Page 37 of Silver Hills' Christmas Miracle

“We’re not done.” Rook smiled. “Come on, get in.”

I slid into his truck and immediately huddled down into the seat as the lingering cold crept up. With no heaters to warm me, I had to wait for Rook to start the truck and turn on the heat to be comfortable.

“Where are we going?” I asked, carefully placing my shopping bags in the back seat.

“Do you want me to tell you,” Rook said, “or do you want it to be a surprise?”

“I want a surprise,” I decided. “Did you rent this?” The truck wasn’t the usual car I’d seen him drive, and the inside still had that faintnew carsmell that tickled my nose above the gorgeous scents lingering from my parcels.

“I did. Where I want to go next wouldn’t be possible in my old car.”

“Your car is pretty old.” I laughed. “Is my dad really not paying you much?”

“He is. It’s not that.”

“You’re just attached?”

Rook’s grip tightened slightly on the wheel and he nodded. “You could say that.”

“Wanna elaborate?” I didn’t want to press him, but there clearly was a story here and we were on a date. What better way to get to know one another than like this?

Rook glanced over at me and his lips flickered slightly. “Okay. My car is my brother’s car. He passed away about four years ago. I’d lost touch with him while I was in the military, and when I came back and started to track him down, all I found was a death certificate and that car.”

“Oh, my God…”

“It’s not as bad as it sounds. We weren’t close. I just… I feel like I should keep the car for as long as I can because it’s my only connection to him, y’know? I sometimes wonder if he thought about me at all or if he simply didn’t care because he was too caught up in his own life.”

I reached across and laid my hand on Rook’s thigh. “You’re a hard man to forget.”

“Maybe.” Rook laughed. “I was a dick when I was a teenager, though, so who knows? Either way, I guess the car has some sentimentality that I’m not ready to let go of yet.”

“I understand. Thank you for telling me.”

Rook glanced at me with warm eyes. “Yeah. Easily.”

It warmed my soul to know he found me easy to talk to, and I replayed that tidbit of info about him around my mind. He had a past, just like me. He’d just lived a lot longer so his past was more seasoned. But getting to know him more intimately was part of the fun, and I was going to take everything I could.

We eventually came to a stop in a clearing that looked out toward one of the lakes surrounding the town.

“We’re here?” I asked.

Rook nodded. “Don’t move yet, though.” He hopped out of the truck and hurried to my side, then opened the door and scooped me up into his thick arms. “Don’t want to ruin your heels.”

“What a gentleman.” I grinned as I kissed his cheek. “Where are we off to?”

“Not far.”

It literally wasn’t. Five steps, and Rook was depositing me in the flatbed of the truck where lots of blankets were piled high. To chase away the cold, I dived under them immediately after kicking off my heels, and I was pleasantly surprised to find several hot water bottles creating a pleasant heat.

Rook joined me a few seconds later, and he cuddled up to me with a smile. “I thought we could watch the stars together.”

“Aw,” I gasped softly. “That’s so romantic.” Cuddling into his chest, I turned my attention skyward. “Do you know why this place is called Silver Hills?”

“Are there werewolves roaming around?”

“No.” I laughed, pushing against his ribs. “Because of those two mountain peaks.” I pointed to them in the distance. “When the moon is at the right height, it sits in between them and there’s this gorgeous silver effect down the faces of both mountains. At the right angle, the silver pours off them and into the lakes. It’s really beautiful. Of course, it’s more beautiful when there’s snow everywhere, but I guess we’re not getting that this year.”

“You like the snow?” Rook asked, gently kissing my forehead.

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