Page 60 of Merry Mended Hearts

“Yes, ma’am, it is.”

I concentrated on the fish, turning it in the pan and hearing the satisfying searing noise as the meat touched the hot surface. Grace was right; it smelled delicious. I was no chef like Mason Devries, but I could cook a few things.

Grace inhaled and kicked her legs. “Looks like I won’t be making it home for Christmas after all,” she said, pressing her lips into a thin smile. “And you know, I should feel bad about that, but deep down, I think I was hoping for some reasons to stay—a reason that wouldn’t make me seem like the world’s worst daughter and sister.”

She glanced at her phone.

“You won’t have service out here,” I told her, turning the fish. “The cell towers have been affected by the storm just like everything else.”

I’d checked my phone earlier to verify as much.

“Hm. Guess I’ll have to let my mom know about this unexpected roadblock later.”

I set the tongs down beside the pan. “Even if you and I hadn’t gone out, you wouldn’t have made it back in time for your flight. They close the pass during bad storms like this. It’s not safe for anyone to go through.”

This didn’t bother her as much as I thought it might. “At least I’ll have a good excuse to tell my mother.”

Did that mean she hadn’twantedto go home? Why not?

It looked like the fish were nearly done. I reached in the cupboard for a set a plates, struck by the fact that I was getting more than just one out. I didn’t often have guests out here.

Grace hopped off the counter and took them from me, placing them on the table. She then searched until she found the utensil drawer and laid out a pair of forks.

Bringing the frying pan over, I used the tongs to dish out the fish right onto the plates. Then I grabbed a few mugs from the cupboard and poured the water I’d been heating into them. I tossed Grace the individual cocoa packet, and she caught it.

“I love this,” she said, closing her eyes and moaning as she held the warm mug between her hands. “This is the warmest my hands have been all day.”

I had the strangest urge to take her hand and hold it. To promise to keep her warm for as long as she was in my care.

But not only did I have personal reservations with this, there was also the pesky problem that I didn’t know if Grace was in a relationship or not. She’d mentioned something before about having a boyfriend back home or something.

It was stupid. It shouldn’t matter—but I found I wanted to know.

“I know it’s none of my business,” I said after we said a blessing on the food. “But I thought you were heading home to meet a guy.”

Grace took a bite of the fish and closed her eyes, moaning. That sound made the fist in my stomach tighten its hold.

“That was part of it,” she said. “This is delicious.”

I took a bite of fish as well and chewed, enjoying the taste of the butter, thyme, and parmesan. It had taken me several tries to find the perfect combination of seasoning. I’d caught this fish last summer and frozen it; I’d only just thawed the day before.

And I was glad I had it on hand. Heck, I was glad she was enjoying it so much.

“You don’t seem all that put out about missing him.”

Grace took another sip of cocoa. It left a chocolate mustache on her upper lip, drawing my attention there. Then again, it seemed like ever since she’d climbed into the sleigh with me, it hadn’t taken much to draw my attention to her mouth.

The pull to kiss her had been rampant as we’d ridden through the trees, as she’d settled herself into the blanket beside me and gotten comfortable enough to confide in me about her writing.

If I wanted to kiss her, that was all the more reason I needed to know whether or not she had someone waiting for her back home. Wanting to kiss another woman since my late wife wasn’t something I took lightly.

I missed Amy. I hadn’t let myself even consider being with another woman since she’d died three years ago. But the typical uncertainty I’d felt before was nowhere to be found with Grace.

She wasn’t dating anyone, was she?

“I don’t even know who he is,” she said. “My mom invited him to meet me during our annual family Christmas dinner. She wanted to set me up.”

Relief rammed its elbow into my side. “Sounds like you’ll be missing a hot date.”

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