Chapter 10
CHAPTER 10
T he night seemed endless for Aaron as he grabbed snatches of sleep between dreams of Belle huddling outside her parents’ burning cabin. Fear in her eyes, her arms wrapped around her alarmed and quaking children, he’d thought she’d collapsed when her gaze moved to him.
An onslaught of memories plunged from the depths. Waves of emotion swept through him as he remembered gathering her in his arms and holding her close before guiding her and her children away from the fire—her soft curves, her fragile trembling. She was with him. He could protect her.
He shook the memory away. Such a thought made him want her more. She was broken inside. The best thing he could do was give her space. She had a life to figure out.
He rolled over and tried to force his mind to sleep, but happier times wavered into view. He was fifteen. Belle was hanging out with her friends at the rodeo. She looked like a natural wearing her cowgirl hat and boots, her dark curls framing her elegantly formed features. When the riders burst from the chute, she’d stand and cheer the bull riders with the other girls as if she’d been raised on one of the nearby ranches.
Aaron turned to his digital clock. It was still early, but he threw back the covers and rose. He needed to do something to still these dreams that haunted his sleep.
As much as Aaron wanted to be with Belle, being with her wasn’t his decision to make. He never thought he’d see her again, but here she was. How long she’d stay was part of God’s plan, not his.
He strode to the bathroom. Time to shower, get moving and get Belle out of his head.
Easier said than done.
The house was quiet when he moved down the stairs into the kitchen. He set up one skillet for bacon and another for scrambled eggs. He stirred ingredients for syrup into a saucepan.
Standing at the mixer, he added flour, sugar, milk, butter and eggs, all ingredients he knew by heart, into the bowl. Turning on the beaters, he mixed everything into a smooth, fluffy batter. The fire crew had dubbed his pancakes the best in the house with some of the crew dropping by on their days off when they learned it was his turn to cook breakfast.
He moved from one skillet to the next, then back to the stove where he tested the griddle. He’d mastered the temperature years ago but still tested it. After the landslide, he didn’t want to risk his precious pancake mixture on a malfunctioning cooktop griddle.
He laughed dryly. Pancake batter wasn’t his priority—survival was.
After pouring the batter, he watched the uniform flapjacks sizzle, bubbles rising through the smooth surfaces.
He set the table, then returned to the stove and inhaled the searing odor of the grilling pancakes and the sizzling bacon. He turned the bacon and poured more pancake batter. He’d made breakfast so many times, he could do it in his sleep—if sleep would come.
Maybe his mind would rest after Belle left. His stomach dropped. He wouldn’t think about her leaving. She was with him now. He’d cherish every moment.
Footsteps sounded behind him, and he glanced over his shoulder to Lyle, still in the process of waking up and eyeing the pancakes.
“Hey, tiger.” Aaron grinned at the boy.
“Hey.” Lyle smiled, then moved into the kitchen. He watched Aaron flip pancakes onto a platter. “It sure smells good. Can I help with anything?”
“Sure.” Aaron’s mouth curved at the boy.
“Can I help, too?” Kelsey appeared in the archway. She watched eagerly as her brother flipped pancakes to a platter like a firefighter.
“You don’t have to worry about me not putting you to work,” Aaron said lightly, which made them laugh.
The lightness sounded refreshing and made him wonder when the last time they felt such ease was. They’d been through more than children should.
With breakfast on the table, they were ready to sit.
“I’ll tell Mom everything’s ready.” Lyle moved to the archway.
“Actually, your mom was going to sleep a little late today.” Aaron nodded to their chairs. “I’ll make her something when she comes down.”
The children hesitated, then sat at the table.
“What will we do today?” Kelsey asked in a cheery voice that sounded like Belle.
“We’ll need to wait until your mother gets up.” Aaron passed the pancake platter to her. “But after breakfast, we can work on that jigsaw puzzle.”
“Oh, goody,” Kelsey said with excitement. “I can’t wait to see what it looks like.”
Aaron laughed softly. There was a picture on the jigsaw puzzle box, but it was small.
“How do you know my mom?” Kelsey asked.
Aaron stilled. He should have expected that question. Her children would notice everything about their mom, especially at this trying time.
“I met her when she and your grandparents spent their summers in Sweet Mountain,” he said.
“Did you date her?” she asked.
His head came up. He didn’t want to discuss his and Belle’s relationship, even though they never had one. Belle would tell her children what she wanted them to know.
He had liked Belle from afar. She hadn’t given him the time of day. She was friendly, but she had plans and that didn’t include getting involved with a small-town cowboy who stammered and stuttered whenever she was around. He’d never met anyone as sophisticated as Belle Stedham, even if she did fit in with the locals.
Turning to Kelsey, he saw that her glass was empty. “We became friends. Do you want more juice?”
“No, thank you.” Kelsey stared at him, her look expectant. Her determined expression so reminiscent of Belle’s told him she wasn’t going to drop a matter.
Aaron hoped Kelsey would forget her question remained unanswered, but not likely. His niece and nephew remembered everything.
He set more pancakes on the table and slid into his chair. He felt a warmth inside. He wasn’t a father, but he liked being with these kids. He’d miss them when they left—he’d miss Belle more than anything.
Soft footsteps made all three of them look up.
Belle looked pale, but fresh in a pair of jeans, a long-sleeved t-shirt and a fleece vest. Her hair was twisted sleekly at the nape of her neck.
“Mom!” Kelsey and Lyle said at that same time.
“Sorry, I overslept.” A faint color touched Belle’s cheeks. She glanced at Aaron before looking back at her children. “It looks like Aaron made you a good breakfast. Everything looks wonderful. Your years of cooking at the fire station made you quite the chef.”
Suddenly, he felt like the awkward high school cowboy who couldn’t speak, let alone think, when she was around.
“I can’t take credit.” He smiled at her children, who looked pleased. “You have a good team of cooks here.”
“I can’t wait to dive in.” She took her seat.
“What will we do today, Mom?” Kelsey asked as if eager to have plans that weren’t indoors. “Aaron said we could work on the puzzle, but I wanted to make sure we didn’t miss anything.”
“I don’t know that we can do much.” Belle gave Aaron a hesitant look. “I suppose we should stay indoors.”
Lyle looked from his mother to Aaron.
“For now. After breakfast, I’ll check the internet and see if any updates have been posted.” He kept his gaze on Belle.
Later, he’d tell her about his plan to hike to the main road. Lyle, and maybe Kelsey, might want to go, so Belle would need to prepare herself for that request. Aaron would take Lyle, if Belle consented.
“Working on the jigsaw puzzle is a good idea.” Belle’s tone was light and hopeful.
Kelsey clapped. Lyle’s face was schooled as if hoping for a better idea.
The conversation segued to when Aaron thought the crews would clear the roads. That could take days—days and nights he’d spend with Belle.
He struggled with those feelings. Being trapped with Belle was a test he hadn’t expected. Did he have the strength to pass it? He didn’t have a choice. He prayed the crew would make the road leading to his cabin a priority. As a first responder, they’d need his help. He needed their help to put distance between himself and this woman, who stirred emotions that warned him he was about to endure a test he’d fight to pass.