“In a minute. Hey, be careful, those rocks are—”
Mia’s foot slipped. She squeaked.
“Mia!”
Her foot hit the water, found purchase on the mushy bottom. Her ankle turned out with the weight, and she gasped at the pain.
Levi was there in an instant. He took her elbow, a frown creasing his brow. “You all right?”
“Your shoes . . .”
“Are you hurt?”
She shifted her weight, wincing. “I think I might’ve twisted my ankle.”
“Can you walk on it?”
She put a bit of weight on the foot. Pain shot up her leg again, and she sucked in a breath. “I—I don’t think so.”
“Here, let’s do this.” He swept her up in his arms as if she weighed nothing.
She grabbed onto him. “I can’t believe I did this. What if I can’t walk back?”
“Slow down. You might’ve just wrenched it.” He set her on a mossy log and knelt down by her foot. He ran his fingers gently along her ankle.
It was really throbbing now.
“It’s already starting to swell,” he said.
“It hurts pretty bad.”
He looked up at her. “You should get an X-ray just to be safe.”
“I’m not going to a hospital. I don’t want to take that risk.”
He nodded thoughtfully. “Well . . . I have a buddy who’s an EMT. He could probably stop by the house.”
“That would be great. But . . . how am I going to get back down? You can’t carry me all that way, Levi.”
“Sure I can. We’ll take it slow.”
She tilted her head, giving him a skeptical look. She might be thin, but at five foot ten she was no lightweight.
“See, I’m going to have to prove myself now.”
Her laugh was pinched off by the throbbing in her ankle.
He looked down and brushed the side of her foot. “It’s starting to bruise. We’d better get you back.”
Levi grabbed her shoes, stuffed her socks inside, then tied the shoestrings together. He draped them around his neck, then squatted in front of the log, his back to her. “Hop on, gimpy.”
* * *
Clinging to Levi’s back, Mia gritted her teeth against the pain in her ankle. She knew without looking it was swollen and bruised. She couldn’t wait to get back to the house, where she kept a couple painkillers in her purse.
Levi had been trudging carefully along the trail for fifteen or twenty minutes, his arms locked around her knees. But even at this pace the movement jostled her ankle.
“I knew I was supposed to be your transportation this week, but this is taking things a little far.” He sounded winded.
Of course he was. He was carrying her down a mountain. “I’m so sorry. This definitely goes above and beyond.”
“I aim to please.”
“I’m such a klutz.”
“Those rocks are slick as ice. Should’ve warned you.”
She thought of the last four days and gave a dry laugh. “What a week. I’ve been publicly maligned, betrayed by a so-called friend, taken a honeymoon alone, and sprained my ankle. That takes a special kind of talent. Good thing the paparazzi aren’t around. I can see the headlines now: ‘Mia Emerson, distraught from rejection, tries to drown herself in creek, winds up in hospital.’”
He chuckled. “Or ‘Emma Taylor, in jealous rage, pushes Mia Emerson down stairs.’”
“Oh no, America’s sweetheart would never do such a thing.” She winced at her bitter tone. “Sorry, that was harsh. This isn’t Emma’s fault.”
He paused to hitch her weight up.
“Do you need to stop and rest? Your back must be killing you. Not to mention your arms.” Although they felt pretty darn nice, she had to admit. He wasn’t big and bulky, but he was strong and solid with capable broad shoulders.
“I’m all right for now. I’m just glad you weren’t up there alone. And it could be worse; at least it’s downhill, huh?”
“I didn’t take you for such a Polly Positive.”
He huffed. “Molly must be rubbing off on me. I’m usually the pragmatic one.”
“That’s something we have in common then. And where does Grace fall? Is she a pessimist? Sorry, you should probably save your breath for important things like surviving.”
“Yeah, Grace is more of a pessimist—and I can actually use the distraction.”
“From the pain of carrying me down a mountain on your back?”
He chuckled. “You do realize I’m the envy of every guy in America right now. You could sell tickets.”
She laughed. “Oh, you flatterer, you.”
“It’s the truth, and you know it. How does it feel to be so well loved?”
“A little creepy sometimes, actually. And let’s be honest. It’s not really me they love, just their idea of who they think I am or who they want me to be. That’s not love. They have no idea who I really am.”
“And who are you, Mia Emerson?”
He’d certainly picked right up where they’d left off last night. Then again, she was riding on his back. And maybe he was too distracted by his physical efforts to weigh his words carefully.
“I think,” she said, “that’s something you only learn by spending time with a person.”
“True enough. I’ve only had a few days to form an opinion, but so far I’d say you’re strong, resilient, and down-to-earth—for a Hollywood type.” The last part was said in a teasing tone.
Warmth flooded her at his complimentary assessment. She didn’t always feel so strong and resilient. “You forgot clumsy.”
“Trying to be nice. How’s your ankle?”
“Not great. I guess I need a distraction too. Do you think your friend will be able see me right away?”
“Unless he’s out on a call. He’s actually a mechanic by trade, but he’s also a volunteer on the fire department.”
“Known him all your life?”
“Pretty much. He was the one who called when my parents had the accident.” He paused to shift her weight and gave his head a shake before starting off again. “Don’t know why I just told you that.”
She didn’t either, but she liked that he was opening up to her. “It must’ve been a terrible shock.”
A moment passed before he answered. “It was. I was home for a week to visit. Mom and Dad had an estate sale they wanted to go to—they were buying things for the inn—but Mom didn’t want to take time away from our visit. I encouraged them to go.”
“Oh, Levi.” Her heart ached for him. “I hope you don’t blame yourself.”
“How can I not, to a certain degree? I know—everything happens for a reason, and God has His reasons, and He calls us home when He wants to. Believe me, I’ve heard all the platitudes.”
“I’m sorry.” She tightened her arms around his shoulders and leaned her head against his, as much of a hug as she could give him at the moment.
“Thanks. But maybe we could talk about something else. Like . . . what’s next for you? Your next role?”
“I’m shooting a film called Lesser Days starting in late July. It’s a relationship drama with some strong female leads.”
“Is that what attracted you to it?”
“That and the fact that it’s the role of my dreams. It’s a multigenerational thing. Really good script. I sure hope this ankle heals up in time.”
He brushed too close to a tree, and her foot caught on the trunk. She sucked in a breath.
“I’m so sorry.” He paused, looking over his shoulder. “You all right?”
“I’m fine. You must need a break by now.” Her own arms were aching.
He looked around. “I think there’s a log up ahead. We’ll take a little break there.”
He marched on, ducking low under branches, careful to shield her foot. When they reached the fallen tree, he lowered her onto it and straightened, shelving his hands on his hips.
“Better prop that foot. It must be throbbing.
”
She set it on the log. It had swollen more and turned bright red around the ankle.
“Here.” He extended his water bottle, which he’d tucked into one of her shoes. “You can have the rest.”
Her mouth was dry, but there was only an inch or so left in the bottle, and he’d just hiked all this way, carrying her.
“I’m okay. You can have it.”
“You need to stay hydrated. Drink up.”
She reluctantly did as he suggested. When she was finished he took the empty bottle and stuffed it back into her shoe.
“What kind of preparation do you do before you film? Other than memorizing your lines, of course.”
“Depends on the role. For the last one I had to learn how to use a firearm, so I took lessons. It took a while to get comfortable with it—to look comfortable.”
“And for the next one?”
“I do a lot of physical labor, so I need to be in shape, and I need to stay slim. It’s set in Ireland, so I’ve been working on my Irish brogue.”
“Let’s hear it.”
She cleared her throat, got into character, and rattled off one of her favorite lines from the movie.
He listened intently, and when she was finished he chuckled. “That was really good.”
She beamed. “Thanks. I worked on it with a dialect coach back home.”
“I’m impressed. What do you do back home, when you’re not filming a movie or preparing for a role?”
“Oh, let’s see, there’s premieres and speaking engagements. Sometimes I make appearances. I also have a ‘little sister’ named Ana Marie. She’s eleven and a real cutie.”
“I’ll bet she’s completely starstruck.”
Mia laughed. “Not at all. She keeps me quite humble, in fact.”
“Well, I think it’s great that you give back.” Levi looked down the trail, then at her. “You ready to hit it?”
“Whenever you are.”
fifteen
After a brief conversation at the front door, Levi thanked Erik and let him out. Fortunately his friend hadn’t seemed to recognize Mia. He had, however, given Levi a raised brow at having such an attractive guest under his roof.
Levi glanced up the stairs, wondering where his sisters had gotten off to. Was anyone even around to answer phone calls?
He went back into the living room. Mia was reclined on the sofa, her foot propped on a pillow with a cold pack, waiting for her medication to kick in. She’d taken off her cap, and her ponytail was askew, her face fallen.
“At least it’s not broken,” he said.
“Four to six weeks—why do I have to be such a klutz?”
He rounded the couch. She looked cute when she pouted, her lush lower lip turned out just a bit.
“You’ll be on your feet in a couple days. We need to get you a pair of crutches until then. Too bad your room’s upstairs. Maybe I could switch with you. Mine’s pretty small though, and when Miss Della starts breakfast in the morning, your sleep is pretty much over.”
She met his eyes. “That’s sweet of you, but I think I’ll just stay put.”
“At least you’ll be off the crutches by the time you leave.” A sound of the door opening pulled Levi’s gaze.
Molly was home. She caught sight of Levi standing beside the couch, then Mia, sprawled on it, foot propped.
“Oh no, what happened?” Molly rushed over. “Is that why Erik was here? What’s wrong?”
“Mia took a little fall up on the trails,” Levi said. “She’s going to be fine though.”
“I’m so sorry. How bad is it?”
Mia filled her in on the details, and Molly made a fuss over her, fluffing pillows and bringing her a glass of fresh lemonade. She thought she knew someone who had crutches that would work for Mia and promised to check.
When Molly was finished mother-henning, she turned to Levi. “Can we talk if you have a minute?”
“Sure.” He looked at Mia. “I’ll be right back.”
Levi headed to the front porch, where they could talk in private.
Molly pulled the door closed behind her and took a seat on the swing, a serious expression on her face.
He wondered if she was going to chastise him about all the time he was spending with Mia. He had a list of excuses at the ready. Plus, who was Molly to talk?
“Will you sit down?” Molly said. “You’re making me nervous.”
Levi took a seat and regarded his sister silently. She was biting her lip, making it twist.
Then she took a deep breath and let it out. “I think it’s time we expand in the restaurant area. I know. I know. We’d need extra licensing and all that, but we can handle it, and I think it would be worth it in terms of guest satisfaction. We might even be losing customers because we have no way of feeding them in-house. And you know how businesses are around here. Sometimes it’s tough to even find a restaurant open off-season or when it’s storming or when the owner feels a headache coming on.”
It was true, and he’d taken that up with the Better Business Bureau. It was hard enough to draw guests without the mom-and-pop places closing shop on a whim. But so far he’d gotten nowhere.
“You aren’t wrong. But we have to consider the bottom line.”
“It was always the plan to add a dinner menu. I’ve already talked to Miss Della and—”
“You what?”
“She said she’s on board. She said she’d actually welcome the extra hours.”
Yeah, if only we could afford to pay her. He scowled at Molly. “You shouldn’t have gone to Miss Della. This is between us. And we said we’d expand when the bottom line allows for it.”
She huffed. “Well, we’re doing fine, aren’t we?”
No. No they weren’t. Levi ran his hand over his face. “It’s not the right time for this, Molly.”
“It’s what Mom and Dad planned. They were going to open with a full restaurant. I know I agreed to wait, but we’ve been open a year and we’re not even offering a full breakfast. I think it’s time to expand our menu.”
“This is my area of expertise, not yours. Let’s see how this season goes. And then maybe next spring—”
“Next spring!”
“What’s going on?”
He hadn’t even heard Grace pull up. His eyes narrowed on the sister who was supposed to have been covering the inn all morning. “Where’ve you been?”
“Out boating with Sarah.” She exchanged a look with Molly. “Sheesh. What’s his problem?”
“My problem is nobody’s treating this place like a business. I know we’re on lock-down this week, but we can’t all just be leaving willy-nilly. Somebody needs to be here to answer calls and take reservations while I’m shuttling our guest around.” He nailed Grace with a look. “And how are those college apps coming along?”
Grace’s spine lengthened. “I haven’t had time to work on them.”
“Yet you have time to go boating with Sarah? You could’ve been finished by now if you’d just buckled down.”
Her jaw set. “That’s the last thing I want to do right now. I just finished finals. I need time to decompress.”
“You mean procrastinate. You promised to do it this week, Grace, just like you’ve been promising since the fall. You’re running out of time.”
“I’m nineteen. I can handle my own future.”
“Apparently not. It’s June, Grace, and you don’t even know where you’re going to college. All of your friends are already enrolled, aren’t they?”
“Just leave me alone, Levi!” Grace spun on her heels, heading inside.
“I’d love to do that, Grace,” he called after her, “if you’d just get with the program.”
The door slammed behind her, and he could practically hear her stomping up the stairs from the porch. He closed his eyes and blew out a breath. If everyone would just pull their weight around here maybe he wouldn’t be feeling so much pressure.
That familiar band had tightened around his head,
and he massaged the back of his skull where a headache throbbed.
“Don’t you think that was a little harsh?” Molly asked.
“Come on, Molly, you know she’s been putting this off for months.”
Molly stood, the swing moving behind her with a squawk. “Maybe there’s a good reason for that, brother.”
His gaze sharpened on Molly. “Do you know something? Has she said anything to you? She’s going to college and that’s that.”
Molly turned at the door. “I don’t know anything—except that maybe we should be asking questions instead of making demands.”
Levi frowned after her. Sure, that sounded simple. Grace was a smart and capable girl, but she was only nineteen. What did she know about real life? He knew she had no interest in working at the inn long term, and the only jobs she’d had were babysitting and the Dairy Bar.
Their parents had encouraged all of them to get degrees, and if they were here they’d be urging Grace to finish those applications. He had to look out for his sister, even if she didn’t want him to. That was part of being a parent—and he had to face it. That’s more or less what he’d become when their parents died.
A text buzzed in, and he checked his phone. It was Molly’s boyfriend, Adam, asking if Levi would be around later that evening. He responded in the affirmative. He couldn’t imagine Mia would want to go anywhere tonight. He should probably go check—and maybe grab some painkillers for himself.
He slipped into the house, locking the door behind him. When he rounded the couch he saw Mia lying just as she’d been when he’d slipped out. But now her eyes were closed, her lips parted. She didn’t stir even as he covered her with a throw.
sixteen
Molly entered Firehouse Coffee, scanning the place for her best friend, Skye. She drew in the wondrous aroma of java and artificial stimulation. What more could a girl ask for?
She was running a little early for a change. She’d been annoyed with Levi and wanted to get out of the house. He could be so bossy—and he was such a bean counter! She understood the need to turn a profit, but things were fine. She wished he’d just relax about the money already.
Carolina Breeze Page 9