Page 75 of Love Under Snowfall

What could only be described as an actual polar bear paw landed hard on Zac’s collar, flinging him around. Head swirling with drink and his own callous words, he looked up at the large sheriff in question. He wasn’t in the mood to come to blows with local law enforcement, especially with one who outweighed him by a good fifty pounds, but he’d be unable to back down if it came down to it. Sometimes fighting—or getting your ass beat, which would more likely be the case—was the only answer.

“What the hell is your malfunction, Zac?” Jonathan barked from beside Clint.

Zac’s attention snapped to his friend, whose face held so much frustration and disappointment that it made his head hurt. “Jesus . . . I. I’m sorry, brother—”

“I think it’s best if you leave,” Clint interrupted, still gripping Zac’s drink-stained collar in his mighty meat claws. “Avoid any more of a scene.”

Anger spiked Zac’s blood as though he had taken another shot of that smoky tequila. “It’s not your call, sheriff. What are you? The hired security now?”

“Zac, please.” Jonathan’s quiet plea was sobering.

Scanning the crowd, Zac’s eyes settled on Lucy. Jonathan’s fiancée—er, wife—who usually glided around town with endless warmth and joy, now stood wearing a hurt expression similar to her new husband’s. Miguel and Benjamin hovered nearby, arms crossed over their chests, ready to assist with the ejection if necessary. His eyes snagged on Patty Miller, the surrogate mother who had looked after him like he was her own since he became friends with her son all those years ago. There, he saw similar disappointment, and it wrecked him.

He needed to get out of there.

Immediately.

“I’m going.” His words were quiet but triggered Clint’s hands to release and lower. Zac strode past Jonathan, pausing momentarily to take the jacket his friend held out. “Congrats, man.”

Zac wasn’t quite sure exactly when he’d been labeled an unreliable fuck up, but he was pretty certain it was a gradual development as opposed to any one event. But as he strode from the tent, where he could hear the DJ attempting to gloss over the disruption by calling the crowd to the dance floor for the “Cupid Shuffle,” Zac was certain that he’d finally hit rock bottom.

Chapter forty-one

Frankie

“Are you all right?”

Frankie’s perked up as the rich baritone pulled her attention from Zac’s sheepish departure. Benjamin stood beside her, head cocked to the side in exaggerated concern.

No, not exaggerated.

Genuine.

“Yeah.” She glanced back to the happy couple, trying their best to rebound from the momentary disruption and enjoy the rest of the evening. Clint and Miguel talked in animated yet hushed tones near the bar, no doubt debriefing the incident and making further plans should the troublemaker decide to rejoin the party. She shrugged, still taken aback by the entire altercation. “That was a lot.”

It hadn’t been the first time that Zac had come on to her. In fact, she’d become a pro at sidestepping his advances. But this was the first time he’d ever been cruel about it. His typical play was a smooth-talking ladies’ man, not an aggressive, vulgar bastard. Something was up. Part of her wanted to ignore it, to chalk his behavior up to too much tequila, but that didn’t feel accurate. There was more to it than that.

“Want to get some air?” Benjamin’s large hand hovered upturned in front of her, and her unfocused attention zeroed in on it. With a nod, she took hold and followed him out of the tentthrough one of the rear entrances.

A refreshing gust of cold mountain air calmed Frankie’s nerves as she and Benjamin stepped out onto the small, vacant patio. The December chill contrasted with the ambient warmth the two large space heaters pumped out into the space. She approached the wooden railing that overlooked the Wenatchee River as it coiled around Enchantment Park. The moonlight glittered on the rippling current, refusing to wash downstream with the rest of the water. Clouds hovered in thick patches, steadily converging into a solid mass, promising snow but not giving away when or how much.

She shivered.

An instant later, Benjamin’s tuxedo jacket settled heavily across her shoulders, smelling strongly of a crisp fall afternoon. The scent, more intoxicating than the sparkling sweet wine she’d been slowly sipping all night, soothed her anxieties about Zac’s earlier antics.

“Can I get you anything?”

Benjamin stood beside her while also ensuring a solid foot of distance.

Frankie shook her head.

He nodded, matter-of-fact, and said, “I’ll let you be.”

Turning on his heels, he strode back to the entrance.

But she didn’t want to be alone. She needed company, but more than that, she wantedhiscompany. “Stay.”

“I’m not sure that’s wise,” he mumbled, still facing away.

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