Page 9 of Cold Snap

"Since I'm the only one with a real job," Moore says with a smirk, "I need to know if you guys are okay. Should I be saving a little extra to help you with retirement?"

Dylan scoffs. "Baz is already retired, pretty much. And I still have clients."

"How many did you say you have?" I ask. "Five?"

"Ten, actually. I took on two more in the fall; they're sons of one of my existing clients."

"But you don't actually work." Moore leans back in his chair. "You fiddle around on the computer, clicking on the 'buy low, sell high' buttons for twenty minutes a day, right?"

Dylan stretches up to his full seated height, tilting up his chin to glare down his nose at Moore. "I'll have you know that I work for at least a couple of hours every morning researching potential new stock purchases."

We all laugh, then Moore's thumb jerks toward me. "That's more than this one."

"Hey now. I'm busting my ass taking down dead trees and clearing trails all day in the summer."

"But that doesn't earn money," Moore says. "It's like a hobby."

Dylan nods emphatically. "Exactly. Like, you know…knitting."

"Just because I don't need money doesn't mean I don't work and feel fulfilled." My fork stabs lazily in Moore's direction. "Don't worry about me."

Dylan smirks at my side-eyed glance toward Moore. "Of course, if your little daisy business gets slow," I chuckle, "I'll hire you to mow my lawn or something."

"He could put in some herbs for you, too," Dylan suggests. He leans in to lower his voice. "If you had anyone staying with you who really loved to cook, I bet they would appreciate it."

I glower at the pair of them until they actually look concerned. Then I break into a grin. "For now, certain things are filed under 'mind your own damn business'. When and if there is anything to report, you know I'll tell you two first."

They laugh so loudly that Maya stops in her tracks as she approaches with the coffee pot. I beckon her over. "Sorry, are we getting too rowdy for you?"

She smiles shyly, her gaze flicking to Dylan as he gives her a smile. "No, I'm just glad to see you all so happy."

"We are," Moore says. "That breakfast was incredible. As always, our compliments to the chef."

I lead the way as we take our coffee and the pot to the library. Passing the tiny front sitting room, I spot movement from the corner of my eye. Being out in the forest so much has trained my vision to track animals' movements. It's definitely two people jumping apart from each other.

"This chair needs repairing as well," Mrs. H. is saying to Cooper, while casually smoothing her hair. "And this one over here…"

I chuckle to myself until we're settled in our easy chairs.

Moore waves his finger vaguely in the direction of the front sitting room. "So… That's definitely a thing?"

I keep my voice low. "I suspect so, yes."

Mrs. H. continues to chatter to Cooper brightly, then says something about helping to carry the small items down to the basement repair room. Perfect. I wait until they're gone, and Moore and Dylan are engrossed in their books.

My forest life has taught me how to move silently, despite my size. Hurrying to the kitchen, I wait until Rosa has set down a full tray.

"Hey," I say as softly as possible.

Her head jerks around as she looks first at me, then toward the hallway. "Where's everybody else?" she whispers.

I approach her slowly, then lead her around the corner to stand in front of the stove, so we're hidden. "My friends are reading, Mrs. H. and Cooper are in the basement. I don't know about your coworkers." My hand slowly reaches up to caress her cheek. "They wouldn't be shocked if they saw me kissing you, would they?"

Her soft brown eyes make me think of caramels and fancy Swiss chocolate. "Probably not."

My arms slip around her as my head dips, my lips hovering in front of hers to tease her for a moment before ducking lower. Kissing along the side of her throat, I feel her tremble against me.

"I missed you," I murmur. "I wanted to come see you last night to hear more of your life story."

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