Chapter 11 #2
She asked me a few more questions about it, getting me talking. I hadn’t even noticed how much we’d slowed until Jess caught up with us.
“I’m going to hang back,” Tilley announced. “You kids go on ahead.”
I saw the smile she gave me and the little wiggle of her brows. Tilley Beckett was always looking for a good story, or a little gossip she could turn into a good story.
As much as I’d tried to avoid it, she seemed to already know everything that happened in this town. No doubt she’d caught wind of us dancing the night before and was trying to suss out whether there was anything more to it than an innocent dance between friends.
That would make two of us.
I didn’t bother arguing, and within a few minutes, the others’ voices blurred into the trees behind us.
Jess was doing her best to keep up, but her antics the night before were clearly taking a toll on her.
The space between us stretched and then shrank again, as I slowed for her to catch up.
The trail forced us closer until she was right beside me.
“You have a cabin out here?”
“Yup. Old hunting cabin. But I mostly just use it for an overnight now and then. It’s pretty basic.
” I knew she was only trying to make conversation, and probably didn’t care about an old cabin, but still, she seemed to be listening.
“It’s actually just back in the woods directly behind the lodge. But you can get to it from here.”
“Cool.” She nodded and looked down at her feet.
Silence settled between us, and it was finally Jess who broke it.
“About last night…”
“You were drunk,” I said quickly, not looking at her. “Forget it.”
She stopped short.
It took me a few steps before I, too, stopped, turning around in time to see a flicker of relief on her face. Or maybe it was disappointment. It was hard to tell with those big sunglasses on.
“It was all… I mean…”
“Don’t worry about it, Jess.” I couldn’t be sure whether she remembered what she’d told me or not, but I wasn’t about to press the issue if she didn’t. “It wasn’t a big deal.”
“Okay,” she said after a beat.
We walked on.
“Thank you,” she said, breaking the silence again. “For taking me home and…well, for being a gentleman with everything. I know that I probably—”
“Like I said.” I gave her a look that I hoped let her know that I didn’t plan to make things anymore awkward than they already were. “It’s not a big deal. Forget it.”
She nodded once and dropped her gaze to the ground. We kept walking until we got to the creek crossing.
With the warm weather, the snowpack high in the mountains had started to melt in earnest, and with the rain we’d had a few days earlier, the water was running higher than usual. I stepped onto the first rock and turned around, holding out my hand to Jess on instinct.
“I’ve got you.”
She brushed my hand away, stepping out onto the rock. “I’m fine.”
She wasn’t.
Her boot slipped on the wet rocks, and she went down hard with a sharp gasp, twisting awkwardly as she landed in the water.
“Jess!” Tilley’s voice rang out behind us. I hadn’t even realized the older woman had caught up again. I briefly wondered how much she’d overheard, but there’d be time for worrying about that later.
I moved quickly and was at Jess’s side in a second, knee-deep in the creek as I bent to scoop her up. “Don’t move, let me—”
“I’m fine.”
“Jess, you might have—”
“I told you,” she insisted. “I’m fine.” Her voice wavered on the last word.
“Right.” I ignored her resistance and lifted her easily from the water, moving her back to safety on the bank. “Let me check to make sure nothing is broken.” I pressed gently on her ankle just over her boot.
She tried to put on a brave face, but I noticed the way she sucked in a sharp breath despite working hard not to.
“I don’t think it’s broken,” I said gently. “But you definitely twisted something.”
“Oh no!” Tilley cried dramatically, as if it were she who had injured herself. “And right before the wedding, too.”
I looked down at Jess, who shook her head. “It’ll be fine.”
“I’m sure it will.” I smiled at her. “But I’m still not letting you walk out of here on it. You could do more damage.”
Before she could argue with me again, I slid an arm behind her back and another under her knees and easily lifted her into my arms. She let out a muffled grunt of surprise, but I only tightened my grip.
“Preston,” she protested. “I can walk.” She wiggled in my arms, but I held her tight.
She froze.
“Preston, I don’t think this is—”
“Stop pulling away,” I said quietly. “I am literally trained for this.”
To my surprise, she actually stopped resisting and settled into my arms. Tilley raced back to tell the others what happened so we could cut our hike short, and I took the moment to enjoy the feel of Jess against my chest.
I had no business enjoying it in any way, but I couldn’t help it. She felt good in my arms. Just like the night before on the dance floor, she fit against me in a way that felt far too natural.
And way too good.
As we walked, I shifted my grip, settling her more securely against my chest. She let out a breath that she likely hadn’t meant to.
I felt it anyway.
I felt it all the way through me.
“Oh no!” Becky ran toward us as we caught up with the rest of the group.
“I’m fine,” Jess insisted. “I just twisted it a little bit. I’m sure I can—”
“We’ll head back.” I cut her off, not wanting to hear her object to my assistance again.
I carried her the rest of the way back to the trailhead without comment, focusing on my footing instead of the way her head rested just below my chin. Or the sound of her breathing. Or how easily she fit in my arms.
At the trailhead, the group gathered quickly, and I set Jess down reluctantly.
“We’ll regroup at the next meeting,” Chase said. “And discuss our findings and the recommendation we’re going to give the community.”
“It’ll have to be after the wedding,” Tilley said.
I didn’t miss the look she shot my way. The woman was quite possibly the nosiest person I’d ever met, but she was also very perceptive. Too perceptive.
It’s what made her an exceptionally good gossip.
“I hope your ankle will be better by then, dear,” Tilley said to Jess. “I’d hate for you not to—”
“It’ll be fine,” Jess said a little too quickly, her lips pressed into a tight smile.
She took a tentative step toward her car and winced with the effort.
Once more, I was at her side, my arm wrapped around her. “Let me help.”
This time, she didn’t protest as I guided her to her car. “Thank you,” she said gently. Her eyes were sad, or maybe it was the throbbing of her ankle. Either way, I much preferred to see the smile that lit up her face and made those cute freckles shine.
“I’ve always got you, Jess.” The words surprised me as soon as I said them. “No matter what.”
She turned to look at me. For a moment, I thought there was something else she wanted to say, but I stepped back before she could.
Some things didn’t need to be said out loud.
Not yet.