Page 2 of Matchmaking Under the Mistletoe

“That’s okay, sis. It’s late here anyway. But please, let me know where you decide to stay tonight, and be safe. I’m here whenever you need me. I’ll check in soon. Love you big,” she says, and I hear the sincerity in her voice.

“Love you bigger,” I say, feeling my spirits lift just the tiniest bit at the mantra we’ve used since we were kids before the line goes dead.

The car feels empty without Lizzie’s loud ramblings, but I try not to let myself dwell on it for too long. I’ve grown accustomed to the silence since I married Allen, considering most of my time has been spent by myself.

I look around, trying to gauge where I am since I started driving without any real direction. Truth be told, my plan only went as far as hoping to find a cheap motel to spend the next few days in while I decompress. I don’t have a ton of cash since I haven’t exactly been the breadwinner in our marriage, but hopefully I can stretch my emergency funds for a couple weeks until the bank gets our accounts settled. As I drive, I see signs for Saddle Ridge and Springside, Alabama, and when I pull over to a small gas station to fill up, I’m taken aback by how much the temperature has dropped since I left the hotel this morning.

After my pitstop, I fiddle with the radio some more, before it starts to rain so hard I can barely see a few feet in front of me.

I didn’t check the forecast before I left, so I slow down and continue to drive, hoping it will slack off. But after about thirty minutes, as it starts to get dark, the rain starts to look different. Slowly, I notice the rain is turning to snow.

“Really? Snow? In Alabama? You’ve gotta be shitting me!” I groan in frustration. I continue driving, hoping to make it a bit farther south before stopping.

I make it about five more miles before my little Honda starts to slide on the ice accumulating on the road and covering my windshield. I definitely didn’t have a freak snowstorm in the middle of Alabama on my bingo card, but after the way my last few weeks have been going, I don’t think I should be surprised that the universe is throwing me another curveball. I slow down even more, trying to remember the rules about driving on ice,but I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve driven in the last ten years, never mind driving during bad weather.

God, I need to get off these roads. I feel like I’m in the middle of nowhere, but maybe I can find a motel that I can stop at for the night. Deciding to pull out my phone for a quick Google search, I reach across the passenger seat where I threw it after hanging up with Lizzy, but as I do, a flash of brown catches my eye.

What the hell?

It only takes me a second to realize a deer is running in front of my car, but at that point, it’s too late. Just as I grab my cell, the doe hits me at full speed, and my car jerks hard. I swerve at the impact on instinct, and all at once, my old car is spinning across the icy road. I struggle to regain control but fail, and panic rises in my chest as the car continues to spin.

I try to keep my panic under control, before finally skidding into the deep ravine on the side of the road and hitting a medium sized tree. My airbags deploy, and I wince, momentarily frozen from the impact.

I sit in shock for a minute, before getting out to check the full extent of the damage my car sustained, and immediately know I'm in trouble. Not only do I have no clue where in the hell I am, but now I have no way out. The front of the car is caved in from the collision with the deer, and the entire passenger side looks as if it would collapse if not for the support of the tree it slammed into. Honestly, after taking in the damage, it’s a miracle I'm not seriously injured. Thankfully, nothing is broken, but I have no doubt I’ll be sore the next few days from the impact of the air bags. I take a breath to steady myself from the adrenaline coursing through me before checking my phone. Maybe if I can figure out where I am, I can make a plan. I’ve barely hit the location button before my phone screen goes black telling me my battery finally went dead.

Great.

I feel my panic rising again as I try to think about the best thing to do. Snow in the South means another vehicle may not come this way for hours. If I had to guess, even with a car and a phone, all the towns in the area have basically shut down––aren’t Alabamians notoriously unequipped for the snow?

I feel myself starting to spiral, so I sit back in the car and try to take a few deep breaths.It’s all going to be okay.I remind myself.You are a strong and independent woman, Millie. Your husband’s infidelity and the loss of your mamma didn’t break you. You can handle a dead phone and a little bit of snow. Just breathe.

After sitting for a few moments, I feel a bit more like myself. I’m starting to weigh my options––sitting in the car and risking freezing to death or walking until I see someone who could at least help me charge my phone. I’ve just decided that the second option is probably the better bet when I see a small ATV racing through the snowy pasture across the street. Feeling a surge of hope, I start waving, praying whoever it is will take pity on me and isn’t some kind of psycho serial killer. At this point, I guess I’ll take my chances.

The ATV heads in my direction, and I see an older man sitting in the driver's seat. He looks nice enough, and I remind myself this is my only option to try to combat the panic rising in my chest again. As he comes closer, I notice his ATV is wrapped in battery powered Christmas lights and the front grill has a wreath zip tied to the front. All he’s missing is a Santa hat to complete the look.

“Well, howdy, ma’am. I was coming to check on my cows in this storm, but it looks like you found yourself in the middle of our Winter Wonderland. My name is Huey. What exactly happened here?” he asks, and as he looks past me and registers my car, I can see the concern on his face.

“Um, I guess I had a run in with one of Rudolph’s distant relatives,” I joke with a wince.

“Are you okay?” he questions, looking me up and down.

“Umm, yeah. I think so,” I say to the older gentleman, looking back at my car. “I’d say probably better than the deer, but it looks like he made it out just fine since he’s nowhere to be found.”

“I’ll be damned. You’re right. Do I need to see about calling an ambulance for you? It’ll probably take a while in these conditions, but I’ll be happy to, if you feel like you need it.”

“Oh no, that’s okay. Nothing some Advil and a few good nights' sleep won’t fix,” I tell him, trying to muster the kindest smile I can. “But it doesn’t look like I’m going anywhere in this thing. Do you have the number for a tow truck that could take me into town?”

“Umm, I do. I hate to break it to you though, they’re probably buried up to their eyeballs in calls, if they’re even operating. It could be a day or two until they’re able to get to you. And even then, that car doesn’t look drivable.”

“Are you serious?” I ask, feeling my panic start to rise again.

“It’s okay. Why don’t we see about getting you warm, huh? Then we can go from there,” the man says with a kind smile.

Well, this was definitely not how I pictured starting my new life, but I guess a few days in the middle of nowhere never hurt anyone.

CHAPTER 2

MILLIE

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