A Thrill of Hope

by Marie Higgins

  He’d been working in the barn when he’d heard the snowmobile leave. Of course, it wasn’t until he heard Luca’s panicked voice calling Holly’s name that Rafe had become worried. His cousin had actually been heading to get another snowmobile to go find her, but Rafe had beaten him to it. Unfortunately, he didn’t get there sooner. He hated seeing her walking through the freezing temperatures with no coat, looking like a popsicle. Her lips were blue and her face held no color, which scared him to death.

  The house was now silent. About an hour ago, he’d heard Holly by the fire. Rafe had wanted to talk to her then, but he noticed Luca had reached her first. Rafe stood back in the shadows watching to make sure Luca didn’t try to hit on her. He was surprised when Luca asked her out, but she let him down easily. That’s when Rafe knew she was fine, which was when he returned to his room.

  Earlier he heard the pitter-patter of her feet as she went into her room. If he couldn’t sleep before, he definitely couldn’t sleep now. Thinking of her lying in bed – and what she would look like – wouldn’t leave his mind. Yeah, rest would be impossible tonight.

  Outside the window, a wolf howled. Rafe grumbled. The wild animal was too close for comfort. Thankfully, all the animals were locked up, but it still made him nervous. What if one of the doors to the second barn had been left open? What if there was a hole somewhere and the animal crawled inside to get out of the cold night? There were too many possibilities that could happen.

  Nope. He definitely wouldn’t be able to sleep tonight.

  He threw the quilts off him and swung his legs to the floor. He slipped his feet into a pair of slippers and grabbed a flashlight from off the drawers before leaving the room. Taking careful steps, he moved toward the back door. A few times, the old floor would squeak. He frowned. He’d been too busy this year to install new floors in this section of the house. He could see his father scowling down at him from heaven for not getting it done. Next year, Dad. I promise.

  Near the back door was one of the many gun cabinets in the house. The keys were located on hooks behind the steel frame. He reached behind and pulled out a key. Using his flashlight, he shined it on the lock as he slid the key inside and opened it up. He pulled out a rifle and a box of shells. Careful not to make a lot of noise and wake anyone, he loaded the gun.

  Just as he placed the box of shells back in the cabinet, a light from behind shone on him.

  “Hold it right there, Mister.”

  His first reaction was to remain still, but when he recognized Holly’s voice, he grinned and slowly turned. “It’s just me.”

  A relieved sigh gushed out of her throat as she lowered her cell phone, removing the bright light.

  “What are you doing sneaking around out here?”

  She walked toward him, but then suddenly stopped. Her eyes grew wide and dropped to his midsection. Inwardly, he groaned. She must have noticed the rifle in his hand.

  “Well, I heard something outside—”

  “Rafe? You’re not... dressed.”

  Confused, he glanced down at his body. He wore the normal flannel pants that he usually wore to bed, but... He chuckled. Yeah, he didn’t usually sleep in a shirt.

  “Holly, I just have my shirt off. That’s all.”

  “I know, but...” She spun around to look the other way.

  Chuckling, he walked closer to her. “Sweetie, it’s okay. There’s no reason to be embarrassed.”

  “I’m not embarrassed.”

  “Then why are you acting so shy?” He moved beside her, cupped her chin and turned her face toward his. “I’m sure you’ve seen many men without shirts before.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Of course, I have, but they’re not you.”

  “Then I’m sorry I startled you.”

  Finally, she faced him, but her gaze stayed on his face. “Why are you getting a gun?”

  “Because I heard a wolf outside. I was going to check—”

  “Oh, no you don’t!” She clutched his arm tightly. “You’re not going out there by yourself.”

  He loved how concerned she was about his welfare, and he couldn’t wipe away the smile from his face. “Sweetie, I’ll be fine.”

  “No. If you go, take one of your cousins.” Her gaze dropped to his chest. “And for heaven’s sake, put on a shirt.”

  He laughed softly. She was completely adorable. “Are you that worried about me?”

  Her head bobbed up and down as she stared at him with wide eyes.

  “Fine, I’ll go put on a shirt.”

  She huffed and shook her head. “And wake up Blake and have him go with you.”

  “Sweetie, do you know how many wolves I’ve killed over the years?”

  Her mouth grew tight and she folded her arms across her chest. It was then when he noticed what she wore, which was a red flannel pair of trousers and a long-sleeved shirt. And... it appeared the outfit was purchased from the men’s section of the store. Dang, she was pretty.

  “Rafe, are you going to stand here and argue with me, or are you going to wake up one of your cousins?”

  He held up one finger. “Give me one minute to listen outside first. If I don’t hear anything, I’ll put away the rifle and go back to bed. Okay?”

  She gave him a sharp nod. “One minute, and that’s all.”

  Chuckling, he walked outside toward the small patio on the back porch. He peeked over his shoulder, and she stood next to the door, watching him. He shook his head and proceeded to the outside door. He turned on the porch light first before opening the door. The wind howled through the trees and light snow fell from the sky. But he didn’t hear any sound of his livestock being attacked. It was a good thing, too. He wasn’t sure how she’d react with his killing a wolf.

  He nodded and pulled back inside, closing the door. As he hurried toward her, she opened the door wider. As soon as he was in, she shut the door.

  “There. Are you happy now?” he asked.

  “Yes. Very happy. Thank you.”

  He quickly ejected the shells from the rifle before putting everything away. He was relieved to see her waiting for him. Together, they walked back into the main room. A small fire continued to burn in the hearth. Luckily, the heat from earlier still lingered in the room.

  She plopped on the couch and pulled the afghan blanket over her. He sat next to her, folding his arms across his chest, which was now getting cold. Perhaps he should have put on a shirt.

  Holly looked at him. Casually, he turned his head to look at her face. Her gaze wasn’t on his face, but on his chest. It still made him laugh when he thought about how startled she’d been to see him without a shirt. When her gaze jumped up and met his, her face reddened.

  “You probably need the afghan more than I do.”

  She started to lift it off her, but he took a corner of it. “Why don’t we share it?”

  Her face softened and she nodded. Scooting closer to him, she lifted the blanket. He pulled it over his legs, but left his chest bare. He liked the way she looked at him, as if she’d never seen anything so muscular before. Then again, he was probably overthinking this. She could be looking at him as if she’d never seen anything so ugly before.

  Nah, the gleam of interest was in her eyes. She definitely liked what she saw.

  “Are you going to tell me what you are doing awake at this time at night?” he asked.

  “I can’t sleep.”

  “Why not?”

  “Too much on my mind.” She glanced at him. “And what about you? You’re up at the crack of dawn and go to bed late at night, so shouldn’t you be tired?”

  “Yes, I should, but I can’t sleep, either.”

  “Why not?”

  Smiling, he lifted his arm and draped it over her shoulders. Immediately, she snuggled against him. His heart raced with excitement.

  “I’ve had a certain woman on my mind lately, and I couldn’t stop thinking about her tonight.”

  “Oh.” She nodded. “You’ve been thinking about Katie
again, huh?”

  “What?” It shocked him that she’d think that, but then he noticed the twinkle of humor in her eyes. He laughed and gathered her closer. “Actually, I’ve not thought about her for several days. And the last time I thought about her, I wondered why I had stayed with a woman so long without loving her.”

  Concern shone on her expression. “You didn’t love her?”

  “No. I mean, I loved her like a friend, and we had fun together, but never in the two years I was with her had I thought I was falling in love with her.”

  She placed the palm of her hand on his bare chest. The rhythm of his heart quickened.

  “Why, I wonder,” she asked.

  He shrugged. “The only thing I can think of is that she wasn’t the right woman for me.”

  “Yeah, that makes sense.”

  As he stared into Holly’s eyes, he wondered if she was the right woman. He still didn’t know, but right now, all he knew was that this intoxicating, amazing woman had come into his life and turned everything topsy-turvy. And the best part was that he didn’t mind it at all.

  “What about you?” He drew a finger down the side of her face, slowly. “Have you ever been in love?”

  “The first boy I thought I was in love with was the one who teased and tormented me when he discovered I’d kissed his brother.”

  He nodded. “That’s right. You thought I was Steve.”

  “Going through school, there was never any boy who caught my interest. It wasn’t until I was in college, when I started dating seriously.”

  “Did you find anyone then?”

  “There were a few guys I liked, but I was determined to reach my goal and become a movie-producer. I knew I couldn’t get involved with anyone while I was climbing the ladder of success.”

  “That’s very wise of you.” He moved his finger to her bottom lip and slowly dragged it across. “And what about now? Do you still feel the same?”

  She must have swallowed hard, because he heard her gulp. The ragged breaths blowing against his finger were as fast as his breaths.

  “I do, actually. I don’t want anything to stop me from getting what I want.”

  He wanted to kiss her so badly right now, and he knew she’d let him. But he didn’t want her to become upset, either. Here they were talking about not entering a serious relationship, and yet he wanted to kiss her passionately.

  The longer he stared into her lovely green eyes, the more tempting she became. Slowly, the light from the fire was going out until all he could see were shadows on her face. The mood was set, and yet he hesitated. More than anything, he wanted her to reach her dream, but if he kept finding moments to make-out with her, he’d eventually give her his whole heart. And what if she returned his feelings? Would she break his heart when she returned to California after the New Year?

  He was afraid to find out.

  Clearing his throat, he dropped his touch from her lips. He took her hand that still rested on his bare chest, and kissed her fingers.

  “Well, my sweet Holly, I believe we’d better get to bed. Tomorrow morning will come quickly, and we both need some sleep.”

  She licked her lips and pulled away. “Yes, you’re right.”

  He moved off the couch first, and then took her hand to lift her up. She bumped against him as both of her hands braced against his chest. Heat coursed through him, but he fought the temptation to take her back in his arms and do the very thing he’d wanted to do on the couch.

  “I’ll take you back to your bedroom,” he told her.

  Together they walked to her room. She opened her door before turning to look at him.

  “Good night, Rafe.”

  “Good night, Holly. Sleep well.”

  “You, too.”

  Once the door was closed between them, he groaned and leaned his forehead against the wall. Sleep well? He doubted it. Especially not tonight.

  FOURTEEN

  A light snow had sprinkled the ground during last night’s small storm. Rafe was surprised that the cast members still came for practice the next day. He stood outside the barn, hammering the pieces of wood together that would make the front of the innkeeper’s structure, but even through the noise he made, he could still hear Holly instructing everyone on their parts.

  He yawned, feeling the effect of the lack of sleep from last night. But he wouldn’t have traded sleep for the connection he’d made with Holly. He still wondered if he’d already fallen in love with her, and he would love it if she could return the special emotion.

  A few times, he peeked inside the barn where she was with the others, helping them with their parts. She, too, looked half asleep, yawning quite a few times. He couldn’t help but grin. But, unfortunately, the lack of sleep made her yell at the kids, and apologize straight away after she’d realized her mistake.

  A memory from yesteryear resurfaced. He recalled when Holly’s mother did the same thing. She had wanted the program perfect, and on several occasions, had snapped at the kids. But somehow, when they finally performed it, everything had been perfect for Mrs. Kidman. Both children and adults were proud of their performance. All was good, and nobody complained.

  However, as he listened to Holly, he could hear the strain in her voice. Because of that, he could tell the cast were weary of her telling them to repeat their lines.

  Rafe stopped hammering and walked inside the barn until he could better see Holly and the others. She wore another wide-necked sweater. This one was a mint green, which brought out the color of her eyes. She’d pulled her hair away from her face into a tie. A sweater-jacket was draped over her shoulders, but wasn’t zipped up.

  As he stood back and watched the kids rehearse their scene, he noticed that disappointment washed over her expression. His heart twisted. She wanted perfect. That was understandable, but why didn’t she realize these were just kids? They weren’t the actors she was used to working with?

  Why was she pushing herself, and pushing them? Was she worried that they wouldn’t be able to do the program on schedule? Or was she more worried about her movie project? By the way she acted and spoke to the others, Rafe wondered if it was her movie she was more concerned about.

  He took a small break to wander inside the house and make himself a cup of hot chocolate. Georgia was slumped on the couch, her head tilted to the side as she snoozed. He walked softly to her and laid the afghan over her to keep her warm.

  Fifteen minutes later, he walked outside. The kids were just finishing a scene. Holly directed everyone to move outside the barn where the next scene would happen. Rafe frowned. Holly was a very beautiful woman, but he didn’t like seeing her so stressed. She rarely smiled, and her voice was much too harsh. If directing a movie strained her nerves so much, why did she want to be the best producer Hollywood has ever seen? Then again, she was playing two roles with this movie – both producer and director. Rafe couldn’t imagine why she’d want to have this career day after day if it didn’t make her smile.

  He yawned again, exhaustion taking its toll on his energy. For a whole week, he’d wake up early and retire to bed late at night. But at least he’d finished the innkeeper’s wall, and he was almost finished with the manger. He was quite proud of his accomplishments, even if it wore him out. If Holly was happy, his labor was worth it. She hadn’t said anything about his creation yet, but then, he figured she was too busy to ask about it.

  He followed her upset voice until he was at the back of the barn where she had wanted the innkeeper scene. Leaning against a post, he watched as she explained the scene to the cast. She moved to the back door, opened it, and stepped out. He held his breath. She was now looking at the innkeeper’s wall that he’d made. Would she like it? But, the frown on her face told him differently. Shaking her head, she folded her arms across her chest.

  “Rafe? Where are you? I need you now!”

  Curiosity had him moving his feet in haste to see what was bothering her. It hurt his ego that she didn’t like what he’d made. A
s he neared, she blinked rapidly as liquid filled her eyes.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked.

  Still standing outside of the barn, she took a deep breath and pointed to the wall. “If you meant this as a joke, it’s not funny.”

  Joke? He quickened his step until he stood beside her. He raised his gaze... and lost his breath. He didn’t see the fancy-carved pieces of wood he’d carefully shaped into the inn’s entryway. Instead, what he looked at was something out of a haunted house. Gray and white web-like netting wrapped over each piece of wood, accompanied by the plastic spiders. A skull with blinking red eyes sat in the top corner of the door.

  Shock hit him and about knocked him over. Who had displayed this Halloween gag?

  He snapped his gaze to Holly, who still appeared to be fighting back tears. “I didn’t do this.”

  “Then who did?” Her voice squeaked, so she cleared her throat. “Who would do something this mean?”

  That was a good question – one he planned on figuring out as soon as possible. “I don’t know, but let me take this down first, and then I’ll find the person responsible.”

  Nodding, she walked back into the barn.

  Anger pulsed through his veins and pounded through his ears as he found his ladder and returned to the scene of the crime. As he pulled the netting, the spiders, and the skull down, his anger increased. It would have taken someone only ten or fifteen minutes to do this. But who? And why? Obviously, it was someone who didn’t have any respect for how much work Rafe had put into making the front of the innkeeper’s structure.

  Rafe threw the Halloween decorations in the garbage and stormed back into the barn. The cast of Holly’s movie had all left, but he caught a glimpse of silky brown hair moving in one of the stalls. Slowly, he made his way toward her. As he drew near, she quickly wiped her eyes with her gloved hands and turned her back on him.

  His heart twisted. He hated to see women cry.

  “It’s fixed.” He gently laid his hand on her shoulder.