CHAPTER 15

Liam

I woke up the next morning and readied myself for the journey ahead. Even in clear weather, a trip like this would take me a couple of hours but, with the snow, it would take me most of the afternoon. I took a warm shower to loosen up my body before I ventured out into the kitchen. I could hear the sizzling of sausage already happening. Biscuits were being warmed and the smell of gravy permeated the air. Soon, there was a bowl being shoved into my hand by a beautiful woman I’d actually come to enjoy.

“You like biscuits and gravy?” she asked.

“What kind of question is that?” I asked.

“I’ll take that as a yes,” she said, giggling. “Coffee?”

She poured me a mug of it before I could even answer her and I started to notice the way she was walking. She was a little steadier on her ankle but her limp was still prevalent. Her shoulders were rolled back and her smile didn’t quite reach her eyes. She brought the mug of coffee over to me while I stood in the corner and I could tell her back was tense. She turned and walked away from me to spoon herself up some breakfast and I realized what was going on.

She was nervous.

“Did you sleep well?” she asked.

“I did,” I said. “I had a full stomach that lulled me right to sleep.”

“When are you thinking about heading out today?” she asked.

I watched her play around with the food in her bowl but I never saw her take a bite. I stood in the kitchen with her while her coffee grew cold, watching her push around her soggy biscuits. It should’ve bothered me that she was wasting food, especially since we were technically rationing things out in case the weather got worse, but all I could do was study her. The way her brow was furrowed slightly and the way her eyes were darkening. I watched how tightly she gripped her spoon, trying her best to conceal the tremor of her fingers.

She was clearly worried about my safety and that was something I hadn’t experienced before. Sure, I had my platoon looking out for me when I was still enlisted. Sure, I had Paxton watching my back from time to time. But I’d never had a woman worry this way over me before.

It was a new sensation and one I wasn’t completely opposed to.

“I promise I’ll be okay this afternoon,” I said.

“Oh, I know,” she said. “You’re very tall. And strong. And you were in the military. I’m sure you know your way around the woods and stuff, too.”

She was rambling and I set my stuff down and walked toward her.

I plucked the bowl from her hands and set it off to the side. I crooked my finger underneath her chin and slowly pulled her gaze up to mine. The look in her eyes almost took my breath away. It was filled with concern and worry, with just a hint of fear.

“I’ll be back by dinner,” I said. “Promise. Why don’t you take a nice long shower while I’m gone? I didn’t have time to wash your clothes before the fire went out, but you can borrow anything of mine you want.”

She nodded before she slipped away from me and I sighed as I heard her retreat. I was ready for my journey to the store. All I had to do was bundle up and I could get out of here. I walked over to the front door and threw my coat on, pulling on my snow boots and placing a hat on my head. I zipped up the coat and turned around, trying to catch a glimpse of Whitney one last time before I left.

But she was nowhere to be found.

Letting out a sigh, I opened the door and stepped out into the cold. It was frigid outside and I was already beginning to shiver. I’d severely underestimated the chill that had descended over the cabin and, for a moment, I thought about backtracking inside and getting another coat.

I heard my name being called.

“Liam! Wait!”

I turned around and saw Whitney striding down the hallway, her face contorted with pain while she tried to move as quickly as she could. I stepped inside to figure out what was wrong. I thought maybe she’d done something else to her ankle but, once she got to me, she held out another jacket, waiting for me to slip my arms into it before she’d let me go.

“Come on,” she said. “It’s freezing outside.”

The look of determination on her face was one that would forever be carved into my memory. In that one moment, she had both conceded defeat and exposed how much she was really worrying. Sliding my arms into the coat, I felt her push it up onto my shoulders and I had to admit I felt a little better.

“You’ve got your phone?” she asked.

“I do.”

“Let me see it.”

She held out her hand and I sifted around for my phone. I placed it in the palm of her hand and she promptly started typing on the screen. She sighed before she handed it back to me, a number, along with her name, saved into my contacts list.

“Call me now quickly so I have your number,” she said.

Grinning, I pressed the call button. I heard something vibrating in the living room and she nodded in satisfaction.

“Let me know when you get to the store, okay?” she asked.

“I will.”

I started the journey through the woods and I could feel her watching me from the cabin windows. The snow was deep and it was hard to move. Each step seemed a little harder than the last. The snow was so high that I slammed my shin into the fucking tree that was down in the middle of the road and I had to pause to catch my breath.

I stepped in holes that put me in snow up to my waist and I cursed as my boots slipped on other things strewn along the road. Carcasses of animals and other trees that had fallen in the path littered the route I chose and I could feel sweat dripping down my back. But finally, after walking for close to two hours, I saw the store.

I shot Whitney a text message, letting her know I was safe before I started down the road toward the small building.

I walked in and immediately grabbed a basket. I was going to make sure I didn’t have to make a trip like this again. My legs were shaking with exhaustion and it was becoming more painful to breathe. The air was so cold, it physically hurt to face it, and I relished the heat of the store while I started picking things up.

I grabbed toilet paper and batteries. I grabbed body wash and shampoo. I grabbed another tube of toothpaste just in case we needed one and I snagged some basic medication. The shelves were practically bare, besides the few essentials I could find, and when I made my way up to the cash register, I decided to shoot Whitney another message, just to let her know I was about to head back.

“You’re the first person I’ve seen since the storm hit,” the man said.

I looked up at the old man standing behind the cash register before I drew in a deep breath.

“Thanks for staying open through all this,” I said.

“Ain’t no storm shut me down yet,” he said, grinning. “People’ll always need toilet paper.”

I couldn’t help but chuckle while I dug through my wallet to pay the man.

“You live up in the woods, right?” the man asked.

“Yep.”

“How’re the roads?”

“Rough,” I said.

“I hear they aren’t gonna get to this main road until Friday,” the man said. “You got enough food?”

I grinned at his question before I handed him a twenty-dollar bill.

“I do,” I said.

I gathered up my bags before I nodded toward the man. I waved off the change he tried to give me before I headed for the doors. The bags didn’t seem too heavy in my hands but I knew they’d start tugging pretty badly once I started walking through the woods again.

“You keep warm now!” the man said.

“I will,” I said as I pushed out into the cold. “I definitely will.”