It was an hour later before the strands were untangled and the faulty bulbs replaced. It took another hour to string the lights around the tree. Brady held onto one end while Ella walked around the small pine tree holding the strand of lights, strategically placing it on the branches.
It was late in the afternoon and the sky was getting dark with clouds when they were finally done. Much to their delight, the lights turned on the first time they were plugged in. Ella explained the electrical outlet was connected to a switch inside the cabin, so they would be able to turn the lights on and off from inside.
They were getting cold, so they raced back to the cabin with Brady carrying the now empty box. In the garage, they removed their shoes, gloves and coats. Ella offered to make some hot chocolate, which suddenly sounded better than hot tea or wine. Brady offered to stoke the fire while she prepared the hot beverage.
Ella topped the two mugs of hot chocolate with a liberal dollop of sweet whipped cream and carried the mugs over to Brady, who now stood at the side window admiring the tree.
“We do good work,” he told her as he accepted the steaming mug.
“Yes we do. It looks pretty, doesn’t it? Especially with the snow. I like the way the colors glisten off it.”
“It doesn’t look like the other pine trees in the area.”
“It isn’t. Dad planted it one year. It was one of those live Christmas trees.”
“This was fun. Thanks Ella.” Brady couldn’t remember the last time he had been so content.
“You’re welcome. It was fun. Thanks for helping me, Brady. I couldn’t have done it alone.”
“Yeah, there’re some things that are more fun to do with someone else.” His voice was barely audible.
Chapter Fourteen
Ella didn’t return to her manuscript until late that afternoon. When dinner hour rolled around, she felt it necessary to keep writing, so she called down to Brady, telling him she would be skipping dinner and to go ahead and fix something for himself when he was hungry. Several hours passed and she heard a knock. A little irritated at being disturbed, she got up from the desk and opened the door. Ella was surprised to see no one was there, but when she looked down at the floor, she noticed the plate of food Brady had left for her, along with a note.
The note read: You need to keep up your strength. See you in the morning. Thanks again for this afternoon.
Touched by the thoughtful gesture, Ella felt guilty for her initial annoyance when hearing the knock. She picked up the plate and took it with her to the desk.
The next morning Ella slept late, waking up a few minutes past 10:00 a.m. The first thing she noticed when she woke up was the sunshine. Rolling out of bed, she sleepily made her way to the bedroom window. There was not a single cloud in the clear blue sky. Already the bright sun was melting the snow in the yard below.
She’d skipped her bath the night before, so she showered and washed her hair. The moment she stepped out of the shower she smelled the coffee brewing. Anxious to get downstairs she roughly towel dried her hair and hastily pulled a comb through it to remove the tangles. Instead of getting dressed, she threw on her floor length robe and headed to the kitchen.
“Good morning, sleepy head,” Brady greeted when she came downstairs. He’d already poured her a cup of coffee, and he handed it to her the minute she got to the foot of the staircase. Wearing a clean white T-shirt, grey sweatpants and white socks, he flashed Ella a welcoming smile. His dark hair was damp and combed back. Apparently he too had recently showered.
“I slept late,” she stated the obvious and accepted the coffee. “This smells wonderful, thanks.”
“I figured you needed your sleep. You stayed up past 2 a.m.” Brady’s eyes swept over Ella’s robe clad body. Instead of buttons securing the front of the garment, a blue fabric belt was tied loosely around her waist.
“How did you know that?” Ella asked as she moved to the living room window and looked outside.
“I heard you go back to your room after two.” Brady explained, standing beside her.
“I’m sorry, did I wake you up?” She asked apologetically.
“No, I couldn’t sleep myself. In fact, I just woke up about thirty minutes ago.”
“It looks like it’s going to be a beautiful day today,” Ella told him, taking another sip of the coffee.
“It certainly does,” Brady agreed.
Then they heard it, the snowplow, moving slowly and steadily up the street, clearing the road.
Sadness washed over Ella and she felt a twisting sensation in the pit of her stomach. She didn’t want this time to end. Unable to contain the unexpected emotion, tears filled her eyes. Standing still, afraid to look over at Brady, she bit down on her lower lip, determined not to cry. Unable to suppress the tears, they slid silently down her face.
Brady stood beside Ella, battling his own conflicting emotions when he glanced over at her and noticed the tears.
“Ella, what’s wrong?” He took the coffee cup from her trembling hands and set it with his on the windowsill, then he took hold of her shoulders, turning her to face him. The moment he asked the question, he intuitively knew the answer.
“I don’t want this to end,” Ella blurted out, her blue-green eyes sparkling with unshed tears.
Without thought or consideration, Ella reached up and took hold of Brady’s face, pulling his lips to hers. He did not resist. Wrapping his arms around her, Brady pulled her close, fully participating in the shared intimacy. Their lips parted and his tongue slipped into her moist mouth. She accepted the intrusion and wrapped her arms around his neck. Their bodies pressed together as the kiss deepened and hearts raced.
A sense of urgency washed over Brady. His hands moved from Ella’s waist and slid in the front of her robe, pushing aside the unwanted fabric belt strap. With minimal effort it untied, and the front of her robe opened, giving Brady full access to Ella’s nude body.
Ella let out a little gasp when she felt his hands move over the bare skin of her waist and hips, but she did not resist. He pulled her away from the window, toward his bedroom. Refusing to end the kiss, they stumbled awkwardly along the way, the kiss frantic, Ella losing her robe in the hallway. Anxiously she tugged on his T-shirt. They broke the kiss for just a moment, enabling Ella to jerk the T-shirt off, up over Brady’s head as they entered the downstairs bedroom.
Once they stumbled into the bedroom, Brady pushed Ella onto the bed, sending her sprawling across the mattress, fully nude and unashamed. Eagerly, he looked down at her. Standing beside the bed he hastily removed the sweatpants as Ella watched.
Her eyes glistened, this time not from tears but from passion. Brady smiled down at her and noted the way she moistened her lips in anticipation of what was to come. Kicking off his socks, and fully nude, Brady moved onto the bed, covering Ella. The kissing resumed, and Ella wrapped her legs around Brady’s waist, welcoming him inside without hesitation or thought.
Thirty minutes later, the two lovers lay sprawled on the mattress, each staring up at the ceiling, trying to steady their labored breaths. Content smiles played on each pair of lips, and while Ella looked slightly dazed, Brady smugly satisfied.
“We’ve sure been wasting a lot of time,” Brady said at last. Ella murmured something, and while her exact words were discernible, he was fairly certain she agreed with his statement. Ella rolled over toward him, and with a quick motion climbed atop his nude body. Straddling his hips, she leaned over him, her hands resting on his shoulders.
“This probably isn’t the best time to mention this,” Brady said, running his hands up each side of her slim body. “We didn’t have protected sex.”
Ella sighed then said, “Well, I’m on the pill.” Instead of dwelling on the fact they failed to use a condom, he reached up and pulled her to him for a kiss. They made love again.
Brady and Ella spent the rest of the morning and early afternoon in bed. By the time they left Brady’s room and looked outside, the streets were cle
ared. Neither one checked to see if the phone was working.
Hunger pangs finally set in, and the two went to the kitchen to make something to eat. Ella wore her robe and Brady his sweat pants. It was almost 3:00 p.m.
“You know, you don’t have to leave just because the roads are clear,” Ella said in a quiet voice as she stood at the kitchen counter making two peanut butter sandwiches. Brady stepped behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist before nibbling on her neck. She squirmed, yet moved her head to one side to give him better access to the tender flesh.
“I was hoping you’d say that,” Brady said between nibbles.
“Of course, we should probably do something about your Jeep,” Ella said, closing her eyes and enjoying his touch.
“I suppose. But it isn’t in anyone’s way. We can do that tomorrow; we have other more important things to do.”
“Like what?” Ella asked with a giggle.
“For one, make up for all this time we wasted,” Brady slipped one hand in the front of her robe and seized a breast, holding it firmly in his grasp. He gave it a gentle squeeze before rubbing his thumb over her nipple.
“Oh!” Ella cried out from sheer pleasure. “And how am I supposed to get any writing done with you constantly molesting me?”
“Not my problem, sexy Ella.”
Ella laughed at his naughty behavior and nudged him away with one of her hips before refastening her robe. She picked up one of the peanut butter sandwiches sitting on the counter and shoved it in his mouth.
“Here,” she said with mock seriousness. “If you’re to keep me satisfied, you need to maintain your strength. I’ll not have you fainting from malnutrition.”
Brady grabbed the sandwich and tore off a bite before saying, “You are a demanding mistress.”
“And just you remember that,” Ella scolded before playfully swatting his backside.
“We could drive up later to the cabin I rented and see what interesting food your friend stocked in the pantry.”
“Not a bad idea. I suppose we shouldn’t let it go to waste.”
“About the Jeep. Maybe it would be better if I just call a tow company and have them get it out of the ditch, charge the battery and deliver it here or at the cabin I rented. There’s really no reason for us to go do it.”
“Well, I’m not even sure I have battery cables, so that’s probably what we’ll have to do. Let’s see if the phone is working yet.” Ella picked up the phone in the kitchen and held the receiver up to her ear. It was dead. “No, still out. But now that the snowplow is clearing the road, I bet the phone will be working in a couple of hours or so.”
Agreeing the Jeep could wait, they finished the sandwiches, each had a glass of milk and then took Sam outside to do her business before heading upstairs to try out Ella’s bed.
Chapter Fifteen
“Hey, Susan, get ahold of Amanda over at cabin rentals. We’ve a Jeep up here that looks like it’s been stuck for at least a week.” Standing on the side of the road, the sheriff leaned against his vehicle as he spoke into the radio’s microphone.
“According to the registration the owner is a Kevin Jones. See if he’s one of hers. Find out if he’s accounted for. We also found a cell phone, down the road from the Jeep, one of those fancy ones. Battery’s dead. Not sure if it belongs to the Jeep, but it doesn’t look good.”
Almost an hour later, Amanda reached her cousin by phone. She had been frantically calling his cell phone and leaving messages at his hotel. While she tried to contact him, her husband, Chad drove up to the mountains to check out the nearby cabins. He had just returned, and was standing by her desk when she finally reached Kevin.
“Have you heard from Brady in the last few days?” She fidgeted nervously as she asked.
“What are you talking about Amanda? The last time we spoke you told me not to expect a call from him because the phones were out and there’s no cell service on the mountain.”
“The phones have been working up there for at least ten hours. And, Kevin, they found your Jeep on the side of the road. It looks like it’s been stuck there since the blizzard hit.”
“What about Brady?” Kevin shouted into the phone.
“We haven’t found him. Chad drove up there. He wasn’t at the rental, but that didn’t surprise me because it’s a good distance from where they found the Jeep. They also found a cell phone, and they’re fairly certain it belongs to Brady, but you will need to look at it to be sure because the battery’s dead.”
“Maybe he’s holed up at one of the other cabins,” Kevin suggested.
“Chad checked all the cabins in the area. They’re still locked up. My friend Ella Lewis is the only one up there right now, but her cabin is some distance from where they found the Jeep. If he was with Ella, she would’ve called me by now.”
“Can you at least check with her?”
“I’ve tried calling her but I think she unplugged her phone. That doesn’t surprise me because she’s a writer, and she went up there for the isolation. Ella doesn’t even have Internet or cable, because she says it is too much of a distraction. Chad stopped by her cabin when he was up there. Her Suburban was in the garage and there was a fire burning in her fireplace. He knocked on the door and heard her dog bark, but she didn’t answer. She was probably upstairs writing and didn’t hear him. He peeked in the front window and didn’t see anything unusual or to indicate Brady was there. But I’ll definitely keep trying to call her. If I can’t get her on the phone, I’ll drive up there with Chad.
“But, Kevin, there are a number of other cabins he would have come across before reaching Ella’s. Plus, she’s one of my oldest friends. I know she would have called me by now if he somehow ended up at her place.”
“I’m coming,” Kevin announced. “Talk to the sheriff and see if they can keep this thing under wraps. The last thing we need is a hoard of TV people descending on Shipley. And I doubt your sheriff would be too thrilled having them get in the way.”
“Kevin, it will take you hours to get here.”
“I’m not going to drive. I know where I can rent a plane. The pilot’s a good friend of Brady’s. Is the airstrip clear?”
“Chad,” Amanda covered the mouthpiece of her phone for a moment and directed her conversation to her husband, who stood quietly listening. “Have they plowed the airstrip? Kevin wants to fly in.”
“I don’t think so, but I’ll get Fred to do it. He wasn’t that far from here.” Not waiting for Amanda to reply, he dashed from the office to find the snowplow driver.
“Chad’s going to handle it, Kevin. Fly safe.”
It is not easy to keep a secret in a small mountain village, especially when a famous celebrity has been reported missing—lost in a blizzard for over one week. Kevin managed to make it to Shipley within two hours after Amanda contacted him. He arrived in a rented Cessna, which landed on a freshly plowed dirt airstrip at the foot of the mountain.
As they approached for the landing Kevin looked out the plane and let out a curse.
“I guess they didn’t keep it quiet,” the pilot observed. “I sure as hell hope we find Brady safe and sound in some cabin, and we can all laugh about this someday.”
“I hope you’re right, Nick.”
Amanda and Chad waited alongside the dirt airstrip and watched as Nick easily landed the Cessna. After Kevin introduced Nick to his cousin and her husband, he and Chad helped tie down the plane. The four squeezed into the front cab of the pickup and drove into the village, which was only a few minutes away.
“I’m sorry, Kevin,” Amanda told him as they drove down Main Street toward the Sheriff’s office. Parked vehicles were everywhere and people swarmed the street, many carrying cameras.
When they pulled up at the sheriff’s office, they were greeted by news people who rudely shouted questions at Kevin, while shoving microphones in his face. Amanda and Chad silently ushered Kevin and the pilot into the sheriff’s office, ignoring the questions.
Onc
e in the office, with the news people outside, the sheriff explained they were arranging a search. Minutes later, Kevin was shown the cell phone, and he confirmed it belonged to the missing rock star.
Up on the mountain, at Ella’s cabin, the two lovers had no idea what was brewing in the small village. Earlier, Ella had heard someone knock on her door, followed by Sam’s bark. When she finally looked out the window, she spied Chad’s truck drive away. Not ready to leave the private cocoon she and Brady had created, Ella had made no attempt to stop the truck.
It was on their second day as lovers when the landline began to ring. Instead of answering the call, Ella impulsively unplugged the phone and tossed it in a drawer. Brady only laughed, and made love to her again.
The two eventually wandered back downstairs, knowing they couldn’t ignore Sam forever. She needed to be taken outside. After that task was accomplished, they went into the downstairs bedroom.
The window faced the back yard and not the street, so they left the blinds open, still assuming they were virtually alone on the mountain. Never once did they consider someone might find the Jeep and start a search for the driver.
Making love on the bed and facing away from the window, they failed to notice the two strange men walking around the corner of the cabin. Sam rarely barked, even when strangers were outside. Had they knocked on the door, she would have. But the men didn’t knock; instead they made their way around the cabin, peeking in all the windows.
One man, with a camera hanging from his neck, looked in the window of the downstairs bedroom. He paused a moment, not quite believing what he was seeing. There sprawled on the bed, oblivious to the fact there was an audience, was the missing rock star, Brady Gates, energetically screwing a tasty little number.
He raised his camera to the window and began clicking away, digitally capturing the intimate scene. There was no need for a flash, so the photographer was able to take at least twenty images before Ella turned her face in his direction.
While Snowbound (Sensual Romance Series) Page 11
