Page 3 of Mine For The Winter

“Isn’t he working?” she asked. Charlie was one of her dad’s oldest friends. He ran the Cold Start Garage in town. They were poker buddies, the kind of guys who shot the breeze together regularly but never talked about anything meaningful. But Charlie was always somebody they could rely on.

“Not today. That young kid has taken over most of the heavy stuff. He’s a good worker, according to Charlie. He trusts him.”

She opened her mouth to tell him she’d take him anyway, but then shut it again. She already had a hundred things to do, or a hundred and one now that Cole needed new skates. “Okay. But let me know how it goes.”

“Will do.” Her dad nodded. “And sweetheart?”

“Yes?” She gave him a soft smile.

“I appreciate all you do. Me and Cole, we both do.”

Her stomach tightened. “I appreciate you, too.” She gave him a hug and he looked surprised, because the two of them had never been the hugging type. “Cole’s coming to the Tavern after school. I’ll drop him home later.” She lifted her brow at him. “You okay to take care of him tonight?”

“You know I am.”

“Thank you.” She blew him a kiss and headed to the front door. As soon as it was open, icy cold air enveloped her. She exhaled heavily, the vapor rushing out of her lips and dissolving into the air.

“It’s gonna be okay,” she whispered to herself. Because it had to be. She’d find the money the way she always did.

And if she couldn’t? Well there was always OnlyFans. Or stripping.

And she was only half joking when she thought that.

* * *

The skies were gray overhead, heavy with the kind of snow you only got in the mountains of Winterville. Kris Winter kept his hands on the wheel, music pumping from the stereo of his rental car as he passed the old wooden sign telling him he was back in his home town, proper.

How long had it been since he’d spent any real amount of time here? He blinked when he realized it’d been more than a decade. He’d left under a cloud just like the one in the sky now, even though it had been summer back then.

A bird swooped down and he pressed the brake, slowing enough so it had time to fly back up before it hit his windshield. He had the driver’s window open, the cold mountain air rushing in and clearing his lungs. He’d forgotten how it tasted different here, so very clean compared to the thick atmosphere of London where he’d made his home for more than a decade.

He took another breath, centering himself because this peace wouldn’t last for long. Not when his family realized he was back. North, his eldest brother would probably mutter something about it being good to see him, and Gabe, his middle brother, would throw his arms around him in excitement, any questions about why he was here or why he’d stayed away so long wouldn’t be vocalized by them.

They were as bad at emotions as he was. Three men who avoided them like they hurt to say out loud.

His cousins, however, would be different. Holly, Alaska, and Everley were all too free with their thoughts. Probably best to avoid being alone with them for too long.

He turned the corner onto the main road and wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry when he saw the town was already decorated for the holidays. Not that he should be surprised, from the moment his grandmother had founded the little town of Winterville she’d declared that it would be Christmas all year round.

Even now that she was gone, the family kept up the tradition. Or at least his brothers and cousins did. He steered the sports car he’d rented from the airport through the town square and past the huge tree in the center, that Kris knew had come from his brother’s Christmas Tree Farm. The traffic was slow – the town was full of tourists at this time of year – so it took him a few minutes to make it past the Jingle Bell Theater and the Cold Start Garage, and then on to the Winterville Tavern.

The familiarity of it all felt like a kick in the gut. A reminder of easier, happier times.

Times when he hadn’t been the black sheep of the family who never came home.

It was surprising how easy it had been to leave this place behind. How quickly he’d ended one life and begun another, far away, where the memories couldn’t find him. Sure, he’d kept in touch with his brothers. Sent gifts for their weddings, and to their kids when they were born. He’d even kept in touch with his cousins.

But he’d managed to forget about the visceral reaction this place and the people who lived in it gave him.

As though his thoughts were strong enough to conjure up a person, suddenly a woman walked around the corner. She was carrying two bags in her arms, her dark hair flowing out behind her. And the twist in his stomach turned into a knot that wouldn’t go away.

He knew exactly who she was, even though it had been more than ten years since he’d last seen her. His mouth was dry, but he couldn’t stop looking at her no matter how hard he tried.

Balancing both bags in one arm, she slid a key into the lock and opened the door to the Tavern, kicking it open and trying to step inside. But then one of the bags slid from her grasp and hit the ground, the contents – fruit and vegetables – spilling onto the sidewalk, apples and oranges rolling toward the gutter as she started hopping around and grabbing for them.

A better man would have gotten out and helped her. But Kelly Fraser had never been the kind of damsel who accepted assistance from a man like him. She opened her mouth but he couldn’t hear what she was saying, though he could take a guess. She’d known all the swear words when they were kids and wasn’t afraid of using them.

The woman still knew how to cuss like a sailor. Some things hadn’t changed.

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