Page 5 of The Cold Ride

My mistakes finally caught up with me. Hello, it was karma calling, and that bitch was here to collect. But in all the ways I’d imagined it playing out, I never wanted it to happen this way. They had to leave. Now. Before it wrecked everything.

I swallowed past the lump of panic in my throat.

“James. It’s been a long time.” And he looked even better than I remember, even with his stony expression. But there wasn’t an ounce of warmth there, not that I would have expected it from him.

But it was his eyes, the ones I’d dreamed about in the years since, that called me ten times a fool.

Drawing myself up and straightening my spine, I pasted a smile on my face. Because if I didn’t, I would cry over what we lost. We found something that night long ago. And in true me fashion, I messed it up. But I’d never gotten over him, not that it mattered now. But I prayed I could get them out of here soon.

Because if I didn’t . . . it didn’t bear thinking about.

The three men behind him were all smiles as I rounded the counter. Lucas, Aiden, and Wyatt were much the same as I remembered them, if a bit older and rougher around the edges. But then, they were Navy SEALs, and it came with the territory.

“Hey, boys!” I’d always liked Evan’s friends.

Wyatt reached me first. The guy was stoic as ever, and there were fine lines around his eyes that hadn’t been there before. I even spied a sprinkling of silver in his inky hair. And he enveloped me in a bear hug. “It’s good to see you, Rory. It’s been a while.”

“You too.” I hugged him back, feeling the years slip away as joy replaced my fear.

But then Lucas shoved him out of the way with a Cheshire grin, his hazel eyes dancing with mirth. “My turn. Rory!”

Lucas lifted me up as he hugged me until I laughed with him.

Aiden, with his shock of red hair, followed him with a tight hug and a, “Missed you, Rory.”

They all greeted me enthusiastically. Everyone but James. He just stared with cold, hard eyes that were sharper than any blade and ready to cut me down. But I was already bleeding internally at his sudden reappearance. Being in the same space, breathing the same air as James, was like standing next to a downed electrical wire.

“What are you all doing here?” I tried keeping my panic under wraps. But it was like asking the sun not to shine. Amelia would be home far too soon. I couldn’t let it happen this way. It would make the destruction in the inn look paltry by comparison.

But it was Wyatt who answered my question, tearing my attention away from James. “We have something for you from Evan.”

“Oh.” I pressed a hand against my chest at the mention of my ex-husband. I’d heard of his passing and couldn’t believe he was gone. We might not have been forever and had our differences, but I always wanted the best for him.

“I wanted to be at his funeral, but this happened,” I gestured at the holy walls.

“What happened here?” Lucas asked, nodding at the walls I’d already torn down.

“We had a wallop of a storm. It knocked out the power. And it took out the generator for the inn. Then the below zero temps made the pipes burst. Water flooded this floor and the basement.”

“And why don’t you have someone helping you fix it?” Aiden asked.

“Because the insurance people are crooks,” I waved away the rest of what I was going to say. “But enough about me. That’s why you’re here? To deliver something from Evan. And you couldn’t mail it?”

I ignored James the best I could. But that would be like asking me to ignore a shark swimming by me in the ocean. His presence dwarfed the others and made me sweat. It also made me very aware that I was in jean overalls, grimy and covered in dust.

“No. We couldn’t.” James interjected emphatically with a stern scowl.

The other three glanced at him because of the vehemence behind his words. They didn’t know our history, or they would likely feel the same. I didn’t know why James hadn’t told them. But then, he’d made it clear what he thought of me.

“What James meant to say is Evan requested we bring it to you personally. I know the timing blows since it looks like you’ve got your hands full,” Lucas stated, jerking his chin toward the walls.

“You wouldn’t know of a place nearby that we could stay for the night?” Wyatt asked, scratching his head.

I winced, knowing I shouldn’t, but I was going to do it anyway. Consequences be damned. It was a conversation that was long overdue. Maybe it would clear up my karma. “Well, technically, the inn isn’t open for business. However, the guest rooms upstairs weren’t damaged in the flood. I could put you up for the night.” Which was proof that James’s presence was harming my brain function.

Why would I offer them a place to stay? I didn’t owe them anything.

Except they were Evan’s friends. And once upon a time they’d been mine too. I might not have been able to attend his funeral, but I could put his friends up for the night.

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