Chapter 3
Curled over bent legs, head on her knees and arms around her shins, Laura shivered in spite of the hot water raining down on her.
She was never getting warm again.
Her teeth had stopped chattering, but the shivers and bone deep ache remained.
She’d lost track of time but knew she’d been in here a while. And even though her mind had cleared somewhat, she could only remember how she’d gotten here in a hazy kind of recollection, as though she’d dreamed the whole thing.
One thing stuck out though.
Nash Yates.
He’d come out of nowhere and pulled her from the snow.
He’d brought her home to Lakeside Inn.
He said he bought the Inn.
Why would he buy the Inn? He worked for Alex.
She was pretty sure he was some sort of boss in her cousin’s company because he always seemed to be in charge and giving orders whenever she visited one of Alex’s job sites.
She’d never allowed herself to delve too deeply into Nash. Self-preservation was a necessity when it came to the man. Laura wasn’t stupid, she knew if she got to know him, beyond his name and how good looking he was, she would find herself in trouble.
The attraction that sizzled between them sparked in a way she’d never experienced and while she wasn’t completely clueless when it came to the opposite sex, she wasn’t an expert.
Her previous relationships were fleeting and superficial.
None of those men had made her feel what Nash did, and they weren’t even friends, had maybe said a thousand words to each other in the years he’d lived in Winter Lake.
She remembered the first time she’d seen him. She’d pulled into a work site to talk to her cousin and without being obvious, checked out the new guy she’d never seen before. It wasn’t until she’d climbed out of her cruiser and gotten a closer look that she realized he was way out of her league.
For one, he was hot. Like smokin’ hot, grace the pages of a magazine H O T all capitals hot.
And two, he had to be at least a decade older than her.
She barely held her own against men her own age, and at twenty-one she hadn’t had much experience or honed her feminine wiles. Hell, she hadn’t posses any wiles back then, she’d been lucky to entice a man if she stripped naked in front of one.
The years between now and then hadn’t improved her skills at all.
Carly kept telling her to not worry and be herself, but Laura had never found that appealing. Well, she did, she liked herself just fine, but men didn’t seem to like her as she was.
And this was the other problem with Nash. He made her question everything about herself. Before him she’d been happy with who she was, both her physical appearance and her personality. After him she’d questioned the way she dressed and acted.
Except when she wore her uniform. When she slipped on her badge and belt she felt confident, invincible—necessary.
“Laura?”
Nash’s voice snapped her eyes open and head up. Expecting to see him in front of her she was surprised to find the bathroom empty.
“Laura? Are you okay? You’ve been in there a while,” his voice came through the gap in the door.
“Yeah.”
“Do you need help?”
She could hear the concern in his voice and the sting of tears blurred her vision more than the steam rising around her. She wasn’t a crier. Never had been. Then again, Nash did crazy things to her emotions. One more reason to steer clear of him.
“No, I’m okay. I’m getting out.” She wasn’t, although she probably should. The chill hadn’t left her in spite of the hot water and her fingertips felt wrinkly when she pressed her hands to the floor to push herself up.
“I’ve got a bowl of stew ready and a cup of hot sweet tea. Come out to the kitchen when you’re dressed.”
“Okay.” Using the wall to keep her steady on her feet, she switched off the water.
It took far longer than it should to get out of the shower and dry off. Her arms and legs shook, her hands and fingers trembled, and she almost dropped the towel twice before she finished.
The numbness had gone and the burning tingle that replaced it didn’t hurt as much as it had when the first spray of hot water had hit her, but she still felt cold. It was bone deep and she didn’t think it was going away any time soon.
The pants Nash had left were too big, both length and width, and the sleeves of the shirt hung passed her hands a good ten inches.
With the legs and arms on both garments rolled up she looked like a little girl playing dress-up in her daddy’s clothes.
It didn’t matter how ridiculous she looked, they were warm and soft and comfortable, and when she lowered her head and breathed deep she could smell fresh air and forest—Nash.
She didn’t want to search through his cupboards but she needed to dry her hair, the squeeze she’d managed with the towel left it too wet to leave.
Biting her lip, she opened the drawers and cupboard beneath the basin.
Coming up empty, she grabbed her towel, twisted it around her head, and went to find Nash.
As soon as she left the steamy bathroom the smell of something delicious made her stomach rumble and cramp.
God, she hoped that was the stew he’d mentioned.
The last time she’d eaten was hours ago and the small piece of carrot cake she’d picked up with a coffee at the little cafe in Broken Bay hadn’t kept her satisfied for long.
The cold and the situation with her cruiser had distracted her from her hunger. Now, with that yummy aroma filling her nose, she felt ravenous.
“Hey, take a seat on the couch. I’ll grab you a pair of socks when you’re settled.” Nash stood in front of the bedroom door as though he’d been waiting for her. “There’s a bowl of stew and a mug of tea on the coffee table. The sat phone is next to them. Call whoever you need to.”
He curled his hand around her elbow and urged her across the room. With no energy to argue she didn’t need help, never mind the fact she actually did need his assistance, she murmured a quiet, “Thanks,”and let him lead her to the couch.
“I called Alex. He said he’d call your dad but I’m sure you’ll want to speak to him yourself.”
He’d called Alex? “Oh, okay, yeah.” She let him settle her on the couch and once seated, let him drape a thick hand-stitched quilt over her lap. She hated feeling incapable but knew without Nash’s help she’d likely still be outside in the snow.
“I’ll get those socks.” He frowned at her feet before muttering, “Maybe two pairs.”
Before she could agree or disagree he was gone. Spying the phone she leaned forward and scooped it up. Brain still a little muddled, she hit 911 and waited for the call to connect.
“Winter Lake emergency services, how can I help you?”
“Sarah? It’s Laura. I’m just checking in. I’m stuck over in Broken Bay.”
“Laura! We’ve been worried. No one could get you on the radio or your cell.”
“Yeah, either the weather or the fact I put the cruiser in a ditch knocked the radio out and I’ve got no service on my cell.” She glanced around for her backpack. She didn’t even know where her cell was.
“You’re not the only one. I think we might have a tower down or the power is out on it or something. Not that this weather will allow a crew to check any time soon. Everyone’s battening down and staying indoors. Wait. The cruiser is in a ditch? Are you okay? Where are you?”
“I’m fine. I’m at Lakeside Inn with Nash Yates. I’m using his sat phone. I’ll wait out the storm here but if you can put in a call to Larry at Lake Auto to send out a tow truck after the storm clears that would be great.”
“Larry’s already got enough work to last a month and that’s just the stuff people were able to call in before the storm knocked out the phone lines.
Emergency vehicles will have priority though.
This bitch came in hard and fast. Took most of us by surprise even though we’ve known for days it was coming.
I’m glad I brought supplies to stay at the station for a few days.
The Chief’s here along with the rookie.”
Asha and Chad were supposed to be off duty hours ago. Although she wasn’t surprised to hear Asha was there, as Chief of police he wouldn’t want to be caught out of town at his place for the next few days. But Chad…
“Please tell me the rookie didn’t break something else.”
Sarah laughed. “How’d you guess?”
“Jesus. What did he do now?”
“Well, as you can imagine, the amount of snow coming down isn’t easy for the most seasoned driver but when you’re from a state that never gets even a dusting of the stuff you’ve got no hope.”
“Shit. Did he total a cruiser?” Fuck, the Chief will be pissed if two cruises needed towing.
“No, not even a scratch. But that fancy new fencing they put up along Lake Front near the gazebo didn’t come out so good.”
Leaning her head back she closed her eyes. “Lord. We won’t survive this kid.”
Chuckling, Sarah said, “Give him time. He’s still so young and green. God, he’s so so green.”
Laura laughed, the woman didn’t lie. “Okay, well I need to call my dad and let him know I’m good. I’d tell you to call me if you need me but I don’t think I’m leaving here for while.”
“I’d say we’re all stuck inside for at least a couple of days.”
“A couple…” Her eyes opened, her gaze darting to the window beside the back door. Motherfucker. She hadn’t even thought about being snowed in. With Nash. “Right. Well, you can count me as safe. And everyone in Broken Bay is prepared and accounted for.”
“I’ll let the Chief know. Stay safe and we’ll see you after the storm.”
“You stay safe too. I’ll call again tomorrow.” Ending the call, Laura stared out the window. The window that was completely white.
“We’ve hit whiteout stage. I’m hoping this thing blows itself out quicker than they predicted but I’m not holding my breath. Here.” Nash stood in front of her, a pair of thick work socks held out in each hand.
Taking one pair, she put the phone in her lap and grabbed the other pair. “I probably only need one.”
“You’re still a bit pale. I’d rather be safe than sorry.
You should have put the hoodie on too but the quilt will probably keep you warm enough if you stay put and don’t walk around.
Especially after you get some hot food and drink in you.
” He grabbed the hoodie he had draped over his shoulder and dropped it next to her. “You move from there, put that on.”
She bristled at the order and muttered, “Yes boss.” If she’d had the energy she’d have snapped a salute.
He grinned down at her. The bastard knew she wanted to tell him to fuck off. “Did you make your calls?”
“I called the station. Still need to call my dad. Probably should call mom too. If she’s not with dad.”
“Put the socks on then call. After that you really need to eat, get warm from the inside. It’s okay in here at the moment but I can’t get it hotter with the heating system I’ve got and I’d say the storm will be dropping the temp to less comfortable before it’s done.”
“No fireplace in here?” She glanced around and spotted a section of wall covered in sheets of plywood. “Oh. It’s boarded up?”
“Yeah, that’s my next job. If I can get it functioning it should give off enough heat to keep these few rooms warm through winter. I’m not sure how long the furnace will keep working. It took a whole day to get it running and the piping system doesn’t look the best.”
“You should have waited until after winter to move in.” Why he’d given up the modern apartment with central heating above Della’s at this time of year she didn’t understand. Not when he’d had to close off the majority of the house to live here.
He shrugged. “A little cold doesn’t worry me. I can always run the ovens to get some heat in here if the furnace goes. Besides, if I hadn’t been here you’d be in a lot worse shape.”
True. But she had enough confidence in herself to know she’d have been okay without his assistance. Maybe. No, she would have been fine. She was resourceful. Capable. “Want help opening up the fireplace?”
Shaking his head, he said, “No. You make your calls and eat. I’m going to pull the boards off and see what I’ve got to work with. It would be done by now if I hadn’t spent the day getting ready to be snowed in.”
Laura grinned. “Snowed in at the Inn.”
Chuckling, he headed to the island and picked up a metal pry bar. “Figured I’d be talking to myself for the next few days. Can’t say I’m disappointed that won’t be the case.”