Page 346 of Screwged for Christmas

Alone, she took out her phone and paused, her fingers over the keypad. “What if he doesn’t answer?”

She didn’t have time for doubts. A couple of seconds later it rang and her heart wanted to jump out of her chest and melt all at once.

“Aspen!” she rushed out before he had the chance to say a single syllable.

“Ivy Sunday. Is everything all right?” He sounded tired.

“You need to meet me at Joe’s. It’s urgent.”

“Okay. I’m on my way. Give me five.”

* * *

ASPEN ROLLED TO A STOP OUTSIDE Joe’s red barn and eyeballed the large tarp over the sign that welcomed visitors.

Odd.

Up for a solid thirty-six hours, weary from the night, the second he heard Ivy’s voice his senses went on high alert.

He slid from the cab and started across the gravel parking lot when an angel walked around the side of the barn.

She came to a stop by the sign. “Aspen, you came.” Surprise lit her face and she looked adorable with her hair pulled back in a loose braid over one shoulder, her cheeks flushed from the cold.

“Of course, I came, baby. I said to call anytime you needed me and I would be there. Are you okay? I thought I’d missed you before your flight.”

“Everything is perfect. Or at least I hope it will be. Didn’t you get my messages?”

He walked over, no words, and took her in his arms. He needed more, wanted to pin her against the darn and just inhale her scent and then kiss the ever-loving hell out of her until he had his fill. Which would be never.

“Sorry, baby. I didn’t. There was an accident up on the highway. A couple of trucks hit a bad patch of ice. It took up all evening and night to clear the wreckage. A miracle everyone survived.”

“Oh, God!” The raw emotion in her eyes warmed his heart. Part of his job dealt with people’s safety, injuries and worse. It came with the territory. But his Ivy Sunday had a tender soul and he saw it through how much she cared for those around her.

“Where is Joe? Lewis?”

“Joe is headed off to Hawaii and who cares where Lewis is.” She had a suspicious grin that alluded to something bigger, but he didn’t push.

As tired as he was, to hear those words come from her mouth perked him wide awake.

“Hawaii, huh?”

She waved a hand. “Come here. I have something to show you.”

He’d seen every inch of this place millions of times and knew it better than he did his own backyard. But he went along with her and wrapped an arm around her shoulder, loving the way her dips melded to him.

“I have a lot to be thankful for. You, Gran, my meddlesome siblings, even Lewis.”

His eyebrows shot up at that last part as the came to a stop beside the barn.

“Yeah, I never thought I would be saying that either, but a lot of truth comes out when you stop to listen to your gut and reflect back on past actions.”

He focused on her words, the way her voice waddled ever so slightly. The way she tied her hands together in front of her and nibbled at her lip occasionally.

“You're nervous.”

“A little.”

He wound their fingers together and looked deeply into her eyes. “Don’t be. I’m here. Take your time and say whatever it is you need to say.”

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