Page 72 of Suddenly Tempted
“I’ll be great,” she said, giving him the thumbs up.
She pulled the door open and climbed out, ducking beneath the still-spinning blades as the helicopter lifted off again, its powerful roar echoing in the stillness. Darcy stood there for a moment, watching as the helicopter disappeared into the sky, leaving her alone on the snowy slope.
Then she turned around to face the little wooden cabin.
Her heart fluttered as she took in the sight of it. The place where everything had changed. It looked just as it had before — small, unassuming, nestled against the mountainside. Yet somehow, it felt different. It felt like home. Darcy should be worried, she knew. What if she’d misunderstood? What if she’d got it wrong? What if Devlin hadn’t been able to get here?
But there wasn’t a single trace of anxiety or doubt in her. She knew he was here. She justknew.
She trudged to the cabin, the snow crunching beneath her boots, her footprints covered almost immediately by the new snowfall pattering around her. There was no sign of life inside, the windows dark, and she stopped by the door. It felt like a million years ago that she had left this little place — another life, another her.
Taking a deep breath, she reached out and knocked on the door.
There was no reply. The cabin remained silent, the snow-covered world around her still and quiet.
Darcy knocked again, and this time she heard footsteps from inside. The door swung open and Devlin was there. He was dressed in winter gear, his arm strapped in a huge cast and a sling, and he gave her the most amazing smile she had ever seen.
“Sorry,” he said. “I was just lighting the fire.”
Darcy’s heart fluttered at the thought of the two of them, curled up by the fire together, just like they had been the first time they stayed in the cabin. The memory of that night, the warmth of the flames and the way they’d fallen asleep next to each other, but still so oblivious to what would happen between them, washed over her, making her knees feel weak.
She couldn’t explain the change in her. Somehow, in just a few days, everything had turned upside down. It was surreal to think how she’d gone from not liking Devlin to something far, far better. Somewhere between survival and surrender she’d found a confidence she didn’t know she had, and with that had come a turning point.
“And so we meet again,” he said. “You knew?”
Darcy nodded and smile. “I knew.”
Without another word, Devlin reached out with his good hand, and Darcy took it, their fingers intertwining as if they had always belonged together. His hand was strong but gentle, and in that touch, Darcy felt everything — his love, his devotion, his trust. It was all there, unspoken but understood. She felt high on the victory of it all.
“I would carry you over the threshold,” he said, gesturing at his arm. “But, you know . . .”
Darcy laughed.
“Then how about a kiss instead?” she said, reaching up on her tiptoes.
He granted her wish, his lips impossibly warm. Darcy melted into him, feeling the world fade away. When he stood back, his green eyes twinkled intensely, and Darcy thought she saw flashes of colour there, like the fish moving beneath the ice.
“It’s great to see you, my little adventurer,” he said, pulling her gently into the cabin.
“Right back at you, my work-in-progress,” Darcy laughed, taking off her jacket and boots at the door. “In fact, you absolutely rocked that press conference, maybe you’re a work-no-longer-in-progress.”
The cabin was exactly as she remembered it — the smell of woodsmoke, the cosy warmth of the fire crackling in the hearth, the rustic simplicity that made it feel like a world apart from everything else.
Devlin closed the door behind them, shutting out the cold and the outside world, and Darcy felt a deep sense of peace settle over her. This was where she was meant to be. With him. In this cabin, in this moment. Nothing else mattered.
“Come on,” Devlin said, leading her over to the fire. “Let’s get warm.”
They sat together on the floor in front of the flames, the heat from the fire wrapping around them like a blanket. Devlin draped his good arm over her shoulders, pulling her close to him. She leaned into him, resting her head on his chest, listening to the steady beat of his heart.
For a long time, they didn’t speak. They didn’t need to. The silence between them was comfortable, filled with the unspoken understanding that they had finally found what they had been searching for.
After a while, Darcy lifted her head to look at him, her heart swelling with love. He was so handsome, stupidly handsome really. And he was hers.
“This is equal parts exciting and terrifying,” she said, grinning.
He smiled, a slow, contented smile, and kissed her. “It wouldn’t be a Devlin Storm adventure if it wasn’t a bit of both.”
Epilogue
