Chapter 5
Chapter Five
Felicity woke with a slight pounding in her head. She let out a groan as she tried to roll over and collided with another body in her bed. Her eyes flew open, and she blinked hard at the unfamiliar surroundings.
“Good morning,” the masculine voice said softly. “Did you sleep okay?”
She turned and spotted a very sexy sleepy-eyed Jackson Bell lying next to her. She blinked again as the memories of the night before started to flood back in. She grimaced. “Did I really run out into the snow in a robe to make snow angels?”
“You did.” His eyes twinkled with amusement. “But you had fun.”
“This headache says I had too much fun.” She tossed the covers aside, gritted her teeth against the unbearable chill in the room, and quickly wrapped herself in the robe.
After stuffing her feet into a pair of slippers, she hurried into the bathroom and shut the door, leaving her in the dark.
She tried the light switch, only to realize the power was still out, and then raised the shade on the window, letting the morning light shine in.
Standing at the sink, she hung her head, trying to swallow the embarrassment she felt because of the way she’d acted the night before. She could still feel his hands clutching hers as he rejected her advances, and she felt both humiliated and grateful for his chivalry.
Exactly how much wine did she drink the night before?
Not enough to be nauseated, but enough to invite the irritating headache and to make a fool of herself.
She rummaged around in the cabinet and was grateful she had the foresight to keep the first aid kit stocked.
After downing a couple of pain relievers, she washed her face, brushed her teeth, and then tried to tame her out-of-control hair.
Feeling a little better already, she steeled herself and walked back into the bedroom.
The bed was empty and the bedroom door was open. The air smelled of wood smoke, and she could hear the faint crackle of a fire in the fireplace.
She poked her head out of the bedroom and caught the scent of coffee coming from the kitchen. “Jackson Bell,” she called out. “I do not deserve a friend like you. First a fire and now coffee?”
“Yes you do,” he said as she walked into the kitchen. “It’s what any sane person would do on a chilly morning.” Jackson handed her a fresh mug of coffee. “I’m just thankful you have a gas stove and a French press, otherwise, we’d be up a creek without our caffeine.”
Felicity held her mug up in a toast. “Grandma Kitty always said to be prepared for anything. I took that advice to heart.”
“Thanks, Grandma Kitty.”
They clinked mugs, and Felicity was pleased she’d managed to make Jackson smile. She still felt like a fool about the way she’d behaved the night before, but she was grateful he’d been a voice of reason when her inhibitions had left the building.
“Looks like the storm has passed. Does the farm have a snowplow attachment?” Jackson asked over his mug of coffee.
“Yes. It’s in the shed next to the store,” she said. “But Marilyn has the truck we use.”
“I have a truck. Once we finish breakfast, we’ll get it attached and I’ll do my best to clear the snow from your road. And I’ll see if there’s a way to clear that tree. Do you have a chainsaw?”
“Of course. But you don’t need to do any of that,” she said, shaking her head. “It’s my orchard. When the road is clear and Marilyn gets here, we’ll take care of it.”
He put his coffee mug down and crossed his arms over his chest as he leaned against the counter. “Is it always this hard for you to accept help?”
“No,” she said automatically, but she knew that was a lie. She’d always been reluctant to lean on anyone, though it was hard to admit it. Life was just easier that way.
“So it’s just me you don’t want helping you then,” he said, looking both hurt and annoyed.
“That’s not—” She let out a groan. “It’s not you. I don’t like owing people anything or depending on other people. It never ends well for me.”
“Trust issues then,” he said, and before she could answer he added, “I’m going to plow the road unless you forbid me from using your equipment, and you’re not going to owe me anything. Consider it my way of making sure I can get out of here so I can get to work tonight.”
Why did this man always cut right through her crap? It was disconcerting. But he was right. They were both stuck at the orchard unless they cleared her private road. No one else was going to do it. “Okay, that’s fair. But at least let me buy you dinner sometime for helping out.”
“I’d tell you that’s not necessary, but I’m not turning down an offer like that. It’s a date.” He winked and then turned to the stove where he’d already set out a pan and lit the burner beneath it. He glanced over his shoulder. “Fried egg sandwiches for breakfast?”
“Sounds good.” She opened the fridge, grateful that the contents were still cold, and pulled out the eggs for him. “But it’s not a date. It’s a thank you.”
“Whatever you want to call it,” he said with an unconcerned shrug.
Felicity wanted to argue, but it was clear that whatever she said, he was still going to think of it as a date. Instead, she decided to drop it, hoping that once he realized she wasn’t the dating type that he’d finally take the hint.
After breakfast, they bundled up and went out to Jackson’s truck. Luckily the four-wheel drive was enough to get them back over to the store where they mounted the snowplow attachment.
“I can do this if you need to get the store ready to open,” he said.
“You’re not going to remove that fallen tree by yourself,” she shot back.
“I’m going with you. If you’ll grab the chainsaw and gloves from the shed, I’ll go inside and make sure the backup generator is running so the food in the freezers doesn’t spoil.
” While the cabin didn’t have a generator, the store did.
They had months’ worth of frozen apples and pies to keep them going after the holiday season.
If those spoiled, she’d be in a world of hurt.
“On it,” he said.
They parted ways. Felicity checked the store and was pleased to see that the generator had come on exactly as it should.
Once she was satisfied the store was in good shape, she returned to the truck to find Jackson loading the back with the chainsaw, a handsaw, a shovel, protective gear, and her rawhide gloves.
“Ready?” he asked.
“As ready as I’m gonna be,” she said and climbed into the passenger seat.
He joined her and then put the truck in gear. After running the plow up and down the long driveway a few times, Jackson turned onto the county road and plowed the snow until he reached the bridge.
Felicity grimaced when she saw the tree still blocking the entrance. “That’s gonna take a while.”
“Have you used a chainsaw before?” he asked her.
“Of course I have,” she said, almost insulted. “The one in the back of your truck is mine, isn’t it?”
He held his hands up in surrender. “I wasn’t sure if you had a groundskeeper who did that work for you. I was going to suggest that you make the cuts and I’ll move the logs to the side of the road. Or we can haul it back to your cabin for firewood.”
She eyed the tree. It was a fairly large size, but not impossible. If a redwood tree had fallen, that would be another story. This one appeared to be some sort of oak tree, which meant it would be heavy to lift. “Yeah, okay.”
Together they decided where it was best to cut the tree.
And then after Felicity put on her eye protection and gloves, she fired up the chainsaw and got to work.
The vibration made her arms shake, but she’d done enough trimming in the orchard over the years that she was able to make the cuts without incident.
Sweat had broken out on her forehead, and the ache in her forearms was more than she’d bargained for.
Once she killed the engine on the saw, she forced herself to take it back to the truck and place it in the bed.
Then she let out a moan as she shook out her arms, wondering if she’d even be able to lift them later.
“Are you all right?” Jackson asked her as he bent at the knees and lifted one of the logs.
“I’ll be fine,” she said, unwilling to voice just how much her arms ached.
He nodded and went back to moving the pieces of the tree. When he was finally finished, he was winded and sat right down in the snow, rolling his shoulders to work the kinks out.
“I don’t think either of us is in good enough shape for hard labor,” Felicity said.
“Speak for yourself,” Jackson said, feigning offense. “I’m ready to go mountain climbing.”
“Yeah, your beet-red face says otherwise,” Felicity said with a laugh.
He chuckled. “I admit to nothing.”
Felicity looked around at the road and smiled. “Once we plow the road to the highway, we’ll be good to go.”
“You’re right.” He held a hand out to her. “Help me up and we’ll get on that.”
She braced herself so that she wouldn’t slip on the wet snow and helped him to his feet. Together, they walked back to the truck to finish the job. Luckily, when they got to the highway, the plows had already gone through.
When they got back to Apples and Spice and Everything Nice, Felicity was pleased to see that the power had already come back on. It looked like everyone was going to be able to get on with their day.
After they put the tools away in the shed, Felicity turned to Jackson to thank him one more time, but when she found him crouching in the snow, she asked, “What are you doing now?”
“Making good on that snowman idea we had last night.” He grinned up at her. “Are you helping or watching?”
“I don’t—”
“Oh no, you’re not backing out now,” he said. “I’m not leaving until this thing is done. A promise is a promise.”
She didn’t remember him promising anything, but she could tell by the determination in his face that she wasn’t going to win this one. “Fine. I’ll go rummage up some adornments for its face. I’ll be right back.”