Page 84 of Snowed In with her Mountain Men
“Besides, I can get a ton of writing done today,” I affirmed, adding a smile. “Don’t know if you noticed it or not, but you boys can be somewhat… distracting.”
“We can?”
“Oh yeah,” I sighed. “I should’ve gotten a dozen chapters done during this blizzard. Instead… well…”
My writer’s guilt was real, and building day by day. At first it had been easy to ignore, especially in the wake of such incredible company. But I was well behind where I wanted to be, even after the fire. The guilt over my lack of progress was rapidly approaching crushing levels.
“No, it’s cool,” I assured them. “I’ll stay here and keep the fires fed, and the cabin warm. You boys be careful out there, and do what you need to. Say hi to the rest of the world for me. I’llwrite my little ass off, and maybe even have dinner ready when you come home.”
“Or maybe we’ll bring back some Luigi’s,” Oakley said, clapping his hands together. “You up for that, Daytona?”
“Pizza!?” My mouth watered instantly. “You think they’ll be open?”
“Luigi’s will be the first place open,” Oakley nodded enthusiastically, “and it’ll be packed with people crawling over the drifts to get there. I’ll grab some calzones, too. And garlic knots. And a few of those pepperoni twist things they make, the ones with—”
The clatter of plates hitting the table ended the conversation. Ryder slid one directly before me and enthusiastically handed me a fork.
“Go on,” he beamed. “Taste it.”
The pale yellow pile in the center of the plate looked like scrambled eggs, but with lumps. Lots of weird, irregularly-shaped lumps.
It was all I could do to keep a straight face.
“There’s plenty more in the pan too, for when you need seconds,” Ryder winked.
~ 48 ~
RYDER
“Are you sure about this?” I asked, squinting into the blinding whiteness. “It’s not exactly a small town, Jax.”
“It ain’t all that big either,” Jaxon grumbled. “And I never said I was sure of anything.”
I turned the wheel, guiding the Marauder around another mound of fallen snow. The roads weren’t bad, they were downright treacherous. But they were finally open, even if only for vehicles like ours.
The day had been an eventful one. Mrs. Veraldi had run out of food three days ago, and her pipes had frozen so solid she’d been defrosting snow for drinking water. She was a tough old widow though, and never once complained. She refused our offer of a ride into town, but promised to bake for us once she got her kitchen up and running again.
From there, we’d run a half dozen more checks on neighbors in need. The Ansens were fresh out of firewood — a cardinal sin that was almost inexcusable. We helped the Harrisons clear a path, and dropped off fuel for the Morgan’s generator. By the time we wrapped up, the sun was no longer anywhere in the sky. It was almost dusk.
“So who’s your contact?” I asked Jaxon again. It was a question he’d glossed over the first time.
“Someone I trust.”
“And you don’t trust me?” I laughed. “After all those times I saved your ass from—”
“Fine,” he interjected with a frustrated sigh. “It’s Terri.”
“From the convenience store?” I blinked. “Pink hair? Silver-winged glasses?
“Her hair’s half blue right now,” Jaxon corrected me. “But yes.”
The mountain road — if you could call it that — finally spilled into town. Here the roads were actually plowed. Not well, mind you, but just enough for the stir-crazy townspeople to believe they could navigate them.
Maybe that’s why we passed six or seven newly-stuck cars in just the first quarter mile.
“Terri’s trustworthy,” Jaxon continued, unbidden. “And she knows Crescent Springs inside and out. Probably better than anyone.”
I nodded again, and gave up a shrug. Whatever info she’d given him didn’t really matter. If it was good enough for Jaxon, it was good enough for me.
