Page 110 of Not Your Average Vixen
Denise stood in the doorway with her hand pressed to her heart, then turned and called out toward two beams of light tinged with red. “He’s here! Scooter and Birdie are with him.”
Nancy glanced up. “Thank you for finding my little boy. I’m so sorry you had to venture out into this awful weather!”
Bridget shook her head. “No, I’m the one who should be sorry. I told Cole all about the fairies. If it wasn’t for me…” she trailed off, anguish written all over her face.
“If it wasn’t for you, this evening could have ended far worse,” Denise answered as she entered the cabin, then sank to her knees to embrace her son.
“The tracker was a good call,” he said, working to smooth out the shake in his voice as the true magnitude of the evening sank in.
Denise sighed and wiped her cheek. “Kids. They make you crazy, but I couldn’t imagine a life without this pint-sized knucklehead,” she finished with a teary chuckle as she ruffled her son’s hair.
“I didn’t lose my glasses, right, Uncle Scooter? See, they’re still on my face. So, I probably shouldn’t be in big, big trouble,” Cole added, tossing him an uneasy glance.
Soren bit back a grin. He wasn’t about to fill in the details of how the kid got his frames back. In fact, he was impressed. Cole’s negotiation skills were on par with all the legal eagles in his family.
“Yep, your glasses are safe and sound, just like you, buddy.”
Denise released a slow breath, and the woman he admired, who’d nicknamed him Scooter all those years ago, held her son’s gaze, going into social worker mode.
“While we’re so relieved that you’re all right, you could have gotten hurt, son. It’s never okay to go out alone without telling anyone, especially into the wilderness.”
“But the Christmas fairies, Mommy! They would have protected me,” Cole answered with the trusting innocence of a child.
“Fairies didn’t rescue you tonight, Cole. Guardian angels did,” Nancy said, glancing between himself and Bridget.
He looked over at his guardian angel counterpart. She smiled and nodded, but he’d caught the flash of guilt in her eyes.
She didn’t see herself as an angel. No, she blamed herself.
Nancy lifted Cole into her arms. “It’s been quite a night, kiddo. Everyone’s back at the mountain house, and we should get going. Dan’s friend from Kringle Acres took us up in a snowcat, and we don’t want to keep him out late either.”
“You got to ride in a snowcat?” Cole exclaimed, clearly catching his second wind.
“Yep, there’s too much snow to get here in a car, so we came up along one of the ski runs,” Nancy answered.
Cole gasped excitedly. “Do I get to ride in the snowcat, too?”
“You do. The nice man even let us take the snowcat they call Rudolph. It’s got a red light on top just like—”
“Rudolph, the Red-nosed Reindeer! Let’s go!” Cole cried, pumping his little fist—another sign that the child was no worse for wear.
With Cole in her arms, Nancy headed for the door.
“Come on, Birdie and Uncle Scooter!” Cole chimed.
“Honey, they’ll have to wait,” Nancy replied.
Cole frowned through a yawn. “Why?”
Denise turned to them. “It’s a tight fit in the snowcat. Rudolph’s operator said he could come back for the two of you.”
Bridget shook her head, then resurrected a plastic expression, but he could see right through it.
“No, you don’t have to do that. I know the way back. I’ll stay behind and put out the fire,” she replied as she twisted the cuff of her coat.
“Are you sure?” Denise asked, eyeing them warily.
“Yes, I’ll stay with Birdie to help with the fire and secure the door. We made it here just fine, and there looks to be a break in the snow,” he added, glancing out the window. The brutal pellets that had battered the cabin had tapered off since they’d arrived.
