“Nope.” My own words came out flat and emotionless in the icy cold. “The lever to do that fell off a few days ago. The repair guy is supposed to come on Monday and fix it.” I looked up at the lone lightbulb. “Be glad the light still works. I just replaced the bulb yesterday.”
Small miracles. Compared to big issues. We were trapped in a freezer because that was my life right now. I wasn’t sure abouthim, but I didn’t have my cell phone on me, and since I’d only planned on throwing out the trash, I hadn’t put a coat on, either.
At least he looked ready for the cold outside, bundled in his wool peacoat and gloves, tartan scarf around his neck. Connor carefully set his tray of royal lace on an open shelf and came to stand next to me. “Let’s not panic. When you say the freezer door is broken, do you mean—”
“I mean it’sbroken, Connor!” My words turned into a cloud of steam in front of my face. “As in we aren’t getting out of here until morning when Ella comes to work. And by then, we’ll both be popsicles.”
Angus let out a little whimper, and it almost sounded like the dog version of a question. I couldn’t help but glare down at him. It was bad enough he’d broken into my bakery kitchen and destroyed weeks’ worth of hard work, but now he’d gotten us trapped in a below-freezing box. The mental note I’d made earlier to consider making baked dog biscuits for the bakery was now deleted.
“I left my cell phone in my shop,” Connor said as though his mind went where mine had already gone.
“Mine’s on the counter.” I sighed and rubbed at the freezing moisture left behind by my tears, aching all over and so very tired I could barely stand. “I’m not sure I could get reception through the freezer’s thick walls, anyway.” At least being trapped gave me something else to focus on that wasn’t the wreckage of my business and my last chance at redemption. I rubbed my arms to stay warm, taking a moment to examine the trays I’d salvaged. As I wiped the last of my tears away, I tried to console myself that Angus had knocked down the bottom two on the baking rack. They’d been mostly heart-shaped sugar cookies and some of the sugar flowers. While still a huge loss, at least the royal lace decorations had been on an upper tray, and it was still intact.
Small miracles, remember? At this point, I’d take anything positive I could get.
Being stuck in a freezer on a good day was unnerving. Being stuck in one with the man who’d become my rival was even worse. We stood apart, arms wrapped around ourselves, trying not to talk.
It wasn’t keeping out the cold, and it wasn’t making things any easier.
I tried stamping my feet and moving around a bit, but the biting cold was still overwhelming. I could feel it creeping in and now fear replaced my broken-hearted devastation. All despair over my business was being pushed aside, because this was much more dangerous.
Without a doubt, I wouldn’t make it until morning. And death was a lot more permanent than losing Bell’s Bakery to the tall Scotsman. In fact, everything else suddenly felt unimportant in comparison.
Connor seemed to come to the same conclusion. “You’re shivering, Ivy. Come stand next to me so I can keep you warm.”
I turned woodenly to look at him. He bent down and gathered Angus in his arms, trying to protect the dog as best he could, brown eyes locking on mine with an appeal that surprised me.
I tried to look unconcerned, despite the terror that had just woken at the realization that slowly freezing to death was in my very near future. “I’m fine.”
Connor shook his head slowly. “No, you’re not. You’re a bad liar, lass.” He lowered himself to sit on a box of frozen butter, then patted the case next to it. “Come sit. Please. I found a tea towel in here, not that it’ll do much good. But you can sit on that while we put our heads together and think of a way out.”
I pondered his offer. I could be stubborn and be found as a frozen statue whenever the door opened to my grieving friendsand family, or I could do the practical thing and sit next to him and try to keep from losing it completely while his body heat warmed me.
Saying nothing, I walked over to Connor and sat down on the tea towel he had spread over the box of frozen butter next to him. When I started to shiver again, he drew back just a bit and unbuttoned his peacoat, then slowly pulled one arm out of a sleeve, then the other.
Alarm bells rang in my head. “You’re not going to…”
My voice trailed off, and he seemed to ignore my nearly unspoken question.
“Come here,” he said, his voice kind as he settled the delicious warmth of his coat over my shoulders. I sighed in bliss from the incredible sensation of his heat sliding over my chilled skin. He pulled the front of the coat together at my neck, and I caught the faint scent of a woodsy, masculine aftershave lingering on the material.
Or maybe it was just him.
He put an arm around me and pulled me toward the heat of his chest, then wrapped both of his massive arms around me as we drew closer.
I could feel him heave a deep, soundless sigh as I settled against his chest. Competitor or not, this was nice, and I instantly felt better. Maybe it was the heat, or maybe it was the timeless emotion of being wrapped in a handsome man’s arms, but regardless of the cause, I accepted my fate and leaned into him. Sighing, I burrowed down and rested my head on his chest, his strong heartbeat in my ear.
“I want you to know I’m sorry about everything, Ivy.” His voice rumbled while I held still and listened. “Your decorations. Angus. The way I made you feel. The bet. All of it.” He hesitated before finishing in a rush. “I don’t know what got into me, lass. You’ve only seen the worst of me I fear, and I…”
I blew out a deep breath, part in wonder and part in relief. “Yeah, we seemed to start off on the wrong foot right away, didn’t we? From the first time I saw you across the street.”
He pulled his head back and looked at me quizzically. “From the first time…? What do you mean? I didn’t meet you until you showed up in my shop with your basket.”
I gave a huff of dismay and stared back at him, trying to not be mesmerized by how handsome he was. “That first day, when you were unloading the big van, and I was across the street?” When he still seemed confused, I added, “You know, when I waved at you, and you scowled at me?”
Finally, he chuckled, which rumbled against my body.
I didn’t hate the sensation.
