Snowfall and Secrets (Omega Mu Alpha Brothers Book 1)

by Kimberly Loth

  Lukas laughed. “You are a mess, woman.”

  “So, spill. Who is she?” Estelle worked on the fudge while he printed off the new orders. Estelle hated printing the orders because she didn’t understand the Internet. She knew his family fudge recipe better than he did, so she helped in the winter, but he had to come in most days to print off the orders so she knew what to make. She chopped up butter and weighed out the sugar.

  “She’s Doc’s new teacher,” he said. “And off limits.”

  “Off limits cause Doc said so or because of your own lame rules.” Estelle chuckled at herself.

  Lukas sighed.

  “Both,” he said as he started printing address labels. Doc hadn’t said anything about staying away from Tess. However, if Lukas ran her off, Doc would be after him with a snow shovel. It was better all-around if he gave that girl a wide path.

  They fell into a quiet steady rhythm. Lukas helped Estelle spread out the fudge. There were some things she was getting too old to do. That stayed unspoken though.

  They worked all day. People wanted their fudge even when they couldn’t come to the island and get it.

  “I know you know this, but you don’t have to punish yourself forever,” said Estelle finally as they were finishing for the day.

  “Not going over this again,” he said with a shake of his head.

  Estelle gave him a sideways look. “Female company would be good for you.”

  Lukas groaned.

  She laughed. “Seriously, though, boy. It’s not right the way you let your guilt eat you alive and how it keeps you from finding any happiness.”

  Suddenly, the boxes he was fixing were the most interesting things in the room. Estelle was one of the few people around him who understood that Lukas intended to punish himself for the rest of his life. She was also the most vocal with her disagreement.

  “Even the most damaged of plants blooms in the spring,” she carried on. Lukas turned so she wouldn’t see him roll his eyes at her platitudes.

  “Not everything bounces back,” he said.

  “Nonsense.” She huffed. “So tell me about this girl. I already sussed out she was young and pretty.”

  “Estelle.” Lukas chuckled. He wasn’t getting into this argument with her. Not again. Last spring, when the tourists and seasonal workers returned, she tried her damnedest to find a girl she thought would crack him. She paraded women in front of Lukas like they were shopping for new furniture.

  “Well, if you won’t tell me, Doc will.”

  Laughing, Lukas piled the fudge-filled boxes for Mark, the delivery man.

  “Doc won’t like you pestering her. He wants her transition here to be smooth,” he warned her.

  “Where’d she come from?” Estelle sawed off a small chunk of fudge. She cut it in two and helped herself to a tiny bite. The other half she put in a box, and pulled out some red ribbon.

  “Miami and I think the PTA moms already left her some fudge.” Lukas leaned against the counter, most of the work done except for the cleanup. He never let Estelle wrangle the large copper pot.

  “But it wasn’t yours.” Estelle tied a frilly bow. “Yours is best, remember? Miami. The poor duck will be out of her own water.”

  She had no idea. He couldn’t help but grin as he pictured Tess trying to get her jeans on over those ridiculous tights.

  “Go home,” he ordered, but gently.

  Estelle curled the ends of the ribbon.

  “Give it to her.” Estelle smiled at her creation. “And give yourself a chance.”

  “She’s my renter.”

  “Perfect, you have first shot at her.” Estelle looked at him, her eyes creased with concern. “Be happy, Lukas. I can’t leave this frozen rock until you are.”

  “So you are thinking about flying south?”

  “Stop trying to distract me. I mean it.”

  “So do I. Your kids would like you to spend time with them.” They had this argument at least once a month. More in the winter.

  “You need me more.”

  “I have parents,” he countered and waited for the inevitable derisive snort. She was good friends with his mom, but she hated that they left in the winter. Something she needed to do herself.

  She smacked his arm instead.

  “Promise me you’ll give her this.” She nodded to the small gift box. He shook his head.

  “Not happening. The risk is too great. She seems like a nice girl. Out of her element and she deserves better,” he said quietly. His trump card. Estelle didn’t usually argue with him after he reminded her of that.

  “Lukas, every man has been broken. What makes a man is how he comes back. Don’t live in misery with just that dog.”

  She left the package on the counter and got her coat.

  “Oh and Chapman needs some firewood, if you have extra.”

  “Yeah. I should have some,” he said without looking at her.

  Estelle left without saying anything more about Tess or the sorry state of Lukas’s love life. She was sharp and funny, and approached everything with a hint of wit. However, when she went for the jugular, it hurt. Problem was, Lukas was too broken. He wasn’t some spring flower damaged by the winter wind. The cracks in his soul weren’t going to heal by the summer sun. It hadn’t yet, and as far as he was concerned, nothing had changed because some cute young thing moved into his carriage house.

  But, when he locked up the shop, he slipped the ribbon-covered box in his coat pocket.

  By the time Tess got home, she had a terrible thumping headache between her eyes, and her neck ached. The kids were great, but it was such a different style of teaching and her encounter with Chris weighed heavily on her.

  Sara suggested steering clear of him. What kind of a solution was that? Tess didn’t want to make waves and seriously doubted there was much of a sexual harassment policy. She was supposed to be starting a new life, not rocking this tiny school on its heels.

  After dropping her keys on the coffee table, her bag hit the floor, and she headed straight for the kitchen, anger boiling her stomach. Food. She needed to eat. Then maybe she wouldn’t feel like finding a lit teacher and going all Shakespeare on him. Normally, she wasn’t so angry. She might’ve liked the attention back in Miami. In her current predicament though, the last thing she wanted was unwanted male attention.

  She dug the peanut butter out of her cabinet, and a knock came at her door. Her new landlord stood there in his snow gear and his hair curled over his forehead. The tips of his ears were red from the cold, and he grinned rather sheepishly. Great. Just what she needed. A sexy representative of the currently hated male gender, who she wouldn’t mind getting to know better.

  “What?” she growled. His brown eyes widened.

  “Bad day?” He leaned against her doorframe like he owned the place. Which, well, technically, he did. She wanted to push him into the snow. “Doc won’t like that. You should talk to him about it.”

  Yeah, Tess got the impression from Sara that Doc knew he had a problem with Chris, but as long as he could decipher the iambic pentameter, it was all good.

  “Can I help you?” She licked her spoonful of peanut butter, and Lukas coughed.

  “Making sure you’re comfortable and everything is working okay.” He nodded to her gas fireplace. “That thing giving you any trouble?”

  “Where’s Dio?” She peered around him. There were only his footprints in the snow though.

  “I haven’t been to the house yet.” He shrugged. “I wanted to check on you.”

  “I’m fine. Not such an empty-headed beach bum I can’t figure out how to turn on the heat.” She left him there at the door, figuring he knew how to shut it when he left. Grabbing a blanket, Tess curled up on the couch, boots and all.

  Instead of taking the hint, Lukas invited himself in and pushed the door closed. He took off his coat and tossed it over a chair. Tess ate another spoonful of peanut butter as she watched him kneel down and check the fireplace. The view of h
is flannel shirt pulled tight across his shoulders was the best thing she’d seen in a while, and that irritated her more.

  “I said it was fine,” she grumbled.

  “Spoiling for a fight, huh? Must have been a bad day.” He didn’t even look at her. “Did you not like the kids?”

  It took every ounce of discipline she had not to chuck her jar of peanut butter at his head. Not get along with the kids? He must not have gotten the memo from Doc that she was the best teacher to hit this island in the last decade. Then again, Doc kept that disgusting Chris employed. Doc’s expectations must not rise above warm bodies that stayed past September.

  Another bite of PB kept her from saying something inappropriate.

  “Seems to be working fine.” He stood and dusted off his hands. “Everything else working?”

  He looked through to her kitchen.

  “Yeah, I’ll let you know if the fridge spontaneously combusts,” she said, and he snapped his gaze to her. She closed her eyes for a second and took a couple of deep breaths. She was angry, but that was Chris’s fault. She shouldn’t be taking it out on Lukas. But he was here and didn’t seem to realize she was not fit for company.

  When she opened her eyes, he was staring at her.

  “What?” She asked and dished out another spoonful.

  “Nothing, I just, never mind.” He turned and reached for his coat. He put it on and shoved his hands in his pockets.

  “You know, I hate it when people say stuff like that. If you have something to say to me why don’t you just say it?” She wanted to chuck a vase at him. If he was going to intrude, he could at least include her.

  He withdrew his hand from one of his pockets.

  “Here.” He handed her a small box with a red ribbon tied around it. That was it. Tess had enough male assumptions today.

  “What is it with the men on this island?” Tess slammed down her peanut butter and shot to her feet; her blanket fell away. “I didn’t ask for any of this attention, and yet none of you can seem to keep your comments and your unwanted presents to yourself.”

  “This…” Lukas lifted the box and shook it. “Is from Estelle. She felt bad for the rose petals.”

  He slammed it down next to her peanut butter.

  “Oh.” Tess sucked in a deep breath. Well, maybe she shouldn’t have projected her anger onto him after all.

  “So who are we talking about?” Lukas demanded.

  “No one.” Tess waved to dismiss the whole thing. She just wanted a shower and her bed now.

  “Tess?” Lukas stepped in close to her. Too close. She could smell sugar and pine on him, a strange scent that was all his own. And the heat rolling off the man nearly knocked her over. Her fireplace could be broken for the rest of the winter and all she had to do was stand near him.

  She put her hand on his chest with every intention of pushing him out of her personal space. His muscles were firm, and her intentions slipped away. Her fingers twitched.

  “Nothing. It was a long day.” She pulled her hand away and rubbed her forehead. There had to be a way to get some air between them. He could move.

  He didn’t.

  “Is there someone who wasn’t welcoming to you?” he asked quietly, his voice husky.

  She snorted. What a small town thing to say. Chris had been welcoming alright, too welcoming.

  “Can we drop it, please? I’m sorry I was so irritable.” She curled her hands into fists to keep from grabbing him, and she definitely wasn’t going to look at his lips. Funny how two minutes ago, she wanted to bean him in the head, and now she couldn’t think about anything but kissing him.

  “Are you sure?” he demanded.

  “Positive.” She raised her eyes to his and melted. She sat down rather than lean into him. He didn’t bring her a gift, she repeated in her head. His housekeeper did.

  He grabbed his coat.

  “I’ve got to let Dio out.” He shoved his arms into his sleeves. Tess hated that he was leaving angry. “But if you need anything…”

  “Yes, I know. Call you if the furnace goes out.” She watched him as he left.

  He stood at the door. He looked as if he was about to say something, or was having a private conversations with himself.

  “Yeah,” he said finally and left.

  With shaking hands, Tess opened the small box from Estelle. Fudge. More delicious fudge.

  The next morning, Lukas was up early watching as Tess waiting for her winter taxi. If he kept this up, he’d officially be classified as a creepy stalker. What he wanted to do, though, was follow her to school and find out who upset her. He had a feeling it was Whitters. For Doc’s sake, whomever it was that was bothering her needed a good punch to the nose. If someone didn’t, Tess might head back to Florida.

  Dio whined and pushed her nose into his hand.

  “Alright,” he said and finished off the now cold cup of coffee in his hand. He was about to leave the window when a snowmobile pulled up. One he recognized, and it wasn’t a taxi.

  Estelle.

  Tess slung her bag over her shoulder and slogged through the snow only to be met by a gray-haired Estelle as she pulled off the helmet Lukas insisted she wear.

  Dio whimpered, and Lukas ignored her. No way was he letting her out there now. She’d be up in the middle of that, jumping on Tess and irritating Estelle. Of course by the time he got his gear on, it would probably be all over, and Estelle would be here pestering him.

  They were talking, Estelle more animated, and Tess kept glancing at the house. Lukas should have walked out there and inserted himself into the conversation. Surely, Tess needed a rescue.

  Estelle gestured toward the house, and Lukas groaned. Maybe he didn’t want to know after all. He called Dio over and got her ready. By the time, he let her out into the cold, brisk morning, Tess was gone, and Estelle glared at him from her snowmobile.

  “I’m not sorry about the roses,” she shouted. Lukas shrugged and made sure Dio ran behind the house rather than toward the road. A snowball slammed into the back of his head, and snow plummeted down his coat.

  “Estelle!” he roared and shook his head. Damn it, he left his hat inside.

  “I said–”

  “Yeah, I heard you.” He cut her off.

  “That fudge was a gift from you, you fool.” She packed another snowball to throw at him.

  “Trust me, she didn’t want a present from me,” he snapped. She dropped her snow with a disgusted snort as Dio skidded around to Lukas’s side.

  “Then change her mind.” Estelle started her machine and spun out.

  Lukas sighed. The crabby old woman needed to get it. He wasn’t going to try. Ever.

  “Stay close,” he ordered Dio and stomped inside.

  A couple hours later, his mood hadn’t improved much when his phone rang. Hayden. Friend, frat brother, Doc’s son. Damn.

  “What?” he growled into the phone. If Estelle was behind this too, he was going to fire her and put her on a plane south himself.

  “Whoa. I’ve missed you too.” Hayden sniggered.

  “I’m working.” He wasn’t. His laptop was open, but he’d been staring out the window instead of doing anything productive.

  “So am I. I’m running over to the hospital for rounds, but I wanted to make sure we’re still on for next weekend.”

  Lukas closed his eyes and punched his knee. He forgot Hayden and Joshua were coming to the island. So Estelle was safe for now.

  “I don’t know, man,” Lukas stalled.

  “I do. It’s time. Everything in that room has to go.”

  “Let’s leave it till spring.” Lukas wasn’t ready.

  Hayden decided last month that the spare room where Lukas kept Stacey and the boys’ things needed to be cleaned out. He took over the project without any effort from Lukas. Something about doing his frat brother a favor. Lukas just wasn’t sure he wanted that kind of favor. The reminder was good. It kept him strong.

  “I’ve got everything lined u
p. Joshua and I will be there next Friday, spend Saturday with the fam, and Sunday we’ll load up.” Hayden had it all laid out.

  “Hayden.”

  “Great. I’ll see you sometime this weekend. Come to dinner. Mom would love it.”

  “No.” Lukas dropped his head into his hand. He wanted this conversation over. He wondered if Hayden would break in and take everything if he went to the mainland for the weekend. Estelle had keys, and she’d be eager to help.

  Hayden laughed as if he wasn’t torturing Lukas.

  “Trust me,” he said and hung up.

  Trust him. Sure.

  Lukas clicked a couple keys on his laptop and brought up a picture of the boys. One of the last ones taken on the island. They were so innocent with their big eyes and round cheeks.

  Dio padded over and laid her head on Lukas’s knee. She had the innate ability to sense the change in his mood, which had gone from bad to worse.

  Lukas swallowed past the grief threatening to choke him. The boys deserved better than him.

  By the end of the week, Tess was exhausted. Her class of only twelve students demanded a lot of attention.

  Doc was nice and made sure she had everything she needed, even paying for the taxi during the winter. Once the snow melted and the weather warmed, she could ride a bike. She almost laughed at the idea of bicycling while pregnant.

  She steered clear of Whitters and ate her lunch in her room, and Sara quickly grew into a friend. They’d been comparing lesson plans after school, and Sara invited her over for dinner to meet her husband and kids. Tess never had a life quite so normal and quiet. Her Miami friends tended to be the beach babe, party animal type. It might be good for her to see a real mom at work. Maybe help her make her decision with her own growing mistake.

  On Wednesday, three moms from the PTA took her downtown to get a few groceries and things. There were only a handful of shops open. The street looked adorable, and Tess couldn’t wait for the snow to melt so she could see the town as it was meant to be. Though, according to most people, that wouldn’t be for two to three more months.

  While shopping, Sunny Hinshaw’s mom asked how things were at the carriage house. Tess assured her the accommodations were fine, but Mrs. Hinshaw patted her shoulder.