THE CABIN WAS eerily quiet when Gray stepped inside. The fire had been allowed to go out and all that was left was a few burning red embers. He took his gun from his waist, aimed it toward the floor as he moved quietly through each room, coming up empty.
Where was Stormy?
The snow had started again and was coming down fast, but he didn’t see any footprints outside the front door. He flung open the backdoor and there, in the fresh snow, he found what looked like the last remnants of prints made by snow shoes and another set of what looked like dog tracks.
His heart pounded. If he hurried he might be able to follow the tracks before the snow covered them.
Closing the door behind him, he zipped his coat all the way up to cover his face and stepped out into the blustery wind. “Stormy?” he yelled, but the wind caught his voice and tossed it back into his face. His mind scrambled with questions. Did she leave the cabin on her own? Or did someone come and take her? How did the dog play into all this?
He made it almost to the wood’s edge when the footprints stopped. The snow was coming down so fast. He couldn’t seem to get enough air into his lungs. If something happened to her, he’d never forgive himself.
“Stormy? Where are you?” He didn’t know if it was possible for anyone to hear in the wind, but he had to try. He scanned the area frantically, but visibility made seeing very far impossible.
His mind raced. What could he do?
He had to find her…
Then he heard something. Maybe a dog’s bark?
Ice crystals formed around two shadows and then he saw her.
Gray didn’t wait for Stormy, but he dashed forward through the snow and grabbed her shoulders, pulling her in close and hugging her. He heard a faint growl of protest and Stormy saying, “It’s okay, girl. He’s friendly.”
Gray pulled back, looking down at her, barely able to keep his concern from his voice. “Where were you? What the hell were you doing out here? You could have gotten lost.” He was at a cross between yelling and never letting her go again. “Do you not realize how dangerous this storm is?”
Her gaze narrowed. “You’re late. You told me three hours. I’ve been waiting forever. Do you know how hard that is when you’re stuck in the middle of nowhere?” She stomped around him and he saw the snow shoes. Those would have been nice to have earlier. He grimaced and followed her inside. And the dog.
He closed the door against the wind and toed off his boots, depositing his jacket on the counter. “Stormy?”
Once she had the shoes off and the plastic bags she’d wrapped around her feet she looked at him. “What?”
“I wasn’t gone that long, and you have a dog and snow shoes? What did I miss?”
Her face softened some. “She showed up on the doorstep. I couldn’t allow her to stay out in this weather. She was freezing. I found the snow shoes and the rope in a storage space in the closet. And a bottle of whiskey stashed in the back of one cabinet.” She untied the rope from the dog’s collar. “I didn’t think you were coming back.”
She could have easily reached in and squeezed his heart. “Is that why you took off into the snow? You didn’t give me much credit before you decided I wasn’t planning to keep my promise.”
“I thought I should take Lola out and just see if there was any sign of a neighbor. They could be worried sick about her. We didn’t get far when the snow started and thankfully, she helped me find my way back.”
“Lola?”
“I couldn’t just keep calling her dog.”
He noticed that her fingers were pale blue, and so were her toes. “What in the hell were you thinking?” Stomping across the kitchen, he lifted her into his arms.
*
“Wh-What are you doing, Gray? Put me down. Right now.” She pushed against his chest, but not hard enough because he didn’t budge. Lola growled, “Hush, Lola. It’s okay.”
“You’re not supposed to do that.”
“What?”
“Name a dog that doesn’t belong to you.”
“Fine. Now put me down.”
He didn’t listen but sat down in the chair closest to the fire depositing her in his lap. It took her a good three seconds to gain use of her voice. “What are you doing?”
“I’m warming you up. You’re blue. It wasn’t safe for you to be out in the weather wearing only a blanket and plastic bags as booties. Don’t you ever take your safety into consideration?”
“I was only out there for fifteen minutes. Maybe twenty.”
“Yeah, and believe it or not, that’s long enough for frostbite to settle in. You’re an ice cube.” He took her hands between his larger ones and rubbed them. Whether she wanted to admit it or not, it felt good to have him touching her. She immediately felt warmer, satisfied. “Are you mad at me?”
She lowered her gaze, but he placed his thumb on her chin and gently lifted her face. Their gazes met making her inner thighs tremble. “Not mad…just…” She sighed. “Well, I was worried. I really wasn’t sure you would come back. A person can spin many tales when they’re left alone in a snowstorm.”
“Didn’t I promise that I would?” His soft voice reached in and soothed her doubt.
“Yes, but I don’t know you.”
“Maybe not a lot, but this should prove that I can be trusted.”
She nodded. “I really didn’t go very far. I couldn’t just stay here and pace the floor. You went in search of that man you’re looking for, didn’t you?”
He reached up and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. “No. But, I did get this.” He reached in and took out her bag with medicine. “And your clothes are sitting by the door.”
“Thank you.” She took the bag from him.
“I did make a call.”
“Really? Your cell worked?” She was teetering between joy and sadness. Right now, having contact with the outside world meant soon she’d never see him again. They’d go their separate ways.
“No, but someone just happened along on a snow mobile. It was quite crazy that it happened, but I can’t complain. Anyway, I was able to contact my team.”
She circled her mind around his words. “You didn’t call a tow truck? The snow patrol?”
He laughed. “The snow patrol doesn’t make house calls, sweetheart.”
Stormy leaned in close, getting a whiff a woman’s perfume. “So, who was this hero who happened along in the snow?”
“Her name was Dory Shewalter and she lives on Whispering Mountain all year long in a cabin a few miles from here.”
“Hmm. Is that where you made the call?” She plucked a long blonde hair from his collar.
“I also fixed her pipes.”
Blinking, she scooted off his lap and stood before him, hands on her hips. “Let me get this straight. While I was worried sick for five hours you were with some snow queen in her cabin fixing her pipes?”
He chuckled “She did let me use her phone and gave me a ride back here.”
She wasn’t sure what was happening to her. Anger rushed through her as she tugged the blanket tighter around her shoulders. Taking her bag to the kitchen, she took her medicine, not looking at him, even though he was standing a few feet away.
“As cute as this blanket looks on you, you now have a change of clothes. I’ll get the fire started again. It’s cold in here.”
Reluctantly, she had to admit that taking the dog out in the snow was a bad idea, and instead of giving him a hard time, she needed to be grateful he had help getting back to the cabin. “Is your knee okay?”
“It’s not bad.”
Would he tell her otherwise? She doubted it. Gray wasn’t a man who seemed like he would complain.
In the bedroom, she dropped the blanket and dressed into a T-shirt and a pair of shorts. She was grateful she finally had something to wear besides a towel and blanket.
In the living room, she found Gray squatted beside Lola, petting her. Stormy stood staring for the longest time, admiring how gentle he was with the dog. Duncan hated animals. Another check against him and one in Gray’s favor.
Now she was keeping track of the pros and cons of each man? Grr.
“She’s sweet, isn’t she?”
Gray lifted his gaze to her, smiling. “She’s okay.” He winked. “I see she has a collar but no tag. Although she’s a little on the skinny side, I don’t see her as a stray living off the land.”
“That’s what I was thinking. She’s not unhealthy.”
Gray stood and hooked his thumbs into his front pockets. “Problem is, we’re not close to any neighbors and I don’t see why, or how, she would have come this far in this weather.”
“Maybe someone dropped her off, but she’s so sweet. I can’t imagine who would do that to her.”
Lola laid down in front of the fire and stretched out.
Stormy watched Gray lean on the counter. She wanted to step over and walk into his arms, knowing that his touch could melt away any of her doubt about her future, but she couldn’t rely on him. She had to stand on her own two feet. How could she though when they were stuck on a mountain.
Yet, hadn’t she always been independent? Always responsible? Even when she could have enjoyed life a little more, she instead stayed focus.
“You okay?” he asked.
Could she tell him that she was pondering her future again? He’d get tired of hearing her sad story. “I guess I’m just considering what I’m going to say to Duncan when I see him.”
“So, you plan on seeing him?”
“I don’t have a choice, do I? It’s the right thing to do.”
“Maybe. Maybe not.”