“Why won’t Elizabeth let us help her fund the clinic?”
“I have no idea,” Daniel said. “But it’s driving me insane. She’s using every dollar she’s saved since she left college.”
“I’m worried that she’s doing too much.”
“You aren’t the only one. It’s just as well Anton de Bresney seems to have disappeared. If he was still harassing her, it would have been worse.”
“Have you had any updates from the police or Fletcher Security?”
“Sam’s computer program didn’t find a match and the police have no new leads. All we can do is hope he’s gone home.”
Blake wasn’t sure that Anton would ever leave Elizabeth alone. “Is Sam with Elizabeth?”
“She hasn’t left her side. At least that’s something I can do to keep my sister safe.” Daniel leaned against the kitchen cupboards. “What’s going on between the two of you?”
The coffee in Blake’s cup sloshed onto his hand. He grabbed a dishcloth and wiped his fingers. “What do you mean?”
“You’ve spent a lot of time with her since you arrived. I know how she is when she sets her mind on something, but she’s more than capable of making the clinic a success.”
“Except for the small but important fact of not having enough money.”
Daniel’s eyes narrowed. “I appreciate what you said to the foundation, but let Elizabeth take it from here. The worst thing you can do is interfere with their decision-making process. If they give the clinic some money, that’s great. If not, Elizabeth will find another way to finish what she’s started.”
“Is this where you tell me I was born with too much money and not enough common sense?”
“No. It’s where I tell you to let Elizabeth sort out her own life.”
Blake knew that was easier said than done. “I’ll try.”
“You’ll need to do more than that.” Daniel sipped his coffee. “Do you know if she’s contacted anyone your Crazy Love app matched her with?”
The change of subject was both a relief and a worry. “I don’t know. But given the number of hours she’s working, I doubt it.” He looked through the kitchen window. Talking about Elizabeth’s potential love life was giving him a stomach ulcer.
The snow that had been falling lightly was getting heavier. “When did Elizabeth and Sam leave Bozeman?”
Daniel checked his watch. “About fifteen minutes ago. Why?”
“The weather is closing in fast.”
“I told Elizabeth to be careful. While we’re waiting for them, you can help me cook dinner. If you want to peel the potatoes, I’ll get the steak and veggies ready.”
Blake opened the pantry and carried half a dozen potatoes to the kitchen sink. “We’d better plan on Sam staying the night. I don’t think she’ll be able to drive home.”
“I was thinking the same thing. Move over Gordon Ramsay. We’ve got a culinary delight to create.”
Blake moved out of Daniel’s way. He wasn’t sure that steak, potatoes, and vegetables were everyone’s idea of an impressive dinner but, after a long drive home, it sounded good to him.
Elizabeth glanced in her rearview mirror. Sam’s truck was following hers, crawling along the highway to Emerald Lake.
They’d been driving for about twenty minutes and the weather was getting worse. She slowed as another truck’s headlights nearly blinded her. She hated driving in the snow. Apart from not being able to see more than ten feet in front of her, it felt as though she was in another universe. The snowflakes seemed to be suspended in the air, twirling like Christmas decorations until they splattered against the windshield.
She leaned forward, frowning into the pitch-black night. It was just as well most of the roads in Montana were as straight as an arrow. As long as she didn’t miss the turnoff to Emerald Lake, she’d be fine.
Thinking about Emerald Lake made her sigh. Daniel had built a beautiful home. She loved everything about it, but as soon as he got married, she’d find somewhere else to live. Even though Holly was happy for Elizabeth to stay, she wouldn’t. In another few months the renovations at the clinic would be finished and she could—
The headlights on her truck flickered. Her gaze shot to the dashboard. There were no warning lights, nothing to make her think something was wrong.
The engine cut out.
Everything went black. She had no headlights, no GPS, nothing to navigate through the icy winter roads.
Oh my God.
The truck lurched forward, losing speed.
She gripped the steering wheel. Panic raced up her spine.
Focus, Elizabeth!
Get off the highway.
She turned the steering wheel to the right. It didn’t budge. With a desperate cry she yanked it harder, fighting to get her truck off the road.
Time stood still. She braced herself, waiting for the crunch of metal as she hit a fence, a tree, or rolled down a bank she couldn’t see.
When nothing happened, she braked, bringing the truck to a standstill.
Taking deep gulping breaths, she tried to calm her pounding heart. She was off the road. Safe.
White light filled the cab.
Sam.
She unbuckled her seatbelt and threw open her door.
“What happened?” Sam ran toward her. “Are you okay?”
“I think so. My truck stopped. I didn’t have any lights and I couldn’t steer. I don’t know why—”
Sam held onto her arms. “Something isn’t right. Lock the truck.”
“I can’t leave my truck on the side of the road.”
“Call a tow company while I’m driving to Emerald Lake.”
Elizabeth grabbed her wallet off the passenger seat. As soon as she locked the truck, Sam pulled her into her vehicle.
“Seatbelt,” Sam barked as they pulled away from Elizabeth’s truck.
“Why are we hurrying?”
“I don’t like this. We’re in the middle of nowhere. If someone wanted to—” She glanced in the rearview mirror. “Hold on.”
Sam planted her foot on the accelerator.
The truck sped along the icy road, terrifying Elizabeth as much as driving without lights.
“Someone’s following us,” Sam said quickly. “Call the police.”
Elizabeth pulled out her cell phone. “There’s no signal.”
“Keep trying.”
As they flew along the highway, Elizabeth kept pressing the emergency call button. She looked over her shoulder, frowning at the headlights behind them. With shaking hands, she took a photo, then called the police again.
“It’s no use. I still haven’t got a signal.”
Sam’s gaze never left the road. “I have to slow down. We’re getting close to the turnoff to Emerald Lake.”
Elizabeth pushed into the back of her seat, bracing herself in case the other vehicle hit them from behind.
“This could get scary,” Sam growled. “Hold on.” She slammed her foot on the brake, spun the steering wheel, then accelerated hard. The truck flew around the corner, sliding across the snow until the tires finally found traction.
As soon as they were around the corner, Elizabeth looked over her shoulder. “They’ve gone.” As soon as the words were out of her mouth, a set of headlights appeared behind them.
“Maybe not,” Sam muttered. “The security camera isn’t far from here. If we can get a photo of the truck, Fletcher Security will trace the license plate.”
Elizabeth couldn’t tell if the truck was getting closer or not. She gasped when she realized what Sam was doing. “You’re slowing down?”
“Only until we get to the camera. Don’t worry. I know what I’m doing.”
Elizabeth closed her eyes and said a quick, heartfelt prayer. During her cancer treatment she’d learned how to cope with unbelievable amounts of stress, pain so intense that it was hard to breathe. At each step of the way, she was in charge of the decisions being made, the type of treatment she wanted to receive. Neve
r once had she had to let someone else take control.
If it had been up to her, she would have driven at bottleneck speed toward Emerald Lake. But it wasn’t up to her. Not this time. She needed to trust Sam, place her life in her hands and hold on tight.
Sam glanced in the rearview mirror. “This is going to be close. I think they’re slowing down.”
A part of Elizabeth was glad the truck wasn’t behind them. The other part wanted the constant worry of what could happen next to go away. She’d had enough uncertainty to last a lifetime.
A large stone arch spanned the road ahead of them. They were entering Emerald Lake and the road that would take them to Daniel’s property.
She looked over her shoulder, willing the driver of the other truck closer.
“How far away from the arch are they?” Sam asked.
Elizabeth tried to guess the distance. “Maybe thirty feet. It’s hard to tell.”
“That should be enough,” Sam muttered.
The other truck seemed to slow down even more. “It’s turning around.” Elizabeth hoped the driver didn’t know about the camera mounted above the arch.
Within seconds, the red tail lights of the other vehicle disappeared into the darkness.
“It’s gone,” she whispered.
Sam took a deep breath. “Thank goodness.”
Elizabeth wiped her sweaty palms on the legs of her jeans. “You were amazing. Where did you learn to drive like that?”
“You can thank my boss. He sent me on a high-performance driving course. Learning to drive on a snow-covered racetrack was one of the scariest things I’ve ever done.”
“When you turned the corner, I thought I was in the truck with James Bond or Jason Bourne.”
Sam glanced across the cab. Fear and worry were etched into her face. “I hope Daniel’s coffee pot is hot. I desperately need a drink.”
“It’s always hot,” Elizabeth reassured her. “You did a great job of keeping us safe.”
“I’ll be even happier when we walk through your brother’s front door.”
Elizabeth sighed. So would she.
Chapter 8
Blake frowned when the security camera beeped. He looked at the monitor. “Sam just drove through your gate. I thought she was looking after Elizabeth?”
“So did I.” Daniel rushed into the hallway.
Blake followed him. He threw on his jacket and hoped there was a logical explanation for why Sam was on her own.
By the time she stopped in front of the house, Blake was imagining a worst-case scenario.
The passenger door opened and Elizabeth stumbled out of the cab. She was as pale as a ghost.
Blake rushed toward her and wrapped his arm around her waist. “What happened?”
“My truck broke down. Sam thought someone was following us. She was right, but we couldn’t call for help because my phone wasn’t working.” Elizabeth took a deep, shuddering breath.
Blake’s gaze shot to Sam. “You were followed?”
She nodded. “It was too dark to see what type of truck they were driving. The camera above the entrance to Emerald Lake might have caught the license plate.”
Daniel pulled out his phone. “I’ll call the police. Where’s your truck, Elizabeth?”
“It’s about ten minutes from the turnoff to Emerald Lake.”
While Daniel spoke to the police, Blake led Elizabeth and Sam inside. “Are you both okay?”
“We are now that we’re here.”
Elizabeth took off her jacket and hung it on the coat stand. She bit her bottom lip, avoiding Blake’s worried gaze like the plague.
When she finally looked at him, his heart clenched tight. The only time he’d seen her looking so stressed was when she told him she had cancer.
Sam touched Elizabeth’s arm. It was almost as if she knew how difficult this was for her. “I’m glad we left town when we did. The weather was closing in fast and neither of us wanted to drive in the snow.”
Elizabeth nodded. “Everything was okay until my truck stopped.”
Blake frowned. “What do you mean, ‘stopped’?”
“The headlights flickered and then the engine died. I lost all lights. Even steering was hard.”
His heart pounded. Elizabeth’s truck was only a few years old. It would be unusual for the whole engine to stop, especially if it had been an electrical fault.
“Sam thinks someone might have done something to my truck.”
Blake looked at Sam.
“It seems like too much of a coincidence. If I wasn’t following Elizabeth, she would have been alone in the middle of nowhere. The storm made it almost impossible to see anything. If the person behind us had hit her truck, she might not have been found until the morning.”
Blake didn’t want to think about how that could have ended. “The police will look at Elizabeth’s truck. If they don’t know what happened, I’m sure Fletcher Security will give them a second opinion. In the meantime, I’ll make you both a hot drink.”
Elizabeth looked so grateful that he wondered if she was going to cry. This wasn’t like her. She was one of the strongest people he knew.
They walked into the kitchen and he pulled out two chairs. “Sit down. I won’t be long.”
He turned on the kettle for Elizabeth and poured hot coffee into a mug for Sam. “Creme and sugar, Sam?”
She nodded.
“Were you able to park the truck away from the road?”
“Eventually,” Elizabeth said. “I couldn’t see a thing. I was worried that I’d hit something.”
Sam sent Elizabeth a reassuring smile. “You did great. It happened so quickly.”
Daniel walked into the kitchen. “I’ve called the police. They’re sending a patrol car to find the truck. I also called John. His staff is reviewing the security tape from the main gate.”
Blake handed Sam the cup of coffee.
“Thanks. I hope the camera caught their license plate. It might be the closest we’ve been to finding Anton.”
Daniel stood behind Elizabeth and squeezed her shoulder. “You’re both safe and that’s all that matters. And talking about being safe, the weather is getting worse. Would you like to spend the night with us, Sam?”
“That would be wonderful. Thank you.”
Blake left a cup of tea in front of Elizabeth.
She sniffed and smiled. “Chamomile?”
“I thought it would make you feel better,” he mumbled.
“It will. Thanks.” She took a sip and sighed. “If it’s easier, Sam can stay with me in the loft.”
“Are you sure?” Daniel asked. “There’s plenty of room in here.”
Sam left her coffee cup on the table. “I’d prefer to stay with Elizabeth. That way, I can keep an eye on her.”
Blake glanced at Elizabeth. He was glad Sam would be there. If she hadn’t offered to stay close, he would have slept on Elizabeth’s sofa. He cared about her and hated seeing her so upset.
Elizabeth looked straight at him. Her gentle smile told him that she knew he was worried about her, but that she’d be okay.
He really needed to work on hiding what he was thinking. If he didn’t, both of them could be in serious trouble.
Later that night, Elizabeth stirred a block of coconut oil over the stove in her workshop. She enjoyed making soap, even more so when she was stressed or worried about something. She didn’t know if it was the smell of the essential oils that helped her relax or the slow, methodical process, but it worked.
And tonight, she badly needed the comfort it gave her. She tapped the wooden spoon on the side of the pan and left it beside the stove.
When she’d told Daniel about her small soap-making business, he’d created a studio for her in the garage. Making her soaps away from her day-to-day kitchen was wonderful.
Reaching across the counter, she carefully weighed the olive, almond, and sunflower oils for the next part of the recipe.
“What are you doing?”
> Elizabeth held her hand over her heart. “You gave me a fright.”
Blake didn’t seem the least bit worried that he’d scared her half to death.
He looked at her scales and frowned. “It’s after midnight. Why are you still awake?”
“I couldn’t sleep, so I decided to do something productive with my time.”
His gaze traveled along the counter, stopping at the soaps she was taking into town tomorrow. “I didn’t know you made soap.”
“It’s not just any old soap,” Elizabeth said proudly. “It’s organic and incredibly nourishing.”
Blake sniffed. “Is that coconut I smell?”
Elizabeth spun around, quickly checking the coconut oil. “It is. It’s one of the ingredients I use. Why are you still awake?”
“I couldn’t sleep, either.”
She nodded and took the oil off the stove. “Could you pass me the stick blender that’s beside you? I’ll need it in a few minutes.”
“Sure. When did you start making soap?”
“About a year ago. I was sick of buying soap filled with chemicals. A friend owns a gift store in Cedar Rapids. She loved the soap and started selling it for me. My business grew from there.”
“Is all this all going to Cedar Rapids?”
“No. It’s for two stores in Bozeman. I gave Holly a bar of my lavender soap. She told her friends about it and they asked if they could sell it.” Elizabeth combined the oils and poured a bowl of lye into the mixture.
“How much do you sell?”
“About forty bars a week. If there’s a big event, I can sell up to two hundred in a weekend.”
Blake’s eyes widened. “I didn’t know there was a demand for homemade soap.”
“There is if it’s good quality.” She used the wooden spoon to beat the ingredients together. “Why couldn’t you sleep? I thought your new office building was almost finished.”
“It isn’t the building that’s worrying me. It’s you.”
A blush hit Elizabeth’s face. “You don’t need to worry about me.”
“That’s what you always say.”
“And it’s true.” She lifted the spoon out of the mixture and plugged in the blender. “This won’t take long.”
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