Don’t Fall for a Fugitive: Strong Family Romances

by Checketts, Cami

  She got more restless and nervous as the seconds and minutes kept ticking by without any sign of Heath. Not even the splendor of mountains, trees, and snow could distract her. She’d had good feelings while teasing with him, and she’d glowed at the way he’d looked into her eyes and promised to protect her, but all of that fled as doubts crept in.

  She forced herself to bow her head and pray for help. She could hardly think what to say besides help me, help me over and over again.

  The driver’s side door opened, and she yanked her head up to see a vision more appealing than any mountain sliding into the seat. Heath’s deep brown eyes offered comfort and safety. He gave her a smile, but it looked strained.

  “Is everything okay?” she asked.

  He shrugged. “There are no vacancies.”

  “It’s okay. I’ll sleep right good in the car.” She looked over her shoulder. “Plenty of space.”

  Heath chuckled. “You’re not sleeping in the car, and there are no other hotels in our valley.”

  “Do you want to take me back to Vail?” She lifted her purse. “I can pay for a hotel room, but you might need to be the one to go to the desk, just in case they already have wanted posters out for me.”

  “I’m not taking you to some hotel in Vail.” He rolled out his neck and admitted, “I’ve been going the rounds with my brother.”

  “Oh no, I made you fight.”

  “No, not like that. We don’t really fight … anymore. We’ve just been talking it out.”

  “You told him about me?”

  “If there’s any person we can trust, it’s Gav.”

  Yet the fewer people who knew where she was, the better. Fear gripped her again.

  “The problem is that most of the family is here for Christmas. Ella and Trey—my little sister and her fiancé—are getting married at the lodge on New Year’s Day, then heading to Kauai for their honeymoon.” He waved a hand. “Cassandra, Ella’s twin, is also here, and so is Stetson, my brother who’s playing football at Purdue. Then there’s Mama and Papa and our little brother, Austin. So everybody but Nick; he’s deployed and gets home in February. Anyway, you probably won’t get inundated by them all, but we do need a spot for you to stay. Ella and Cassandra are staying at Mama’s, but all the boys are at Gavin’s.” He turned to her, and his eyes were earnest. “I’m trying to make this the best possible situation for you.”

  “Heath, you have been ace, blinding …” At his blank look, she smiled and said, “You’re the best. The good Lord knew what he was doing when he left your hangar door open for me to run through.”

  He chuckled. “I hope so.” He pushed out a breath. “So Gavin has a room ready for me at his house. Here’s what we settled on. You’ll stay in the room, but I’ll have to pretend to stay there.”

  Her stomach pitched like she was on a roller coaster. Heath had been nothing but good to her, but she didn’t want to be staying in a room alone with any man.

  “I’ll sleep with Gavin, but we’ll have to do some shuffling and pretending that I’m sleeping in the room he has for me. Will that work?”

  “So we won’t be … sleeping together?”

  “No, no way.” He didn’t quite meet her gaze, keeping his eyes fixed on her nose. “I wouldn’t. I’m not … no. Please believe me, no.”

  It was endearing to see this confident, impressive man look awkward and stammer. “Thank you, Heath. Again. Thank you. Many cheers and blessings to you.”

  He smiled, looking relieved. “Now the trick is getting you into the house when no one’s around, and then hiding you until Jamison wakes up or Jed figures out how to prove you’re innocent.”

  Hiding didn’t sound like fun, but at least she would see Heath when he was pretending to be staying in her room. She tried not to dwell too much on what that would look like.

  Heath started the car, and they pulled out of the main parking lot and headed around the resort. A minute later, they pulled up to a gated slot canyon. She tilted her head and gazed at the almost sheer walls. “This is the bee’s knees!” she exclaimed.

  Heath laughed. He punched in a code, and the gate slid open. They drove into the canyon, which quickly opened up into a small valley. There were two homes a little distance apart, one an older rambler, the other a fancy, massive cabin. The mountains stretched to the sides and behind the homes.

  “I get to stay here?” she asked as Heath pulled up to the huge home. “Maybe I don’t hate that dirty dodger Brigham as much as I thought.”

  “I’ll hate him enough for the both of us.” Before she could dig more into why he hated Brigham, Heath said, “I hate to ask this of you, but would you lie in the back of the sport utility while I go figure out who’s in the house and how I can sneak you in?”

  “Sure.” She unbuckled her seat belt and moved to crawl over the seats.

  “Oh, wait.” He hurried out of the car and around to the back to open the rear hatch, and cold air rushed in. He pushed his suitcase and computer bag to one side and hurriedly put the seats down so it was flat. Then he whispered, “I’ll be right back,” before shutting the hatch again.

  Hazel scrambled over the seats, and lay flat on her back. It wasn’t too hard, and it felt good to stretch out on her back. She reached back into the front seat, grabbed her coat, and pulled it on top of her for warmth. She blooming hoped Heath wouldn’t be very long.

  Chapter Seven

  Heath walked into the delicious smell of melted chocolate and absolute chaos. Everybody but Gavin and Papa seemed to be in Gavin’s living area. He loved the layout of Gavin’s spacious house; the living room, kitchen, and dining area were all open and took up most of the main floor, except for the office and laundry room. The windows showcasing the mountains and trees outside were huge and took up a majority of the wall space. He also loved the massive, fresh pine tree in the corner—decorated, it would seem, by Austin. Similarly, the holiday decorations throughout, lights and wreaths and garlands, were obviously not done by a professional. That warmed his heart, as he knew Gavin could afford to hire it professionally done, but he’d probably worked on the decorations with Austin. His older brother was a great guy who cared deeply for his family. If only Gavin and Heath could be closer.

  He dropped his coat on a chair by the door and looked over at his family, all busy in the kitchen.

  “Heath!” Austin spotted him first and ran pell-mell into his arms.

  Heath swung his little brother off the ground and into the air before clutching him close.

  Austin’s arms tightened around his neck. “I missed you so much, bro!” he yelled.

  The rest of the family was congregating around. He shifted Austin to his left arm and enveloped his beautiful mama with his right. She cuddled in close, tears filling her dark eyes. “Oh, sweet boy. It’s been too long.” She went on tiptoes to kiss his cheek.

  “Hi, Mama.” He’d been here for one of Austin’s football games in September, but three months was definitely longer than he should stay away from his family. Things were just so busy with his resorts. Mama knew that, though. She wasn’t giving him guilt, just making sure he knew how wanted he was.

  “Move on, move on,” Ella demanded. “Time for twin sister hugs.”

  “Bossy sisters,” Austin complained, but he jumped down and hugged Mama. “I’ll hug you Mama, so you don’t miss Heath so much.”

  Heath smiled. The whole family adored Austin, and the little man their parents had adopted ten years ago was like sunshine for their family. They all needed him, and he lit everything up.

  Cassandra and Ella rushed at him, and he held a sister in each arm. Their soft hair brushed his neck on each side, and he felt a rush of gratitude for family and home. He loved them all and really did need to come more often. Things were sometimes hard between him and Gavin. They were both used to being in charge and didn’t like to give that responsibility away. Yet he could avoid getting into it with his brother on short visits.

  Stetson was next, giving him a
manly hug and pounding his shoulder. Heath had made it to two of his games this fall in Indiana, where he played wide receiver for Purdue. He was a junior and really coming into himself; he was in for most of the offensive plays and led the conference in receiving yards.

  Heath was really proud of him. “Did you get bigger?” he asked. Heath was six-one, and he could’ve sworn he hadn’t needed to look up to his brother before.

  “Naw, just faster.”

  “Well, I saw that at your games.”

  “Did you watch more than the ones you came to?” Stetson was a tough, borderline cocky kid, but he had a vulnerable side he didn’t show many people.

  “Of course. I streamed every one. You’re amazing, bro. I wouldn’t miss a game.”

  “Thanks.” Stetson kind of ducked his head and backed away.

  Trey came forward with his hand outstretched. Gavin and Trey had been best friends as long as Heath could remember, and Trey was like part of the family. Heath shook his hand and clapped him on the shoulder. The last time he’d seen his future brother-in-law was at Austin’s game. Trey had proposed that same day.

  “Good to see you, man,” Heath said. “Congrats on the upcoming wedding.”

  “It is congrats for me. I’m going to have that angelic beauty as my wife.”

  Ella wrinkled her nose, but her pretty face lit up. “A sassy beauty. Nobody ever mistook me for an angel.”

  “I always do.” Trey wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close.

  “Yeah, none of the rest of us did,” Stetson piped in.

  “Stetson,” Mama reprimanded.

  “Well, Mama,” Austin said in defense of his brother, “you gotta admit Ella’s the spice and Cassie is the sugar.”

  Cassie smiled, but she looked uncomfortable. She didn’t like attention on her and spent her life traveling the world on one humanitarian mission or another. Gavin and Stetson sponsored her, and they’d recently discussed how they were just waiting for her to ask them to take it to the next level, setting up a foundation or maybe starting an orphanage somewhere. They’d talked about how they’d be more than willing to do it for her. She really was a ministering angel.

  “I’ll take Ella’s sugar any day.” Trey winked and bent down, kissing her softly.

  “Gah!” Stetson grabbed a decorative pillow off the couch and chucked it at them, catching Trey in the side of the head.

  Trey grunted in surprise but didn’t get upset, which was pretty typical of him. The guy always had a smile on his face. He was the perfect balance for Ella’s spice and for Gavin’s more serious nature.

  “Hey!” Ella protested, picking it up and throwing it back. “You don’t interrupt sugar, loser.”

  “See?” Stetson winked at Austin. “Sassy!”

  Everyone laughed.

  “Come in the kitchen.” Mama gestured. “We’re dipping chocolates.”

  “Where’s Papa?”

  “He’s resting. We wore him out this morning with a huge breakfast at the house and watching highlights of Stetson’s games,” Ella explained, taking Trey’s hand and walking toward the kitchen.

  Everyone fell into step. Heath worried about his dad. They all did. He’d been in a skiing accident over ten years ago and was paralyzed from the waist down. It’d been hard for him to adjust from his active lifestyle to being bound to a wheelchair. During the past year, he’d seemed to catch every illness going around and was tired a majority of the time.

  The kitchen had grey-and-white swirled granite countertops and a coordinating rough brick backsplash that decorated any walls that weren’t covered by cabinets or windows. He loved Gavin’s house. Heath’s own houses, one near each of his resorts, were all larger and professionally designed and decorated, but this house had the feeling of family in it, and the gorgeous mountains surrounding them would always be Heath’s home. The sun was dipping toward the mountains to the west, making the little valley sparkle like an icy wonderland.

  Mama went right back to work dipping caramels, while Ella and Trey mixed a peanut butter center and Cassie and Stetson worked on a lemon cream. Austin looked like he was trying to help Mama, but he was dribbling chocolate everywhere and popping chocolates in his mouth when Mama wasn’t looking.

  Heath washed his hands, his mind scheming how to get back outside to Hazel. She was definitely not going to be able to come inside anytime soon, unless he wanted to explain who she was and why she was here to the entire family. He looked out the windows. It was cold, and nightfall was fast approaching. He’d left his suitcase outside for an excuse. Maybe he’d better use it. “I’m going to run get my suitcase and bring it in before it gets dark,” he said.

  “I’ll come with you!” Austin hollered, licking chocolate off his hands and dancing to Heath’s side. He extended a hand, grinning impishly up at him. There was no world where Heath could tell the little man no, especially with Mama beaming at the two of them. He knew this was Mama’s most joyous time, having her children home.

  With Christmas days away, it would be nonstop craziness around the house and the lodge, but Heath had looked forward to it with only a little bit of trepidation. He thought he and Gavin had discussed the situation with Hazel very calmly. Heath had only raised his voice a couple of times when Gavin questioned if he should’ve brought Hazel here. He was defensive and protective of her already, and of course Gavin was defensive and protective of the family, as he should be, but Hazel would never hurt anyone. Brigham definitely would, and Heath prayed he hadn’t brought darkness to this light-filled valley if Brigham somehow followed Hazel.

  Heath extended his hand, and Austin clasped it. The little man’s hands were half the size of Heath’s. It was fun to hold his hand and reconnect with his youngest brother. Austin had been adopted right around the time Papa had his accident. They’d all fallen in love with the dark-eyed, golden-haired chubby baby. He was skinny now but tall for a ten-year-old. He’d kept his golden-brown hair and those big brown eyes, and a sprinkling of freckles had popped up across his nose. He was as fun and mischievous as any youngest brother of a large family should be.

  “What have you been up to?” Heath asked as they walked to the front door. They passed the couch, and he deftly grabbed a soft throw blanket off of it and balled it in his other hand. Glancing back, he saw Mama staring at him, but she didn’t say anything.

  “Football is toast, but it’s ski season, so that’s good. Plus we got hockey starting up. I’m gonna be as good as Jag Parros someday.”

  Heath smiled. Jag Parros was a friend of Nick’s and had grown up in their valley. He currently played for the Boston Bruins and was an incredible and aggressive center.

  “I’ve got to get better on the ice though. We hike to the lake whenever we can, but we have to go all the way to Vail for ice time at the arena. I don’t know why we can’t just practice on our lake, but I get to be with my friends and Gav is my coach. Gav’s always my coach.”

  Heath pushed the door open, his mind scrambling to figure out how to keep Austin from seeing Hazel. “Is Gav a good coach?”

  The cold hit them with full force. Heath had left his coat inside, and Austin didn’t have one on either. The cold didn’t seem to bother Austin, though.

  The kid stared up at him with wide eyes, and his mouth dropped open. “Is he good? He’s the best! He’s the best bro in the whole world. We have so much fun. I get to live with him all the time now, and he takes me to school and picks me up and coaches me and we lift weights together.” He paused to take a breath and flex. “See? And he cooks me bacon or sausages most mornings, and he lets me sleep on his floor and sings to me if I have nightmares.”

  Maybe Heath should have been jealous that Austin adored Gavin so much, but he thought it was great. Gavin had never left the valley, giving up a football scholarship to be here for Mama, Papa, and Austin and run the resort. He was just surprised Gavin had time to be a surrogate father to Austin. Running a busy year-round resort wasn’t easy. Heath should know, as he ran four.
He’d tried to get everything in line for the next two weeks so he could focus on family, but he’d planned on working on the plane. He’d have to work tonight and early tomorrow morning to catch up.

  They reached the Audi, and Heath still didn’t have a good plan to ensure Austin wouldn’t see Hazel. He was a busybody, this one. “That’s great, bud,” Heath said. “Is Mama helping Gavin with the resort more?”

  “Nah, Papa’s kind of demanding.” He pulled a face, not trying to be disrespectful but probably quoting someone. “Ella’s been awesome since she fell in love and moved home. Gav says she’s so good at marketing they don’t have any vacancy, and she’s all organized and stuff, so Gav has more time to be the best bro.” His dark eyes lit up. “Maybe you need to hire Ella too; then you could come see me more and be a better bro.”

  That tugged at his heart. Heath bent down low and squeezed the kid. “I do need an Ella around so I can see you more, but it sounds like she’s busy with Gav.” It had been really smart of Gavin to hire Ella. He knew Gavin had done it because Ella wanted to be close to home, but she was really smart and organized. Heath had great managers and employees at his resorts, but there were just some things he couldn’t pass off to someone he didn’t trust implicitly. “Maybe I can fly you to see me more often,” Heath suggested.

  “Yes! I love your private jet, bro. Is it fun being a loaded rich dude?”

  Heath chuckled. “Sometimes fun, mostly a lot of work.”

  His stomach sank as he said it. He loved what he did, but he was insanely busy. Besides his family and some friends like Jed that he could go ski with or join for a game of pickup basketball, he wasn’t forming any lasting attachments, especially splitting his time between four locations.

  “Hey.” He lowered his voice conspiratorially, pushing thoughts away that would’ve given Mama even more fodder to push him toward marriage. She often hinted that settling down with the right woman was a good thing. “Do you want to make some snowballs while I grab my suitcase? We’ll sneak them inside and pelt Trey and Stetson.”