Chapter 2

For two days, they worked nonstop.

Ben had to give Darcy credit—she was prompt, and she really was a whiz with getting things organized. Once they had gotten through the basics of the book layout, she had talked him through the acknowledgments and the dedication and found a way to write them both up so they sounded more like him than a generic statement.

She asked a ton of questions about his work, but rather than letting him take her to his workshop, she opted to stay focused on the work laid out on the table. And no matter how much he tried to explain that she’d have a better grasp of it all if she saw the work in person rather than in a photograph, she wouldn’t be swayed.

So they worked.

And worked.

And worked.

They ate breakfast while they worked, as well as lunch, and other than the first night, she hadn’t stayed for dinner again.

Several times, Ben had tried to ask her if she was all right or if she wanted to take a break, but she always managed to turn the question around and bring it back to the work in front of them.

It was maddening.

She was maddening!

He knew he had asked her to be here—or he’d asked Savannah to be here—but he was starting to lose his mind. The constant chatter, the way she questioned everything he did, and the way she was always moving things around under the guise of “organization” was killing him. They’d argued—out-and-out raised voices argued—multiple times. She never backed down, but he’d walked out to cool off more than once.

Right now, Darcy was furiously texting back and forth with someone about something, and Ben was almost afraid to ask what was going on. She’d hardly gotten any messages or calls in the last two days, but this one seemed to have her tensing up. He was all set to mind his own business—because she was finally quiet—but then she began cursing under her breath.

“Is everything all right?” he asked, secretly hoping she was just annoyed with the disruption. Like he was.

“Can we turn on the television and find the weather channel or local news or something?”

“What’s going on?”

“Savannah just forwarded me some information about a fast-forming storm that’s coming our way. It looks like they’re predicting over a foot of snow three days from now, and that’s going to mean my flight will more than likely be canceled and—”

“Okay, okay,” he said, doing his best to sound soothing. “Give me a minute, and I’ll see what I can find.” Ben turned on the television and immediately went to the local news channel. They were on a commercial break, so he decided to explain the local weather.

“This time of year, it’s not unusual to get some snow. I’m sure that forecast is a little off. We don’t get that kind of accumulation this early in the season. But we know how to handle it, and there’s minimal disruption. It might not even come, so I’m sure you’ll be fine.”

Ben could tell she was only half listening to him, because she nodded, but her focus was still on the phone in her hands. “Uh-huh.”

Sighing, he walked over to her. “I’m sure your flight won’t be affected at all.” Then he caught himself. They had worked hard and gotten a lot done in a short amount of time. He was just telling himself how annoyed he was with her, so why was he arguing with her wanting to leave earlier? “You flew into Seattle, right?”

“Uh-huh.”

That was over a hundred miles away. “Maybe you should—” He stopped talking when the weather report came on, and he noticed Darcy looked up from her phone as well. Silently, they listened to the grim forecast. Ben wasn’t normally prone to paying attention to these predictions, but he had to admit it didn’t sound good.

When the news broke away to another commercial, he muted the TV. “So…”

“I’ve got to call the airline and get an earlier flight. I’m going to try for tomorrow. I know we still have so much to do, and I promise you I am going to continue to help you but from home.”

“Darcy, it’s all right. Really.”

She waved him off as she stood and began looking around for something. “No, it’s not. I hate that I started something here that I can’t finish. It makes me crazy. But we have a good foundation, and I’ll be able to do the rest remotely. If I have any questions, I can call you. Right?”

Forcing a smile, he said, “Of course.”

That seemed to relax her a bit.

“Make your calls, and let me know if there’s anything I can do to help.”

“Thanks, Ben.”

For the next twenty minutes, Ben listened as Darcy talked, begged, and pleaded with whoever was on the other end of the phone to find her an earlier flight out of Seattle to Los Angeles. For the life of him, he couldn’t imagine it being this difficult. Judging from the exasperation in her voice, it was. When she finally hung up the phone, she put her head on the table and lightly banged it.

“That good, huh?” he asked.

Looking up at him, she looked defeated. “I’m not the only one wanting to move up a flight. Even without the weather, there weren’t many open seats. I found that out from booking my flight here on such short notice. The best they can do is put me on standby.”

“Is that what you’re going to do?”

“I don’t have a choice,” she said wearily. “I hate it because it’s a whole lot of hanging out at the airport and a chance of not getting on a plane. And all that not knowing makes it even more stressful.”

“Darcy,” he began. “You don’t have to freak out and rush out of here. So you stay a couple of extra days. It’s not a big deal. Hell, you can stay here if it’s better for you.”

Are you crazy? he admonished himself. Help her pack and get to the airport now!

“Ben, I appreciate the offer. I do. But it’s important for me to get home or at least back to LA. I don’t want to get stuck here indefinitely, and I’ve got things planned for next week with Riley and Savannah.” She looked at him apologetically. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine.” Stuffing his hands in his pockets, he did his best to give her a smile. “Why don’t you call Riley and let him know what’s going on? Maybe he can find a way to get you home.”

Her eyes went wide. “You’re right! Why didn’t I think of that?” Walking over, she gave him a loud, smacking kiss on the cheek. “You’re a genius!”

Of that, he wasn’t so sure, but at least she seemed to perk up. And maybe she didn’t mean to kiss him but that stupidly worked to perk him up too.

With nothing to do, Ben went and made himself a cup of coffee before walking over and looking out the wall of windows. The sky was gray, and as much as he wasn’t an alarmist, it certainly looked like the kind of weather that promised some heavy snow.

If it were just him, he wouldn’t mind. The house was well-stocked with food, and he had a generator and an abundance of firewood. Getting snowed in would not affect him in any way, shape, or form. Getting snowed in with Darcy? That was a whole other story. It would affect him in every way, shape, and form.

A sigh came out before he could stop it. None of it mattered. He was never going to know, because he wasn’t going to see Darcy Shaughnessy again, and it was probably for the best. It had been obvious she had an issue with him, and to be honest, he had one with her. She was bossy and outspoken and irritating as hell. And even though they had worked well together for the last couple of days, it was very different from the easy camaraderie they had shared on her first night here.

He knew what his issues were with her, but for the life of him, Ben couldn’t figure out what he’d said or done to make her so against him. He’d replayed that night at least a dozen times in his head and came up empty every time.

Not that he wasn’t used to this sort of thing. He wasn’t exactly a warm and fuzzy guy. People had been telling him for years he came off as cold and standoffish. Savannah had been the only one to try to push past that—and succeeded. For the most part, Ben was fine with being viewed that way. It was who he was.

Except this time he didn’t want to be seen that way.

He had put in an effort that night. He’d worked hard to prepare a nice dinner and made sure he was polite and kept up the conversation. Hell, he’d been the perfect host. So what was her deal? What the hell did he say or do?

“For crying out loud,” he murmured, “obsess much?” Behind him, he heard Darcy saying goodbye to Riley. He turned and gave her a smile. “Any luck?”

“He’s making some calls,” she said with a sigh.

“I’m sure Riley could charter a plane.”

It was Darcy’s turn to laugh. “He’s going to look into that too. I hate to think of spending that kind of money. It seems too frivolous.”

“It’s not frivolous,” he corrected. “It’s important to him that you get home safely. I’m sure Riley would do anything to make that happen.” There. That sounded nice, right?

She took it for the compliment that it was. “Thank you.” After a minute, she said, “Let’s try to get some more work done. I think if we make some notes on each picture, I can take them with me, rewrite it once I’m home, and get it all together for you.”

And there was something different in her tone as well. Maybe they could finish out her time here on better terms. If he looked at the big picture, she was helping him, and she’d be leaving soon. He knew he could hang on and get through it.

“You have no idea how much I appreciate your help, Darcy.” Unable to help himself, he reached out and took her hand in his and squeezed it. “There is no way I could have gotten this done without you.”

She squeezed his hand in return before walking toward the kitchen table. “You would have done just fine with whoever your publisher sent to work with you. You might not have liked it, and I’m sure you would have given them hell like you’ve been giving me, but you would have gotten it done.”

With a small laugh, Ben followed her. “Maybe.”

She gave him a smile and then went back to sorting through her notes.

“Can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“Did I do something wrong the other night?”

She looked at him oddly.

“I thought everything went well. We had a nice dinner, we talked and laughed, and yet by the time you left, you seemed to have a definite problem with me.”

Those big, beautiful eyes went wide at his bluntness. “Did I? I honestly don’t remember.”

Seriously? Was he making more out of this than there was?

“Are you telling me that we’re good? That you don’t have some sort of issue with me? Because you seem to be acting a little distant. You won’t stay for dinner and—”

“Ben,” she began patiently, but he noticed she wouldn’t look at him. “I’m here to help you with this project, and we’re on a short timeline. I’m just trying to keep us on track. If we sit here and hang around or goof off, it’s not going to get done.”

It sounded reasonable, and yet… “Then why not stay for dinner? By that time of day, we’re done working.”

“Seriously? You’re getting this bent out of shape over dinner?”

“I didn’t say I was bent out of shape.”

“Back at home when I’m at work, I get to leave for lunch and then leave for the day at five. That’s how a job works.” She paused, and this time she did look at him, but her expression seemed almost sad. “And that’s what this is. A job.”

And that’s when it hit him—he had gotten too involved in his own mind where she was concerned. Saw things that weren’t there. Of course she had been pleasant to him—she was trying to make a good first impression, and it had nothing to do with him personally.

And this was why he preferred to work alone.

Less chance of awkward misunderstandings.

* * *

“Everything is packed up and loaded in the car,” Darcy said to herself the next day. “It’s already starting to flurry, and I need to get going.” She looked around the hotel room one last time as she ran through her mental checklist of what the rest of the day held in store for her.

“I should have left earlier,” she murmured as she pulled out of the parking lot a few minutes later. “If I have to do the standby thing, I would have had a better chance with an early morning flight.” Talking to herself wasn’t something she normally did, but right now, it was keeping her calm as she faced the long drive to Seattle.

“I can’t believe I overslept.”

She had been driving for about twenty miles with the radio playing softly when her phone rang. The rental had Bluetooth, so she could answer it safely.

“How’s it going?”

“I overslept,” she admitted.

“Are you on your way to the airport?”

“I can’t believe Riley couldn’t get me on a flight. His celebrity status is getting less and less impressive, Savannah,” she teased.

“He tried, Darce. He really did. We couldn’t get a charter on such short notice and with the threat of the storm. No one was willing to risk it. We need to be optimistic.”

“Somehow, I don’t think optimism is going to get me on a flight,” Darcy said skeptically.

“Be positive! Please!” Savannah cried, a hint of frustration in her voice. “I feel horrible that you’re in this situation. I hate how you’re there alone and…ugh! Maybe you should see if you can stay with Ben and avoid all of this.”

“Please. Good riddance,” Darcy mumbled.

“Excuse me?”

“What? Um, nothing. I just meant it’s going to be good to get away from this cold weather. I’ll be happy to be back in LA.”

“I’m sure,” Savannah agreed. “Do you want to get off the phone, or would you like someone to talk to for a little while?”

“Are you kidding me? I’d love the company. I was starting to go a little crazy talking to myself!” she said with a laugh.

Over the next hour, she drove toward the Seattle airport amid flurries that were getting heavier. There was already accumulation, and as much as Darcy hated to admit it, she had a sinking feeling she wasn’t getting out of Washington today—or anytime soon. Rather than mention it to Savannah, she kept up her end of the conversation with stories about all the things she wanted to do when she got back to North Carolina.

“I want to move out and get a place of my own,” she said.

“Have you talked to your dad?”

“I haven’t mentioned it yet. And he’s been busy. He and Martha are closer than ever, and they seem to be going away every weekend. I think if I weren’t still at home, they wouldn’t have to.”

Savannah laughed softly. “You may have a point. But you should still talk to him. Maybe they like traveling.”

“I’m sure that’s part of it. Dad didn’t go anywhere or do anything for years, so it’s nice to see him enjoying his life.”

“But…”

Darcy couldn’t help but laugh. “But I don’t know. It still seems weird.”

“In what way?”

“I was probably more excited than anyone to see my dad start dating. And Martha seemed like the perfect woman for him.”

“O-kay…”

“And I was…” Pausing, Darcy realized what she was about to say wasn’t going to make her come off sounding so great. Instead, she decided to go the safe route. “And now I’m glad they worked things out.”

“How about you tell me what you were going to say?”

“I don’t know what you mean.”

“I mean that last part was total bullshit. You thought Martha was perfect for him, and then you were going to say something else. So spill it.”

She could play dumb, but what was the point? “Fine. She was—is—perfect for Dad. She’s everything I could ever want for him.”

“So again I say, but…”

Darcy rested her head back and sighed. “I thought if she was perfect for him, she’d be perfect for us. All of us.”

“And she’s not?”

“It’s not there.”

Savannah was quiet for a moment before asking, “What’s not there?”

Dammit, she was not going to cry. Taking a preemptive strike, she wiped at her eyes for any moisture. “She’s great, but she’s not…I don’t feel…there’s no…”

“Use your words.”

“She’s not my mom.” Her tone was quiet and a little bit trembly, and she hated that more than anything.

On the other end of the phone, she heard Savannah sigh softly. “Oh, sweetie. I don’t even know what to say to that.”

“My whole life, I kept thinking if I found the right woman for Dad, she’d be not only a wife, but a mom. I’ve had people like Mary Hannigan—or teachers and counselors—who’ve been like a mom to me, but in the end, they’re not. They have families of their own, and I always found out I was more like a project or someone they felt bad for. I thought my mom—Lillian—would send someone to me. To all of us. And then our family would be complete.”

“Your family is complete,” Savannah said softly. “You have a father and five brothers who love you. There isn’t anything any of them wouldn’t do for you. And now you have five sisters who think you’re awesome and adore you. There is so much love in this family, Darcy. We’re very lucky. You’re very lucky.”

But she wasn’t buying it. “It’s not the same. And I know it’s something you can’t understand. Your mother is alive and well, and she’s always been there for you. You have no idea what it’s like to not have that.”

“You know if she could have been here…”

“I know. I know. It’s not like she abandoned me on purpose.”

“So you don’t feel any connection to Martha?”

“I do. Some. She’s nice and she’s kind and funny, but when I’m with her, all I can think is she’s a nice woman. She’s good to my dad. I have no overwhelming urge to confide in her or to bond.”

“I hate to say this, but maybe that’s more on you than Martha.”

“What do you mean?”

“Maybe you’re holding yourself back because you have an unrealistic expectation about how something’s supposed to feel to you where Martha—or any mother figure—is concerned.”

“No. Trust me. I’ve been searching my entire life. Mary was a constant figure in my life since I was born, and by the time I started school, her life was changing because Anna and Bobby were older, and she started pulling away. And I resented it at first. But I moved on. There were teachers I adored, but then the school year would end.” She paused. “Everyone leaves. They all walk away.”

Savannah said softly, “Have you talked to anyone about this?”

“You mean like a therapist?”

“Uh-huh.”

“About a dozen of them. I’ve been to every kind of therapy there is. Dad thought it would help, my teachers thought it would help…hell, everybody everywhere thought it would help. But it didn’t. Unless you’ve lost a parent—or never had one—you can’t possibly understand.”

“So maybe you find a group setting for kids who’ve—”

“Did that too. It was depressing. I’m not a victim, Savannah. I know that. I’m just a girl who missed out on having a mom. And I know my dad did a great job, and he did everything he possibly could to fill the role of both mother and father, but…”

“It’s not the same.”

“No. It’s not.” She pulled off the highway at the exit for the airport, and Darcy knew she wasn’t going to have any great revelations, especially not here and now when there were so many other things she was going to have to focus on, but she couldn’t help but be mildly disappointed. “Sometimes, I wish I could talk to her. Just once.”

“I wish you could too. I wish she could see what an amazing woman you turned out to be.”

Now she was going to cry. Swiping at her eyes, she looked out the window as she passed all the long-term parking lots where cars were covered with snow. And off in the distance, there were planes lined up but not moving.

Not a good sign.

Pulling up to the rental car drop-off, she sighed. “Okay, this is where I need to get off the phone,” she said to Savannah. “Thanks for talking to me. It made the drive a lot more bearable.”

“Let us know the minute you find out about a flight, okay?”

“I will. I promise.”

“Good luck!”

Shutting off the car, Darcy did her best to sound positive. “Thanks!” And it wasn’t until after she hung up that she added, “I’m gonna need it.”

* * *

Three hours later, Darcy heard the words she never thought she’d hear. “Good news! There is a seat available on this flight. You got lucky. There’s only one left.”

Relief swamped her. Almost overwhelmed her as she sagged against the ticket desk. Whipping out her license and her phone, she gave the ticket agent her information. If all went well, she’d be leaving Seattle behind within the hour. Hallelujah!

There was a line of at least twenty people behind her, and part of her wanted to jump with victory that she was getting out of Dodge and would be in the land of sunshine in a matter of hours, but she didn’t.

“Bear with me,” the agent said. “The computers are all running a little bit slow.”

“No problem,” she replied as she started to put her items back into her purse. The noise around her was almost deafening, but the conversation behind her caught her attention.

“What would you like me to do, Cathleen?” the man behind her said wearily. “We’re all in the same boat here. Everyone is trying to get out ahead of this storm.”

Darcy glanced over her shoulder and noticed the baby in the woman’s arms. A tiny baby. Like a newborn.

“I hate this,” the woman said quietly. “The customer service person I spoke to last night said we shouldn’t have a problem getting on a flight. My mom is waiting for us at LAX.” As she spoke, her tone got more and more disheartened. “This was not the homecoming I envisioned for us. I wanted us all to go home together.”

“Me too,” the man said as he stroked the baby’s tiny head.

Dammit.

Dammit. Dammit. Dammit.

Before she could change her mind, Darcy turned around and faced the couple. “Um, excuse me. Hi. I couldn’t help but overhear you’re trying to get on a flight to LAX.”

“Ma’am?” the ticket agent began. “I need your ID one more time, please.”

Ignoring her, Darcy kept her focus on the couple. Now that she could really see them, she saw they both looked exhausted. “You’re trying to get home too, right?”

The woman—Cathleen—nodded. “This was an unexpected trip,” she said, her voice a near sob. She looked at her husband. “We got the call that there was a baby for us, so we hopped on the first flight we could get and came here. We had no idea there was a storm moving in. Now we want to get our son home to the nursery we prepared for him and introduce him to our family.”

It was a no-brainer. Turning toward the ticket agent, Darcy said, “I want you to give my ticket to them. To her and the baby. You said there was one more seat available after mine, right? They need to get home.”

The couple gasped. “Oh, no,” Cathleen said with tears in her eyes. “I’m sure you need to get home too.”

Darcy couldn’t help but smile even as she shook her head. “Not like you do,” she said softly. “Sometimes I’m a completely selfish brat. And other times…” She shrugged. “It’s not a big deal for me to hang out in the airport. I’ll find a hotel or something.”

“All the area hotels are booked,” the agent said without looking up.

“I’ve never camped out in an airport then,” Darcy said cheerily. “It will be like an adventure.”

Maybe if she kept telling herself that, she’d believe it.

“You’re not selfish,” Cathleen said. “You’re one of the most giving people I’ve ever met.”

“Well, then you should know that I have to do this. That sweet baby needs to go with both of his parents and meet his family,” she said and felt herself getting emotional. She forced a smile. “Now let me get out of the line so you can get your tickets home.”

The couple embraced her and thanked her over and over again. She wished them luck—both with getting home and with their new lives that were just beginning—and turned to walk away.

Making her way through the crowd, Darcy couldn’t help but sigh. This was going to be her home away from home for at least the next twenty-four hours. She had a feeling it was going to be longer, but she refused to let her mind go there right now.

Finding a quiet corner, she called Savannah and told her what had just happened and how she wasn’t going to be getting back to LA today. “You’re not mad at me, are you?” she asked.

“Are you kidding me? I’m practically bawling over here with pride. That was an incredibly selfless thing you did.”

“Yeah, well, they needed to go home as a family.” She looked over her shoulder and saw the couple hugging each other, and it made her smile.

“They are going to remember you forever, you know that, right?” Savannah paused. “So now what?”

“Now, I try and find a place to hang out away from the gate areas and just chill. I’ll keep asking around and checking online for a hotel room, but I’m not going to hold out much hope. I don’t want to venture too far away from the airport, because the first flight I can get on, whether it takes me to LA or North Carolina, I’m taking.”

“We didn’t even check on North Carolina flights.”

“That’s going to be my project this afternoon.” She was going to say more, but the flight to LAX was being called, and the noise level went up. “I should go.”

“I hate the thought of you being there by yourself.”

“It was my choice, and I’m going to be fine. I’m choosing to think of this like a little adventure.”

“Your brother is going to freak out that you’re there alone, you know.”

“Nah, he’ll be thankful he doesn’t have to deal with me right away. But make sure you tell him I was a hero, and he should feel bad for treating me the way he did,” she said with a grin. “I love you guys, and hopefully I’ll have some good news soon.”

“My fingers are crossed for you!”

Anything else she might have said was drowned out by the stream of announcements coming over the PA system. She said a quick goodbye and moved into the crowd to find a place to set up camp.

An hour later, she had snagged a corner table at a wine bar. No kids, and it was much quieter than being out in the terminal. Her phone was charged, and she had her tablet out so she could search all the travel sites for a hotel room. She’d struck out with a flight to North Carolina, but she was feeling hopeful about finding a room.

Two hours later, she had polished off a plate of assorted meats and cheeses—and two glasses of wine—and was feeling more than a little relaxed. And more than a little hopeless. After searching every travel site and calling a dozen different hotels, she was done. She had no choice but to accept her fate.

She was stuck at the airport.

Knowing she was going to have to find another place to hang out—there was only so much wine and cheese she was willing to purchase to secure her table—Darcy began putting her things in her satchel. She paid her bill and walked out to the terminal when she heard her name paged.

Did someone find her a seat on a plane? Was she finally going to get to leave Washington and get to LA? How awesome would that be?

With a renewed pep in her step, she quickly made her way to the gate area and cut to the front of the line.

“Excuse me! Excuse me!” she called out until one of the agents looked at her. Ignoring the angry glares of all the people in line, Darcy smiled brightly. “Hi, I’m Darcy Shaughnessy, and I heard my name paged.”

The ticket agent looked at her oddly for a moment and then looked at her computer screen. “Okay, yes, Miss Shaughnessy, you need to go to the baggage claim office. It’s on the lower level.”

“But I thought you found a flight to LAX for me?”

The look on the agent’s face bordered on disbelief as she stared at Darcy for an awkward minute.

“So…um…”

“Lower level by the baggage claim carousels. Someone will be able to help you. Next in line!”

Fine. No flight. But what would anyone want with her in baggage claim? With no other choice, she secured her satchel, grabbed her suitcase, and made her way through the crowds, ignoring annoyed looks from the people in line, and to the escalators.

With her mind racing, she wondered if Riley had found a plane to charter. That would be amazing. She would totally forgive him for being such a jerk and forget her plans for payback and spa treatments.

Maybe not the spa treatments, but she’d be totally willing to let the rest slide if he got her home on a private jet.

She was good like that.

Weaving her way through the masses, Darcy spotted the baggage claim office and picked up her pace. The sooner she could get to the chartered plane, the better. She was totally going to kiss Riley when she got to LA and proclaim him her favorite brother. It was goofy, but for some reason, each of her brothers loved when she did that for them. Who was she to buck tradition?

There was a line coming out of the office, and she hated how there wasn’t a way to cut to the front. They only allowed a certain number of people through the door, though there was a security guard standing beside it, so maybe…

“Excuse me,” she said sweetly, flashing him a brilliant smile. “I was paged and told to come here, but I’m not sure who I’m supposed to see.”

He looked at her blankly.

“Is there, like, a customer service desk or a supervisor I can talk to?”

“You’ll need to wait in line,” he finally said. “If they told you to come here, this is the only office there is.”

There were easily a dozen people ahead of her, and all she wanted to do was scream how it didn’t matter if their luggage was lost, no one was getting home anyway! She walked to the back of the line. Arms folded, foot tapping, she waited. She huffed, she sighed, and she shifted.

Why? Why did everything have to be so damn difficult? She let her head fall back. “Come on, come on, come on. Seriously, I just want to go home!”

“I can’t get you home, but I can get you out of the airport,” a deep male voice said from behind her.

Darcy was ready to turn and slug the perv, but when she turned around, all she could do was gasp.

It was Ben.

* * *

It had been tempting to watch her for a little bit longer. Everything about Darcy was so expressive that even though Ben hadn’t heard one word of her exchange with the security guard, he had been able to imagine the entire conversation based on the look on her face.

It was highly entertaining.

“What are you doing here?” she asked, her expression one of total confusion.

“Savannah called me and told me you weren’t able to get on a flight. So here I am,” he said, offering her a small smile.

She frowned.

Seriously? Even when he came to save her, she was still pissed at him?

“What if I had gotten on a flight between the time Savannah called you and the time you got to the airport?”

He shrugged. “Then I would have made a very perilous trip for nothing. I would have gotten here sooner, but people don’t know how to drive in the snow. I passed a bunch of accidents.”

“You could have been one of them.”

Another shrug. “I have a truck that happens to be exceptional in the snow, and I’m used to driving in it. It wasn’t a big deal. You need to drive slowly, and you’ll be all right.”

Darcy looked around and made a noncommittal sound. “So you just got here, huh?”

“No, I’ve been here for a while. I couldn’t get past security, and it took some time to page you. I tried calling you several times, but I kept getting a message that all circuits were busy. I guess with the storm moving in and all.” He paused and gave her a lopsided grin. “Anyway, I saw you when you were on the escalator, but you didn’t see me.”

“There’s, like, a million people here,” she said with a hint of sarcasm. “And I wasn’t looking for, well, you.”

He frowned at her tone. “What did you think you were coming here for?”

“Honestly? I thought my brother had been able to charter a plane for me.”

He couldn’t help but chuckle. “Sorry to disappoint you. But the only charter you have is me—in the form of a truck and a trip back to the lake.”

“Oh. So I guess I’ll get a room at the hotel,” she said, and he noticed she wouldn’t look directly at him.

“I just planned on bringing you to the cabin until the storm is over and flights are back to normal. It won’t be more than a couple of days. No need for you to have to go to a hotel or anything.”

Now she did look at him. “No, really, it’s okay. I’d prefer to go to the hotel.”

She was looking at him with a hint of defiance, and he figured he’d let her have her way for now. The sooner they got on the road, the better. There was already a very real possibility they weren’t going to get home until after dark. It would be pointless to drag this out.

“That’s fine. No problem.” He motioned toward her suitcase. “I’ll take that for you. Let’s get going.”

“Oh.”

Ben could hear the relief in her voice and smiled to himself. For right now, he was happy to have a truce with her. They had a long drive ahead of them, and he’d rather it be peaceful than tense and awkward.

He waited while she pulled her coat on and got herself together, and then they made their way out to the parking garage. The traffic was insane, and he prayed it wasn’t going to be as bad as he was fearing.

It was.

And it was tense and awkward.

By the time they hit the highway, it was almost whiteout conditions. They were driving at a near crawl, and he figured Darcy could tell he wasn’t into doing the chitchat thing, because she stayed blessedly quiet beside him, tapping away on her phone. It was well over an hour later when he finally felt like he needed to break the silence.

“Did you text Savannah and let her know you’re with me?”

She nodded. “Uh-huh.”

His lips flattened in a grim line as he fought not to snap at her and demand to know what her problem was. If anyone else had ever been this rude and unreceptive to him, Ben would have simply blown them off and moved on. But he was stuck with her for now, and out of respect for his friendship with Savannah, he was determined to not be a jerk.

No matter how much she provoked him.

Rather than make any other attempt at conversation, Ben turned on the radio. At the first words from Eric Church’s “Record Year,” he immediately felt some of the tension leaving his body. Country music was the only music he listened to. And as they made their way slowly down the interstate, he felt the first glimmer of hope that he was going to get through this trip without giving in to his naturally irritable nature.

Beside him, he heard Darcy make some noise. Like a snort of disgust or something.

“Is there a problem?”

Maybe they weren’t going to make it through.

“Country music? Seriously?” she asked, turning to face him.

“What’s wrong with country music?” he asked.

She gave him a look of disbelief. “Where do I even begin?”

“You do realize country music is just as popular as the mainstream stuff your brother plays, right?”

Now she rolled her eyes. “First of all, I don’t base all music on my brother’s, so don’t go there. All I’m saying is I’m not a fan.”

“Have you ever really listened to it? Especially the newer artists? This isn’t the country music that was around when we were kids.”

“Um, no. Doesn’t matter. It’s not my thing.”

He sighed, because she was seriously trying his patience. “What do you listen to?” He had a feeling she was going to say something like Taylor Swift or Beyoncé.

“I have eclectic taste in music,” she began. “Don’t get me wrong, I listen to all of Riley’s stuff and love it, but I don’t think he’s the be-all-end-all in music.”

“So what music fits under this eclectic category?”

Biting her lip, she thought about it for a minute. “I listen to a lot of Coldplay, Foo Fighters, Twenty-One Pilots…um…and Mumford and Sons.”

“Sounds like the same old same old. Not very eclectic at all.”

“I love some classic rock too—Aerosmith, Bon Jovi, and Cheap Trick. But then I listen to a lot of Elton John—his early stuff—and Billy Joel.” She gave him a smug smile. “See? Eclectic.”

He shrugged. “If you say so. All seems the same to me.”

“And you think country music is so unique? Isn’t it all sad crap that happened to someone—like his girlfriend left him and took his dog? That kind of stuff?”

Ben couldn’t help it. He laughed out loud. “Damn. Where did you get that from?”

And for the first time since the night they’d met, he saw Darcy smile. She chuckled, and her eyes lit up a bit and…damn. His gut tightened, and he wanted to tell her never to stop smiling, but he knew he couldn’t. If anything, saying that would probably make her defensive and snippy again, and he was hell-bent on enjoying the moment.

“I don’t know,” she said, still laughing softly. “Any country music I’ve ever heard just seemed to have corny lyrics like that.”

“Well, it’s not all like that. I mean, some of it is, but don’t judge the masses by one or two songs.”

“It doesn’t matter. It’s just not my thing. I like my music with a little more…I don’t know…I like it a little heavier. Does that make sense?”

“Sure. But you do realize there are a lot of rock stars who are also playing country music now, right? I mean, Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters did a song with the Zac Brown Band. Darius Rucker used to play with Hootie and the Blowfish, and now he’s country. Bon Jovi did some crossover stuff too, and so has Steven Tyler. I don’t think you’ve given it a chance.”

“Oh my God. What are you, the country music police?” she said with a hint of exasperation. “Clearly, we’re here in your truck, and I have no choice but to listen to your music, so can we just drop it?”

“Savannah mentioned that Riley plays a lot of country music when he’s at home. What would you think of it if your brother put out a country album?”

Darcy sighed loudly and stared at him. “You’re not going to let this go, are you?”

“We’ve got some time to kill.”

“How far away are we? I feel like we’ve been in this truck for hours.”

He knew the feeling. He’d pretty much give anything he had to be home and off the roads. “If it wasn’t snowing, we’d have another thirty minutes. But with these conditions…”

“So at least another hour,” she said and sighed again. “Great.”

“Yeah, I’m sure it’s rough for you sitting there and relaxing,” he murmured.

“Excuse me?” That got her attention. Sitting up a little bit straighter, she looked like she had a whole lot of things to say to him but was trying to find just the right one.

“It’s much easier being the passenger than the one driving in this mess,” he said, not waiting for her to get her thoughts together. “I drove all the way to the damn airport to get you—”

“I didn’t ask you to!”

“No, but Savannah did,” he snapped and then instantly regretted it. Clearing his throat, he was about to apologize, but Darcy had suddenly found her voice.

“Oh, and God forbid you upset Savannah, right?” Her voice was thick with sarcasm.

“What the… Of course I don’t want to upset Savannah. She’s my friend. A good friend.”

“Right. And you did it all out of the goodness of your heart.” She snorted with disbelief.

If he could, he would have pulled the damn truck over and hashed this out, because clearly, there was something going on here that no one had clued him in on. “Believe what you want,” he finally said. “But remember this. If it weren’t for me doing a favor for Savannah, your ass would be hanging out in the airport for the next two to three days.”

He let that sink in for a minute.

“The correct response to something like that is thank you,” he added sarcastically.

The words she murmured certainly weren’t ones of gratitude, but they were fairly colorful. He wasn’t used to a woman being quite so open with her displeasure. He had said it before, and he’d say it again—Darcy Shaughnessy was nothing if not entertaining.

“No need to get snippy about it,” he commented mildly and then reached over and turned up the music.

And sang along with it the rest of the way home.