As if summoned by her name, my SUV’s headlights blink once outside—probably the hazards still on.
I dart to the window and see Beau’s truck turning around in the clearing, tires crunching through snow. He backs out like he’s done this a thousand times, then pauses at the end of the drive like he’s checking the road conditions one last time.
Or—
My heart does a stupid little hiccup.
Or like he’s checking onme.
I press my forehead to the glass and immediately regret it because it’s cold enough to freeze my eyelashes together.
Beau gets out of the truck again, walks a few steps toward the cabin, and glances up at the windows.
Oh my God. He’s looking right at me.
I yank myself back like I’ve been caught doing something illegal, which is ridiculous because the crime is apparently…having eyes.
I stand there, frozen, listening.
A soft knock hits the door.
Three taps. Firm. Controlled.
My pulse leaps into my throat.
No. Absolutely not. He is not coming back. He is not. I am not ready. My hair is doing that weird static thing. My cheeks are windburned. I smell like stress and beef jerky.
I open the door anyway, because my body hates me.
Beau stands on the porch with snow dusting his shoulders, beanie pulled low, jaw tight like the cold is personally offending him.
In his hands: a brown paper bag.
“Forgot something?” I blurt.
His gaze flicks over my face, quick and assessing. Like he’s making sure I’m still intact.
“No,” he says. “You did.”
I blink. “I did?”
He lifts the bag slightly. “You left this in my truck.”
I step closer—and my brain stalls because the bag smells like coffee and something warm.
“My… what is that?”
“Food,” he says like it’s obvious.
“You—” I stare at him. “You brought me food.”
“It’s soup,” he corrects. “From the station.”
“You… keep soup at the station?”
“We keep a lot of things at the station.” His mouth twitches, almost a smile. “People get stranded. People get stupid. People get hungry.”
“I feel personally attacked,” I say, because my personality is apparently ninety percent sarcasm when I’m nervous.
