Snowbound Summer (15 page)

BOOK: Snowbound Summer

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Anne and her family were stuck in their rental car trying to find a way back to Snowline Lodge that didn't involve a flooded road. After talking to Ron, they decided their best bet was to find a hotel down in the valley near the hospital and wait for word on when Hanna could be moved to it. Ron and Kara continued to wait with Howard and the twins.

It wasn't particularly pleasant—waiting never is. But once the lodge's emergency response team was convinced to give Hanna painkillers for her hip, the tension died down considerably.

Howard and Hanna even talked a bit without growling at each other—something that Ron didn't remember happening all that often in the past twenty-five years.

When the ambulance arrived to take Hanna away, Howard surprised everyone by deciding to ride with her. When the paramedics closed the ambulance door, he was shockingly holding his wife's hand.

“I will never understand them,” Brett said. “Not even if I live to be their age!”

“I don't know what's so difficult to understand,” Kara said.

The twins and Ron turned to stare at her. “They hate each other,” Ron reminded her.

“Of course they do,” Kara said. “But they've been married more than forty years. Don't you think that under all of that anger and hate they care about each other, too?”

Ron shook his head doubtfully. “I don't know about that.”

“I do,” Kara said. “I saw your father's face when your mother fell. He was frightened...frightened for
her!"

“I need a drink,” Ron said. He started to walk back into the lodge, then remembered Brett and Marci.

“Don't mind us,” Brett suggested. “Just bring the bottle back to the cabin and we can all get drunk.”

Kara shook her head, but she didn't have to say anything. Ron had already turned his back on the lodge and the bar inside it.

He extended his hand to Kara. “Promise me,” he said, “if we ever hit that point...I mean the point when they first began to realize that they had serious problems...promise me we'll get counseling. I don't want us to end up like my parents did.”

She accepted Ron's hand, sliding her brown fingers into his white ones, enjoying the simple comfort that came with the contact. Snow still fell and it was beautiful. The whole mountainside was beautiful. It really was a good place to spend the evening with the man she loved—even considering how tough the weekend had been. “My parents needed some counseling, too,” Kara reminded him.

Ron stopped talking, turned to face Kara and cupped her cheek with his free hand. “I love you,” he whispered.

He started to lean in to kiss her but Brett's voice interrupted him.

“Hey, if you two don't mind, I think Marcie and I are going to go back to skiing. I mean, we can't help Grandma now anyway, can we? And tonight is our last chance until December or January.”

“We don't mind,” Kara answered for Ron. She looked into Ron's clear blue eyes as he leaned in to kiss her again. “In fact, we might join you later.”

Ron's mouth touched hers and for a moment his warm lips blotted out the rest of the world.

He broke the kiss much too quickly and muttered, “Much later.”

Kara didn't remember who he was talking to until Marcie giggled.

Then Ron's lips touched hers again and she forgot all about the twins and skiing and the problems in Ron's family. Instead she focused all of her attention on kissing her man.

The End

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[Back to Table of Contents]

Other Books by Veronica Tower and Red Rose Publishing

Blind Date

Christmas Wagers

House Rules

My Son's Roommat

Not Another Dateless Valentine's Da

One Night Stan

One Night Stand 2 Tricky Business

The Runaway