Country Brides - Debbie Macomber [110]
Luke moaned, then suddenly tore his lips from hers. She felt a tremor go through him before he raised his head and gazed tenderly into her face, his eyes dark and gentle.
“Is it so difficult to say?” he asked.
Nine
“This is the second bedroom,” Mrs. Jackson was saying as she led Kate through the vacant rooms. From the moment she’d walked in the door, Kate had known that this apartment would suit her needs perfectly.
“I can’t understand why you’d be wanting a two-bedroom place, but that’s none of my business,” Mrs. Jackson went on. Her hair was tightly curled in pink plastic rollers. To the best of her ability, Kate couldn’t remember ever seeing the woman’s hair without rollers.
“What did that Rivers fellow say when you told him you were moving into town?” She didn’t wait for a response, but cackled delightedly. “Frankly, I wasn’t sure you’d show up this morning. My friend Ethel and me talked about it, and we figured Rivers would tie a rope around you and hightail it to Nevada and marry you quick. Offhand, I can’t remember who’s got money on November.”
“You said to be here before noon,” she murmured, ignoring the other comments.
“Well, if Luke didn’t stop you, I expected that snowstorm would, the one the weatherman’s been talking about for the last two days.”
“Do you really think it’s going to snow?” Kate asked anxiously. The sky had been dark all morning, and the temperature seemed to be dropping steadily. Normally Kate wouldn’t have chanced driving into town by herself with weather conditions this uncertain, but if she hadn’t come, she might have missed getting the apartment.
“If I was you, I’d stick around town for a while,” Mrs. Jackson advised. “I’d hate the thought of you getting trapped on the road in a bad storm.”
“I’m sure I’ll be all right.” She’d driven her father’s four-wheel-drive truck, and even if the storm did materialize, she shouldn’t have any trouble getting home. The Circle L was only twenty minutes away, and how much snow could fall in that time?
“Would you like me to write you a check now?” Kate asked, eager to be on her way.
“That’d be fine. There’s still some cleaning to be done, but it’ll be finished before the first of the month. Fact is, you can start moving your things in here next week if you want.”
“Thanks, I appreciate that.”
Mrs. Jackson bundled her coat around her thin shoulders as they stepped outside. She glanced at the sky and shook her pink-curlered head. “If you are going home, I suggest you do it quick. I don’t like the look of them clouds.”
“Then I’d better write that check and head out.”
No more than five minutes later, Kate was sitting in her father’s truck. The sky was an oyster gray and darkening by the minute. Shivering from the cold, she zipped her jacket all the way up to her neck and drew on a pair of fleece-lined leather gloves.
Kate started the engine and shifted the gears. The radio was set on her dad’s favorite country station and the music played softly. When she left the outskirts of town, she hit a couple of rough patches in the road and bounced so high her head nearly banged into the roof of the cab. After that she kept her speed down. She drove at a steady pace, her gaze focused on the road ahead, scanning the horizon for any sign of snow.
When she was about ten miles from the ranch, the storm began. Light, fluffy flakes whirled around the windshield. The morning sky darkened until it resembled dusk and Kate was forced to turn on the headlights.
A love song came on the radio, one the band at the Red Bull had played that fateful Friday night. The night Luke had lifted her in his arms and carried her off the dance floor. Embarrassed by the memory, she reached for the radio dial, intending to change the station.
She didn’t see the rock that had rolled onto the road, not until she was almost on top of it, and then it was