She’d just hit End when the phone rang again. Without looking, she answered and said, “What did you forget?”
“Is this one of those boyfriend tests?” Josh asked.
She laughed, though she was secretly thrilled to hear the word boyfriend come out of his mouth. It was the first time he’d used it. “I thought you were Hailey.”
“Sorry, just me. How’s business?”
“Funny. Business is so good I’m closing up shop. Hailey’s coming over and we’re going to eat junk food and watch TV for the rest of the day.”
“She’s walking, right? It keeps swapping between snow and sleet, so the roads might be slick.”
“Yeah, she’s walking. How are things with you?”
“I’m tired of moving snow, I can tell you that. But at least it’s not the weekend, so I don’t have to deal with people canceling at the last minute. I usually reschedule them instead of refunding their deposit—which we don’t have to do, but I do when it’s Mother Nature’s fault—but we’re pretty booked. Not easy to move people around.”
She’d been wondering more about his state of mind than his reservation book, but it sounded like he was in a good mood, so she didn’t push it. He’d called her yesterday morning and told her everything was okay with his brothers, but hadn’t said much about how he felt. If not for the damn storm, she could have driven over and seen for herself, but the storm had been a little more severe than they’d forecast.
“It’s supposed to wrap up by midday tomorrow,” Josh said. “It’s my turn to do the groomer run and I was thinking I’d go out tomorrow night so I can catch up on sleep Wednesday and Thursday nights. You want to go?”
“Sure.” She’d gone out with him many times in the past, but it had been a while and she hadn’t done it at all this year. Spending six or seven hours overnight doing eight miles per hour down the trail was best done with company.
“How about if I swing by about five? We can go to the diner, grab some dinner and get Ava to fill the thermos, and then we’ll head to the clubhouse.”
“I’ll be ready.”
“I was hoping to get over to see you tonight, but it’s a mess out there. And Andy went out in the tow truck with Butch to pull morons out of ditches, so it’s just your mom.”
“I’d rather you stay home where you’re safe,” she said, and almost laughed at herself. It was a very girlfriend thing to say. “I’ll see you tomorrow, anyway.”
“Five o’clock. Good night, Katie.”
“Good night.”
She was still smiling when Hailey knocked on the window. After turning the sign around, Katie locked up and they went up to her apartment together. After shaking the snow out of their hair, they hung up their coats and put their boots on the mat she kept by the door.
“Just as I was leaving,” Hailey said, “the phone rang.”
“And you were dumb enough to answer it.”
“Yeah. Can you believe this woman threw a fit when I told her I was closing? She said she was going to call the town and file a complaint.”
Katie shook her head. “What did you do?”
“I gave her their number.” She laughed and started rummaging through the cabinets. “Doesn’t your mom send you home care packages?”
“I’m not away at college. I don’t think grown-ups get care packages.”
“Well, that sucks.” She pulled out a package of store-bought cookies. “These will do. So tell me what’s going on?”
“With what?”
“Paige told me about the offer on the lodge. And that Josh decided not to sell. How’s he doing?”
Katie shrugged, snagging a cookie out of the package. “He seems okay with it, actually. He called me right after you did and he was in a good mood, except for having to clean up all this snow.”
“So do you think he’ll be ready to commit to you now?”
“Whoa.” Katie frowned, holding up one hand. “What do you mean by commit?”
“If he’s going to stay in Whitford, he should just marry you and get it over with.”
“You’re so romantic, Hailey. One, I don’t want to be a consolation prize. And, two, there’s no talk of marriage. He just called himself my boyfriend for the first time about ten minutes ago.”
“You know, you’re not as salacious as you used to be.”
Katie laughed. “He wants me to go out in the groomer with him tomorrow night. Is that salacious enough?”
“Riding in the groomer?” She grimaced. “That’s so boring. I did that once with a guy I was trying to impress about ten years ago. The fact he thought it was the greatest date ever was the end of that relationship before it even really started.”
“Josh did mention once he had a little fantasy about me and him in the groomer.”
Hailey made a hmm sound. “That could be salacious. If it is, you’ll tell me, right?”
“Maybe.”
“Do you love Josh?”
Katie frowned, snagging another cookie. “Of course I do.”
“No, I mean do you love him, love him?”
“I’ve loved him like that for years, Hailey. You know that. And now that we’re together, yeah. It’s been harder in some ways, because now I’m not just doing it from afar. It’s messy and there’s the lodge thing and everything, but it’s worth it.”
“Even if he breaks your heart? Because I hate to say it, but refusing that offer wasn’t like some kind of fairy dust that cured his need to roam.”
“I should have sent you to voice mail. This is not fun snow-day talk.” When Hailey only waited, still giving her the look that said she was only looking out for Katie’s emotional welfare, she sighed. “Yes, it’s worth it even if he breaks my heart. Which is why I’m not overthinking it to death like you apparently are. I’m taking it day by day and if the bridge crashes and burns in front of me, I’ll cross that river when I come to it.”
Hailey tilted her head, her eyebrows almost meeting over her nose. “I think you totally screwed that up.”
“It’s the sugar rush. Now shut up and turn the TV on. See if you can find something salacious for us to watch.”
* * *
By mid-Tuesday morning, the snow had stopped falling and Josh got to work removing it all from the driveway and parking areas for the third—and hopefully last—time this storm. With Andy using the snowblower to clear the walkways, they were done by a little after noon, which was even earlier than he’d predicted.
Luckily he was better at predictions than the weatherman, who’d said four to six, so he was going to have plenty of time to jump in the shower before he picked up Katie. Spending seven hours in a groomer with a guy who smelled like sweat and two-stroke fumes probably didn’t put a woman in a loving kind of mood. He might even grab a quick power nap, since he wouldn’t be sleeping tonight.
He was whistling when he walked into the kitchen and he stopped to sniff the warm air. “Are those my special apple pies?”
“Of course.” Rose pointed to where they were cooling on the rack. She made little individual pies, pinched off at both ends, like they did at fast-food restaurants. She’d wrap them in foil he could peel back as he ate while driving. “When’s the last time you groomed the trails without my apple pies?”
“You’re too good to me, Rosie.” He kissed her cheek, but when he reached for a pie, she slapped his hand. “Still too hot. Go take a shower.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Do you want me to heat up some beef stew before you go?”
He shook his head. “I’m picking Katie up and we’re going to grab something at the diner before we head to the clubhouse.”
“You make sure you share those pies with her.”
He grinned at her over his shoulder as he left the kitchen. “Maybe, if she’s ni
ce to me.”
It was already quarter after five when he pulled up outside the barbershop and beeped his horn. He wouldn’t have been late, but halfway there when he’d realized he was so intent on seeing Katie after several days without her, he’d forgotten the pies. He had to turn around and go back for them.
He smiled when she stepped out onto the sidewalk, juggling stuff while making sure the door locked behind her. She’d remembered to dress in layers. It could be hard to regulate the heat in the groomer, because keeping the windshield clear sometimes meant overheating the cab. But other times it could get chilly and if, heaven forbid, there was a problem, she also had be prepared to stand out in the cold for hours at a time. The groomer had died on him a few years back out in the middle of freaking nowhere in a cell dead zone and he’d worked on that sucker for five hours before a passing sledder finally stopped, then rode for help.
She shoved her snowmobiling gear and her heavy sweatshirt in the backseat of the truck, along with her hat and gloves, then climbed into the passenger seat. Before she even got the door closed, he leaned over to kiss her.
“I missed you,” he said, and her face got that soft, gooey feminine look that probably should have scared him, but didn’t.
“Missed you, too. I didn’t think it was ever going to stop snowing.”
The diner parking lot was more full than he’d expected. Probably a bunch of people suffering from cabin fever after the storm had felt the need to get out. In Whitford, after business hours, there weren’t that many places to get out to.
“They’re busy for a Tuesday night,” Katie said as he backed the truck into an open spot. “Either people were sick of being inside or Gavin’s cooked up one hell of a special.”
It wasn’t the special. They overheard grumbling before they even got to an open table, and Ava looked cranky as hell when she slammed two coffee cups on their table. “The special’s some weird, tropical chicken thing. It has coconut, Josh, so don’t order it. Katie, you might like it, but fair warning—it comes served over rice, not with mashed potatoes. I swear to God, if a man in these parts doesn’t get mashed potatoes with his flippin’ supper, you’d think he was being starved half to death! Now…Josh, what do you want to eat?”
He gave her the charming Kowalski smile that usually worked pretty well on highly annoyed women. “I’ll have whatever you think I should have, Ava. And I’ll like it.”
She laughed and rested her hand on his shoulder. “I’ve always liked you boys.”
“And, if it’s not too much trouble, if you could brew a pot of coffee for the thermos, I’d appreciate it.”
“Grooming tonight, huh?” When he nodded, she tapped her pen on the order pad. “I guess you’ll be wanting a double dose of the meat loaf, then?”
“That sounds perfect. Mashed and extra gravy, and you can keep whatever the veggie is.”
“Katie, what’ll you have?”
“I’ll have a single serving of the same, please.”
Ava nodded and started to walk away, but then she leaned down to squeeze Josh’s shoulders. “I’m awful glad you’re not leaving us, Josh.”
“I hope people find somebody else to talk about soon,” he said when Ava was out of earshot. “I hate being the center of attention.”
“I’m glad you’re staying, too, you know,” Katie said quietly. “I mean, if you’d sold the lodge, I would have been happy for you, but not so much for me.”
“It’s a moot point now, anyway. I’m not going anywhere.”
“Sometimes it seems like you’re okay with that and sometimes it doesn’t.”
He didn’t see much sense in lying to Katie. “Because sometimes I am and sometimes I’m not. But mostly I am. Hey, I get to hang out with you, right?”
“Is that enough for you?”
The question hung between them, the conversation suddenly a lot more serious than he liked to have. Especially in the middle of the Trailside Diner. “For now.”
He saw a quick flash of uncertainty cross her expression, but then she smiled and seemed to shrug it off. “You wouldn’t know what to do without me, Kowalski.”
“I know I’d get bored as hell in the groomer tonight.”
She laughed and, just like that, the tension was broken. “Maybe, if you’re nice to me, I’ll sing for you.”
“Oh, please no,” he groaned. Singing was not one of Katie’s strengths. “Rosie made her special apple pies. You want me to share don’t you?”
The normal balance of their relationship restored, they talked about the usual stuff while they ate meat loaf and drank coffee. After she filled the thermos for him, Ava brought the check and Josh pulled enough cash out of his wallet to cover it.
“What are you doing?” Katie asked, holding a twenty in one hand.
“I got it.”
“We’ve always gone Dutch.”
“That was before.” He shrugged and put out his hand to help her up. “I guess you must officially be my girlfriend now.”
* * *
Once they arrived at the snowmobile club’s clubhouse and Josh opened the massive overhead door, Katie made trips back and forth between his truck and the groomer, transferring their stuff to the cab.
Josh grabbed a clipboard that hung on a nail by the door and started his inspection, which covered everything from the windshield wipers to the huge tracks that moved the thing. After she locked his truck, she put his keys in the inside pocket of her coat and zipped it up. Her dad had gone riding one year and lost his truck keys out on the trail. As far as she knew, they’d never been found, and not for a lack of looking.
Once Josh had pulled the groomer out and she’d helped him hook it to the two-ton drag, she climbed into the cab, which had as many controls and buttons as a plane cockpit, while he locked up the clubhouse. Finally they started churning their way down the trail. While she knew Josh had been through a lot of training to drive the thing, the concept was pretty simple. The blades on the groomer swept snow onto the trail and the drag packed it down. And it all happened at a crawl.
Because it was a little tricky navigating the machinery down the trail leading away from the clubhouse, Katie was quiet, which gave her mind plenty of time to wander.
I guess you must officially be my girlfriend now.
Even though it was a dumb thing to say, since his picking up the entire check did not a relationship make, there had been something in his eyes that made her wonder if he was talking about more than not going Dutch. As if not selling the lodge meant he was resigned to staying, so he might as well make his relationship with her official.
She wasn’t sure how she felt about that. On the one hand, she knew Josh wasn’t the best when it came to talking about feelings. His feelings about the Red Sox taking the pennant next year? He’d talk about that all day long and half the night. But his feelings about anything personal or intimate were generally not up for discussion.
On the other hand, as she’d told Hailey, she didn’t want to be a consolation prize. It felt like she’d come in second in a contest, then had been pronounced champion by default when the real winner was disqualified. It was silly, but part of her would probably always wish he’d had to actually step up and deliberately choose her.
“You’re awfully quiet over there.”
She shrugged. “I’m resting my voice so I can sing for you later.”
“I’ll be the first guy in the history of the club to run himself over with the groomer.”
“I’m not that bad. Give me something to talk about.”
“Andy and your mom.”
She groaned. “I’d rather not.”
“What’s the matter? I thought you were okay with Andy?”
“I am.” And she sincerely was. “It’s just weird, talking about my mom being in a romantic relationship with som
ebody. I don’t think she ever dated after my dad died. Not until Andy started visiting.”
“I don’t think she did, either. but I like him. He’s a good guy.”
“If she’s happy, I’m happy.”
Josh laughed. “If Rosie’s happy, we’re all happy.”
After Josh got quiet for a few minutes while steering the groomer through a particularly winding stretch of trail, they talked about the Celtics for a while and griped about the price of gas. By the time three hours had passed, they’d gone through most of their standard conversation topics and half of Rosie’s pies.
Katie was getting bored. And she was also thinking more and more about what she and Josh could be doing in the groomer besides flattening snow. Those thoughts were making her antsy and she was having trouble keeping up her end of the conversation.
“Okay, so no interest in the new NASCAR rules going into effect this year,” he said, and she realized he’d been talking to her. “What do you want to talk about?”
“Maybe you should tell me a little more about that fantasy of yours. The one with you and me and the groomer.” She could tell by the way he jerked his head to look at her and then shifted in his seat that it was probably a good one. “Isn’t there a wide spot in the trail just a little further up?”
“Yeah.” His voice sounded hoarse and he cleared his throat. “The trail’s narrower than usual through here, so if there’s night traffic, sleds can bottleneck behind the groomer. They cut in the pull-off so the groomer operator has room to let them go around.”
“I haven’t seen any night riders, but maybe we should take a little break. You can tell me all about it.”
By the time they reached the pull-off and Josh maneuvered the equipment off the trail, Katie was already flush with anticipation. Not only did she know she was really going to enjoy this portion of her ride-along, but there was something almost naughty about it. While it wasn’t exactly outside in the woods, it was pretty damn close.
“You’re going to need to take those jeans off before you climb over here,” Josh said the second the groomer had come to a complete stop.
All He Ever Dreamed (The Kowalskis) Page 18