The car in front of her turned off the road, leaving it open. The anxious feeling took over again as the snow was getting thicker at an alarming rate, but she just needed to see the lights in her house, the beautiful log home her father had painstakingly kept stained over the years.
Her phone sounded, and she glanced down for a second. As she faced forward again, a large deer stood in her path. She slammed on the brakes, causing the car to fishtail on the slick road. Trying to correct, she turned the wheel to the left, but her foot slipped, sending the car careening forward as she pushed the gas pedal.
Why hadn’t she stopped when she should have? Her windshield cleared, and her lights shone on just how much snow was on the road. What had she been thinking?
By the time she freed her foot, she barely had time to hit the brake before the front of her car hit a log gate. As the airbag deployed, her head smacked against it, and blackness enveloped her.
Chapter 6
Walker jumped out of bed and opened the curtains, wondering what the sound had been that had jarred him awake. He couldn’t see anything clearly because of the tree line just outside the lodge, but there were lights shining down there.
“Come on, Bear. Let’s go see what happened.” After pulling on jeans and a long-sleeved shirt, he walked down to the mudroom to slip on his snow boots and thick winter coat. Once the door opened, Bear ran outside, straight in the direction of the lights. Walker jogged to keep up with him, feeling the sleep disappear against the cold Wyoming night.
By the time they made it to the main gate and around the fence, Walker saw a car lodged into his fence. He picked up speed, knowing that if he could do anything to help the driver, he had to act now.
As he knocked on the window, he saw the silhouette of someone hunched over the steering wheel. The sound wasn’t phasing whoever it was. He worked to open the door, prying it apart as a section of it had been crushed with the impact.
“Ma’am, can you hear me?” he asked, seeing long hair. “You just crashed into the fence. Are you okay?”
Again, no response. He was glad he’d thought to grab his phone and pulled it out, dialing his friend down at the fire department.
“Walker, what are you doing up this late?” Ethan Montgomery asked, sounding like he’d been awake for hours.
“A car just crashed into the fence in front of the lodge. I need the ambulance to come out.”
“I’m sorry, Walk. They just shut the roads down about fifteen minutes ago, and our snowcat is taking care of another accident up the canyon. With the snow and wind blowing, the drifts are filling in the roads quickly. We can’t leave Afton. I’m surprised a car got that far past town. I’ll call you when they get back, and we’ll head your way.”
Panic surged through him. What was he supposed to do for this girl? He only had basic training for first aid, mostly to sew up cuts he’d gotten after a rough bull ride.
“Can you talk me through this, then? She’s hunched forward on the airbag.”
Walker pinched the phone between his cheek and neck, checking vitals as Ethan walked him through the process. The girl’s legs and arms all responded to stimuli, reassuring Walker that she wasn’t paralyzed.
“Am I okay to move her?”
“I would. They say the temperature is going to drop to below zero tonight, and the storm is just beginning. Be careful and call me if you have any problems.”
Walker thanked him before hanging up. He stuck the phone into his pocket and leaned forward, wrapping one arm around the girl’s back and the other under her knees, pulling her out of the car. Bear let out a loud howl, which caused the girl to stir, but her eyes never opened, at least from what Walker could see in the near pitch-dark of the night.
He made his way through the high snow, fighting against the wind that had picked up. It would be quite some time now for anyone to get through, as the wind was fierce, causing the snowdrifts to shift into the road, making it difficult to see where the ditches lay on either side.
Once inside the warm lodge, he noticed the fire had gone out, but at least it wasn’t as cold as outside right then. Walker placed the girl on the couch, adjusting a pillow under her head and pulling a blanket over her legs. He turned on a small light on a side table and turned back to her, gasping as the light shone on her face. Lauren Burke.
It had been a few years since he’d seen her, probably not since her mother’s funeral, but it was definitely her. A cut sliced across the side of her forehead, the blood still a bright red. He walked to the closet and retrieved several clean cloths and his first aid kit.
He cleaned the wound as best as he could and watched her stiffen a moment as the antiseptic took effect. She still didn’t open her eyes, and Walker was glad he knew exactly what to do in this kind of situation. With four of his siblings being part of the rodeo circuit, there had been many occasions when he’d have to patch up one or more of them.
Once he’d cleaned the slice, he realized it could be closed with butterfly strips, which would leave minimal scarring. Not that the Lauren he’d known had been overly into looks, but lying there in front of him, she was beautiful, and he didn’t want her to be marred with any missed stitches.
When he opened the box of strips, the sound must have woken her because her eyes opened wide and she sat up, her eyes darting around the room.
“Where am I? Who are you? How did I get here?” Her eyes focused on his face, and a few seconds later, she relaxed. “Walker?”
“That would be me. How are you feeling?” Walker asked.
“A little confused,” she said, moving her hand to rub at her forehead.
Walker stopped her hand from hitting the wound, and a strange feeling of excitement pulsed through him as he stared at their hands.
He lowered her hand slowly and pointed to her forehead. “You got a cut. I was just trying to fix it.”
“How did I get cut? And you didn’t tell me where I am.” Her eyes widened as she looked around the room.
“This is the Silver Brook Lodge. I—”
“Walker, I’m not crazy. The lodge burned down when we were really young. How can this be it?”
Walker tried to hold back a grin, knowing it had been a while since she’d been home. She was cute when she was defiant like that.
He shook his head. “I had it rebuilt over the last year.” He glanced back to her cut, which was now oozing a little more because of her movements. “You crashed into my fence a little bit ago. Just let me get this patched up, and you’ll be good to go. I’m just glad you didn’t have any extensive injuries. We’d both probably still be out in the dark, freezing to death.”
After the last few words, it was as if something clicked in her brain. “Crashed into your fence? I remember there was a deer and I swerved to miss it, but with the slush on the road, my old tires didn’t quite make it.”
“Can I ask why you were driving so late at night anyway? My friend in Afton said they closed the roads just a few minutes after you must have gone through.”
Lauren looked down at her hands, biting her bottom lip. “I should have gotten a hotel somewhere. I didn’t leave Fort Collins until three this afternoon, but I was just so anxious to get home that I decided to risk it. Do you have a truck or something that can take me to my dad’s?”
Walker wasn’t sure how to say it, but if things were closed in town, it would be hard for a snowplow to make it through there within the next twenty-four hours.
“I have a truck, but I don’t think it will make it through all the snow outside. It’s turned into a blizzard outside, and even though the farm is a few miles away, we wouldn’t make it through without incident. I have guest rooms you can stay in tonight, and we can reevaluate tomorrow. Does that work for you?” He kept his expression neutral, knowing she didn’t really have another choice, unless she wanted to start walking down the road in the knee-high snowdrifts. With the uptick in amount of snow falling and the wind that seemed to only increase in howling, he just hoped s
he’d take him up on his offer.
“That can work.”
Walker watched as her eyes shifted around the room, taking in the log structure he’d worked so hard to get finished. Part of him hoped she’d approve of it, bringing back the memory of the old building to Coldwater Creek.
“Hold still. I’m just going to butterfly the cut together so it can start to heal.” He scooted closer to her, inhaling the apple cinnamon smell about her. It reminded him of Christmas and traditions, causing him to smile slightly. He pulled out the strips and focused on the cut, knowing her eyes were staring at his face the entire time.
After placing the strips over the wound, he sat back. “That should do it, for tonight at least. Let me show you to your room. Are you okay to walk?”
Lauren’s face showed a mixture of emotions, but they passed so fast that Walker couldn’t decipher them. “I should be fine.” She reached her hand up for him, and he helped her stand, that same electricity flowing through them. What was that about?
She’d always been the annoying younger sister of Preston, the one who’d follow them around like a puppy just to see what they were doing. She’d definitely grown up in the years since, and Walker found himself pulled to her with an invisible tether. Were these feelings just a rebound of Cara ditching him for Roper Grand? That had been over a year ago and more of a blessing than he could see at the time. No, this was something else.
He showed her to the first guest room on the second floor, making sure the light worked and that the bed had been made.
“Uh, do you have something to change into?” he asked, looking down at her jeans and sweater.
With a shy smile, Lauren said, “Yes, but it’s out in my car.” She paused a moment before saying, “I should be good with these. I can go get my bags in the morning.”
Walker nodded, moving away from the door. As he walked down the stairs, he realized he was still in his warm clothes and boots. Now was as good a time as any to go grab her bags. He hated sleeping in jeans himself and didn’t want her to be uncomfortable staying there. She was the unofficial first guest of the lodge, and he wanted to make sure it was a good experience.
Checking his phone before he walked outside, he saw he’d missed a call from the Afton fire department, probably checking in to see how things had gone. He’d gotten a text from Ethan saying the plows were working on the roads to get to them but it would still be several hours before they could tow Lauren’s car to a shop.
It was a good thing he was getting Lauren’s belongings now.
“Let’s go, Bear. One more trip outside.”
Bear wagged his tail as he waited for Walker to open the door. He darted outside again, sniffing the ground in the deepening snow. Walker had never seen it this bad before. This part of Wyoming was known for getting a lot of snow, but in one storm, this was more than he could remember in his twenty-eight years of life.
Lauren was lucky she’d made it through her accident with only a gash to the head. And for some strange reason, Walker was more grateful for that than anything else.
Chapter 7
Lauren watched Walker as he walked down the hall toward the stairs. She didn’t think it was possible to get any more attractive than he’d been when she was a senior in high school. But with his broad shoulders and a scar along his jaw, she had to work to keep her own jaw from dropping each time he looked at her.
She’d had a crush on him since she was young, probably when she first met him. And he’d always thought of her as the annoying little sister, well, as far as Preston expressed. Walker had never been one to use more words than necessary, and the tender way he’d taken care of her tonight had made her insides do somersaults over and over.
What were the odds that she’d leave probably the worst boyfriend in the world only to wind up being rescued by the man of her dreams?
Shaking her head, she tried to rid herself of those thoughts. It wasn’t likely that his feelings went any deeper than they had years ago before she’d left for Colorado. But with the way he looked and the smell of pine from his cologne, the old feelings of a crush came rushing back to her.
Taking a seat on the bed, she wasn’t sure what to do. She wasn’t really tired now as the shock of her accident sank in and she relived it over again. He’d had to carry her in, which set off a swarm of butterflies in her stomach.
A knock came at the door a few minutes later, causing her to jump. She stood and wondered what she could have forgotten. When she opened the door, Walker stood there again, his cheeks pink and his dark hair tousled, making him look even better than before.
“Yes?” she said, trying to focus.
“I figured you’d be more comfortable in a change of clothes. It’s hard for me to sleep if I haven’t brushed my teeth, so I thought I’d run out and get your things for you. Let me know if you need anything. I, uh, I’m in the bedroom on the first floor past the kitchen.” He gave her a small smile and turned, motioning for his dog to follow him.
“Thank you. You didn’t have to do this.” As she stared into his face, adoration overwhelmed her. Cory would never have done something so selfless as trudge through thick snow if it didn’t benefit him in some way.
Walker turned back to her and smiled. “It’s nothing. Just call me the bellboy.” He nodded and disappeared down the hallway. He walked with a slight limp, and she wondered what had caused it. But then her brain registered the way his jeans cut just right, and she knew she was in trouble.
The feelings churning through her were a thousand times stronger than anything she’d ever felt for Cory Turner, but was that just the effect of breaking up with her boyfriend of three and a half years several hours before? She was going to have to keep her feelings in check and make it through until tomorrow. Hopefully, the roads would be cleared by then so she could get home and figure out how to salvage her life from the mess it was in.
She crossed into her bathroom and pulled out her toothbrush and toothpaste, smiling as she thought of Walker’s comment. How a famous bull rider could still be so quiet was beyond her. She’d attended plenty of big rodeos during her life, as Preston had competed as a bronc rider, but she’d known that most of the bull riders were arrogant and self-centered.
But not Walker. He somehow took the credit and spread it out amongst his team of trainers and family. It didn’t seem like much had changed on that front, and it made her smile even wider, knowing there was at least one decent man left in the world.
She took in the trim work of the bathroom and recalled the great room. What would cause Walker to build a lodge when the National Rodeo Finals were coming up in about a week?
The house was quiet and dark as she made her way to the bed. She wished she could call her father at this hour to let him know she was okay. It would also be nice to get all the details of Coldwater Creek since her mother had passed. Walker’s sister, Kassidy, would be ideal, but it was already past midnight, and she hadn’t been very good at keeping in touch with her old best friend in the first place.
Coldwater Creek was already different than she remembered it, but part of that was her problem for staying away for so long. She just hoped she’d get some sign of what she was supposed to do with her life. She could really use a Christmas miracle.
Chapter 8
Bear woke Walker earlier than he wanted, just before six in the morning. He readjusted and closed his eyes again, feeling exhausted from some strange dream from the night before. Another nudge in the side caused Walker to sit up, knowing he wasn’t going to get much more sleep.
He pulled his jeans on from the side of the bed and moved to the back door, letting Bear out to relieve himself. The sun in the sky still hadn’t broken the horizon, but the light gray clouds above seemed to brighten the mounds of snow outside the door. They were at least up to his thigh with thick flakes still floating to the ground. This was one of the times he was grateful he didn’t live at home anymore. He’d have had to trudge out and feed all the animals no matter the w
eather or the day.
There wasn’t a way he’d be able to dig his way out completely today, but he’d have to try; otherwise, the snow would just keep accumulating. After pulling on his snow boots and coat, he looked for his gloves and hat under the mound of clothes he’d been meaning to wash.
By the time he got to the small shed just twenty yards from the back of the lodge, he was breathing heavier than normal, the movement through the snow feeling like one of those training regiments his father used to make him do when he was still bull riding. He pulled out a shovel and started on the walk, feeling the weight of the wet snow after only a few shovelfuls.
A memory popped into his mind, and he chuckled. One of the guys he used to compete with didn’t believe there were two types of snow, having grown up in the South. When Walker had tried to explain that sometimes there was a light, fluffy snow and others a wet, heavy snow, the guy had given him a look like Walker had ten heads.
He worked quickly, clearing the sidewalk in several minutes. Bear jumped around in the snow, rolling in it and flipping it up into the air, causing some small piles to fall back onto the cleaned sidewalk. Walker smiled at him before looking in the direction of his truck on the other end of the property where he always parked it. It was going to take hours to get a trail dug for him to get out, but after a quick glance at the road, it didn’t look like a plow had made it through yet.
A sliver of silver caught his eye, and the events from the night before came flooding back, not a dream after all. Lauren’s car still sat in front of the fence, stuck with everything else in this part of the Coldwater Creek Valley.
Taking a break, he went back inside, Bear at his heels. Walker took off his snow clothes, wondering what he would make for breakfast. Did Lauren even eat breakfast? Or was she one of those strictly cereal people? He’d never known her that intimately, and the thought that he’d have to talk to her for longer than last night sent a chill through him, excitement mixed with terror.
Love Locked Page 3