by Tyler, Jules
A man carrying a blue tool box rounded the corner of the counter and humor filled his eyes. Stella's blood boiled as the stranger started chuckling at her position.
"Are you serious? I didn't ask you to come out here and laugh at me; I asked you to come fix the pipe!" Stella screamed at the man.
The man shook his head at her before setting his tool box on the counter and opening it up to search for the tools he needed. As soon as he had the items he required in hand, he stooped down and reached past her position on the floor and did something that caused the water flowing from beneath her hands to cease.
"Woah! How did you do that?" Stella asked in amazement as the maintenance man slipped out from under the sink and smiled at her.
"Easy, I turned the water shut off valve to the 'off'' position," the man grinned at her.
Stella's eyes went as round as saucers as she felt embarrassment fill her body. She knew to check for that due to too many times with the beer taps springing leaks in the bar. How could she be so stupid?
"Oh my God, seriously? I didn't even think to look for that. I just heard the pipe crack when I was straining the pasta and panicked. How could I be so stupid," Stella said, trying to avoid eye contact with the stranger as she leaned back against the cabinet next to the sink.
"Hey, don't stress yourself out over it, Miss. Not many people would know to look for it. I just thought it was funny seeing you trying to put pressure on the pipe like it was a bleeding artery or something," he chuckled again before sticking his head back under the sink to work on the broken pipe. "Would you mind getting me a hand towel so I can dry off the pipe? I'm going to seal it with epoxy until I can get you a new pipe ordered in, but with the way this winter has been going, that could be a few weeks."
"Sure thing. Can you wait for a minute though? I'd pretty sure my legs are chafing from how wet my leggings are. I'd like to change into something dry first," Stella said, using the counter to pull herself up.
"Yeah, take your time. Now that the water is shut off, I'm not in any hurry."
Stepping back from the sink, Stella took in the man's appearance. She had already made note of the dimple in his right cheek when he smiled and his gorgeous green eyes. His blonde hair was tousled on top and shaved on the sides. From this angle, his blue jeans hugged his thick thighs, and man, oh, man, did he have a nice ass. His green and black flannel shirt was loose around his middle, but his biceps were definitely filling out the sleeves. Damn, this man was a fine specimen of the male variety.
C'mon woman, pull yourself together. You barely survived the last jerk. Do you really want to go looking for trouble with some maintenance guy now too?
Determined to clear her thoughts, she turned and walked over to the edge of the living room where her bedroom door was. Slipping inside, she flicked on the light and stripped out of her wet clothing. She quickly donned a green tunic-like shirt, new panties, and black leggings. Feeling much more comfortable than she had moments before, she grabbed the requested hand towel and headed back for the kitchen.
"Alrighty then, let's get this party started," Stella smiled at him before handing over the towel.
Reaching out to take it from her, he returned her smile, "Thank you, miss."
"Thank you, but you can call me Stella," she blushed as he looked at her, his face filled confusion as though he was trying to figure something out.
There was a long silence between the two of them as Brady continued to look her over. Stella fidgeted under his gaze. Why did he look so familiar? It was just his eyes; those beautiful blue eyes reminded her of someone. But who?
The man finally broke the silence between them, “I’m sorry; I’m being rude. My name is Brady.”
Brady moved to work on the sink as Stella stood there, racking her brain. His name was even familiar.
Brady… Brady… Why does that name ring a bell?
The reason why she remembered that name dawned on her like someone had smacked her in the back of the head with an idea stick.
There's no way this is the same Brady though, is there? Damn, the boy has really grown. He's not the same Brady I knew all those years ago. Hmm, I doubt this is the real Brady. What was his last name again?
She pondered on his last name until he finished with fixing the cracked pipe. Once he was drying his hands off and putting his tools away, she pushed herself to ask.
"Your last name isn't Eastern, is it?" Stella raised a hopeful eyebrow at him.
Brady looked puzzled by her question and paused for a moment before responding, "Stella?"
Stella's face broke out in a smile a mile wide, "Yes, Brady, it's me! We used to play all summer up here when we were kids and my Grandpa Buck would bring me up here for our summer getaway trips!"
Brady beamed at her as he wrapped her up in a big bear hug, “I knew that it was you on the phone! There was something about your, uh, your tone. I can’t believe you’re here. I wondered what happened to you after all these years.”
As Brady set Stella down she felt a rush of relief run through her. She knew that Grandpa Buck must be watching out for her if Brady was here.
Feeling nostalgic, Stella moved her short black hair that was covering the small, jagged scar on her temple and pointed at it, "Remember when you gave me this scar when we were skipping rocks in the creek when I was six?"
“This is so weird, I was literally thinking about you just a little bit ago. Damn, Stella, it’s been awhile. Where’ve you been all these years?” Brady sighed, running a hand through his hair.
"Yeah, it has been awhile, huh? Grandpa Buck passed away in the spring right after my ninth birthday. Since he was the only one caring for me, I ended up in the foster care system in Boise, which sucked. He was the only family I had," Stella frowned. “After I aged out of the system I headed to Seattle for a new start. I’ve been there up until a week ago, when I headed up here to sort some things out.”
"Stella, you have to know that had Grandpa Will known that he had passed away sooner, he would've come to your rescue. We found out from Jack Richmond when it was too late, and you had already been put in the system," Brady brushed the tear that had escaped her right eye with his thumb before pulling her into a gentler hug.
Stella nodded into his chest and sniffed, "I know. Just sucks to lose the only family I ever had and then getting tossed into foster care with a whole bunch of strangers."
"Well, you're amongst friends now."
Chapter Four
Brady was struggling to maintain control of his emotions. His body and his bear were both buzzing with excitement. Stella was okay and she was here! She had come back to him after all. The foster care director had been right. He wanted to shout for joy, but didn't want to scare Stella away when he had finally gotten her back.
Stella breathed a sigh into his chest before looking up at him with a sad smile, "Yeah, I really am."
Stella's stomach rumbled between the two of them, reminding Brady that she had been in the middle of making herself dinner. Instinct immediately took over. He needed to feed her.
"Uh, Stella. Didn't you say you had been draining noodles or something before everything went crazy?" Brady asked, scanning the pot and pan on the stovetop. From the looks of it, she had been making spaghetti.
"Oh, uh, yeah, I had been, now that you mention it. I checked the expiration dates on the labels of the noodles and sauce I found in the cupboard and decided that it sounded good for dinner. I'm afraid since I came in on the back of someone else's snowmobile, I didn't get the chance to bring up many provisions. I got a thing of hamburger from the freezer in the lodge and put it on my tab. It's been awhile since I had anything other than fruit or peanut butter and jelly sandwiches."
Brady pulled Stella away from his embrace and looked down at her eyes, "Stella, why don't you have more provisions? Don't you know that people can die of starvation?"
Stella shrugged and looked down at the floor, "It's a long story. I figured at some point I'd be able to bum a ride
down the mountain to get some groceries."
Rubbing his temples, Brady tried to ignore how frustrating the situation was and remember the positive -- Stella was here.
"Tomorrow, I'll take you down the mountain, and we'll buy enough food and water to fill these cupboards, you hear me?" Brady grumbled.
Stella nodded in agreement, "Sounds like a great plan. I didn't realize you had a snowmobile."
"I've got something better. Mama and I bought one of those fancier versions of a Gator, called a Razr, and had it outfitted with a track system like a snowmobile's. It's got a nice little area for groceries. We use it when we start getting low on necessities in the winter," Brady said with pride.
"Oh, that's handy. Had I known that before, maybe I would've called ahead and asked for a ride," Stella teased.
Brady rolled his eyes, "Hey, anytime you need a ride, you be sure to tell me."
"Deal. Now look, I'm starving and am not above stuffing my face in front of you. Do you want to stay for dinner?" Stella asked.
"Sounds great. Gives us a chance to catch up," Brady grinned at her.
"Perfect."
Chapter Five
Crawling into bed, Stella smiled to herself. Tonight had been perfect. Never in her wildest dreams did she imagine she would find herself in this position, but now she had the chance to find a silver lining in her situation. Brady was the honest to God last person she ever imagined showing up to her rescue tonight. It was a wonderful surprise, one that she desperately needed. It would be nice having a somewhat familiar face around while she put back together the pieces of her currently destroyed soul.
It had been years since she had seen him, but he still knew just what to say to make her feel better. She wished she had come back up to Silver Creek sooner now because maybe they could have reconnected sooner. He had been her very best friend in the whole world when she was little. The trips with Grandpa Buck were perfect for three reasons. One, she'd get to play in the woods, running through trees and playing in the creek that ran through the campground. Two, she got to make memories with Grandpa Buck, memories that to this day she held near and dear to her heart. Three, she got to do all of it with Brady. He had been special to her then, and she had a feeling that he would be now too.
Staring up at the ceiling, Stella felt warm and safe for the first time in far too long. Brady was here, and she knew that just like when they were children, he would keep her safe from anything. Closing her eyes, she let her mind drift off to sleep with happier thoughts than she had had in awhile.
Grandpa Buck sat down on one of the overturned logs they had been using for a stool and smiled a tired smile at Stella and Brady as they huddled around the fire. They’d gone hiking with Brady’s Grandpa Will and Grandpa Buck up above Boiling Springs that day. It had been a long hike, probably closer to seven miles by the time they were done, but it was so satisfying. Getting to the top was Stella’s favorite part, because she always felt like they were on the top of the world. She could turn in every direction and see as far as the eye could see. She never wanted to come down.
“You look tired, Grandpa,” Stella observed, hopping up to go grab a blanket from their cabin.
“I am, sweet girl, but it’ll be okay,” Grandpa Buck yawned as she settled the blanket around his shoulders when she returned a moment later.
Canting her head about what that could possibly mean, Stella returned to her spot next to Brady. Shrugging, she plopped down on the ground and smiled at Brady. These trips were always her favorite part of the year. She would play with Brady all summer long; every day was an adventure.
Grandpa Will came out of the cabin with Brady’s mama, and they handed each of them a roasting stick with a marshmallow already on it. Settling down into their chairs, Grandpa Will looked at the two of them thoughtfully.
“Are the two of you feeling up to a story still, or would you rather eat your S’mores and get some sleep?” Grandpa Will asked.
Stella’s eyes filled with excitement and wonder as she exchanged glances with Brady. They both answered Grandpa Will in unison, “We’d like a story, please!”
Grandpa Buck laughed as he and Grandpa Will smiled knowingly at each other. They had a habit of doing that. Stella assumed it was because they had been lifelong friends.
“This one is going to be a little different than our usual bear-men stories. This one is going to be about adventure and fighting for what’s important. But it’s also about love,” Grandpa Will explained, looking up at the stars with a look of love in his eyes.
“Yuck, Grandpa, I don’t want a girly love story,” Brady complained around a mouthful of marshmallow.
Brady’s mama hushed him, “You need to listen close, son. This one is important. For both of you.”
“Fine,” Brady sighed. “Can I at least have another marshmallow?”
“That’s fine, I suppose,” she sighed, handing off the bag of marshmallows to him.
Grandpa Will started the story, “Intended mates were something heavily sought after by the bear-men of old…”
Chapter Six
Brady strapped the small red cooler down in the back of his Razr and turned the key to get it running. It didn't have a heater, but the way the engine warmed up in between the two seats, there was enough heat in there to ride comfortably for a few hours if you bundled up well. Zipping up his black Carhartt coat, he made a mental note to make sure that Stella had enough layers on for the day. He'd be sure to grab Mama's extra Carhartt, if she didn't. While his bear tended to keep him warm, since he was going to town, he needed to make sure he looked like everyone else did, which meant lots of layers.
Shifters were common knowledge these days, but it didn't go well if you were public about it. Either people had too many questions for you when they found out, or the government came looking for you to pull you into their task force or put you in prison. However, last he heard, there were some potential changes coming in that area after what had happened over at Snake River Prison Camp last year. It just wasn't a good decision to be public about being different, especially not around these parts. Small town folks liked to talk, a little too much if you asked him. He wouldn't have it any other way though. This was home.
Getting in the Razr, he drove over to Stella's cabin and got out to go knock on the door. He smiled down at her when she came out to meet him. She had a purple and silver parka on with white fur around the hood, matching ski pants, and snow boots, and he could see silver neck warmer peaking out over the top of the coat's collar. Yup, she would definitely be warm enough.
"You ready to go, sunshine?" Brady asked.
Stella nodded in affirmation, "Sure am! Let's go get some grub!"
"Did you get to eat breakfast this morning?" Brady eyed her suspiciously as he turned to watch her struggle with the Razr door.
"I had leftover spaghetti, but that's okay. I'm planning to splurge on some bagels today," Stella said, rubbing her mitten-clad hands together eagerly as Brady showed her how to work the door.
Rolling his eyes at her, he made his way back around to the other side of the Razr and got in. He reached over and helped her with her seatbelt, catching a whiff of her perfume. She smelled like vanilla mixed with the smell of the woods, and he found it delicious.
"Alright, let's do this," Brady said, taking the vehicle out of park and easing his foot down on the accelerator.
The hour and a half drive down the mountain was filled with companionable silence. Every so often, Stella would get excited about a bunny running across the snow-covered road or other various wildlife crossing their path. When they got to the base of the mountain where the majority of the lower campgrounds were, the smell of deer hung in the air, giving Brady an idea. Usually the deer in this area would graze down by the river. If they were quiet, Brady would bet his last dollar he could show Stella one of his favorite things about living up this way.
Slowing the Razr down to a creep, he eased it to the edge of the road and cut the engine. Scenting the
air, he knew that they were close enough to the herd that they could walk from here.
As he opened the door, he watched Stella's eyes fill with confusion and he grinned. Holding a finger to his lips, he gestured for her to follow him.
Curiosity got the better of Stella, and she whispered behind him, "What are we doing?"
"Shhh, follow me. I want to show you something," Brady whispered back at her.
Together they tiptoed to the opening of the Snake Bite Campground, and Brady slowed to a halt at the gate, motioning for Stella to do the same. Down by the river, about twenty yards from them, was a herd of deer grazing. The sight of them was astounding. He could spot a few late season fawns in the center of the adults and pointed at them to show Stella where they were.