Page 56 of Fire and Icing

“Yes,” she looks up at me, her big brown eyes full of a combination of fear, relief and resolve.

“You’re safe. I’m going to help you out, okay? But we have to make a choice right now.”

“Okay.”

“Dane is waiting for you. And you are going to marry him in less than an hour. The thing is, your dress can’t stay intact. I have to cut a part of it to get you out.”

“Okay.” She nods, glancing at the spot in the doorway where the train of her dress disappears into the elevator shaft.

“Okay.” I smile at her. “I’ll do my best to keep as much of it as we can.”

She nods and watches me as I snip the edge of her dress, freeing her in a matter of minutes.

Greyson reaches in, and together we help Jillian ease through the opening we made in the doorway.

“All clear,” I say into my transmitter.

“Copy that, groom on his way up the staircase,” Patrick says.

“No!” Jillian shouts. “He can’t see me. It’s bad luck!”

“Copy that,” Patrick says. “We’ll have him wait down here.”

Jillian asks me to have her maid of honor come up instead. Greyson does a check of her vitals and the hotel staff come with an “Out of Order” sign to place in front of the elevator.

We leave the hotel after everything is safely secured. On our way back, I’m staring out the window of the truck, taking in the scenery of the tree-lined neighborhood streets of Waterford.

We pass a couple standing on the sidewalk outside the deli laughing together.

Is that Sydney? Emberleigh’s partner at the bakery?

I wave to her.

She ducks down slightly behind a parked SUV and shields her eyes with her hand.

That was her, right?

Was she trying to hide from me, or was I seeing things?

Chapter 12

Emberleigh

Falling in love is like leaping from a cliff.

~ Marie Coulson

One of thethings I love most in the world is book club. We only meet once a month, at Moss and Maple, the book shop owned by my friend, Daisy. She took over the shop when the previous owners retired, and she’s turned it into a cozy place to gather, as well as a spot where locals can always find their favorite reads.

The shop occupies the first floor of an old farmhouse surrounded by woods with a creek gurgling through the back of the property. Daisy and two of our friends, Winona and Cass, live upstairs in three of the bedrooms. Daisy converted the attic into a living space with a kitchen and communal hangout area.

Syd and I always drive to book club together. I park in a space behind the bakery and wait.

When she doesn’t come out, I text her.

She doesn’t answer.

I get out of the car, walk up the back steps and knock on her door.

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