Chapter 3
CHAPTER 3
T he pickup truck rumbled to a stop beside her, the man inside cutting the engine and hopping out, his dark eyes both curious and concerned as they swept Natalie up and down. “Hey there,” he said, glancing around, his mouth turned down in a slight frown. “Are you out here alone?”
Natalie hesitated. Now that she wasn’t alone, she was keenly aware that she actually was alone—alone, in the middle of nowhere, with a complete stranger and no one else around to hear her screams. She eyed him nervously. He didn’t look like a murderer, but wasn’t that what a murderer would want her to think? His jeans were muddy from the knees down, he wore heavy-duty hiking boots, and a thermal shirt peeked out from beneath his thick winter coat. His brown hair was mostly hidden beneath a ski hat, but his beard was trimmed and his eyes were kind.
Option three, Natalie decided: don’t freeze to death, but end up stuffed in the back of a stranger’s pickup alongside the freshly cut pine tree he seemed to be bringing home.
The man’s eyebrows were now furrowed in confusion, and Natalie realized she hadn’t spoken a single word, not even a hello.
“Um.”
She cleared her throat, eyeing the single deserted road that wound back down the mountain. The highway was nowhere near visible from here, which meant she had several hours of walking ahead of her… if she made it that far without succumbing to the frigid temperatures.
Sensing her unease, the man smiled, his eyes crinkling pleasantly at the corners. He looked to be about her age, somewhere in his late thirties, and… okay, so he was pretty cute. Somewhere between a lumberjack and an Eskimo, and either Natalie was beginning to find that incredibly appealing, or she was becoming delirious. As if on cue, she shivered violently, and the man’s smile fell from his face.
“You look miserable. Here, come inside the truck and warm up. I’ve been out for a couple hours finding the perfect Christmas tree, so I’m halfway to a snowman myself. I’ve got the heater on full blast, and there’s even a thermos of hot chocolate in there if you’re thirsty.”
As he was speaking, the man rounded the pickup truck and pulled open the passenger door, showering the road with even more snow. He gave her an expectant look. “I won’t hurt you. I promise.” Then he held up a finger. “Hang on, I have an idea.” Reaching inside the truck, he yanked the keys from the engine, then tossed them to her. “It won’t be as warm in there without the heater running, but you’ll have complete control. I have a sister, so believe me, I get it. My father started drilling safety tips into her head when we were kids.”
He grinned at her, and Natalie could feel some of her unease slipping away. “Thanks,” she said, gazing down at the keys, turning them over in her hand. She jerked her thumb down the road. “I broke down somewhere back there. I was on the highway, and my GPS decided this route would be a good time-saver. Apparently, my car didn’t agree.”
“Ah, another GPS casualty.” He gave a knowing nod. “You’re hardly the first. Vernon’s been kept pretty busy this season with wayward travelers looking for a shortcut.” Shaking his head, he sighed. “Problem is, if you don’t know these mountains, you can run into a whole heap of trouble.”
Natalie snorted. “I found that out the hard way, but I feel like less of a moron knowing I’m not alone.” She cocked her head at him. “Who’s Vernon?”
“He’s our mechanic. He’s also our tow truck driver.” The man reached inside the truck and produced a thermos, then approached Natalie and handed it to her. “Go on, have a drink. It was my mother’s recipe, and it’s the best.” He watched while she took a sip, her breath escaping on a sigh of satisfaction as the hot chocolate hit her lips. He was right; it was delicious, the best she’d ever had, rich and creamy with the perfect balance of marshmallows and even a hint of mint.
“Thank you,” she said, handing the thermos back to him. “I was starting to turn into a human popsicle out here. It’s a good thing you came along, or I don’t know what would have happened.” She gestured to her relatively thin winter coat and tennis shoes. “I’m not exactly dressed for mountain climbing.”
“No.” He chuckled. “I’d say not.” Then he nodded toward the truck. “If you want to hop in, I’ll bring you into town, and we can figure out what to do about your car. ”
She glanced at the truck, then at him, still not entirely convinced. “Maybe I’d better wait here for Vernon to come. That way he can…” But she trailed off when she saw the man shaking his head.
“He probably won’t make it out until tomorrow morning, earliest.” He glanced at his watch. “At this time on a Sunday afternoon, he’s almost definitely taking a nap.” Seeing her surprise, he added, “Chestnut Cove is a small town, so time runs a little differently here. Most of us still respect the idea of Sunday as a rest day, which I know is probably a pretty foreign concept to the rest of the country.”
“No, I think it’s great,” Natalie said, and meant it. Then she laughed. “I mean, I’d think it was great if my car didn’t decide to break down on a Sunday.” Chewing her bottom lip, she considered the truck. It did look awfully warm in there, and so far, nothing about this man screamed creepy. Or murderous.
“Okay,” she said, finally relenting, because what other choice did she have? “I’d love a ride to town, if you don’t mind taking me.”
“It’s no trouble at all.” He nodded toward the keys still tucked in Natalie’s hand. “You want to drive? That way you’d feel more comfortable.”
“No.” She laughed. “Believe me, all three of us would end up going off the side of the mountain— you, me, and your truck. It was a harrowing drive up here, to say the least.”
“These roads do take practice,” he acknowledged. “As soon as I turned sixteen, my father had me out here in every kind of condition so I learned how to navigate them.” He slid off one of his gloves and held out a hand—a very nice hand, Natalie decided, taking it. “I’m Gabe, by the way. Gabe Archer. It’s nice to meet you…?”
“Natalie,” she supplied. “Natalie Belmont. And…thank you. I really appreciate the help.”
She rounded the truck to the passenger side, and was just about to open the door when Gabe slid a hand around her and did it for her. He waited until she’d climbed in, then handed her the seatbelt and shut her firmly inside. As he headed to the driver’s side, Natalie reached across the dashboard to slot the keys into the ignition, and glorious heat immediately began blasting through the truck’s interior.
“How far is town?” she asked when he’d climbed inside and settled himself behind the wheel. “I’ve never heard of Chestnut Cove. In fact,” she added, looking around at the snow-tipped pine trees that covered the mountain as far as the eye could see, “I have no idea where I am right now. I’m directionally- challenged on a good day, and believe me, this has not been a good day.”
He graced her with a soft smile. “I can tell.” Then, gesturing around them at the breathtaking scenery, he said, “Then let me be the first to welcome you to the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains. We’re in a pretty quiet stretch of them, but there are a few small towns nestled in some of the valleys—Chestnut Cove is one of them.”
As he was speaking, he’d put the truck in gear, and with a lurch, they were off, rumbling over the same dips in the road and exposed tree roots that Natalie had attempted to navigate earlier. Gabe, though, looked as relaxed as could be, with one hand casually guiding the truck as he leaned back in his seat, chatting easily about the town—it turned out he’d been born and raised in Chestnut Cove, and returned there as an adult. Natalie, still half-frozen, was content to listen to him speak right now, happily wiggling her toes in front of the floor heater in an attempt to thaw them.
After a quick stop at her car so she could grab her suitcase, they soon turned off the main road and navigated a series of paved back roads that Natalie hadn’t noticed the first time around. These were mostly plowed, with the snow piled high along the sides of the road, and as they continued descending the mountain, a valley suddenly broke into view among the snowy trees. Natalie released a sigh of relief as the valley spread out before them; by now, she could make out the distinct shapes of buildings and houses, along with an interconnected web of roads.
Life, she thought, nose pressed to the window as the town marched steadily into view. Sweet, glorious, wonderful life.
Gabe, who was watching her from the corner of his eye, gave a long, low laugh. “I bet you’re pretty relieved to see the town right about now.”
“You have no idea.” Natalie took a celebratory swig of hot chocolate, grateful that at least something had gone right today. She felt another rush of elation in her stomach as they neared the town limits, its green “welcome” sign standing in stark contrast to the snowy surroundings.
Chestnut Cove
Population 1,291
“Enter as strangers, leave as friends”
“What a lovely sentiment,” Natalie murmured, then blushed as tears sprang unexpectedly to her eyes. Tears of relief, yes, but tears of something else, too… something that felt an awful lot like longing. Sh e had never been part of a community, not really, not since the loss of her home and her parents, the loss of her innocence. She’d mainly bounced around since then, never feeling quite like she belonged—until she met Devin, and he offered her the world.
And then ripped it all away.
“You okay?” Gabe was looking at her with soft, searching eyes, and she quickly wiped away the tears with the back of her hand while letting out an embarrassed laugh.
“I’m fine. Just grateful that you found me.”
He reached over and gave her knee a quick squeeze, his touch unexpected but not entirely unwelcome. “I’m just glad I decided to go looking for a Christmas tree today,” he said. “I saw the weather and almost had a change of plans.”
They were in the town proper now, and Natalie gazed around at the cabins tucked into the mountainside, each more cozy than the next. Even though Christmas was still several weeks away, each one of them was fully decorated, the exteriors draped with twinkling lights and lush evergreen wreaths, while the windows were decked with bows and bells and holiday figurines. Not a single cabin was undecorated.
Natalie frowned. Strange. Not a single one .
“People sure seem to like Christmas around here,” she observed in a casual voice as Gabe took the twisting mountain roads toward the middle of town, which was marked by an enormous bell tower that… yep. It, too, was wrapped with garland and lights and even more bows, and was that a Santa sleigh perched on top? Yes, yes it was, and a feeling of unease was unwinding itself in the pit of Natalie’s stomach, and some of the elation she had been experiencing was definitely beginning to evaporate.
Then they reached the town square, and what was left of it evaporated altogether.
Christmas. Christmas here, Christmas there, Christmas everywhere .
And oh, the decorations. Santa Clauses wearing red, Santa Clauses wearing gold. Elves with pointy ears, elves with pointy shoes. Wreaths with red bows, silver bows, plaid bows. Garland draped on every imaginable surface. Nutcrackers and snowmen, angels and wise men. Candles and nativity scenes, carolers and reindeer. White lights and colored lights, icicle lights and tree lights.
Everywhere she looked was a literal Christmas explosion. Natalie could feel her heart seizing up, her breath stalling, the blood in her veins turning to ice .
She didn’t register that Gabe had parked the truck in front of a beautiful gray stone house until he spread his arms wide and announced, “Welcome to Chestnut Cove.” He grinned at her, his eyes bright, his face proud. “The unofficial home of Christmas.”