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Chapter 14

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Dallas sent up a silent prayer of thanks at his good fortune. He moved his left leg and winced at the pain. Okay, so the ankle was bad news, but being stranded with Rosie was good news.

If he’d planned this stranding, it couldn’t have gone better. Well, okay, again the ankle, but still. Things were coming together nicely.

Rosie was hot, funny, into sci-fi, and she was opening up to him. This was definitely a step in the right direction.

She walked into the bedroom carrying a pint of ice cream and two spoons. “I can’t believe I didn’t check the fridge before. We’re going to be eating well.”

God bless his mother and her overpreparedness. And her love of ice cream. “If you find a bag of Jalapeño Cheetos, I call dibs.” He glanced at the ice cream. “Häagen-Dazs Chocolate Chocolate Chip. It looks like my mother stocked the food. There will definitely be a hidden bag of Jalapeño Cheetos.”

“I never noticed what a junk-foodie she is.” Rosie crawled onto the bed and handed him a spoon. “I really like that about her.”

“Yeah, Mom’s always been somewhat of a junk-food hypocrite. She’d wouldn’t let us eat ice cream for dinner, but she sure would. My dad used to get onto her, but then she introduced him to Jalapeño Cheetos and he went over to the dark side. He’s not much for ice cream, but cookies… he can put a serious dent in some chocolate chip cookies.”

She worked the lid off the pint and pulled off the thin white piece of plastic covering the ice cream. She held the carton out for him to take the first bite.

He shook his head. “Ladies first.”

She grinned. “I like your manners. I should give your mother a hug for doing such a good job.”

“What about me?” He held his arms out. “Don’t I deserve a hug?”

“You’re kinda needy, aren’t you?” She swirled her spoon in the ice cream and slowly brought it to her mouth.

He dropped his arms.

“You’re just now noticing that? That’s got to be a personal record for me.” He glanced at the pale light sneaking behind the blinds. The sun was coming up, and it appeared that the rain had stopped.

“No, I’m just now mentioning it. I noticed it a while ago.” She waited for him to take a bite, and then she swirled her spoon in the ice cream again and brought it to her lips.

“Thank God. It’s important for me to get the word out that I’m high maintenance. The more people that know the better. That way people don’t assume I’m easygoing. I find it saves time.” He scooped up a bite and shoveled it in.

“I admire a man with a plan.” She swirled and licked.

He’d never known that eating ice cream could be such a sensual experience, but watching her was absolutely turning him on. Then again, Rosie could rev his engine just by entering the room.

“Why are you staring at me?” She swirled and licked again.

He lowered his eyes. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to stare.”

“It’s the ice cream. I eat it slowly. My sisters hate when I eat ice cream in front of them because it takes me forever. There is always at least one comment on how the ice cream will probably melt before I finish.” If anything, she slowed down her swirl and lick.

“You savor it. I get that.” His eyes locked on her spoon. “For what it’s worth, they’re wrong. Watching you eat ice cream is a religious experience.”

“What’s your favorite ice cream?” She continued at her own pace. Swirl and lick.

He thought about it for a couple of beats. “I don’t discriminate. I like all ice cream.” He held up a hand. “That’s not true. I like normal ice cream flavors. When you start making ice cream out of corn on the cob or red-eye gravy, it’s just nasty. Savory ice cream is a terrible idea. Once, on the Food Network, someone made pimento cheese ice cream. Why would anyone make that, and more importantly, why would they think anyone would want to eat it?”

She shrugged. “I’m with you. I don’t want to eat the flavors of Thanksgiving—i.e., the turkey and dressing—made into ice cream. I saw that once on the Food Network. Why would anyone ruin a perfectly good roasted turkey and perfectly good cream to make something so disgusting?”

“You got me.” He scooped up another bite. “Some things I just don’t understand.”

Rosie glanced at the window. “Looks like the sun’s coming up.”

She went to the window and pulled on the cord, raising the blinds. “It’s stopped raining.”

The sun was bright and clear in the light-blue, cloudless sky.

She put her ear to the window like she was trying to hear the sunshine.

“What are you listening for?” He heard the faint sound of rushing water, but nothing else.

“The crowing rooster. I’m never up this early unless it’s because I haven’t gone to bed yet.” She pressed her ear against the glass. “CanDee and Justus have remarked on many occasions that at least once in my life, I should hear the rooster crow.”

“I take it you’re not a morning person.” He knew she wasn’t, but he liked making conversation with her.

“Nope, and I don’t apologize for it. Everyone has a vice and mine is sleeping late. I hate cheerful morning people.” She turned around and leaned against the window. “Why do I get the feeling that you’re one of those cheerful morning people?”

“I’m pretty sure that no one has ever called me cheerful unless they were drunk or I was drunk and misheard them.” He spooned up another bite. “But I do like to start off the day with a big, healthy smile. Give me a quiet morning over a late night any day.”

“Just when I was starting to like you.” She shook her head. “I find out your dirty little secret. I don’t think we can be friends anymore.”

“What if I promise to be crabby and hateful until noon?” He loved just hanging out with her. There was no telling what would come out of her mouth next.

“It’s a start, but it’s not enough. I need for you to state all of your good qualities.” She crossed her arms. “I warn you now, it better be a long and impressive list.”

He laced his fingers behind his head. “Well now, let me see.”

He put his right index finger against his pursed lips. “In the fourth grade, I won the Kendall County Spelling Bee for spelling the word ‘milieu.’ The next year, I distinctly remember letting Worth have my Rice Krispy Treat at lunch, but I guess that really doesn’t count since I’d stolen it from him in the first place.” He searched his brain. “In middle school, I helped a little old man cross the street, only it turns out he was a little old lady and she didn’t want to cross the street. Then there was the time I saved a little lab-created mutant girl from the men that wanted to kill her and helped her get to Canada so she could live with other lab-created mutant children.” He shook his head. “Wait… no, that was the movie Logan.” He made a big show of thinking really hard. “I’m pretty sure I have some good qualities, but it appears that they’re buried really deep.”

“I see.” She pursed her lips. “Maybe I can help. What do the Borg, the Peacekeepers, and the Alliance all have in common?”

“They’re all bad guys, except for Seven of Nine and Aeryn Sun, who both started as bad guys but had a change of heart and started working for the good guys.” Any halfway-decent sci-fi fan would know that.

“And just like that, you’re back in my good graces.” She turned back to the window and then froze.

“What’s wrong?” Without thinking, he moved his leg and pain radiated out from his ankle.

She pointed to the glass. “I think I just saw several trees and a tractor float by.”

He inched his way to the edge of the bed and held out his arm. “Help me up and let’s go check on the river.”

She wrapped her arm around him and shouldered his weight as he stood. They hobbled to the front door. She opened the door and they hobbled onto the front porch.

The sound of rushing water vibrated through the clear morning. The Villa was high enough and far enough back on a limestone shelf that they couldn’t see the water, but they could hear it and see the tops of trees and debris as they floated by.

Rosie helped him to one of the rocking chairs and then took off in a dead run. She was in her bare feet, but she didn’t seem to have noticed.

“Wait, don’t get too close to the edge.” He fisted his hands in frustration. What if she fell into the rushing water? There was nothing he could do but watch.

“I don’t see my car. Where’s my car?”

The panic in her voice tore at him.

She moved closer toward the running water. “Oh my God.”

He shot out of the chair. Pain sliced through his body and his leg crumbled beneath him.

“Rosie, wait.” He dragged himself to the edge of the porch.

She turned around. Her eyes were huge as she ran back toward him.

“What are you doing?” Dismay filled her voice. Her arms slid under his shoulders and she pulled him back to the rocking chair.

“I was trying to get to you. I thought something was wrong.” He sucked in short gasps of air. The pain was making him nauseated.

Her eyes caught on something on the side of the Villa. “Stay here. I’ll be right back.”

She ran around the side of the house and came back pushing a wheelbarrow.

What exactly was she planning to do with that?

“Have a sudden urge to garden?” He gritted his teeth. If his ankle wasn’t broken before, it sure was now.

“I’m going to use it to show you the river.” She parked it on the crushed-granite path next to the five steps leading down to the yard.

He looked at the wheelbarrow, looked at Rosie, then looked back at the wheelbarrow. “Have you ever pushed someone around in one of those things? I don’t know if you noticed while you were ogling me, but I’m not a small man. You’re not even wearing shoes.” He eyed her bare feet with skepticism. Her sexy toes would look a lot less sexy crushed by a wheelbarrow.

“How hard can it be?” She gave him an encouraging nod. “We’re not going far, and I’ll stay on level terrain.”

He thought about it. “I guess the worst that could happen is I break my other ankle. What the heck, you only live once, right?” It wasn’t every day a man got to witness a flood of biblical magnitude with a woman like Rosie by his side.

“Don’t worry. I’ll take good care of you.” Ignoring his hesitation, she wrapped her arm around his waist and helped him down the steps and into the wheelbarrow.

“Ready?” She took a deep breath and hoisted up the wheelbarrow. “You’re heavier than you look.”

“Thanks, I’ll take that as a compliment.” He looked down at his ankle. It was black and blue and swelling around the duct tape.

She wheeled him along the gravel path toward the river. As they wheeled closer to the cliff, the roaring got louder.

When he caught site of the devastation, he forgot all about his ankle.

The Guadalupe River had been transformed from its normal calm, slow, tube-ride pace into a raging, angry beast. The churned-up chocolate-milk-colored water was still rising. He estimated it was advancing by at least an inch a minute. It was a good twenty-five feet below them, but they would need to keep an eye on it. Whole uprooted trees and large chunks of concrete rushed past them. A red pickup bobbed up and down as it passed by. And then there were the animals. Cows, pigs, and what looked like a deer all floated downriver, their lifeless bodies a true testament to just how devastating Mother Nature could be.

Thank God Rosie had taken shelter when she did. His heart was in his throat just thinking about what could have happened to her.

“There’s nothing left.” Rosie pointed to the bank that had once housed luxury teepees and even more luxurious cabins. “They’re gone.”

His family had to be safe. They knew to go to higher ground. He glanced upriver, looking for the hundred-year-old cypress tree that had held the zip line. Either he was too far away from it or it was gone because the river had swallowed everything on its banks.

“What are we going to do?” She glanced down at him and then to his ankle. “I’m so sorry. You’re in pain and I’m whining about my business.”

She pushed him back to the cabin and helped him up the stairs and back to bed.

“Let me get you some ice and some ibuprofen.” She went to the kitchen and he heard her opening the fridge and freezer and putting ice into a bag. She returned with a glass of milk and a towel-wrapped bundle of ice, which she gently laid on his foot. She upended the ibuprofen bottle she’d left on the nightstand and shook out five tablets. She handed them to him along with the glass of milk.

He downed the pills, and the ice was starting to numb some of the pain.

“I hate to ask you to do anything else for me, but could you use the sat phone to call my parents? You could try the Lodge if they’re not home. We were using the Lodge as a headquarters to look for you.”

“Oh my God, I’m so sorry. I should have done that as soon as I saw the river.” She ran into the living room and then he heard the front door slam.

He heard her voice but he couldn’t make out the words.

God, please let his family be okay. They got on his nerves and were sometimes a pain in the ass, but his life didn’t work without them.

Someone tapped on the window next to the bed, and he jumped about a foot in the air. His eyes went to the window.

Rosie waved. “Unlock it.” Her voice was muffled.

He reached over and flipped the metal toggle that unlocked the window. She pushed it up.

“I’m going to put you on speaker—that is, if I can figure out how to put you on speaker.” She pushed a couple of buttons.

“How’s his ankle?” His father’s voice boomed out from the speakerphone.

“It’s pretty black and blue and swollen. He just tried to walk on it and reinjured it.” Rosie eyed him like he was in trouble for that. “Tell him that he needs to keep off of it.”

“Dallas, stay in bed. I know it’s not in your nature to listen to me, but this time you will. Stay off that ankle.” His father was using his you’d-better-listen-to-me-or-else voice.

Dallas wasn’t promising anything. “Is everyone okay?”

“Promise me you’ll stay off that ankle. Your mother made me promise I’d tell you before she went to the hospital several hours ago. And you know I hate to upset your mother.” His father knew him too well.

“Okay, I promise. Now, is everyone all right?” His voice was high and squeaky but he didn’t care. This was his family and he couldn’t lose any of them.

“Yes, everyone here is safe. The river is rising rapidly and the news says that the water won’t crest for another day or so. I’m afraid we can’t get to you until then. All of the bridges are washed out, and all search-and-rescue personnel are actively searching for the missing.” His father’s voice caught. “There’s a whole family who were in a cabin upstream that washed away. It’s a mess.” He could hear the sorrow in his father’s voice. His dad was big and strong and had a soft spot for any and everyone. “I’ve got the grandkids with me. Everyone else has gone into Roseville to help out in any way they can. Some of the displaced families are on the way here. We’re going to put them up until things are sorted out.”

“Feel free to put some people in my house.” Dallas had seen the river but he couldn’t fathom the destruction. It would take years to overcome one night’s heavy rain.

“And the cottage. Please feel free to offer them my clothes or toiletries or whatever I have that may be needed.” Rosie fisted her hands, and Dallas could feel the frustration rolling off of her. “I wish I was there to help.” She snapped her fingers. “Oh, yesterday morning I got a huge shipment of T-shirts and robes in for the B&B. There are also the toiletries and linens that came in last week. They’re all in the cottage’s living room. Y’all could hand them out.”

“That’s very thoughtful of you. I’ll make sure we get the supplies.” Someone mumbled something in the background. “Rosie, Hugh would like to speak with you.”

There was some shifting on the phone.

“Hey, Rosie. Louisa just called again to make sure you were okay. I told her that you and Dallas were safe and in a house, but that you were on the other side of the river. All your sisters were so worried that they’re on their way to Roseville and guess what?” Hugh’s voice held nothing but his excitement for adventure. He was too young to appreciate what had been lost.

Rosie smiled. “What, Big H?”

“They’re bringing the Flan truck. They’re going to park outside of Roseville High School where people are meeting who need help and they’re going to give out free flan.” He made it sound so exciting.

Dallas could relate. Free flan was pretty damn exciting.

“That sounds like fun.” Rosie loved Hugh, and it was clear from the way her whole body smiled.

“I know. Louisa promised me I could help hand out the flan.” Hugh sounded very proud of his important new responsibility. “Guess what else?”

“What?”

“Your sisters called some other people they know and there’s like ten food trucks coming. They’re all going to hand out free food.” Hugh sounded just like he had on Christmas morning.

“I wish we could be there,” Dallas said.

“Me too,” Rosie added.

There was some more mumbling on Hugh’s side of the phone.

“Oh, I gotta go. Mary’s taking me to town so I can help out. Bear’s gonna stay here in case y’all need anything and to watch AG.” There was some shuffling like someone had picked up the phone. “Just so you know, I watched over AG all night last night cause I’m her big brother. I kept her safe from the thunder just like you told me, Uncle Dallas.” Hugh was all self-importance.

“Good job, H-man. I knew you were big brother material.” Dallas loved that boy to death.

“Okay, I gotta go.” The phone line went dead.

“In the mind of a little boy, there’s nothing more important than free food.” Rosie laughed as she closed the window.

It occurred to Dallas that he didn’t know Rosie’s stance on kids. He knew she loved Hugh, but did she want any of her own?

Someday he hoped to have a boy just like Hugh.

If Dallas had his way, it would be sooner rather than later.