Sam was silent a moment, remembering the way his emotions had run the gamut from fear to disillusionment to community pride. “And that’s when I knew what a difference a good law enforcement officer can make to a community,” he finished solemnly.
Nora munched a sugar cookie thoughtfully. “How old were you at the time?” she asked.
Sam smiled, thinking how nice it was to be here with her like this. “I was eight.”
“And you never changed your mind and wanted to do something else?”
Sam reveled in the feeling of her beside him. “Nope.”
Nora sipped her cocoa and nodded curiously at his Eastern Kentucky University sweat shirt. “Did you attend EKU?”
Sam nodded. “I majored in law enforcement there. What about you?”
“I went to the University of Pennsylvania, and majored in business.” Nora’s mood grew reflective. “Being there put me on the fast track to success.”
“Is that how you met the man you were going to marry?” Sam asked. Finishing his cocoa, he leaned forward and put the cup aside.
“No. Geoff is an old family friend. We’ve known each other since we were in kindergarten. But you’re right, he did go to Penn, too.”
Sam thought about an intimate friendship that dated back years and wondered how he could compete with that in the time frame of just a few storm-driven hours. “You must’ve dated a long time,” he remarked.
Abruptly Nora’s look turned troubled. She put her own cup aside and turned toward him. “No, never. I mean, we hung out together and did a lot of the same stuff socially, but it wasn’t until a few months ago, after I got downsized out of my job in New York City and he came to cheer me up, that we started seeing each other in anything but a platonic light.”
Sam studied Nora gently. “You didn’t see the loss of your job coming?”
“No.” Nora’s lips curved wryly as she thrust both hands through her hair and recalled, with no little amount of embarrassment, “In fact, strange as it may sound, I was doing so well at L and B, I thought I was in line for another promotion.” She paused and bit her lip. “I knew there’d been a couple of key accounts lost that they were unable to immediately replace, and that they were planning to downsize as a result, to sort of shake things up and light a fire under those remaining. Still,” she continued ruefully, “it was a rude awakening to find myself unemployed, along with about twenty others.”
Sam wished he’d been there to help her deal with the bad news, even if he had no experience with the kind of pampered Ivy League school life she’d obviously come from. “So what’d you do?” he asked casually, stroking her wrist.
Nora bolted to her feet and went over to prod needlessly at the fire. “My father convinced me to take some time off and go back to Pittsburgh to recoup,” she replied, replacing the poker in the stand. Whirling toward him, she stood with her back to the flames. “I hadn’t had any real time off in a long time, and I agreed.” She shrugged, the movement molding her ivory cashmere sweater against the soft swell of her breasts. Color swept into her cheeks. “Before I knew it, I was seeing a lot of Geoffrey, and then we were engaged.”
He regarded her speculatively. “It must have been a very romantic time.”
Nora frowned at the toe of her fleece-lined slipper. “Confusing is more like it.” She sighed and shoved her balled fists into the pockets of her ivory wool trousers. “Geoff and I were both feeling a little sorry for ourselves, because we hadn’t yet met the loves of our lives, and we were both tired of waiting for the mythical lightning bolt to hit us. He told me he’d begun to think passion and romance wasn’t everything, that you could have a good marriage—maybe even a better marriage—without it.”
Sam tossed the blanket aside and went to stand beside her. “You bought that?”
Nora flashed him a sheepish grin. “It seemed logical at the time. But maybe I was just rationalizing my mistake,” she continued honestly. Looking up into his eyes, she released a beleaguered sigh. “Anyway, in retrospect, I can’t help thinking it’s foolish to put everything into a job and nothing into your personal life. Because if something happens with your job, you’ve got nothing left to sustain you.”
Sam nodded, in total agreement. Wanting to comfort her, if only with a brief touch, he gently caressed the side of her face with the flat of his hand. “I want marriage and a family, too, in addition to a job I love.”
“And yet you’re not married,” Nora murmured softly.
“Only because I’m still looking for the right woman,” Sam allowed, as he hooked his thumbs beneath her chin and tilted her face to within kissing distance of his. He lowered his mouth to hers, felt her soft gasp, felt her tense in anticipation. And still the desire in her was nothing compared to his.
“And that would be…?” Nora gasped, as he tilted her head back and kissed her temples and cheeks over and over again, until she trembled in his arms and looked up at him, all soft and wanting beneath the thick veil of her lashes.
Sam drew back slightly. “Someone who not only shares my dreams and values, but responds to me as passionately as I respond to her,” Sam murmured thoughtfully as he slid a hand beneath her hair, to the back of her neck. Nora arched toward him, and Sam lost himself in the hot, wild sweet ness of her lips. Giving in to the passion flowing between them every bit as readily as she had earlier in the day, Nora moaned and let her head fall back, giving him even fuller access to her mouth. Clamping an arm around her waist, Sam urged her even closer, so that they were so close their bodies were almost one. That, too, felt incredibly perfect and right. His own body aching, he continued wooing and seducing her until her body melted softly against his, until he was sure she wanted him every bit as much as he wanted her, until he was sure she knew, as did he, that what they were feeling was something special and unique.
Then, and only then, did Sam force himself to slow down.
He wanted Nora with all his heart and soul, but he didn’t want to scare her off by coming on too strong, too soon. And despite her increasingly passionate response to him, he knew she was still a little skittish. And if he didn’t stop now, with his desire to make love to her deepening with every second that passed, he would end up taking her to bed, before she was ready. And that, he realized, might ruin everything. As rare as what they’d found was, it would be better to wait until she was definitely ready to take the next step than to face any more regrets in either of their lives or end what looked as if it could be the love of his life.
When the leisurely kiss came to a slow, deliberate halt, Sam rested his forehead against hers while they both caught their breath.
“Sam?” Nora murmured as she rested her cheek against his shoulder.
Sam tightened his arms around her. He loved the way she felt against him. “Hmm?”
She put her hand on his chest and pushed far enough away to be able to see up into his face. “What will you do when you find this soul mate you’re looking for?” Nora asked.
That was easy. Sam grinned down at Nora’s searching look, and he possessively tightened his hold on Nora. “I’ll marry her, the first chance I get.”
Nora looked up at Sam. Had she not had a chance to get to know Sam a little, and see him in action during the course of the afternoon and evening, she might have thought he was just giving her a line to try to get her into bed with him. But she knew him well enough by now to look into his golden-brown eyes and realize he was dead serious. He did want to get married, and soon. The question was, with one disastrous near-marriage so recently behind her, what did she want? Or, more to the point, what did she dare?
She stared up at Sam, knowing her eyes reflected the mixture of wariness and desire she felt. For a moment, as the silence stretched out between them, she was unable to get her breath. “No long engagements for you, hmm?” she quipped at last.
Sam shook his head firmly. “Not if I have my way about it,” he said.
He wasn’t kidding. Once he’d found what he wanted—and it
seemed to her that he was hinting in a million and one ways that he just had—Sam was the kind of man who would move fast, to stake his claim before the blizzard ended. Maybe too fast for an inexperienced woman like Nora. After all, wasn’t this what she’d done before? Jumped into her relationship with Geoff too soon, when her life was in ruins? She didn’t want to risk everything and do the same with Sam, no matter how fiercely and irrevocably she was attracted to him.
Deciding some caution was in order, for both their sakes, Nora turned away from Sam and shot a look at the grandfather clock in the corner. It was almost one o’clock. “It’s getting late.”
“You’re right,” Sam agreed lazily, although, unlike her, he seemed in no hurry for them to part company. “Morning’ll be here before you know it,” he said matter-of-factly as they carried their cups into the kitchen.
For a moment, their glances held. She tried, but could not decipher what he was thinking. “I’ll go up with you,” Sam said.
As they walked upstairs, Nora felt the same kind of tension she usually felt at the end of a first date. But that was ridiculous, she told herself sternly. This was not a date, and Sam was not walking her to her door. And he was most definitely not going to kiss her again.
He did, however, go into her room and stoke the fire before adding another log to the hearth. Nora thanked him and ushered him to the door.
He turned at the portal and gently touched the side of her face. “Wake me if you’re not warm enough or need more blankets,” Sam said.
Nora knew the gallant offer was given as a matter of course, due to her previously noted inexpertness at building fires in the hearth; nevertheless, it sent a shiver of awareness rushing through her and a telltale flush to her cheeks. Ignoring the tantalizing whiff of his cologne that stirred her senses, she crossed her arms in front of her and stepped to the side. “I think I’ll be fine,” she told him dryly, as she focused on the new, ardent lights in his golden-brown eyes.
“Sure now?” Sam teased, studying her with growing curiosity, and making no secret of the fact that he would very much like to kiss her again.
Nora wanted to kiss him again, too. What stopped her was the knowledge that although their first kisses had been impulsive, another kiss at this point in the evening would not be. Another kiss would change the stakes between them considerably. As much as she wanted to experience the delicious feeling of Sam’s lips on hers and his strong arms around her once again, she wasn’t sure she was ready for their relationship to deepen. Until she was, she’d just have to make sure they both exercised a little caution. “Good night, Sam,” she said.
Sam gave her a look that upped her pulse another notch. Then he smiled. “Good night.”
Chapter Six
NORA WOKE AT DAWN to the rumbling noise of a snowplow and a room that was filled with spark ling white light. Pushing off the covers, she padded barefoot to the window. Several inches of snow had fallen overnight. And for the moment, anyway, even though the sun and sky were obscured by an oppressive layer of heavy white clouds, the wind had died down, and it appeared to have stopped snowing entirely.
With no sun to warm things up, it looked bitterly cold outside, and wood smoke curled from the chimney of every home on the stately tree-lined street. Nora noted that Sam was already outside. He was dressed in his uniform and shoveling the snow away from his black-and-white truck. His granddad and Kimberlee were bundled up, too, and working on the sidewalks while the snowplow cleared a path through the street.
Feeling guilty for having slept later than everyone else, Nora showered quickly, dressed and hurried downstairs. Following the aromatic scent of coffee perking and bacon frying, she headed for the kitchen. Even before she reached it, she could hear that the small transistor radio was broadcasting the weather report, and she paused a moment to listen. “…blizzard still continues to rage in many states…though many areas do not have power or have phone outages…locally, temperatures warming slightly, with more snow on the way for all of West Virginia, today and tonight. Additional possibility of sleet as the slow-moving front passes over the state. The interstate highways remain closed across the entire tristate area. Many locations in rural West Virginia are still without electricity and telephone, and crews are working around the clock to get service restored. Stay turned for more bulletins through out the day….”
Nora continued on into the kitchen. Seeing Clara standing contentedly at the stove, an apron tied around her waist, Nora was inundated by memories of her own mother cooking her breakfast on winter mornings, and a wave of nostalgia rushed through her. What would it be like to live here all the time?
“Good morning, Nora,” Clara said cheerfully.
“Good morning.” Nora smiled at her. “What can I do to help?”
Clara gave the bubbling cereal a stir. “Call everyone in for breakfast. They won’t want to come, the men especially, but they need to eat before they tackle the rest of their day.”
Clara was right, Nora quickly noted as she executed her assigned task. The men didn’t want to break and come in, but they did anyway. Short minutes later, their boots off and their faces ruddy-cheeked from the cold, they were all gathered around the breakfast table in the huge country kitchen. A fire burned warmly in the hearth, and more heat came from the big gas-powered stove. The candle-lanterns had been put out in favor of the daylight streaming through the windows.
Clara looked at Sam as he dug into his oatmeal. “Any word when the power will come back on?”
He shook his head. “The utility company crews are out looking for the downed lines now.” Before he’d even finished, a radio emitted a staticky sound on his belt. “Excuse me.” Sam got up and left the room. When he came back, he was already shrugging on his coat. “That was the EMS dispatcher at the fire station. There’s been a two-car collision at the intersection of Oak and Main.”
“Anyone hurt?”
“Yes. I’ve got to go.” He looked at his grandparents. “I don’t know when I’ll be back. It looks to be a busy day.”
“Stay warm and stay safe.”
Sam nodded in acknowledgment and looked straight at Nora. “If you need anything,” he told her softly, “don’t hesitate to give me a call.”
Clara’s eyes danced with a romantic speculation that remained unvoiced. “At least take some coffee and a couple of rolls with you,” Clara told Sam as she handed him a hastily packed paper bag and thermos.
“Thanks.” Sam said goodbye and headed out the door.
“Well, I don’t have to go anywhere,” Kimberlee said after breakfast as they all pitched in to help clear the table.
Nora was glad to see that the teen had apparently recovered from her fight with her brother the previous evening.
“School’s already been canceled,” Kimberlee continued.
“Most of the businesses in town have been closed, too,” Harold said.
“Including Whittakers,” Clara said.
“So is it okay if I go sledding with my friends?” Kimberlee asked eagerly, after she put the last dish away and hung up her dishtowel. “I saw Ryan outside when I was shoveling snow, and he said a bunch of kids were meeting down at the park at eight this morning.”
“As long as you dress warmly, and come back in time for lunch,” Clara said.
“Thanks, Gran,” Kimberlee said. She kissed her grandmother’s cheek and dashed out.
Clara turned to Nora. “Maybe today would be a good day to ask you some advice. You did say you were in advertising, Nora?”
Nora nodded. The family had been so nice to her, she wanted to help in any way she could.
Harold led the way into the living room. “Whittakers was established by my grandfather in 1906, and it’s been a family-run business ever since. We serve all the surrounding towns, as well as tourists going back and forth to the mountains.”
“The problem is, we’ve been steadily losing business to the malls in Charleston, which are over an hour away, even though our department store
has many of the exact same items offered at the mall stores, at even lower everyday prices,” Clara explained unhappily as they all took a seat. “We’ve been thinking of hiring an advertising firm to help us pump up business. But since you have experience from the New York advertising world and are here with us, we thought we’d ask your advice first.”
“Of course, we’d pay you for your time,” Harold added quickly as he shot Nora a concerned glance. “We wouldn’t want you to feel we’re taking advantage.”
“You wouldn’t be taking advantage,” Nora replied. “And there’s no need to pay me a consulting fee. I’m happy to do this for you. Now, what advertising do you already do?” Nora asked.
“At the moment, we just run ads in the Clover Creek Weekly.”
Clara went to get a sample to show Nora. The ad consisted of a black-and-white photo of the interior of the store, and a rather fuzzy picture of Clara and Harold and several of their employees. Unfortunately, the vast selection of quality merchandise and the charm and friendliness of the store did not come through.
Clara frowned and wrung her hands. “It’s bad, isn’t it?”
“It could be a little more on target,” Nora offered gently. “But that’s something that can be fixed pretty easily. What area of the store generates the most sales for you?”
Clara and Harold exchanged baffled looks. “I really don’t know,” she said. “We keep sort of a revolving inventory. We replace items as they sell. But as for which department generates the most business or which items go the most quickly…” The Whittakers exchanged looks again, and Clara finished, “We really couldn’t say.”
“Well—” Nora said as the electricity came back on with a snap, and they all smiled and cheered.
“Hallelujah,” Harold said. “Now we really can get down to business. Please continue, Nora.”
“First, we need to identify your customer base,” she said as Clara walked around the kitchen to switch off the lights that were no longer needed and the television set.
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