Secretly Smitten (30 page)

CHAPTER SIX

A
fter the festivities of Christmas Day were over, everyone had gone home except for Anna’s mother, Rose.

“That was a lovely Christmas dinner, dear,” Rose said. “Are you all right? You look a bit worried about something.”

“I’m going out to the barn to check on the sheep with Michael.”

“And?”

“And what? I’m just a little nervous about spending time with him like that.”
Nervous
was putting it mildly.

“You’re just going to a barn, not out to dinner.” Rose took her daughter’s hand and gave it a pat. “I know it’s hard to forget the harsh words Joe said to you.”

“Harsh? He told me I looked like a cow in my blue dress.” Her throat closed at the memory. “Always said my hair was too short or too thin or too mousy. Of course, he compared me to his latest f ling—and she was always at least ten years younger. How could I measure up?”

Rose pulled Anna into a full embrace, then stepped back and with her hands on Anna’s shoulders looked her in the eye. “That was Joe. This is Michael. And you know as well as I do Michael isn’t anything like that.”

“I don’t know that at all. I barely know Michael. I thought Joe was special too, and my life was miserable.”

“Take your time. Get to know Michael. But don’t shut him out without giving him a chance. You have to allow yourself to love again, Anna.”

“He’s a friend, Mom. That’s all he is, and that’s all he’ll ever be.”

Her mother sighed and glanced at her watch. “Well, I should be going. Think about what I said?”

“All right.” Closing the door behind her mother, Anna leaned on it and sighed. She knew she was capable of love. But would she ever be able to trust a man again?

Michael leaned in toward the windshield to get a better view as the wiper blades brushed away the falling snow. “Boy, it’s really starting to come down. We’ll run in, feed and water the sheep, then head back to the truck. Sound good?”

Anna gave a nod, but the thought of facing the snow and cold was daunting.

“Let’s go.” The truck doors protested, cold steel upon cold steel. The howling wind chased Anna and Michael forward. Long icicles clung to the eaves of the barn. The old building rattled and groaned against the wind. Anna pulled her scarf closer to her neck, then tucked the sides further into the nape of her coat. Cold air nipped at their gloved fingers and the tip of her nose, while snowflakes slipped onto their eyelashes, coating them in lacy white.

Out of breath from running and the cold, they found refuge in the barn.

Anna turned and saw Michael starting up the new wood-burning stove that stood in the middle of the barn.

“Did you install that since we were out here last?”

“Well, I had it installed,” he said, reaching into a pile of cut logs and loading a couple into the potbellied stove.

“But why? You don’t even live here.” Anna handed him another stick of wood.

Michael shrugged. “I thought if it got too cold, I’d come watch over the sheep and turn on the stove to keep us all warm.”

A bold and tender gesture. Her resolve against this man was melting.

They turned around at the same time to find the sheep out of the large stall, bleating and staring at them.

“The latch on that stall doesn’t work. I’ll have to fix that,” Michael said. “In the meantime, we’ll put them in individual stalls to keep them out of trouble.”

“Michael, there are only three. Where’s the fourth?” Anna scanned every nook, cranny, and stall for the lost sheep. It couldn’t be out there in that storm.

“It has to be here somewhere,” Michael said.

After a thorough look in the barn, Anna pointed out a small back door that was open partway. A paint can blocked it from opening more or the barn would have been North Pole cold.

“What are we going to do? I haven’t even paid for those sheep yet.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll go out and look for him. He might have ventured into the woods behind us.”

“Not the woods!” Anna straightened her hat and scarf. “I’m going with you. They’re my sheep, and I’m responsible.”

Michael held her arm as they tromped through the snow and stepped into the cold forest where the wind whined and raced through the frigid trees.

“Here, sheep,” Anna called out, wishing she had taken Zoe’s advice and named the animals. Not that sheep probably came to their names being called.

“You all right?” Michael assisted her over a fallen log.

If only her fingers weren’t so numb from the cold. She nodded, bracing against the chill, praying the little sheep was all right and that they would find him. “Did you hear that?” She tipped her head and listened.

“I hear it!” Michael said. “This way.”

They found the sheep caught in a wild bush, and Anna watched as Michael released it from its entrapment.

“Poor thing,” Anna said.

They urged the sheep forward. Snowflakes filled the air, making it hard to see. Anna’s lungs ached from the piercing cold, and her legs couldn’t carry her fast enough. She was certain if someone bumped her, she would break into little frozen bits. Fortunately, they were soon within the warm confines of the barn. Once they got the sheep into their stalls, Michael turned to her.

“You stay here. I’ll go start the truck and get it warm before we leave.” He went outside.

Anna talked to the sheep, petting their bulky wool until Michael stepped back into the barn.

“I’m afraid I’ve got some bad news,” he said. “The truck is dead. We’ll have to call someone to get us.”

Anna took in a quick breath. “My cell phone is out of power. I meant to charge it last night but I forgot.”

“No problem, I’ll use mine,” Michael said, his hands rummaging through his pants and coat pockets. A moment later he looked up. “I don’t have it. I’ll bet I left it at your house.”

Panic fringed Anna’s insides. She couldn’t stay here. Alone. With Michael Conners.

“What are we going to do?”

“We’ve got the stove to keep us warm, so we’ll be all right until someone notices we’re missing. At least the kids heard us make plans to come out here.”

“This is like being caught up in an episode of
Little
House
on
the
Prairie
,” Anna said.

Michael laughed as he loaded up the woodstove with more kindling and logs. Warmth swept through the room, and Anna could feel her body and her attitude starting to thaw. Michael laid some heavy blankets on the floor for them to sit on near the stove.

“Sitting on the floor isn’t all that comfortable, but maybe we’ll be all right till someone gets here,” Michael said.

Anna held her cold fingers out to the fire. “I’m so glad you put in this stove or we’d freeze!”

“I have to admit I kind of hoped we’d find ourselves out here like this.”

“You mean you planned this? The dead truck and the missing cell phone?”

“No.” He laughed. “But I’m not saying I’m above it either. There’s no one else I’d rather be trapped in a barn full of sheep with, Anna.”

“I’m not sure that’s a compliment.”

“It is. Hey, you still look cold.” Michael got up to load more wood into the fire. “I can’t get any more wood in there. Hopefully you’ll warm up soon.”

“Is that another blanket over there?” Anna asked, pointing to the slip of red and yellow peeking from a wooden box near the back wall.

“So it is!”

She got up and went to retrieve the blanket. It was underneath a heavy toolbox, so she struggled to pull it out, then turned around and came nose to nose with Michael. A half step back was all she could manage because of the box behind her. Michael didn’t move.

“I thought you might need help.” His eyes held hers.

Without saying another word, Michael leaned his head toward Anna. For one blessed, glorious moment she forgot her reservations and gave herself fully to the kiss, lingering in the smell of wood on his clothes, the taste of peppermint on his soft lips, the strong embrace of his arms. When she pulled away, it took her a moment to focus, caught up as she was in a hazy mist of dreams.

“Thank you,” Michael said, his eyes never leaving hers.

“For what?”

“For the kiss. I’ve wanted to kiss you for quite some time.”

Though she didn’t realize it until right at that moment, Anna knew she had wanted that too. Emotions swirled within her. She didn’t know what to say or do. She went back and settled into her seat on the floor, wrapped in blankets—though she was warmer now.

Much warmer.

Had he been out of line to kiss her? Michael tossed the thought around in his mind while he and Anna sat in the silence, listening to the wood snap and crackle in the stove.

“It’s been a great day, a great Christmas,” Michael said, studying her.

Anna kept her gaze on the flames in the stove. “It truly has.” She turned to him and smiled.

“Haven’t seen a snowstorm like this in a while,” he said.

Her cheeks were rosy, her eyes dreamy. “Despite the frustrations, I love the snow. It’s so beautiful.”

This woman captivated him with her appreciation of the little things in life.

“My wife hated the snow. After my retirement, she wanted to head for Florida.” He looked up. “Never happened.”

“That must’ve been hard.”

“It was hard. So sudden. No time to prepare, you know?”

She nodded.

“Then that thing with my son on top of it all. Well, it took me to my knees.”

Anna didn’t say anything, and embarrassment flickered up Michael’s midsection. He’d said too much. “Oversharing,” he’d heard someone call it. Something he never did—until now.

“My husband didn’t die, but despite how bad our marriage was, I hadn’t expected him to leave.”

“Where is he now?”

“Living in Arizona with his girlfriend-turned-wife.”

“I’m sorry, Anna. I can’t imagine any man doing that to you.” He reached out and cupped her soft hand in his own.

She looked up at him. “I’m scared, Michael.”

“Me too.”

“It’s hard to trust again.”

“I know,” he said. “All I’m asking for is a chance.”