Page 5 of Let it Snow
Brent shook his head as he turned into town.The streets were lined with brick houses and others in the Tudor style, as well as streetlamps that were decorated with large red ribbons that were still visible given the heavy snow.“Not fairy tales and make believe, though if you talk to some people they do think there is a fair bit of magic in the air here, my fiancé being one of them.”The man seemed to get lost in thought, no doubt about said fiancé before he remembered Max’s comment.“As for Gingerbread Cottage, it’s technically named The Blackthorn Inn.We just all refer to it as Gingerbread Cottage because of the yearly biscuit decorating and well, the fact that the place itself looks a bit like a gingerbread house.”The car pulled into a driveway before coming to a stop.“See for yourself.”
Max followed the man’s gaze out the window to a house made of brick, the same burnt orange color of gingerbread, with forest-green window shutters and a tiled roof that was covered in snow.It did look very much like a house made of the spicy biscuits, but there was something else about it that had Max leaning toward the window to get a better look.The place wasn’t just an Inn; it looked like a home.A home he would very much like to stay in, if only for one night.When Max had leaned in so close that his nose bumped the icy glass of the window, he pulled back and flashed a grin at his driver.“You were right.”
“I usually am,” Brent said with a smile.“Now, let’s get you inside.It’s a bit later than she would usually accept a guest, but I’m sure Lucy will make an exception given the circumstances.”
“Lucy?”Max asked as he climbed out into the cold.Brent jogged over to the passenger side and led him to the front door.
“Lucy Shaw, owner and operator of the Inn as well as my very good friend.”From the look in his eyes, the man was clearly proud of Lucy, and for whatever reason, the expression on his face caused Max to feel a pang of jealousy, which was odd because Brent was engaged and he hadn’t even met Lucy yet.Perhaps he was just jealous of the feeling, but deep down he knew it was more than that, he just wasn’t sure what.
Max shook his head to clear the strange feelings, attributing it to being tired and a bit lonely.He raised the door knocker and let it fall with a clang, stepping to the side and waiting as patiently as he could even though it felt as if his extremities were slowly turning to ice.Some shuffling sounded on the other side of the door, but Max couldn’t see a thing through the narrow windows along the side.When the door opened, so did Max’s mouth, but not a single sound came out.It was impossible for his brain to form words.He had referred to Midge at the station as an angel, but he was wrong.The only angel he had seen that night was the one currently standing in front of him, and suddenly the detour to his journey was no longer an inconvenience, but an entirely welcome happenstance.
CHAPTER FOUR
Lucy
––––––––
Lucy had been justabout to head upstairs to bed when there was a knock at the door.She had spent most of the day trying and failing to bake the perfect gingerbread biscuits, and every muscle in her body ached and screaming at her to get some rest.Finally, around eleven o’clock, she made her way upstairs and changed into her pajamas.After doing her nightly check of the windows and doors, she was more than done with the day and ready for some sleep.It seemed that was not to be the case, however, since apparently someone had come knocking.
If it weren’t for the fact that it was snowing so heavily, a fact she was sure Brent would rub in her face as soon as he was able, she might not have answered the door so late at night.But what if it was someone seeking shelter from the storm?Lucy couldn’t live with that kind of guilt on her already heavy conscience.She might not be able to get the biscuits right, but she could certainly offer someone a warm place to stay if they needed it.Lord knew that with no guests at the Inn she had plenty of room.
As she opened the door, Lucy smiled when she saw Brent appear on the other side.The smile stayed on her face until she looked over to the man standing next to him.Once her eyes took in the tall man, she was fairly certain her mouth went from smiling to gapping open like a largemouth bass.The stranger before her was completely gorgeous in a way that she had never seen.He had the most beautiful set of jade green eyes that seemed to momentarily hypnotize her and blonde curls the color of honey and butterscotch that her fingers were already itching to run through.Her whole body shivered, and it was definitely not from the cold.
“Shit, Luce,” Brent muttered as he ushered himself and the man inside before shutting the door.“Didn’t mean to chill you.”
“Not a worry,” she managed to say while surreptitiously sneaking glances at the beautiful man who was currently brushing snowflakes from his hair and shoulders.“What can I do for you, gentlemen?”She snuck another glance at the man while he was looking around the Inn, and when she saw Brent caught her, her cheeks warmed with a blush.
Brent smiled, but luckily, he didn’t call her out on her ogling.“Max was stranded at the train station down the way and needed a place for the night.You mentioned having openings and I thought to bring him here.You know, since it’s the storm of the century and all.”Brent gave her a pointed look and she rolled her eyes.
“Alright, you were right.Are you happy?”she asked Brent, chuckling when his expression turned smug.
The sound of their giggles seemed to stir the man next to them, and at long last the man called Max turned to her and spoke.“I don’t want to be an inconvenience to you,” he assured her.His voice poured over her slowly like warm honey, thick and sweet.She also imagined him licking all that warm honey off her body, and the rampant sexual thought caught her off guard enough that her eyes widened.Max must have thought she panicked because he was quick to add, “I’m sure I could find another place to stay.”
“No,” she practically shouted, causing both men to jump slightly.There was something about Max that had her feeling more alive than she had all year, and even if it was merely her dormant libido that was awakening at the sight of such a handsome face, she wanted to keep the feeling going as long as possible.Clearing her throat, she smiled calmly.“I’m just about the only Inn in town and even if I weren’t, I’m more than happy to accommodate you.”
“I’m sure you are,” Brent snickered next to her.
