8
Friday morning, 9 am, and Matt was ready to go. Since the weather forecast still looked pretty grim, he drove his truck, and wore his heavy coat, a tan sweater over jeans, and a pair of heavy walking boots.
When he pulled into the driveway, Jessica was just coming out with her design folios. They were big and bulky, and she struggled to get them through her front door.
“Wait,” Matt called from his truck, “let me help you.” He threw his truck into park, set the brake, and hopped out.
“I’m fine, I’m used to this,” Jessica said, still wrestling to maneuver the awkward folios through her door.
“Forgive me, but you don’t look used to this.” He winked at her and whisked them out her hands, returned to his truck, and propped the folios on the jump seat in his truck.
“Thank you,” she sighed. “I’ll go get my suitcase.
“We need to hurry if we’re going to beat the storm.” The prediction of snow had been upgraded to a possible blizzard, but it wasn’t due to hit their area until nightfall, and the drive to New York City was two hours give or take, depending on traffic. Still, Matt wasn’t keen on taking chances with severe weather.
“All right,” Jessica said as she emerged from her house, overnight bag in tow, and locked her front door. Matt took the suitcase from her and stashed it next to his, behind their seats. There was ample room, thanks to a spacious cab addition.
Jessica glanced over the side of the truck and into the bed, “What’s that?” She pointed to a backpack in the back of his truck.
Matt slid behind the wheel, “A rucksack, MREs, first aid stuff. The Army taught me to always be prepared.”
Jessica got in, and Matt took a moment to notice her. She wore a light blue turtleneck that matched her eyes, a snug pair of jeans, and a pair of knee-high designer riding boots.
“Isn’t that the Boy Scout motto?” she asked, and he forced himself to drag his gaze away from her and back the truck out of her driveway.
“Same difference.” He grinned at her and saw her cheeks flush. His heart thumped, and he knew it would be impossible for her to look more beautiful than she did that very moment. And here they were, on the road together for a weekend in New York.
“What do you have lined up for this weekend, Jessica,” he said as they headed back to the main highway.
“Well, I won’t make you try any of the dresses on, if that’s what you’re worried about.”
He glanced at her and winked. “White’s not my color anyway.”
“Mostly I’ll be meeting with one of my main boutiques to discuss my summer collection. I have the designs for the summer wedding dresses in my folio. Hopefully, I’ll get a huge order.”
“Have I told you how proud I am of you, Jessica?”
“It’s really nothing.” She shrugged.
“It’s not nothing. From what I’ve gathered, you’re a pretty damned successful wedding dress designer. You should be very proud.”
Once they were on the interstate, the traffic was heavy, so Matt kept his eyes on the road.
In the distance, though, he could see a line of dark grey moving closer to them. The storm everyone was talking about. The storm seemed to be moving in faster than anyone predicted.
“I am,” Jessica continued the conversation. “I mean, I love what I do. I love being able to design beautiful gowns for a living.”
When he didn’t respond, she looked at him.
“Matt, what’s wrong?”
“The storm. I think it’s moving in much faster than what was forecasted.”
“What does that mean?”
Matt answered without taking his eyes off the road. “It means I think we should head back home.”
“Please, no, Matt. Let’s just go a little farther and see what happens. This weekend is a huge deal for my business.”
She touched a hand to his leg, and then yanked it back. That spark she felt, when she touched him. It was something she had never felt before.
“Please,” she added, feeling a tiny bit out of breath. “I’m sorry, I know this must sound selfish.”
“We’ll keep going,” Matt said. While they continued down the highway, she asked him questions about his life in the Army, and his life in Afghanistan. She got some watered-down response with nothing more than vague details. She knew in her heart something was wrong. She knew that it also wasn’t the right time to push it.
After an hour on the road, the snow started to fall, gently at first, and then harder.
“We have to turn back.” His tone was final. “This is going to be too dangerous.” As soon as he spoke, several sets of brake lights flashed ahead of them, and everyone came to a stop.
“There must be an accident. Damn. We’re not going to wait here like sitting ducks.” Matt steered them onto the emergency lane and then, throwing his truck into four-wheel drive, he maneuvered it off the highway and onto a narrow road running alongside it.
The truck bounced wildly from left to right while Jessica held on to the “chicken strap” above the door for dear life, as well as to the armrest.
“What are you doing, Matt?” Jessica tried to smooth out the panic in her voice.
Once they hit the road, the drive evened out.
Matt touched her arm, and even in her semi-panicked state, his touch ignited something.
“I needed to get off the highway,” he explained. “This road will get us back home. Jessica, I’m sorry, but I can’t get you into New York today.”
The snow fell harder and faster now, and was beginning to pile up on the road. The visibility dropped while Matt drove slowly and meticulously through the storm.
The temperature was dropping. She could feel it on the inside of her door. The chill was working its way into the truck. Matt reached over and cranked the heater up a bit more.
She sat quietly beside him, knowing better than to protest at this point.
He had turned the radio to an AM local all-news station, and they reported that the storm was by all accounts already a blizzard, arriving well ahead of the nighttime predication.
“Warning,” the male voice began, “the blizzard has already begun to hit in Essex county. If you’re outdoors, please get to shelter immediately. We are expecting wind chills of up to 30 below zero. It’s not safe for man nor beast out there today, and speaking of beasts, please make sure your animals have proper shelter and enough food. This storm is predicted to last well into the night and through tomorrow.”
Matt flipped off the station. The roads were already worse than he could have imagined, but he didn’t want to tell Jessica, at least not yet.
“This is bad, isn’t it?”
Of course, she knew, he chided himself. How could she not know?
“Yes, it’s bad, but I’m going to get us home safely, I promise.” When they came to a fork in the road, Matt stopped the truck and grabbed his phone.
“Damn it.” He turned to her. “No reception. The storm must have already cut out cell service. I was hoping to pull up a map and see where we need to go.”
“I don’t know this area at all,” Jessica said as she pulled out her phone. “Mine is out, too.” She held it up and then slipped it back in her bag.
“So, what do you think, left or right?” He nodded toward each road, adding emphasis to his question.
Jessica shrugged, “Maybe all roads lead home. Let’s try left.” Matt took the left fork. Fifteen minutes later, they were hopelessly lost, with snow coming down unbelievably fast. Soon, they’d be stuck on a road with no cell coverage with no idea how to get home.