Mountain Angel

Chapter 2

Two

Pat found it difficult to concentrate on the road as he turned off the Interstate just past Devyn, Montana, and headed west on a two-lane highway. Some people might say that the stretch of road between Coeur d’Alene and Missoula was prettier, but Pat disagreed. The seemingly empty stretches of rolling sagebrush hills on the edges of the expansive valley around Devyn touched something deep in his heart. The mountain ranges that bordered the ranching valley on all sides were breathtaking, untamed, and still white with winter, though the valley was clear and straw-gold beneath them. It was nearly April, but from what Pat had been told, snow was possible—probable, even—into May, and the area had merely been experiencing a bit of a warm spell over the past week.

As he drove higher up the slopes toward Northstar, he began to see more patches of snow in the shadows of the trees and hills. Pat wished it were warm enough out to roll his window down. The air was so clean. Just a brief taste, he thought and rolled his window down a c***k. It might be warm by local standards, but the blast of air was frigid. He glanced at the digital thermometer in his rearview mirror. The outside temperature hovered just a few degrees above freezing.

He’d left early this morning, but seven hundred and some miles was a long way to come, and with the loss of an hour when he’d crossed time zones, the sun was now low in the western sky. By the time he reached Northstar, it would probably be sunset. According to Bill’s notes, Aelissm would likely be down at the Bedspread Inn until ten or so.

Pat crested the small pass and followed the highway down and around the southern end of the Northstar Mountains. His first view of the Northstar Valley instantly warmed him to the idea of staying here for a while. Still wearing the tattered but glittering cloak of winter, the valley was gorgeous, bordered by the taller granite peaks to his right and the lower, pine-blanketed mountains to his left. The eastern peaks glowed pink in the failing day while the valley below was wrapped cozily in the cool blue shadows of night.

“Stunning,” Pat murmured.

He nearly missed the turn-off to Northstar. The sign was directly across from it, not a few yards before, and listed not just the town but also the establishments of Northstar on a set of wooden slats stained dark brown with yellow lettering.

The road was paved for all of about a mile, then turned over to compacted dirt and gravel. He saw several ranch gateways that looked like they came straight out of the movie and a small schoolhouse. He passed the road that led to the Northstar Post Office. Behind the post office was a single wide trailer with an add-on that almost made it a double wide. Part of it appeared to be a greenhouse. Pat knew from Bill’s notes that it belonged to Aelissm’s grandparents. Another few miles brought him to the intersection of Northstar Road and Elkhorn Road, and he slowed, at last seeing the dark brown building with white trim that was the Bedspread Inn. He turned left and pulled into the inn’s horseshoe-shaped driveway, which looped back toward the main road and was lined with several old buckboard wagons and mine cars.

The inn had ten rooms, five on the ground floor, five above, all facing toward the driveway. He parked in front of the inn’s restaurant, which was connected at a ninety-degree angle and looked like a squat A-frame with a front wall that was almost entirely windows. The lights were on inside, and smoke curled lazily from the massive stone chimney.

He stepped out into the chilly evening and stretched some of the stiffness out of his body before he ascended the wide stairs to the deck. The temperature up here must be at least ten degrees cooler than down in Devyn.

He stopped on the front deck and gazed over his shoulder. His breath sucked through his teeth at the sight. The Northstar Mountains were bathed in a deep ruby light, and above them, a perfectly cloudless sky changed from the bright blue of day to the darker shades of sunset. A faint haze of wood smoke drifted around the scattered houses and cabins of the valley, spicing the air with cozy welcome.

The bell on the door jingled, and he turned around to see a family of four walk out of the restaurant. They all stopped to look at the mountains, as he had, laughing and smiling.

“Better get in there, ‘fore you freeze,” the man said to Pat in a thick Southern drawl. “I don’t know how these people do it. I wonder if it’s really winter eight months out of the year up here.”

Curious, Pat watched them until they piled into the Ford Explorer with Georgia plates. He chuckled and took one last look at the mountains before he stepped inside. There was a roaring fire in the stone hearth that commanded the center of the room. It was open on three sides and panels of beveled glass kept sparks and embers from leaping out.

“Marge and Roger are supposed to be back tomorrow, right, Aeli?” he heard someone ask.

He stepped around the fireplace and found two older men sitting at the bar. A golden-haired beauty smiled indulgently at them, and Pat instantly recognized her as the woman from the picture on Bill’s desk. Without the vibrant orange stocking cap, she was even more beautiful with a graceful oval face framed by tendrils of hair that had pulled loose from her braid. The reddish cast of that shining mane complemented her soft, rosy complexion and made her dark green eyes glow like polished emeralds. Striking, he thought. Certainly enough to make a man look twice.

“Yeah, tomorrow afternoon. Ready for another Moose Drool?”

“Nah. I’m done. Thank you, dear. Would you have Roger call me when he gets in? I need him to look at that hoist again.”

“Will do, Matt. John’s driving, right?”

“Of course,” the man named John replied. “C’mon, Matt. I’d better get your sorry arse home to Livia before she has both our hides.”

The two ranchers dropped some bills on the bar for Aelissm and headed for the door, nodding to Pat as they left. He glanced at the only remaining patrons, a couple who must belong to the other out-of-state vehicle. Aelissm wiped down the bar, took the empty glass back to the kitchen. When she reappeared, she spotted him and smiled.

“What can I do for you?” she asked.

“I’d like a cup of coffee, if it’s not too much trouble.”

“So long as you’re a paying customer, it’s no trouble at all,” she replied teasingly. “You must be Patrick O’Neil. You’re the only man who’s been in here today tall enough to fit the description my uncle gave me. Six-foot-four, huh?”

“Call me Pat.”

She stepped around the bar and extended her hand. He shook it. “Aelissm Davis. Aelissm or Aeli is fine.”

“Bill brags about you all the time, so it’s nice to finally match the praise to the woman.”

“He talks about you a lot, too, so yes, it is nice to meet you at last. Have a seat wherever you like, and I’ll get your coffee. Cream? Sugar?”

“Just cream.”

He watched her vanish into the kitchen again, amused. She was much sexier in person, wearing faded blue jeans and a tantalizingly snug green sweater that matched her eyes. When she returned, he thanked her and paid her for the coffee.

“How long until you close?” he asked.

“Bored already?”

“No, just curious. Need a hand with anything?”

“No, I’ve got it covered. I close at nine, and if we’re lucky, we’ll be out of here by nine-thirty.”

Pat glanced at his watch. It was a little after seven. Then he remembered he hadn’t set his watch forward. Eight. Only an hour until she closed. That wasn’t so bad.

While Aelissm checked on her other patrons, he sipped his coffee and watched her. Bill’s niece sure was easy on the eyes. She had soft curves that invited a man to linger and was, he noted, deceptively toned. Strong but very feminine. Look twice? He’d be lucky if he could keep himself from staring. He shook his head to clear it of any lecherous thoughts. This was his boss’s niece, and besides, he didn’t need to be thinking along those lines, not with her safety being his number-one priority. And not after Sara.

“This is a gorgeous valley,” he remarked to Aelissm when she joined him at the bar. “I think I’m really going to enjoy my time here.”

Aelissm raised a golden eyebrow at him. “Won’t you miss your Starbucks?”

Pat lifted his mug. “I’ll take a cup of this good brew and the company of an intelligent woman over Starbucks any day.”

The quick tilt of her head was barely noticeable, and Pat’s lips quirked. She’d been expecting a city boy, had she? He wasn’t at all sad to have disappointed her. He smiled, and she returned it, then glanced at the television above the door to the kitchen. There was a commercial on, and she tried to seem interested, but Pat could see she wasn’t.

“So, is there anything I should know? Has Mr. Winters tried to contact you again?”

She looked at him with narrowed eyes. At first, he thought she was going to ignore his question or lie to him. She opened her mouth, closed it, then said, “Yeah. He called again last night and left a message.”

“Did you save it?”

“No, but I wrote it down word for word. I’m sorry, Mr. O’Neil—”

“Pat. And I understand why you erased the message.” He took another sip of his coffee. “There’s something else bothering you.”

She stood up and walked over to the small desk that sat between the side door and the open doorway to the kitchen. Pat watched her pick up something. When she flopped it in front of him, he saw that it was a phone book of sorts, labeled “Northstar Directory.” He glanced through the list, saw Aelissm’s phone number and address.

“When I heard the message, I was afraid he might have somehow gotten hold of one of these.”

“How would he do that?”

“He’d have to be here to get it, but no one has said anything about a tourist asking about the directory or me, so he probably got it from my apartment in Seattle.” She glanced at her customers. “I thought you should know,” she added and strode off.

Pat studied first the list then Aelissm. She was so composed with her customers that he almost couldn’t believe the show of fear and wariness he’d seen just a moment ago. He couldn’t help but think that she was handling the whole situation well. She may be hiding, but she was at least trying to live a normal life. Pat decided it was good that she had come to such a place as this. Surely, being such a small community, anything suspicious would quickly become the subject of gossip. She was probably far safer here than she’d been in Seattle. And if Winters decided to visit, Pat would likely have an easier time singling him out. For that reason, he decided that one of his first tasks should be getting to know the locals.

“Who were those two gentlemen at the bar?” Pat asked when Aelissm came back.

“When you came in? The older is Matt Carlyle, and his friend is John Hammond. Why do you ask?”

“I just thought it might be a good idea to get to know your neighbors, especially since I don’t know how long I’ll be here.”

“Ah. In that case, you’re in luck. We’re hosting a potluck here tomorrow, and almost everyone from the valley will be in attendance. Jumping back to John and Old Matt, the Carlyles own the second largest spread in the valley, the C Diamond, and the Hammonds own the largest, the Lazy H.”

Pat smiled. “No rivalry between clans?”

“Nope. They get along marvelously. In fact, Old Matt’s eldest granddaughter, Beth, is married to John’s eldest son, Nick. They’re expecting their first child any day now.”

“Really. So, Old Matt’s going to be a great-grandpa.”

“And John will be a grandpa. First one.”

“I take it you know everyone.”

“Just about, except a few of the newbie part-timers. There’s a couple who just bought one of the cabins up the road and another family that’s renting one of the Struthers’ houses.”

“Struthers?”

“Steven and Caroline own the Circle S. Steven’s younger brother, Marvin, and his wife, Mary, own the Ramshorn Hot Springs.”

Pat chuckled. “You’ve only been back here for six months, and already you’re reacquainted.”

She shrugged. “Northstar doesn’t change much.”

Pat thought he caught a hint in her tone that added, for which I’m grateful. He drank the rest of his coffee and ordered a cheeseburger from her. As he stared out the window at the twilight and ate his meal, he again thought that this assignment—this vacation—might just be rather enjoyable. Aelissm was downright beautiful and quite possibly the most intriguing woman he’d met in a long time, and he did need a little time away from his memories. He already felt more relaxed than he had in months. Then he reminded himself not to relax too much because he was here for another reason. Bill had asked him to keep Aelissm safe from Adam Winters, not to let himself be distracted by her. Although, Bill had said…. Pat shook his head. He wasn’t ready for anything like that. At the rate he was going, he might never be.

“Well, here we are,” Aelissm said as she walked up the driveway of her grandparents’ mobile home. The ragged snow was crusted with ice and crunched beneath her boots. She stamped her feet clean as she ascended the three steps of her grandparents’ front porch, then glanced at the large, round thermometer. Twenty-five degrees. She exhaled, and her breath formed a silvery cloud in the glow of the porch light. The cobalt night sky with its array of bright, shimmering stars was clear, but the air was sharply damp and smelled of snow.

She slid the key into the lock and led Pat inside.

“Sorry, but you’ll have to sleep on the hideaway in the den tonight,” she told him as she turned on the lights. “It’s comfy enough. I’ll be in the room just on the other side of that wall, and the bathroom is the second door on the left—right across from the den.”

“We’re not going up to your cabin?”

“No. I need to get up early tomorrow and head into town to do some shopping. Besides, it’s supposed to snow tonight.”

He raised an eyebrow, but his lips lifted in wonder.

Aelissm admired his easy-going nature and the way he seemed to take things in stride. The lingering irritation over her uncle’s interference dissipated for the time being, and she was looking forward to getting to know Pat. She showed him around, led him out through the den, and then pointed out the refrigerator in the back room that was packed full with goodies.

“Help yourself,” she told him.

She grabbed a couple extra blankets and pillows from the closet in the hallway and dropped them on the hideaway, which she’d pulled out and mostly gotten ready this morning. Then she went back to the den and stoked the fire while Pat ducked into the bathroom. She sat on the floor in front of the wood stove with one leg tucked beneath her and an arm wrapped around the other with the poker held loosely in her hand. She stared into the merrily dancing flames, mesmerized. Right then, her mind was mercifully devoid of all fears and worries.

There was nothing like wood heat, she thought. It warmed thoroughly to the bone and left a snug feeling of safety that no amount of natural gas or propane or electric heat could give. She could feel it on her face, dry and comforting.

“There’s nothing quite like wood heat, is there?”

Pat’s voice startled her, and she glanced over her shoulder to find him standing in the doorway to the den. He’d taken off his coat and folded it over his arm, and Aeli tilted her head, riveted. His jeans were just tight enough to give her a taste, and the dark blue sweater he wore fit him just as well. The flickering light and shadow outlined his features exquisitely—the broad, strong shoulders, the sculpted chest, and flat stomach, the long, firm legs. There was a light smile on his face, and in the glow of the fire, he was devastatingly handsome with features that were both smooth and masculine. He looked tired, though, she thought. Granted, he’d driven more than seven hundred miles today and had probably risen well before the sun, but she suspected that was only a fraction of the exhaustion she saw in his eyes.

“Have a seat,” she offered.

Pat stretched out beside her, his posture relaxed and open. She was acutely aware of how intimate the situation was and how completely unconscious it was. He wasn’t trying to make a move on her; he was just sitting in front of a fire with his boss’s niece. What surprised her more was how easy and natural it would be to rest her head on his shoulder. He exuded serenity, and with her emotions still a little too chaotic after Adam’s calls, she was drawn to his unassuming demeanor.

Instead of acting on the urge, she pulled her other knee up and draped her arms around her legs. She had met Pat barely more than two hours ago, and she couldn’t trust her instincts. Brent had been a gentleman, too, at first, and Adam had been a funny, lovable companion. Aelissm shuddered.

“So,” Pat said as if he sensed her uneasiness, “tell me about your friend June. Bill said you two have known each other since you were five.”

Aelissm smiled, grateful for the diversion. “Yep. Uncle Bill and June’s stepdad introduced us when Dan started dating June’s mom.”

“That wouldn’t happen to be Dan Blue, would it? Your uncle’s buddy from the navy?”

“That’s the one.”

“I’ve never met him, but Bill speaks very highly of him. He sounds like a good guy.”

“He is. Unk wouldn’t be friends with someone who isn’t.”

“No, he wouldn’t. Doesn’t June live up by your parents’ cabin?”

“Just a couple hundred yards over from it. My parents invited her to spend two weeks with us up here one summer, and she fell in love with the place.”

“It’s always nice to have a good friend around when times get a little rough.”

“Don’t I know it. It’s been fun, the two of us together on the mountain again.” She paused and found herself smiling. “I’m really glad I came back.”

Pat nodded but didn’t say anything else. They sat for a while, enjoying a contented quiet that was only interrupted by the occasional pop from the fire. Aelissm found herself wanting to explain about Brent and Adam but not in the context of what Pat would want to know for his role as her guardian. She felt the need to explain why she’d fallen for Brent in the first place, but why should she have to explain anything? People made mistakes.

“We should probably get some sleep,” she said after a moment. “Hope you don’t mind being dragged around tomorrow.”

“Not at all. Do you mind if I call Bill? I should probably check in.”

“Help yourself. Phone’s in the living room. G’night.”

She tossed another log in the stove, then shut the door and closed the dampers for the night. Pat followed her out, bid her goodnight at her bedroom door, and headed for the living room. Her guest spoke quietly, but the thin walls made it easy for her to hear every word he said. The conversation was short, but Aelissm was curiously pleased by Pat’s glowing compliments of Northstar. Even more unaccountable, she enjoyed the smooth timbre of his voice, and she was disappointed when he bid her uncle farewell. The floorboards of the hallway creaked as he walked back to the den, and she thought she heard him whisper good night to her as he passed her door.

As she lay in the bed, curled beneath the thick blankets, she listened to the snaps of the fire, then the squeaks of the hideaway’s springs as Pat shifted into a comfortable position. Those sounds, signs of something as simple as a man preparing for sleep, made Aelissm sigh with relief. For the first time since Adam had called three nights ago, she felt safe. Maybe Uncle Bill was right. Maybe sending Pat was a good idea, if only for her peace of mind.

Too bad Pat had been uprooted from his life to give her that. Then again, maybe he needed the break as much as she needed to be herself again. Uncle Bill had asked her to make sure Pat relaxed while he was in Northstar. What exactly had happened, Aelissm hadn’t a clue, but Pat had been working too hard to get past it, and that was enough to tell her that Northstar was probably the best place he could have come to get away. Aeli knew it from the weariness about him—the kind of exhaustion a good night’s sleep couldn’t cure. The only things that could help him were peace and quiet, good company, and fresh mountain air, all of which were abundant in Northstar.