Total pages in book: 25
Estimated words: 22991 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 115(@200wpm)___ 92(@250wpm)___ 77(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 22991 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 115(@200wpm)___ 92(@250wpm)___ 77(@300wpm)
“If you’re going anyway, I’d appreciate it,” she told Brinley with a grateful smile.
Again, I had no reasonable argument. And the truth was, I still had shit to do before the worst of the storm hit. “Great. Let me load the Jeep, and we can go,” Brinley told her before scampering around the counter and through the door to the back.
While we waited for her to return, I traded numbers with Laurel, then when they were ready, I walked her out to her vehicle. It looked even less reliable than I’d pictured, but I understood why she didn’t want to leave it behind. I added another item to my to-do list—a stop by Hyde Garage and grab some chains for Laurel’s tires. I’d see her later when I drove up to put them on for her.
Her expression turned worried as she looked around before meeting my gaze. “Be careful out there.”
“I will, babe. Text me when you get there so I know you’re safe.”
She nodded. I contemplated kissing her but didn’t want to push too hard, too fast. So I settled for brushing my lips over her cold cheek.
“I’ll see you later,” I murmured as I helped her into the driver’s seat.
“I hope so.” Her face flushed, and I held back a giant grin at the hope in her deep green eyes.
Until that moment, I hadn’t realized that some time after she walked into the hardware store and before she told me her name, I’d fallen for Laurel. Yeah, she’d be seeing a whole fucking lot of me. She was mine, and I wasn’t going to let her go.
3
LAUREL
The road was awful as I made my way up the mountain. The snow was coming down heavy enough that I could barely see out my windshield, making me incredibly grateful to have someone behind me to make sure I made it safely to the inn.
Seeing the Jeep behind me through the rearview mirror made me think about the man who’d insisted that she follow me. With his brown hair that was short on the sides and slightly longer on the top, cropped beard, brown eyes, and muscular body, he wasn’t anything like how I pictured a mayor should look. He was too young—most likely in his mid-thirties—and way too hot. Although, I supposed his good looks helped him bring in the female vote.
Just the thought of other women drooling over him—and the possibility that he had a girlfriend or wife—put me in a foul mood. I hadn’t spotted a ring, and the male interest in his eyes had me hoping that wasn’t the case even though I probably wouldn’t see him ever again. I hadn’t been kidding when I’d said I hoped to see him later, but I couldn’t imagine he was right about that happening. Not when he was the mayor of a town in the middle of a blizzard, and I’d only be here until it was safe to travel again.
My hands were clenched so tightly around my steering wheel that my fingers hurt by the time I pulled into the large parking lot. I shook my hands out before tugging on my gloves.
As I stepped out of my van, my jaw dropped. I’d been relieved when Hayden had found me a place to stay here instead of at Snowbound Suites since I had assumed it would be less expensive. But the large log building in front of me looked anything but cheap.
“It’s a giant gingerbread house built on a mountain,” I breathed.
The girl who’d followed me in the Jeep came up beside me and laughed. “Yeah, it’s Christmastime all year round in Winter Falls, so the theme works.”
Turning toward her, I flashed her a grateful smile. “Thanks so much for making sure I got here safely.”
“It was no big deal. I was already headed this way.”
After we said our goodbyes, I headed toward the doors that Brinley pointed out to me. They opened into a lobby all decked out for the holiday, with snowmen decorations scattered around the space and pictures of winter scenes on the cream walls. It already looked nicer than any motel I’d ever stayed in—and probably more expensive than what I spent to live in my van for an entire month—but there was a blizzard outside. I figured my stay here would be a Christmas present to myself, and I wasn’t going to worry about how much I spent when there weren’t even any other options.
I kept that in mind while I checked in and discovered I wasn’t staying in just a room but had an entire cabin to myself. They didn’t ask for my credit card, so it would’ve been awkward to ask how much I was spending. I assumed fancy ski lodges did things differently and accepted my key and a map to the cabin before heading back out into the cold.