Total pages in book: 27
Estimated words: 24518 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 123(@200wpm)___ 98(@250wpm)___ 82(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 24518 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 123(@200wpm)___ 98(@250wpm)___ 82(@300wpm)
We continue forward on the path and just when we’re about to leave, we spot it at the same time. A beautiful snow-covered cabin with a woman standing on top of the roof. Even from this distance, I recognize my sister. She’s got her hands on her hips, and she’s scowling at a man on the ground.
He climbs up the ladder, and the two of them start kissing. This is not the casual, safe-for-TV peck that my sister normally gives Bobby. No, this is a passionate embrace that looks like they can’t get close enough to each other. Would Ford ever kiss me with that kind of passion?
“Roast my chestnuts,” my mom says, having given up the habit of swearing decades ago.
We scramble out of the car just as she climbs down the ladder. Holly runs to mom, and two of them hug like she’s been at war for years. I join the hug, the three of us all talking over each other.
I can barely tell what we’re saying, but I manage to understand the cell towers were down, and Holly was stranded here with this mountain man.
After a long moment, the mountain man joins us on the ground, and my knees go weak. Suddenly, I remember what Ford said during our last conversation. It was my brother, the brilliant writer who has won countless awards.
“Whoa,” I whisper.
She takes his hand, squeezing it gently. “This is my boyfriend, Hunter. Hunter, this is my mom and sister.”
Everything else fades into the background. The conversation Mom and Holly are having. The way this man is staring at my sister like she personally invented the concept of sunshine. Even the cold air that’s stinging my cheeks.
Hunter offers to show my mom around, and the two of them start up the walk to the cozy cabin. She’s busy telling him that his cabin would make the perfect location for the company’s upcoming movie.
Holly shakes her head, looking like she doesn’t know whether to sigh or laugh. She turns her attention to me. “How did you find me? There are so many backroads around these parts.”
“He has a brother,” I whisper, the knowledge finally sinking in.
“How do you know that?” She asks.
“Because I work for him. Hunter’s brother is my boss. They look so much alike.” I shake my head. They might look alike, but Ford’s gaze is different, darker and more haunted. Like every day, he goes to war with demons no one else can see. “This has got to be the craziest December to ever December.”
The rest of the afternoon passes in a blur as Hunter shows off his cabin and feeds us delicious homemade pizza. He and Holly move around the place effortlessly, and I don’t miss the way he keeps staring at my sister when he thinks she isn’t looking. Like she’s his personal ray of sunshine.
Finally, I sneak away to the back porch to get some fresh air. I’m so happy for my sister, it feels like my heart could burst. This is what she’s been missing, what she never had with Bobby.
As I stare out at the snow-capped mountains, I think about Ford. I wonder if he’s staring at this same view right now. Is he thinking about me? Is he–?
I don’t let myself finish the thought. The longer I stayed in Hunter’s cabin, the more obvious it became that I’ve been stupid. All this time I’ve been hanging around, waiting for Ford to make a move. I kept thinking that he’d want me at some point.
The door opens behind me, and I quickly brush away the silly tear that slipped down my face while I was pining for a man who never thinks about me.
“It’s warm in there,” Hunter says softly. “Much better out here.”
“You really shouldn’t have come out here. They’re probably going to name all of your future babies while you’re gone,” I tell him, my throat tight.
“As long as Holly is happy, I don’t care about anything else,” he says and steps forward, leaning against the porch rail. He holds out a soda to me.
I accept the cold can, popping the top. I take a long swig and wish it were stronger. When I’ve drained half of it, I set it on the railing and focus on Hunter. “She doesn’t like mornings or apricots or sad books. She’s always had a soft spot for animals, and dogs are her favorite. She stepped up after our dad died. She became the rock of the family and kept us going.”
I pause there, letting my words sink in before I continue on. “If you ever hurt her, I will bludgeon you and bury you on this beautiful mountain. I’ll make it slow too because my sister is the most special person in the whole world, and she deserves a man who loves her with everything in him.”