Christmas Undercover

“Yes. They want to know what I saw, and what I heard.”

“Did you hear anything?”

“Yes.”

He waited.

“I shouldn’t involve you further,” she said.

“How can I help you if I don’t know what’s going on?”

“I would never forgive myself if you, or your girls, were threatened because of your association with me,” she said.

She was a strong, determined woman, and an honorable one, as well. He couldn’t fault her for that.

She yawned and pulled the blanket tight around her shoulder. She hadn’t coughed in the past few hours, so he felt hopeful she wouldn’t come down with pneumonia.

“Perhaps we should sleep,” he suggested. “To be fresh for tomorrow. We’ll need to hike a bit to find a cell signal.”

“Okay, sleep sounds...good.” She yawned again.

Although he knew sleep would help him function tomorrow, he doubted he could relax enough to drift off. He decided to brainstorm the necessary steps to get them safely back to town.

As options whirled in his brain, exhaustion took hold, making his mind wander to other things like his girls, his latest work assignment, Megan’s death and the gray cloud of grief that hung over his house for so many months afterward. Could he have done something differently to help his girls adjust? No, ruminating about the past wouldn’t help him raise his girls with love and compassion.

Sara squeaked and squeezed his hand. She must have fallen asleep. Will focused on the feel of her cool skin clinging to him, and decided he’d been given another chance to help someone.

And he wasn’t going to blow it this time.

* * *

When Sara awoke, it took her a minute to figure out where she was, and whose hand she clung to.

Will.

Embarrassed, she considered pulling abruptly away, but didn’t. She wanted another moment of peace, and it felt so comforting to be holding on to him.

He slept on his back, breathing slow and steady. She envied him for such a peaceful sleep. Since childhood she’d struggled with nightmares that often left her feeling exhausted in the morning.

With a sigh, he blinked open his eyes as if he knew she was watching him. He turned his head toward her.

“Good morning,” he said, his voice hoarse.

“Good morning.”

“Did you sleep okay?”

It was then that she realized she hadn’t been plagued by nightmares. “Yeah, actually, I did.”

“Good.” He eyed his watch. “It’s eight. We must have needed the sleep.” He stood and offered his hand.

“I’m good,” she said.

“Want me to make coffee?”

“That would be great.” Sara climbed out from beneath the bed and stretched. “Uhh,” she moaned. Her body ached from her fingertips to her toes.

“Hey, easy there.” He went to her, touching her arm to help her sit in the chair.

“I’m okay, just sore.” She looked up into his eyes. “Coffee will make it better.”

“You got it.”

A sudden pounding on the door made her gasp.

FIVE (#ulink_e13297cc-7eb2-5562-8e64-0151d8deeb79)

“Where’s the gun?” Sara said, anxiety rolling through her stomach.

“Outside in the wood container.”

The pounding continued.

Will grabbed a log from the woodpile by the fireplace and motioned for Sara to get behind him. But she was no weakling, and no matter what injuries she’d sustained, she wasn’t going to let Will fight this battle for her. He’d done enough.

Ignoring the pain of her injured wrist, she also grabbed a log and got on the other side of the door. If someone broke it down, he was going to get an unpleasant welcome.

The muffled sound of men talking on the other side of the door echoed through the thick wood. There were more than one of them? Not good. How had they found the isolated cabin? Then again, Bill had found it easily enough.

Another knock made her squeeze the wood so tight a sliver edged its way into her forefinger.

“Will? Will, you in there?” a male voice called.

“Nate?” Will dropped the log and reached out for the door.

Sara darted in front of him.

“Nate’s a friend of mine, a cop,” Will said. “It’s okay.”

She didn’t step out of his way. She trusted Will but didn’t trust the situation. It was too much of a coincidence that Will’s friend happened to be hiking nearby.

“Sara, it’s okay,” Will said, touching her shoulder. “Trust me.”

Maybe it was his gentle tone, or the sincerity of his rich green eyes that eased her worry. With a nod, she stepped aside, but didn’t drop the log.