the bedroom shut behind Marc, she breathed out a sigh of relief. She’d wondered whether he would actually be on the other side of that door when she was done with her bath and had considered not even running the water. But her feet were so cold they burned when the water swallowed them and she had been shivering through to the bones until her body was immersed in the hot bath!
If he’d walked out that door they would have faced the fire breathing dragon head on and discovered the secret she kept hidden in the cave and couldn’t face it. Not then and certainly not now. He wouldn’t understand. It seemed selfish but she did it for her family. He didn’t realize this could be the beginning of a friendship for them. After all these years she would love to be his friend again. She would actually love to be much more, but that wasn’t really an option. She also hoped this whole plan did not backfire on her and expose her purposely pre-booked long tour and the cash exchange for fake damage. She’d been so nervous sitting in that sleigh wondering if the driver would be able to keep up the charade against Marc’s upset overbearing manner. So far it had worked and the meeting was beginning, he was in the shower and his uncle promised her a clean slate. Now as long as Carl stood by his word, her life was beginning to look up.
Kate sat on the stool by the counter island isolating the small kitchen from the rest of the living space. She pulled the basket she had included with the reservation for the cabin and ripped the plastic away finding some hot cocoa packets. A little cocoa with their game would be better than the entire game.
But, she had to call her sisters and let them know where she was. She phoned her twin’s cell and was greeted with a friendly, but loud, “Where the hell have you been? You have been ignoring all our texts.”
It was such a long story. Where to begin? “I’m stuck in a cabin with Marc.”
The other end went silent.
“Um, just a sec.”
“No, Peyton!” She glanced over her shoulder. Door still closed. “Peyton!” She snarled in a whisper.
The phone absorbed the background noise and Peyton said, “You’re on speakerphone.” Her sisters all greeted her. “Can you repeat that?” Peyton asked.
Through clenched teeth she repeated herself and was praised with hoots and whistles from the other end.
“Oh stop that. It’s not like that.” Even though she wished it was like that instead of the situation that had brought them here...lies.
“What do you mean by stuck?” Sydney asked.
She quickly explained the short version, the same version that Marc knew. The real version was strictly between her and Carl and of course the driver.
Questions flew through the phone demanding a relationship status, curious how far along was it, was this why she wanted to start a business and come home, had they been talking since the funeral, etc.
She shook her head. “I am not doing this right now. I just wanted to check in with you three so you didn’t worry.”
“Oh we are fine, just sitting around the pool sipping margaritas.”
“You’re at the pool!” she asked horrified. “Take me off speakerphone.”
“Oh relax,” Abby said. “Oh wait, I bet you are really relaxed.”
Laughter filled her ear. Hearing their enjoyment made her heart a little heavy. She might be here in this secluded cabin with her first and only love but it was under entrapment circumstances and it was a little awkward really. She would much prefer if they were at the pool with her sisters under real circumstances brought together by fate not by one man’s manipulation and blackmail.
Abby continued. “You get some action since we all know I’m not getting any from my company.” She sighed. “I mean look at him over there.” Obviously she was talking to her sisters since Kate was on the other end of the phone and couldn’t very well look over there. Although if she let her guard down she could envision the tall, long haired, unshaven face of Riley across the pool shirtless adorning tattoos looking like her first impression of him−trouble. “I would tap that,” Abby said.
“Abby!” Sydney scolded then erupted in laughter. They had all obviously tapped into the liquid happiness.
“Look at those muscles and tattoos.” She listened as her sisters hummed in agreement with the youngest and drooled over a man who didn’t seem to notice he turned women’s heads or that the sad, little permanent scowl moulded on his face silently screaming “try and fix me” dug deep into their souls.
“Hey!” Kate hollered trying to snap their attention away from the man symbol and back to her. “No one is tapping anyone you hear me.”
“Everyone hears you,” Sydney said.
“Take me off speakerphone.”
They all laughed.
Abby decided to make her a deal. “How about I tap this and you tap that and then we are both tapping something we desire.”
The longing and desire deep within her was a subject all on its own. “This is not funny! You’re not tapping that and I’m not tapping this...”
From behind her, Marc cleared his throat. Kate froze. Her eyes fell shut. How had she not heard him come out of the bedroom? How had she missed the hum of the shower stop? Because she was on speaker phone, that was why and the loud background noise made it hard enough to concentrate that she had completely blocked out every sound in the cabin.
The conversation continued while Kate sat there frozen to the seat. “I would have to get him really drunk because he has absolutely no interest in me sexually,” Abby continued. “I actually think he might not even like me.”
“Oh please,” Sydney said. “You think he can resist you in that? What is that anyway? It’s like nothing. I wish my body looked that good that I could wear nothing with such confidence.”
“You could wear that,” Peyton said.
“What do you know? You’ve never had a kid so you don’t know what this...” There was a pause and Kate envisioned her sister twirling her hands around in the air above her belly. “Looks like.”
“Syd, you’re beautiful,” Abby complimented. “I will lend you one.”
“You have more than one!”
Kate heard Marc move from behind her and she opened her eyes. He walked around the counter wearing a matching white robe and poked around in the basket then took the hot cocoa she had fully intended on preparing. He smiled down at her. She nearly sunk into her robe.
“I think I’m
going to go,” Kate said realizing she was getting nowhere with her sisters except deeper in a hole and they had completely disregarded her. They knew she was safe and that was the main reason for the call.
He turned his attention, thank goodness, to shuffling through the cupboards until he pulled a kettle out. Kate couldn’t help watching him fill it with water and plug it in the wall all the while remembering exactly what lay beneath that robe.
“We miss you!” Abby said. “And we decided to stay the whole week so we have lots of time when you get back from your stranded tapping.” They laughed. Kate said goodbye and reluctantly hung the phone up. How embarrassing.
Marc was leaning against the cupboard, crossing his arms over his chest, staring at her with a smirk across her face.
“How do you even know what that means?” she snapped.
“I wasn’t raised in a cave.”
Kate slid off the stool and walked over to where the game was set up. She purposely sat in the chair across so there was a division between them in case he got any ideas from his eavesdropping. There would be no tapping in this little cabin, especially after Carl’s insinuation.
Marc joined her shortly after, setting down a cup of steaming hot cocoa for each of them and sat across from her on the couch, just as she had planned. He dug into the bag of letters and set them up. “You can go first. You will need the extra points to even get close to my score.”
She wrinkled her nose at him but set up her word regardless. Competition hadn’t been in his nature but that was probably because he was so naturally smart that he generally won with no extra effort. In his younger years he had been very somber, this new Marc instigated her competitive side.
“I’m sorry you missed your meeting.”
He shrugged. “My uncle can handle it.”
“What was it about? If you don’t mind me asking?”
He was switching around pieces on his wood stand, his eyes lowered in concentration. She glanced down at her letters and wondered if that was why she always lost because she didn’t spend every second of the game trying to create a bigger, better word.
Lakeshore Secrets: The McAdams Sisters - Kate McAdams (By The Lake Series Book 1) Page 11
