Opening Her Heart

by Deb Kastner

  “Oh, yeah? What about?”

  “Are you aware there are several plants and animals on the endangered-species list that are indigenous to this region?”

  He hadn’t known that. It hadn’t even occurred to him, as no one had ever brought it up in prior deals.

  “It’s quite fascinating reading, really. It’s important that we don’t build in areas where these plants and animals live. I’ve just scratched the surface so far and have no idea just how many there are altogether. It’s really opened my eyes to all of God’s creations.”

  “Are you trying to tell me I’m going to have difficulties when I try to get the zoning laws changed for the resort area?”

  She shrugged and didn’t quite meet his gaze. “I’m not trying to tell you anything. You asked me what I was doing here. That’s what I’m doing.”

  She was going to use what she’d discovered against him. She wasn’t going to back down no matter what he said. He knew that now. If she had to fight a huge corporation who could smash her under their heel, she would. If she had to face Goliath with a mere sling and a stone, that’s exactly what she would do.

  It wasn’t that he was in any way concerned she would succeed in her endeavors. He didn’t find that humorous or her stubbornness annoying, although he might as well, as she was getting in the way of what he needed to do to finish his job here.

  Instead, with Avery, he admired her strength of spirit and singlemindedness.

  She didn’t want this house for her own benefit but to minister to others. If it was solely up to Jake, he’d let her have it and look elsewhere for the resort.

  She’d changed some things for him. He realized whether or not they built the resort here or in another small town, many of Avery’s concerns were the same no matter where he went. Six of one and half a dozen of the other. He’d been smashing into small towns and changing them, for better or worse, since he’d started doing this job.

  It gave him a lot to think about.

  “I don’t want to argue with you anymore,” he admitted softly, reaching out and taking her hand.

  She glanced down at where their hands met, but to his surprise, she didn’t snatch hers away as he’d expected her to do. “Neither do I.”

  “Even if we’re on opposite sides?” he asked in a whisper.

  “Even then. Maybe especially then.”

  “Good.” He hadn’t expected it to be that easy for them to come to an understanding. He captured her gaze and saw the same astonishment registered there. She was no less surprised than he was.

  “Good,” she echoed.

  He wanted to mark this change in their relationship with something tangible, but putting a boulder in the yard to signify their cease-fire didn’t seem quite right for the occasion. Maybe something a little more fun.

  “Tomorrow is Friday,” he stated, as if that was some important information of which only he was aware.

  “Yes, it is,” she agreed, a small smile creeping onto her lips.

  “Lottie,” he continued. He paused but Avery didn’t interrupt him. “She likes to ice-skate. I hear the outdoor rink at Winslow’s Woodlands is open on Friday nights.”

  “It is, at least for a few more weeks, while the ice is still nice and solid.”

  “Do you—I mean, are you going to be there?”

  “I don’t make it a habit of attending the Friday-night skates. Not recently, anyway. I used to love to ice-skate when I was a kid, but things have gotten very busy lately.”

  He swallowed hard, knowing she had purposefully stopped just short of saying why she was so busy.

  But this was important, and he hoped Avery would see that. Lottie had started lessons this year, and with the grace of a small child had picked it up right away. Jake had never been on the ice in his life. So, his next words were hazardous in more ways than one.

  “Would you make an exception for tomorrow night?” he asked and then tunneled onward before he could talk himself out of it. “I’m planning to take my mom and Lottie out to the rink, and I know they would both love to see you.”

  Avery glanced down at her notebook and then back up at him. “To be honest, I’ve spent so much time planning for my bed-and-breakfast that I’m behind in my paperwork for the farm and service-dog rescue. I was planning on using Friday night to catch up.” She pinched her lips for a moment. “But...”

  She paused and looked down at their fingers, which were still touching.

  “But?” he asked, his breath catching in his throat as he waited for her answer.

  “But I guess I can make an exception this one time. Like I said, it’s been a while since I’ve gone skating, and I can use the exercise. It sounds like fun.” She looked up into his eyes, and he thought he saw something soften in them. “I’ll see you tomorrow night, then?”

  “Tomorrow night it is.” He released her hand, stood and replaced his black Stetson on his head, tipping his hat to her as he did. “I’ll get out of your hair now so you can—” he stopped and gestured toward her laptop “—do whatever it is you need to do. Until tomorrow, then.”

  “Yes,” she agreed, her voice soft and silky, making his stomach flutter with butterflies. “Until tomorrow.”

  Chapter Eight

  Avery’s own voice silently mocked her in her mind. I guess I can make an exception. I can use the exercise.

  She was an idiot. She’d had the perfect excuse to avoid spending time with him, and she’d capitulated faster than she could have said, Lickety-split.

  Or even better and more to the point, No, thank you.

  Why she’d agreed to go skating with the Cutter family was still a mystery. Of course, she genuinely enjoyed spending time with Lottie and Elaine, but that wasn’t all it was, and she knew it.

  She couldn’t even hoodwink her sisters into believing this was all about a curly-haired three-year-old little girl, no matter how adorable Lottie was. They’d been teasing her nonstop about her date with Jake and his family ever since she’d made the mistake of mentioning it at breakfast Friday morning.

  She hadn’t used the word date, of course. She hadn’t even thought the word date. They were all just meeting up to ice-skate, and it had nothing whatsoever to do with her growing attraction to Jake.

  Right?

  She supposed it had been so long since that she’d had an actual date that it wasn’t at all surprising that her sisters would misconstrue what was happening—or not happening—between her and Jake.

  Her brothers had also had a few words about the outing. If they had their way, none of their sisters would date any man ever. In their minds, no man would ever be good enough for any of the Winslow sisters. Every single time a man tried to date one of the Winslow girls, they were interrogated like hardened criminals and threatened with bodily harm.

  Avery was just biding her time for the perfect woman to come along for each of her brothers so she would have her opportunity to pepper their dates with endless questions.

  In the meantime, there was this date-that-wasn’t-a-date happening this evening, which she now couldn’t avoid. She dressed in jeans and a thick white cable-knit sweater, pulled on her snow boots and arranged a knit Broncos hat over her shoulder-length blond hair. She didn’t bother to apply much makeup, other than a quick dab of mascara and some lip gloss. The crisp evening air would give her cheeks a nice pink glow. Being around Jake would be yet another reason for her cheeks to warm sans makeup.

  After pulling on orange Broncos gloves that matched her hat, she picked up her white skates, their laces already neatly tied together, and slung them over her shoulder. The lake, secluded by the surrounding woodlands but well-lit with twinkling fairy lights Sharpe had installed ages ago, was on the northern border of the Winslow property and was within walking distance of the main house.

  The rink was a town favorite, and they often had friends and neigh
bors over to skate on mild Friday evenings. It was one area of their business that they didn’t charge for use. Avery couldn’t imagine asking her friends for money to share in what God had created. It was a blessing just to see everyone enjoying a family night out now and again.

  In the summertime, they made up for not charging for the lake’s use in winter. They outfitted the lake with rainbow trout, which was a special treat especially for local children on summer break from school. Trout were easy to catch and made a nice dinner for the family back home, as well as offering the kids a point of pride when their lines jerked tight and their bobbers dunked under the surface.

  She let her sister Felicity, who was watching television curled on the couch with a roaring fire in the fireplace and three dogs curled around her, know she was on her way to the rink.

  Avery quietly snorted and shook her head as she stepped out into the cool evening, adjusting her scarf around her neck as she walked. Despite the chill, it was a lovely evening. At the farm, she was able to see millions of twinkling stars above her, and on the darkest, moonless nights, even the thick, cloudy rainbow of the Milky Way stretching across the sky. Tonight the moon was nearly full, lending its beam of light to her path, although she also carried a flashlight with her so she didn’t accidentally stumble on a rock or an errant tree root. She knew the path she was walking like the back of her hand, but having lived on this mountain all her life, she also knew better than to take any unnecessary chances. There was always the possibility of running into wildlife.

  She loved what she and her family were doing with their business. Every year one of the siblings thought of something new and exciting to add to the farm to make it more well-rounded for their customers, especially the kids, and Avery was stoked to see how it grew from there. All of the Winslow siblings were creative in their own ways, which was what made their business such a hit, and not only in Whispering Pines. Customers drove in from as far as Denver and Colorado Springs to spend a day enjoying themselves here.

  But right now, her mind wasn’t on business so much as how she was going to make it through the coming evening with Jake. She was more nervous than excited. At least she knew how to ice-skate, so that was one less thing to worry about. She’d taken lessons for several years as a child and could still do a pretty decent double axel.

  She spotted Jake the moment she arrived at the lake. He was still at his car helping Lottie out of the back seat of his red Mustang. He then hung child-size pink ice skates over his broad shoulder. Then he ducked back into the car and retrieved a large shoe box, which Avery guessed contained his ice skates. Elaine moved around the car to join her family, carrying her own skates.

  “Jake,” Avery called from a bench on the edge of the lake. He looked in her direction, and she waved. “Over here.”

  Sharpe had built benches around the lake with solid pine tree trunks sawed in half and carefully sanded so no one received unexpected slivers. They gave the area an old-fashioned feel, especially with the twinkling fairy lights draped around the perimeter.

  Frost had backed up his truck to the edge of the rink and was blasting upbeat music from his large Bluetooth speaker set in the bed of the truck.

  It felt—romantic.

  Dangerous.

  Her mind chimed with warning bells. It would be easy to succumb to the ambiance, especially with a handsome man like Jake around. But she wasn’t going to do it. She was on her guard. Her defenses were mounted.

  Besides, it wasn’t as if she was alone with Jake. He had his family with him. She’d be skating with Lottie, too.

  Which was perilous in its own way, but only if she let it be so. She just couldn’t let herself become too attached to Lottie and Elaine. Awareness was everything. As long as she stayed aware of what she was doing and how she was feeling, she would be okay.

  And there was a good-size group gathering to skate. It wasn’t just her and the Cutters. That was yet another way to guard her heart.

  Holding Lottie’s hand, Jake and his mother walked over to the bench Avery had reserved for them.

  “Hey,” he said, greeting her with a hug around her shoulders which she immediately pulled away from. He probably didn’t mean anything by it, being the naturally charming guy he was, but he was too friendly for his own good. It wasn’t his fault her heart roared to life every time he touched her.

  “We’d better get our skates on and get out onto the ice before it gets too crowded. I never know how many of our friends and neighbors may show up on any given night. Sometimes there’s next to no one, but since there won’t be too many more weeks of winter left, I expect lots of folks will come out to enjoy one of the last skates of the season.” She took in a deep breath because she was completely out of air. “How long has it been since you’ve been on the ice?”

  Avery was speaking a great deal faster than usual, a sure sign of how nervous she was. Hopefully Jake and his family didn’t notice.

  Jake chuckled and made a face. “The last time I’ve been on the ice? That would be today. I almost slipped on a patch of black ice coming out of the cabin we’re renting—which reminds me that I need to salt that area when I get home, before our mail carrier slips on it.”

  Avery had the feeling Jake was likewise speaking a little too quickly and was offering up way too much information, just as she’d done a moment ago. Was it possible he was having some of the same feelings?

  “The last time I’ve been on the ice with skates on?” Jake continued. “It depends on who you ask. My mom takes Lottie to lessons once a week. She started begging to learn how from the very first time she watched figure skating on television. Mom is quite the skater in her own right. She’s been skating her whole life. As for me...” He held up the large box he’d tucked under his arm. “I just purchased these earlier today from Johnson’s Sporting Goods.”

  “You’re breaking in a new pair of skates tonight?” Avery asked, wondering if he realized his feet were probably going to be very sore afterward. “Did you work the leather or anything before you came, or use the heater to warm them up, at least?”

  “Um—no. Was I supposed to?”

  “Only if you don’t want to feel as if your feet are falling off before the end of the evening. New leather isn’t very pliable. Why’d you have to buy a new pair?”

  “Uh...”

  “He doesn’t skate,” Elaine cheerfully chimed in. “Never has.”

  “You don’t skate?” Avery was stunned, and it showed clearly on her face. “But you were the one who—”

  “Asked you to go skating with us. Yes, I know. And now I feel foolish, let me tell you. It was one of those brilliant spur-of-the-moment ideas. I had originally intended to bring Mom and Lottie and just sit here watching them skate.”

  “But of course now he wants to skate with you,” Elaine said cheerfully. “He’s hoping you can teach him how and give him a few pointers.”

  “Mom,” Jake groaned, his face reddening above his beard.

  “I can do that.” Avery grinned. She hadn’t had many opportunities where she had anything legitimate up on Jake since they’d met. She always felt as if she was scrambling to keep up with him. For once, the proverbial ball was in her court.

  Or skates, as the case may be.

  This could turn out to be a fun evening, after all.

  * * *

  Jake ignored his mother and dug the black skates from the box. If he hadn’t been totally unsure about this before, he was completely unsure of it now. The man at the sporting-goods store had insisted he purchase a pair of skates that was a size smaller than his usual size and suggested he wear thick wool socks with them.

  That seemed backward to Jake and made no sense whatsoever. If anything, he ought to have got a larger size if he was going to be wearing thick wool socks. But Mr. Johnson had insisted, so here he was.

  And now Avery was reminding him about not havin
g worked the leather, which he should have known about even if Mr. Johnson hadn’t mentioned it when he was making the sale. Of course new leather would be stiff and unpliable.

  Almost as stiff as he would be out on the ice.

  “No walls?” he said, not even realizing he’d spoken aloud until he caught Avery’s dumbfounded stare.

  “It’s a lake,” she said, sounding as if she was speaking to a first grader.

  Well, duh. Of course they wouldn’t have a wall around a lake. It was just that he’d been picturing Lottie’s indoor rink, which was also used by local hockey teams for practice and games. He’d been assuming he could hold on to the wall and slowly but surely make his way around the rink one small step at a time.

  And now he was deeply regretting having invited Avery to join them. Why was he only now realizing that even had there been a wall, he was going to look like an uncoordinated dweeb on the ice. His sport was baseball, and he was quite good at it.

  Hockey? Not so much.

  He suspected he was going to spend most of his evening on his hands and knees. There wasn’t even a fence surrounding Winslow’s lake. Just open ice for him to repeatedly fall down on and make a total fool of himself.

  “Of course,” Jake answered belatedly, attempting to shove his feet into his very tight, unforgiving skates. “I knew there wouldn’t be a wall. I was just kidding when I said that.”

  “Lace your boots up tight but not too tight,” Avery offered. “You want the skates to feel secure around your feet but not pinch your toes.”

  It was far too late for that. They were already pinching, and he hadn’t even stood up yet. Once he put his weight on them, they were going to downright hurt.

  Avery had her skates on well before Jake managed to get both of his on and laced up, and when he glanced over at his mom and Lottie, he realized they, too, were waiting for him.

  “Maybe you guys should—” he started, intending to suggest they go on without him. But when Avery raised her eyebrows, he let his sentence drop.