Looking forward to catching up later today. That is if you’re still coming.
Joel’s reply came back immediately. What happened between you and Marcus?
All sorted.
Are you going to go back to him then?
No way!
Did you forgive him?
Yes. And she believed in her heart that she had.
Kate could tell that the temperature had plummeted overnight and she fell back in the bed, pulling the covers up tight under her chin, sighing deeply. She couldn’t wait to see Joel later that day. It was useless trying to deny her feelings for him. Her “just friends” mantra wasn’t working at all. As she lay in bed, she gave herself permission to daydream of a possible relationship with Joel. Now that Marcus was out of her life for good, maybe Joel wouldn’t be so hesitant around her. Then again, maybe Joel wasn’t really through his grief and that’s why he kept holding back from her. She was so confused. Was Rebecca’s death going to be a major hurdle in the two of them getting together? If in fact he wanted that to happen the same way she did.
She sighed. It didn’t matter, she decided. He was totally worth pursuing. And she would wait for as long as it took him to get over Rebecca.
Eventually she knew she had to get out of bed and she was glad she had left the heaters switched on to the low setting overnight. The house was cool but not icy cold as it often was in the mornings. The coals were still glowing beneath a large log she had placed on the fire before going to bed. She added kindling and paper the way she had seen Joel do it and coaxed life back into the fire. Before long the flames had taken hold of the dry hardwood and were roaring with life and warmth. Joel would have been proud of her achievements.
Opening the lounge room blinds, Kate was stunned to see snow had fallen during the night. The paddocks surrounding the farmhouse were blanketed in a layer of white. She let out a small sound, wishing she had someone to share her excitement with. As she gazed out the window it seemed like the snow was a parallel for how she was feeling – fresh and clean and pure, ready for the next season.
Turning on the television as she got dressed in front of the fire, she caught the last of the weather report.
“… last night brought a taste of winter back to much of New South Wales with many residents waking to find a layer of snow on the streets. The cold front will persist for the remainder of the week. There’s a sheep graziers alert and farmers are being warned to expect more cold temperatures over the next forty-eight hours. Local townships can expect further snow flurries. If you’re heading up to the ski resorts, there’s been a fresh covering of snow that is delighting those on the mountain. Here’s Rachel Digby with that report.”
Kate muted the television as scenes were displayed from the nearby ski fields. She went to find her warmest coat, gloves, scarf and beanie and spent the next hour walking around the property taking photos. The sky was overcast and it looked like it might snow again, although she wasn’t sure, having never seen snow actually falling before.
The neighbor’s cows were standing at the fence watching her, their backs covered in a dusting of white powder. Kate didn’t know anything about cows, but she had already decided these ones were the most beautiful breed. When she had first seen them in the paddock beside her house she had Googled them and found that they were called, quite aptly, Murray Greys. Their silver-gray coats and soft brown eyes made them look so friendly. They were an anomaly in the area as all the other cows she’d seen were black ones. In the background, the row of pine trees that formed one of the borders of her neighbor’s property stood like stately statues, dark green against the white backdrop. Kate snapped another photo as one of the cows bellowed plaintively at her. She laughed and wondered if cows felt the cold.
In another paddock sheep tried to graze, searching for food among the frosted grass. Kate was pleased to see there were no lambs and the sheep seemed to be well covered by wool. She couldn’t imagine how a lamb would survive the cold temperatures, although perhaps it wasn’t lambing season. She had no idea. As she stood watching the sheep, a lone kangaroo appeared from behind two large silos. It bounded across the snow and she watched until it was gone from view, marveling again at the beauty of the Australian countryside. It was as though she were seeing the views and images for the first time through the eyes of a tourist.
She was still outside when Joel arrived. Like her, he was bundled up against the cold, but looked relaxed and comfortable in the frozen landscape.
“Hey there Miss City Chick,” he greeted Kate enthusiastically when he found her in the backyard.
“There’s snow,” Kate squealed as she twirled around in a circle like a child. Everything within her wanted to rush up and hug him but she resisted the urge.
“I take it you’ve never seen snow then, eh?” Joel grinned and his dimples stood out in cheeks that were red and flushed from the cold.
“Never! It’s incredible! I’ve been out here all morning. It’s just so peaceful. And so pretty.”
“Want to come with me for a drive?” Joel asked. “I’ll take you up the mountain where there will be lots more snow. This will probably be all melted by later today unless it starts snowing again.”
“Can we make a snowman?” Kate asked.
“Sure, of course we can make a snowman,” Joel chuckled.
She could see that Joel was humoring her but she didn’t care. She kicked off her gumboots and left them at the back door while she went searching for things to decorate her snowman.
With her head buried in the fridge she called out to Joel, “I’ve got a carrot. What else do snowmen need?”
“We can find some sticks for his arms and rocks will do for his eyes and mouth. You might want some sort of hat and an old scarf.”
“Clearly you’ve had experience building snowmen,” she called out.
Joel laughed again and the sound made her heart do a strange flip. Marcus was all but forgotten.
“Scarecrows and snowmen,” he said, “that’s my forte!”
They headed off and Kate was pleased that Joel was driving slowly and carefully in the slippery conditions. As they pulled out onto the main road she was amazed at the changes the snow brought to the countryside. As Joel drove, she snapped more photos and there was little opportunity to discuss the previous day’s events. She was glad he hadn’t raised the issue but she knew he eventually would want to know what had happened between her and Marcus. After driving for half an hour, Joel flicked his indicator on and pulled off the main road onto a smaller track.
“Is this even safe?” Kate frowned, worry creasing her brow.
“It’s all good, Kate. This is a four-wheel drive and I’ve got chains if we need them.” He turned to her and gave a cheeky grin. “Do you trust me?”
Kate nodded, but she wasn’t entirely sure. Having never driven on snow she was somewhat scared that they would slip backward down the slope.
“I promise it will be okay.” Joel looked intently at Kate to reassure her then broke into a smile. “Come on, Kate! Lighten up, this is going to be fun. Honest.” He grinned again and Kate found herself smiling in return and her body relaxed instantly. There was something completely alluring about his smile that made her have complete faith in him.
Kate kept quiet as Joel negotiated the narrow track that wound its way upward. As they crested the top of the hill she gasped. Below her was a lake, almost black in color, its edges bordered by fresh, white, untouched snow.
“Joel, it’s beautiful. What is this place? I never knew there was a lake up here.”
“It’s actually the Birrangulla Dam. It’s one of our water storage dams. In summer it’s one of my favorite places to come to. Most of the kids come up here to swim and you’ll even see some of the local schools rowing up here.”
They climbed from the car and Joel led Kate to a small clearing beside some pine trees.
“Here’s the perfect spot for your snowman, Kate. There’s plenty of fresh snow here.”
“I don’t even know where to start,” she giggled.
“Ya just gotta get in and use your arms to scoop the snow into a mound.” He demonstrated. “You’re going to be cold and wet and will probably regret doing this but hey, everyone’s gotta make a snowman at least once in their life.”
By now he had caught her enthusiasm and was dragging fresh snow into a pile for her to shape. They worked together quietly in the stillness. All of a sudden Kate realized her cheeks were wet, and she looked up to discover large soft flakes of snow falling from the sky.
Joel saw her looking up and grinned. “Stick out your tongue, Kate. See if you can catch one.”
She did as he instructed and then giggled when she heard the click of the camera button on his phone. He kept taking photos of her as she danced and twirled in the snow like a child, catching snowflakes in her mouth. Every now and then she glanced at Joel. Judging by the look on his face, he was enjoying himself as much as she was. For the first time in years she felt totally free, caught up in the moment.
It took them another half hour to finish the snowman before Kate gave it her tick of approval. She posed beside it as Joel took more photos. She then took a few minutes and uploaded one of them to her Facebook page.
“Told you I could make a good snowman.” Joel grinned at her and then leaned over her shoulder to see which pictures she was posting. She felt his warm breath on her neck and a shiver of excitement rushed through her, landing in the bottom of her belly.
“Yeah, snowmen and scarecrows – you’re an all-round general handyman aren’t you?” She giggled.
“You’d better believe it. So, do you want to do something else?”
“Like what?” Kate was curious.
“Make a snow angel.”
“A what?”
“A snow angel. Come on, I’ll show you.” Joel promptly threw himself to the ground and began flapping his arms up and down and opening and closing his legs. Kate looked at him, astonished. A minute later he leaped to his feet and she looked – his body had created the perfect image of an angel in the snow.
“Oh!”
“Your turn.”
Kate mimicked Joel’s actions and gratefully accepted his gloved hand to pull her back to her feet when she was finished. Side by side on the ground were two perfectly formed snow angels. Joel’s gloved hand was still wrapped around hers and she was unwilling to let go.
“How about we go tobogganing?” Joel said, breaking away from her grip.
“Here? How?” Kate looked around her.
Joel walked back to his car and she followed and watched as he reached into the back and pulled out two large plastic toboggans, one red and one green.
“Here’s one I prepared earlier!” He held them up triumphantly.
“What were you,” Kate snickered, “a boy scout or something? Man, you are always so prepared!”
Joel handed Kate the toboggan and walked over to the small hill on the other side of their snowman. Setting the plastic board on the ground he sat down, pushed himself off and away he went. He flew down the hill, whooping with delight, his voice booming and echoing in the snowy stillness. Kate put her own toboggan down and sat down more cautiously on the cold plastic. Grabbing hold of the rope handle in her gloved hands she wriggled her bottom and the toboggan started to move slowly. As she wriggled some more, she gained momentum and soon she was hurtling down the hill toward Joel, screaming, half in fear and half with the same delight that Joel was experiencing. At the bottom of the hill her toboggan came to a gentle stop and she stood up awkwardly. Joel was waiting for her.
“Can we do it again?” she asked.
“Of course we can. But you have to walk back up the hill. I’ll wait here and take a photo of you coming down.”
For the next hour as the snow fell around them they trudged back up the hill only to zoom down again minutes later. Kate realized she was exhausted and hungry and beginning to feel the cold even though she was constantly moving. When they made it back to the car, she also realized she was soaking wet. Joel’s own jacket and pants looked relatively dry as he had dressed in waterproof clothes suitable for a day in the snow, but her jeans were wet through and it appeared her winter jacket wasn’t snowproof or waterproof. Kate shivered violently and suddenly the day that had started so well began to go downhill very quickly. Joel saw her shiver and immediately frowned, a look of concern on his face. It barely registered to Kate as she was having trouble concentrating. She just wanted to get somewhere warm and dry.
“Kate, you’re going to have to take all your clothes off,” Joel said, with an intensity that surprised her.
“I’m going to have to do what?” she asked incredulously. Her mind was foggy and he wasn’t making sense. Surely he hadn’t just said that.
“Get undressed, Kate.” Joel’s voice was insistent. “Down to your underwear.”
“I am not getting undressed in the snow in the middle of nowhere. Don’t be ridiculous.”
Kate was beginning to shake and she couldn’t stop her teeth from chattering. Joel turned the car on and adjusted the heater, cranking it up to the highest setting.
“Kate, if you sit in this car in your wet clothes, you are going to get very sick. You have to get out of them. I’m so sorry I didn’t even notice how wet you were or I wouldn’t have suggested we keep tobogganing.” He sounded so apologetic. “I’ve got a dry blanket in the car and I want you to get undressed in the backseat and wrap the blanket around you. Do it now, Kate.” His tone was serious and Kate had never heard him speak like that before.
By now she could hardly move and had lost all feeling in her fingers and toes. Joel helped Kate get into the back of the car and although she could feel the warmth of the heater, she couldn’t make her hands work. Kate knew that hypothermia occurred when the body’s temperature fell below thirty-five degrees Celsius and that severe hypothermia can be fatal without prompt medical treatment. She willed her brain to concentrate and remember the signs and symptoms of hypothermia, but was having difficulty thinking straight. She lay back on the backseat as a wave of dizziness came over her. All of a sudden she felt so tired and had trouble keeping her eyes open.
“It must have been all that exercise up and down the hill,” she said.
“Kate, I’m going to take your clothes off.”
Those were the last words she heard as she slipped into darkness.
Chapter 21
Two hours later Kate slowly began to wake up. Her head ached and her vision was blurry as she looked around, initially not recognizing her surroundings.
“Good to see you’re awake there, Kate.” She heard Ewan’s Scottish brogue before his face came into focus.
“What happened? Am I in the ICU?” she asked, feeling dazed.
“No, you’re in ED, but news spreads like wildfire around here. When we all heard you’d been brought in, I came straight down to make sure they took good care of you,” Ewan replied. “You’re fine, by the way. Just a case of mild hypothermia. They’re just keeping you here ’til they get a bed up on the ward. You’ll have to stay in overnight for observation.”
She tried to sit up. “I feel fine. I don’t need to stay in hospital!”
Ewan gently pushed her shoulder until she lay down again. “No deal, Kate. You’re staying.”
Kate closed her eyes and was quiet for a moment, waiting for her brain to function as she tried to focus and remember what had happened. After a moment she opened her eyes again and asked, “Where’s Joel?”
“He’s in the waiting room. He’s a bit of a mess actually. He thought he’d killed you,” Ewan said. “He tried calling 000 but his phone had no service up in the mountains. He had to strip off all your clothes and wrap you in a blanket to try to warm you up.”
Kate felt herself blushing. Ewan continued to explain, “Your breathing was pretty shallow apparently, and by the time Joel finally got a signal on his phone, he was in the outskirts of town and just brought you straight here to the hos
pital. Lucky he’s a pretty cluey guy.” She was grateful for Ewan’s explanation, but she needed to know Joel was okay.
“I have to see him.” Kate tried to sit up but her head was pounding. As she moved, the bair hugger, a thin warming blanket filled with heated air that was lying across her body, slipped down, half exposing her chest. She pulled it back toward herself and realized with embarrassment that underneath the blanket she was naked.
“I’ll go and get him,” Ewan said. “You’re going to be just fine, Kate,” he reassured her again, “but you might want to put this on.” He grabbed a hospital gown from the shelf and handed it to her as he left the room.
“Thanks Ewan.” Kate awkwardly put one of her arms into the sleeve. She was unable to put the other arm in due to the IV cannula in her left arm, which was attached to the fluids running into her vein. Just as she had covered herself as much as possible and pulled the bair hugger back up to her neck, Joel’s head appeared around the curtain. The look of concern in his eyes almost broke her heart.
“It’s okay, Joel. I’m okay,” Kate tried to reassure him.
“Oh Kate. I wanted today to be so special and I almost got you killed.” Joel sounded devastated.
“Joel! I’m all right.” She wriggled her fingers and toes beneath the blanket so that he could see everything was moving. “See, everything is working perfectly. No need to exaggerate.”
“I should have realized you wouldn’t have the proper clothing for snow. I just didn’t think.”
“As long as you didn’t take photos of me in my underwear, then everything’s fine.” Kate tried to joke but the remark fell flat. “Joel, come here.” She held her arms out toward him and gestured that he come closer to her. He took a step toward her but didn’t take Kate’s oustretched hands. She dropped her arms back onto the bed, disappointed.
“I’m so sorry, Kate. I’m sorry you got so wet and cold. I’m sorry I had to take your clothes off. I’m sorry about everything. How will I ever make it up to you?” Joel was close to tears.
Intensive Care: Escape to the Country Page 17
