Lucy McConnell's Snow Valley Box Set

by Lucy McConnell

  He relaxed his hold enough that she twisted out of his grasp.

  Gasping for breath, she said, “You don’t play fair.”

  He stalked forward, grinning. “You better remember that the next time you call me a little girl.”

  She looked over her shoulder. The church steps weren’t that far away, but the ground was slick. “I didn’t call you a little girl …” She scooted backward. The trouble would be her shoes. She had on a pair of cute boots with zero traction. She glanced down. Troy’s weren’t much better. If she got a head start, she might make it inside before he had a chance to tickle-torture her again. “I said you screamed like a little girl.” She took off running as fast as her slippy boots would take her.

  Troy had a quick reaction time. All those photos of him in the hallway in a football uniform weren’t lying. He was quick. His fingers brushed down the back of her jacket, making her jump forward and squeal loudly. He laughed and slipped on the ice, buying her a moment to open the door. She did and rushed in, breathing hard and holding her side because she was laughing.

  Troy came in right after her and pulled up short. His eyes darted around the room, and she looked to see what had caught his attention away from the game.

  There was a whole group of people staring at them like they were unruly children. Chloe’s whole body flushed with embarrassment. Everyone was staring. Everyone. The guy with the bad comb-over, the lady with the gap teeth on display because she grinned at their antics or at the fact that they were caught, the kid with the sucker in his hand and large brown eyes, Troy’s parents. Oh jeez.

  Troy put his arm around her shoulder and pulled her close to his side. “Chloe, these are my aunts and uncles, a couple cousins, and some longtime family friends. Everyone, this is my Chloe.”

  At his sweet words, she melted against him, enjoying the feeling of his muscles against her side even through her coat. People nodded towards the two of them in greeting and then resumed their conversations.

  The lady with the four-inch-high bangs waved her arm. “Troy, you bring her right over here and let us get to know her.”

  “Sure thing, Aunt Dee.” He slipped Chloe’s coat off her shoulders, gave her side a squeeze, and whispered, “Good luck,” before allowing a woman in a 1950s throwback green dress to grab her elbow and pull her in for a hug that smelled of roses and coffee.

  “Aren’t you beautiful.”

  “Thanks.” Chloe squeezed the word out with the limited lung space provided in the woman’s tight embrace.

  She was passed to another aunt, who had the same dark eyebrows and slight lift to the tip of her nose. “We didn’t think Troy was ever going to settle down. How’d you trap him?”

  “Um …” Trap him? Not likely.

  “Oh, like you have to ask. Just look at all that beautiful hair,” said an older gentleman who was as bald as a Buick. “It’s like a siren.” His faded grey eyes shone with delight. He wasn’t creepy, just sweet.

  “I just had it cut,” Chloe replied. She patted at it, knowing that the game of tag had probably fluffed it to heaven.

  Before “Buick” had a chance to respond, someone grabbed her hand and pulled her deeper into the family throng. There were bits and pieces of Troy in most of the people she met. Uncle Brad had the same blue eyes, while Uncle Rick’s beard sported the same curl that came out in Troy’s when it got too long.

  “Tell us how you two met.”

  “What’s your song? You have to have a song.”

  “How did he propose?” asked one of Troy’s cousins. Cindy or Cathy? She couldn’t remember the names being thrown at her.

  “Well, that’s an interesting story.” Chloe searched out of the corner of her eye for Troy but couldn’t find him anywhere. Dropping her in the middle of the throng was his way at winning their little game. Well, she was always up for a good game. “I should really let Troy tell it. Since it was his idea and all.”

  “I bet he fumbled the whole thing. He’s never been real talkative,” said Cindy/Cathy. “But the man can pick a ring.” She lifted Chloe’s left hand so that the ring was on display, earning oohs and ahhs from the group.

  “Thank you!” Chloe said it more like thank you for proving me right, rather than thank you for the compliment. Now she really wished Troy was standing right there so she could smirk at him. Man choosing the ring … bah!

  Another cousin—Jamie, maybe—leaned in. “I heard you two were caught making out in the kitchen at the town hall.” Her voice dripped with scandal and her eyes hungered for a juicy tidbit.

  She felt Troy stand behind her. His presence was familiar, like drinking from her favorite hot chocolate mug. His hand found her lower back, sending wonderful shivers of excitement through her body.

  “You can’t believe everything you hear.” Chloe smiled mischievously as she too leaned in and whispered loudly, “It was a supply closet.”

  “Ahh.” The whole group nodded as if that made perfect sense.

  Troy poked her in the ribs. “It’s good to see you’re all getting along.”

  Chloe barely held back her laughter. He thought he’d thrown her to the wolves only to learn she could run with the pack. That’d teach him to leave her alone.

  Amy clapped her hands loudly. “We’re ready for you now.” She threw open the doors to reveal the transformation the room had gone through that morning. There were several tables set with white linen clothes and covered in finger foods, chairs grouped together for easy conversation, and a temporary wood floor for dancing. Instead of a DJ, there were a few loudspeakers and a station with a phone plugged in. For now, quiet country ballads played.

  All talk of Chloe’s engagement, ring, and supply closets was shut down as people scrambled to get inside the doors.

  Troy held out his hand for Chloe to take. She did, and he threaded their fingers together. Her breath caught at the jolt that ran up her skin, swirled through her belly, and then turned into Christmas pudding.

  “You’re in so much trouble,” he whispered.

  “Who, me?” She pointed to her chest. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “My family thinks I can’t keep my hands off you.”

  She glanced down at his hand in hers. “Apparently, you can’t.”

  He glared. “It takes two to make out, you know.”

  “Really?” She batted her eyelashes at him. “You’ll have to explain that one to me sometime … in private … talking really …” She ran her hand up his arm. “… slow.”

  He touched his forehead to hers. “I’m going to keep an eye on you.”

  She nudged their noses together. “I think that would be wise.” She stepped back, creating some much-needed distance. Flirting with Troy was too easy. It was like she knew exactly which gears to shift into and he matched her gear for gear.

  They stepped to the side as more people streamed through the door. She eyed them warily. “Do you know all these people?”

  Troy nodded. “Pretty much the whole town is invited.” He pointed discreetly at a woman using a walker. “That’s my kindergarten teacher. Hopefully her memory is going—otherwise she’ll tell you stories better left unknown.” He directed his attention to a man who was probably ten years older than him. “That was my teen advisor.”

  “What’s that?”

  “They volunteer through the youth program to mentor kids. I think they get college credit or something. He’s cool.”

  He continued to point people out to her, and as time went on, she sank lower and lower.

  He stopped long enough to look her way. “What’s with you?”

  She chuckled because he was not an eloquent man. She didn’t mind his bluntness. She was used to man-speak, as she’d dubbed it long ago. Preferred it to the veiled insults and phrases with double meaning teen girls used so well. “I was just thinking that if we were getting married, your side of the church would overflow and mine would have one person: my dad.”

  He waited for her to continu
e.

  “You’re lucky—you know that, right?”

  “That woman—” He nodded towards a lady with bright red hair and a mole on her chin. “—thinks I’m the spawn of Satan because when I was seven—seven, mind you—I put a cat in her mudroom just before dusk. It howled all night long. She called Pastor John to come banish the evil demon from her home.”

  A smile tugged at Chloe’s lips. “That’s not true.”

  “It’s true. To this day she keeps ten feet between us.”

  Chloe observed the woman walking in an arch around their place in the corner. “Why did you put the cat in her mudroom?”

  He lifted his free hand. “Thank you for asking. No one ever asks. They just assume I was up to no good.”

  Chloe turned so her back was to the devil woman and she was facing Troy. Her change also blocked Troy from the woman’s view. “Were you? You can totally tell me.”

  He chuckled. “I wasn’t, I swear. I thought it was her cat and it kept meowing like it was lost. So I picked her up and put her inside where she would be found.”

  “Aww.” Chloe covered her heart with her free hand. She found that she liked holding hands with Troy. Unlike most girls who held a boy’s hand in middle school, it’d taken until her senior year of high school to get to that point. One of the hazards of living on the road and having your father right there all the time. She wouldn’t trade those days, but standing here, feeling Troy’s heart beat under his skin, made her reluctant to let go.

  “And I swear I had no idea she was having kittens.”

  Chloe slapped her hand over her mouth. “No.”

  He looked up. “Eight.”

  “No!”

  “On her delicates.” His palm grew warm inside hers and he was doing his best to smother his smile.

  Chloe snickered.

  “Are you hungry?” he asked.

  “Not really. You?”

  “Naw.” His eyes brightened. “Grams and Gramps are here. Come on, I want you to meet them.”

  Chloe tagged along, holding tight to his hand for support. Yep, just for support. Not because she loved the sense of belonging it gave her. And certainly not because, with his hand around hers, she felt like she fit in with these people. This family that was huge and yet close, teased relentlessly and loved even more. She took complete advantage of Troy’s desire to put on a good show for his family by leaning into him, locking eyes and staring dreamily for just longer than friends, and whispering into his ear as often as possible.

  He did his part, running his fingers over her hair, brushing her cheek with his knuckles, and kissing her temple. When it was time to go, she didn’t want it all to end. For an afternoon, she’d had a fiancé and a family and a town who accepted her as one of their own. So, instead of pulling the cord, she let herself float for a while longer. She had until the drive back to Billings before she went back to being just Chloe.

  Chapter 16

  Troy

  Troy set his pole in the holder just next to the hole they’d drilled in the ice and set up his camp chair. The bachelor party was pretty chill. Ten guys, two tents, a heater and ten fishing poles.

  As the best man, Troy was in charge of the evening’s entertainment. A drunken brawl with scantily clad women was not going to happen with this group of Christian men. So, he’d thought back to some of his favorite times with Grady, and the ice fishing trips they used to take were at the top. Of course, back then, they’d gorge themselves on Mt. Dew and M&Ms while retelling their football glory stories.

  “I’m so old all I want to do is sleep,” said Johnny, Grady’s cousin. “Do you know how long it’s been since I’ve had a night without a kid snoring on my chest?”

  Troy handed him a Dr. Pepper. “Here, that’ll help you stay awake for a little while.”

  He popped the top. “Says the single man. This stuff doesn’t work on me anymore.” He took a long pull, swallowing no less than five times before lowering the can with a sigh of pleasure.

  “You?” asked Carl, Johnny’s younger brother. “The twins are teething. It’s like the end of days at our house. Dianne hasn’t worn makeup for a month, and my headache won’t stop.” He snagged a soda from the cooler and laid it over his forehead. “This is heaven. Thanks, man, for getting married. Dianne wouldn’t have let me come if there wasn’t a suit involved.”

  A well of horror opened up inside Troy’s chest. This was exactly what he’d always feared. Losing his freedom. Losing himself. Becoming a slave to his wife and kids.

  Grady didn’t seem fazed. He lifted his drink to salute his cousins. “To the men in the trenches.”

  Troy cringed. “You can’t actually be looking forward to this.” He motioned to the zombies in camp chairs. Their eyes were dull and their hair disheveled. The hair may have been because they had on helmets for the snowmobile ride in, but still, they looked like crap.

  In contrast, their one brother who was married but didn’t have kids, Brad, was all over the tent, checking his bait, shuffling the drinks around in the cooler, and checking the propane in the heater. His blue eyes sparkled and his skin looked fresh. Not that Troy normally noticed things like a guy’s skin tone, but the contrast in three brothers who shared hair color and noses was striking.

  Brad grinned. “It’s the best, man. Getting to hold your girl every night. I’m telling you, I have never been happier.”

  Johnny’s head lolled to the side so he could glare at his youngest brother. “Hang on to that memory, man. Cherish those moments.”

  Carl lifted his can in agreement. “Cement them in your memory, because you’ll need to remember that you liked each other at some point.”

  Brad wiped his hands on his pants. “Thanks, guys. I, uh, well, I wasn’t supposed to tell anyone, but Jenny’s pregnant.”

  Johnny and Carl were on their feet, pounding Brad on the back. “That’s awesome!” said Brad.

  “Congratulations.” Carl beamed. He punched his brother in the arm.

  Johnny grabbed his shirt and shook him.

  Grady joined them, offering a fist bump.

  Troy slowly got to his feet. “You’re all nuts.”

  They stopped celebrating and turned on him. He didn’t stop long enough to consider that a bachelor party may not be the parade he should rain on. “Five seconds ago you were complaining about a lack of sleep and telling him to hang on to these precious times, and now you’re slapping him on the back for doing exactly what drove you both to exhaustion and misery.”

  “Who said we were miserable?” asked Carl. He looked to Johnny and then Grady for clarification. They both shook their heads.

  “You just said—” Troy protested.

  Carl held up his hands. “I know we were grumbling, but you gotta understand, there’s nothing like holding your baby for the first time.”

  “Wait until they call you Daddy.” Johnny crossed his hands over his heart. “You feel like Superman.”

  They all said “aw” together as if a kitten with a stuffed heart attached to his collar wandered out of the cold and fell asleep at their feet.

  Troy shook his head. “You’re toast. All of you.” He pointed his finger at them, waving it around to include them all.

  Brad held up a hand. “Wait, aren’t you engaged? You’re not far behind us.”

  Grady’s keen eyes glinted in the lantern light. “Yeah, Troy. Your turn is coming. Unless, you know, you’re not.”

  Johnny took another drink. “What do you mean? Are you guys not having kids?”

  “Are you?” prodded Grady.

  Troy flexed his fingers. It wouldn’t do any good to bloody Grady’s lip the night before his wedding. Ronnie would kill him. Or, more likely, his mom would kill him for messing up the pictures. “We haven’t discussed it yet,” Troy ground out.

  “You should have talked about this before you put a ring on it, dude.” Carl finished his soda, crunched the can, and reached for another. “You don’t want to be married to a woman who wants fifty
kids if you only want two.”

  “Or doesn’t want any if you want two,” added Brad. “Me and Jenny want three, and we knew that long before I bought the diamond.”

  Grady snorted. “Yeah, but have you seen the diamond this guy bought?”

  Johnny threw his empty can at Troy, who swatted it away easily. “Steph’s been sending me what she calls ten-year-anniversary ring pictures all afternoon thanks to that rock.”

  Troy put up both of his hands. “She picked it out.”

  “You let her pick her own ring?” asked Brad and Johnny at the same time.

  Troy rolled his eyes. “I told her it was my job.”

  Grady held out his can for Troy to tap with his. “Darn right. You’re plunking down the cash—you pick it out.”

  “Thank you!” Troy clanked his can with Grady’s.

  Johnny shook his head. “You’re idiots. If I’d let Steph pick her ring out seven years ago, I wouldn’t be lit up with links to Greenleaf’s Jewelry.”

  Carl tapped his can to Johnny’s. “I thought she’d love whatever I bought because it cost me a ton of money and came from me, right? I was so naive.”

  Brad’s forehead wrinkled with worry.

  “But I’m sure you’ll be fine,” Carl assured Grady, who looked like he was going to puke. “You picked out the wedding bands together.”

  “She’ll wear that more than the engagement ring—especially to the shop,” comforted Troy. He wasn’t sure how to do this best man thing, but he knew the groom throwing up with worry meant he wasn’t doing a good job. “It’s not safe for her to have a big rock.”

  Grady sat down, his head hanging low. “You got one for Chloe.”

  He licked his lips. “Like I said, she picked it out. I would have gotten her something smaller.” He motioned for Carl or Johnny to step in.

  “Dude, you don’t have to worry. Ronnie is head over heels for you.” Johnny took his seat, acting like this was no big deal.

  “I just want to be a good husband. I didn’t think I could mess up the ring.” He ran his hand down his face. “Why wouldn’t she say something?”