A Time to Forgive

by Kay Correll

  He didn’t even kiss her good night.

  Which was probably a good thing. Right?

  It probably would have been a great idea to get some sleep... if only he could actually, you know, fall asleep. He lay in bed and stared up at the ceiling.

  What was he doing?

  Why had he actually kissed Bree? And, wow, had he kissed her. So many times. It was like he couldn’t get enough of her.

  But he knew better than this. She was leaving. He’d long ago made a promise to himself to never get in the position where someone would leave him again. Especially leave him voluntarily. It was bad enough when they died and left him...

  He shouldn’t be breaking his rule. He shouldn’t.

  Yet visions of her face and her lips danced before his eyes. How was he supposed to have resisted when she asked if he was going to kiss her?

  He was weak, that was it. Weak.

  He rolled over on his stomach and buried his face in his pillow, wanting to scream. He rolled onto his side and stared out his bedroom window. The snow was still coming down. He had a busy day tomorrow. He glanced at the clock. Correction, a busy day today. He groaned and tried to will himself to sleep.

  But the minutes kept ticking by, taunting him.

  Chapter 18

  Bree awoke the next morning and looked around, confused for a moment on where she was. The sound of a motor outside the cabin caught her consciousness. She looked down at the flannel shirt she was wearing.

  Jason’s cabin.

  She quickly got up and got dressed. With a brief look in the mirror and some finger combing of her hair, she headed out to the main room. “Jason?”

  No answer. She headed into the kitchen. Beside the coffee pot was a note telling her he’d be back to get her soon. He was getting a head start on plowing the roads.

  She poured herself a cup of coffee and walked over to look out his window. The snow had tapered off, and a blanket of white covered the banks of Sweet River. It was magical looking. She’d so missed the snow.

  She finished the coffee and rinsed the cup. She could certainly pull on her boots and walk herself home. She scribbled a note to Jason and walked outside.

  She sank into the snow and realized it was up over her boots. Maybe her whole idea that she could walk back to her place was a bit ambitious. She should wait until the roads were clear, right?

  She saw that Jason had plowed the main road at the lodge. Maybe she should go see if Nora needed help at the dining room.

  But then Nora would know she’d spent the night here. At Jason’s. Yes, they were grown adults and nothing had happened, but suddenly she felt like a high school girl sneaking around.

  She trudged through the snow, down the pathway, and headed to the road that cut through the lodge property. When she got to the road, she saw Jason down the road a bit, plowing the snow. She walked down the road toward him until he noticed her.

  He pulled up near her, turned off the motor, and jumped down. “Morning. Did you find your coffee?”

  “I did, thanks. I was going to walk back home but...” She pointed to her boots. “It’s pretty deep. Did they plow the main road yet?”

  “Not yet.”

  She stood there wondering if he was going to kiss her, but he didn’t. He remained a good distance away from her. He tugged off his gloves as if they were the most interesting things to look at in the world.

  “I need to get the lodge plowed and shovel the steps to the dining room. Then we’ll see if the main road is plowed and I’ll get you home.”

  “I could help shovel.”

  Jason eyed her. “You sure?”

  “Yep.” She wasn’t really sure. The snow was deep, and she hadn’t shoveled snow in years, but at least she could help.

  “Shovel is beside the front door to the lodge.”

  “I’ll head there now.”

  “I’ve got a few more roads to plow here, then I’ll be over.” With that, he turned away from her.

  She watched while he climbed back on the plow and headed away. She frowned.

  No kiss. No smile. No jokes.

  Something was off. She could feel it.

  She turned and walked to the dining hall, grabbed the shovel and started in. Before long she was hot and tired. Her arms and shoulders ached from scooping and tossing the heavy snow.

  Nora came out of the dining hall. “Bree, what are you doing?”

  “Shoveling?” Her word came out in a gasp.

  “Give me that.” Nora took the shovel from her grasp. “You come in and get some coffee or hot chocolate. Jason can finish this up when he gets done plowing.”

  “I can get this...” She looked at the long pathway to the steps. She’d only cleared the steps and a few yards of the pathway with all her efforts.

  “He got a new snowblower a month or so ago. He can use that to clear the pathway. Come inside.”

  Well, that would have been a good piece of information. She could have quit once she’d conquered the steps...

  She gratefully accepted Nora’s offer and followed her inside. She shrugged off her coat, overcome with the heat in the reception area of the lodge.

  Nora smiled. “Shoveling kind of gets you heated up, doesn’t it?”

  “I’ll say.”

  “How did you get over here anyway? The snow is so deep. The main road isn’t plowed yet, is it?”

  And there it was. The question she didn’t want to answer. She squirmed then looked at Nora. “I... uh... I stayed the night at Jason’s. His truck wouldn’t start, and it was such a whiteout with the storm.”

  “Smart choice.” Nora nodded and headed to the kitchen.

  Bree stood there for a moment, stunned. Smart choice? She shook her head and followed Nora to the kitchen.

  Jason said barely a word as he drove her back to her cabin. Thoughts raced through her mind. He regretted last night. It had to be that. It was impossible to ignore the distance he was putting between them.

  Like she’d always heard... don’t mix friendship and romance because you might just end up losing a good friend.

  He pulled up in front of the cabin and she opened the door. “Thanks for the ride.”

  “No problem.”

  She slipped out of the truck and turned to look at him. The look on his face was so obvious, she knew him that well. Regret clouded his eyes. His jaw was set in a firm look of determination.

  “Jason—”

  “I’d better go. Mom needs me at the lodge. I’ve got a lot more work to do.”

  She nodded and closed the truck door before watching him drive away.

  They had connected last night, and he’d awoken unexpected feelings inside of her. Thawed her. He was a great kisser, and she’d enjoyed every minute of last night, but nothing was worth losing him as a friend.

  She just hoped she hadn’t already.

  Life got complicated sometimes...

  “Hey, Mom.” Cody stood in the doorway. “I shoveled the drive. It was kind of fun. Never shoveled snow before.”

  She smiled and walked to the cabin. “I bet if you lived here all the time you’d get tired of it.”

  “Maybe.” He grinned.

  She followed him inside. Cece stood in front of the glass front cabinet of their mother’s, boxes and newspaper at her feet.

  “Do you want any of this? I kind of hate to give it away.” Cece turned to her.

  “Mom did have quite the collection of teacups and stemware and plates, didn’t she?”

  “It’s all such a mismatch, but somehow she always made it all look like it worked together when she used them.” Cece picked up a wine glass with flowers etched into it.

  She shrugged off her coat and went to join her sister. “And this was one of my favorite teacups of hers. Love the tiny purple flowers.” She traced her finger over the fine china.

  “I was going to pack this all up to donate... but I think I want to keep some of it. I don’t have a need for it, so it seems foolish, but I want to keep som
e of it.”

  “I do, too. Let’s each pack up a box for ourselves, then we’ll finish up boxing the rest for donating.”

  They cleared the cabinet and ended up sitting on the floor, wrapping up the last of the stemware and putting it in the last box.

  Cece paused in wrapping a sheet of bubble wrap around a glass and glanced over at Cody sitting at the table. “So... you stayed with Jason last night?” She kept her voice low.

  “I stayed at his cabin. Not with him.”

  “Mm-hmm...” Cece carefully wrapped the glass and set it in the box. “And that’s all?”

  “That’s all.”

  “You’re lying.” Cece grinned.

  “What?”

  “You have those two spots of pink on your cheeks and you keep shoving that lock of hair behind your ear. It’s your tell, sis. It means you’re hedging the truth.”

  “I...” She glanced over at Cody and whispered. “Okay, well he might have kissed me last night.”

  “I told you he liked you.” A self-satisfied look crossed her face.

  “But then today he totally ignored me. Totally. He’s... well, I can tell he regrets it. And maybe now we’ve messed up our friendship.”

  “Or maybe you just need to give it some time.” Cece wrapped another glass and handed it to Bree to put in the box.

  “We don’t really have time, though. I’m leaving as soon as we get the house ready. And we’re getting close.”

  And suddenly she didn’t want to be finished with the house repairs and the packing. She didn’t want to think of the cabin not being theirs any longer. Her heart clenched in her chest, and a feeling of loss washed over her.

  “Cece... I...” She sprung to her feet. “Let’s take a break.”

  “You don’t have to say that twice.” Cece crawled up from the floor and stretched. She glanced at her watch. “Oh, Petey called. He’s coming for the weekend. His Friday class was cancelled, so he’s driving over this evening. That’s okay with you, isn’t it?”

  “Of course.” Bree headed to the kitchen with Cece right behind her. “Besides, he’s the best painter of all of us.”

  “Years of experience. I swear he wanted his room a different color every year. I finally said he had to do it himself. So he did. And he’d paint my room, the kitchen, any room I wanted. And he’s pretty handy at repairs, too. Dad taught him all of that.”

  A pang shivered through Bree. Her father could have shown Cody how to do all that too. And shown him all about photography, another passion of his. But because of her stubbornness, none of that had happened.

  She drew a glass of water, and stood looking out the window as she sipped the cool liquid. After they sold the cabin, she’d never stand here at this sink and look out the window at the pine trees and the birds flying overhead. She’d never sit out by the lake and watch the sunset. She might never even return to Sweet River Falls.

  Cody came into the cabin and stood beside her. “It’s a great view, isn’t it?”

  “It really is.”

  “I’m glad I got to come and see the cabin and Sweet River Falls. You know, before you sell it.”

  “It’s harder than I thought to sell this place, but we really can’t keep it. Can’t afford to.”

  “That’s a shame. I wish...” His voice trailed off.

  “You wish, what?” She turned to look directly at him.

  “I wish I’d come here as a kid. Like Petey. I wish I’d known my grandparents better. Pete was telling me some great stories about going out fishing with Granddad.”

  “Cody, I’m sorry, too. I’m sorry I pulled away from my family. I’m sorry you didn’t get to experience all of that growing up. It’s totally on me. My fault. I just closed off from everyone when it happened.”

  “Kind of like how you closed off from me when Dad left you?”

  Her jaw dropped, and she set her glass carefully on the counter before she had a chance to drop it. “I—” She reached out and touched his face. “I didn’t do that, did I?”

  “You did. I felt like you pulled away and kind of like I lost both of you when Dad moved out.”

  “Oh, Cody, I’m so sorry.”

  “I know, Mom. I know it was hard on you. It was hard on me, too. I finally decided to go live with Dad and give you your space. I was afraid I was a constant reminder of Dad. I guess that’s how you felt about Petey, too, huh? A constant reminder of Peter?”

  She sagged against the counter. “Oh, I’m just so sorry you felt that way. I didn’t mean to pull away.” But she had. She could see that clearly now that he’d pointed it out. Once again she’d made it about herself, what Brian leaving her had done to her. Her pain. She really wasn’t liking seeing this side of herself.

  “Cody, I don’t know how I can ever make it up to you. I can’t. But I am sorry. I hope now we can... I don’t know... find a way to get back to what we had?”

  “It’s cool, Mom. I’m fine. I’m just... tired of living with Dad and feeling like I’m an imposition.”

  “You are always welcome to live with me. Always.”

  He looked at her, and she wasn’t sure if she saw gratefulness or skepticism. “Maybe we’ll talk about it later, okay?”

  “That would be fine. Whenever you want to talk.” She took a step closer to him and wrapped him in a hug. “I love you so much.”

  “Love you too, Mom.” He settled down at the table to work on his photos again.

  She turned to look out the window. She had so dreaded coming to the cabin. Being here again. But surprisingly, coming back to this cabin had made such a difference in her life, as if it wanted to help her heal.

  A knock at the door broke through her thoughts and she went to answer it.

  “Hey.” Jason stood in the doorway.

  “Hi, come on in.” She stood aside for him to enter.

  “Hey, Jason.” Cece came to stand beside her, then turned and said, “I’ll be in the kitchen if you need me.”

  “I do need you,” Jason said.

  Cece stopped.”What?”

  “I have such a big favor to ask you two.”

  “What’s that?” Bree eyed him.

  “We have a wedding at the lodge this weekend. Saturday. And the bride just called. The caterer she hired had a fire and cancelled on her. She asked if Mom could help out with the food as best she could.” He turned to Bree. “Please, can you help her? Can you pull something together by Saturday night?”

  Bree shook her head. “That doesn’t give us much time.”

  “So you’ll do it?” Jason reached out and took her hand. “Please?”

  “Yes, I’ll do it.” She turned to Cece. “You want to help?”

  “Of course I will.”

  “Tell your mother I’ll be glad to help. Let me get some thoughts together on what we could do so last minute and give me the bride’s phone number.”

  “The bride is at the lodge already.”

  “All right. I’ll come and talk to her now.”

  “I really appreciate this. I know Mom said she would do what she can, but she’s already too busy with everything.”

  Bree picked up her coat and tugged on her boots. “Let’s go. We’ll make plans with the bride, then I’ll need to go shopping first thing in the morning.”

  “I’ll take you.”

  “Fine. Let’s go.”

  She climbed into his truck and they said not a word about last night. But somehow a bit of their prior friendship seeped through. Banding together to help out at the lodge. It’s what they’d always done.

  Jason looked up and saw Beth coming into the lodge with his nephews, Trevor and Connor, trailing behind her. “Hey, sis.”

  “I called Mom and she said we have kind of an emergency here this weekend. I came to see what I can do to help.”

  Jason motioned over to where Bree was sitting at a table with the bride. “We’ve got part of it covered. Bree’s going to cater the wedding.”

  “Bree? I heard she was here in town
fixing up her parents’ cabin. She’s going to sell it, huh?”

  “Mom, we’re going to go find Grams,” Trevor interrupted.

  “She’s in the kitchen.” Jason nodded toward the kitchen door and the boys headed that direction.

  “Well, that’s handy to have her in town to help.”

  “It is.”

  “I heard her parents died in a car accident. Just like Sophie’s did. Man, that is just so tough. No warning. Both of them.”

  “Yes, I’m sure it’s a terrible blow.” Jason couldn’t imagine. It had been hard enough losing their dad, but they’d known it was coming and could say their goodbyes. He couldn’t imagine the shock of losing both parents, suddenly, at once.

  “Well, it’s lucky for Mom that she’s in town to help. I hear she has her own catering business now.”

  “No secrets in this town.”

  Bree came over to them. “Beth, hi.”

  “Hi yourself. You’re looking good. I don’t think I’ve seen you in forever.”

  “No... uh... I haven’t been around.” She turned to Jason. “I think I have a game plan for the wedding. The bride was pretty agreeable with everything. She was just grateful I could step in and help. I just need to talk to Nora for a minute.”

  “She’s in the kitchen. If you see two boys in there, chase them back out to me so you two can talk.”

  “Okay, I will.”

  Jason didn’t miss that Bree’s eyes were shining. She seemed excited to have this challenge. He watched her hurry over to the kitchen.

  “Ah, so you still have a thing for her.” Beth tilted her head.

  “What?”

  “A thing. You like her. You always did. I never knew why you didn’t ask her out. Then Peter...”

  “Yes, then Peter.”

  “So, ask her out now.”

  “It’s not that easy.” Jason frowned.

  “Because you’re always afraid to commit? Because you’re afraid people will leave you?”

  Ouch.

  “That’s life, Jason. It is. But if you always run before you give it a chance... well, you’ll die a lonely, bitter old man.”

  “I’m not bitter. Or old.”