14. Clay

CHAPTER 14

Clay

“ I can’t believe you weren’t going to put any of this up.” I watch as she lays the garland along the mantle. Some of this stuff is from Texas, and the other was left by the previous owners. When we were in the barn, she attempted to move the ladder to climb up to the higher shelves. No way I’d let that happen. I picked her up, planted her feet on the ground, and got every single box down. Clementine went through everything, then started carrying it to the side-by-side with a look in her eyes telling me to go ahead and say something. I followed her lead, grabbing the containers and helping her load them up. Now here we are. I’m cooking dinner while she decorates. This is clearly her domain in the house. She dove in the minute we had everything inside. Nala is curled in a ball on the ground, refusing to use the dog bed I bought her. Jasmine is tucked in beside them, and Clementine has Christmas music playing softly in the background.

“Sweetheart, no reason to do much with it just being me up here on the mountain. Not like I have many friends surrounding me. Those are in Wyoming, and while they invited me, I’d only settled here a few months ago, and the last thing I wanted was to haul my animals along for the ride.” She ties a ribbon in three different spots, on the ends and in the middle where it’s gathered.

“You don’t have anyone here who would stay with them?” she asks, oblivious to the fact that I keep to myself more than most do in this town.

“Nah, not many friends up this way besides Hank. And he likes my money more than me.” She tosses her head my way. “He works at the tractor supply store. The man is always trying to upsell me on a new piece of equipment,” I explain further. “There’s also Winston Nash, the realtor who sold me this place. Almost made a phone call to rip his head off.”

“Why? This place is beautiful.” Clementine moves from the garland to the plastic tote. What I’ve noticed about her, she doesn’t seem to be able to finish one complete task at a time. It’s cute as fuck, watching her scurry from one project to the next. Cleaning up around the house, helping me feed the animals tonight, and the way she’s already making sure there are plenty of snacks to give each animal tonight when we go check on them.

“Sweetheart, all the accidents and people breaking down in front of my driveway is crazy. I about put this place on the market and hightailed it to Wyoming, where Amos and the Johnson brothers live. I’m sure glad I didn’t.” I drag my tongue along my lips, licking them as I watch her cheeks flush with color.

“Oh, well, that makes sense. I’m happy you didn’t leave as well. I could have happened upon a serial killer or frozen to death out there waiting.”

She places an ornament on the tree when it happens. The lights flicker before turning off. It’ll take a minute for the generator to kick on, so the light from the fireplace is the only thing we have right now.

“Clay?”

“It’s alright. Figured this would have happened before now, or at least while it’s still light out.” I’m in the kitchen, pan-searing a steak before it goes in the oven. Another plus is the range using gas, and not having power still makes it so I can cook.

“Okay, do you have a flashlight? I’m not afraid of the dark per se. More like I don’t want to fall flat on my face while navigating through the mess I made.” I turn the burner off, shove the cast iron skillet to the back, and head to the junk drawer where I keep a flashlight.

“Yep, on it right now. Try not to move. Some of those ornaments will splinter into a thousand pieces. I don’t want you stepping on one and cutting yourself.” I’m rummaging through the drawer, realizing I need to have a better plan in action. When I’m here by myself, I couldn’t care less if I bump into something, but where Clementine is concerned is a whole other story. I wrap my hand around the flashlight just as the generator kicks over. There’s a delay in case the power comes back on. In instances like tonight, I already know that’s not going to be the case.

“Shew,” Clementine says once the power is back on. I set the flashlight out just in case.

I walk around to where she’s standing, trapped in the middle of a minefield of Christmas everything. “You alright, sweetheart?” I grip her hips to pick her up, and she wraps her legs around my waist.

“I am now.” The kiss she gives me is soft, subtle, and leaves me wanting a whole lot more. Unfortunately, the sound of a tree breaking puts a stop to everything. Clementine’s body locks up tightly when she hears the noise of the branches and more than likely a trunk hitting the ground. That’s going to make a mess of some kind. My only hope is that nothing is damaged, especially the animals.

“Love that, sweetheart, so damn much, but I gotta go outside and check everything.” Clementine slides down my body and plants her feet on the ground.

“I’ll go with you. Two pairs of eyes are better than one.” I shake my head.

“Clementine, I’m not sure what I’ll find. I don’t want you to see something that’ll cause you nightmares or have something happen to you. Plus, I’d rather keep Jazzy girl inside with you. Already know Nala will do whatever she chooses,” I explain.

“How about this: I’ll watch from the porch and promise not to attempt to cook your steak. This way, I can keep my eye on you, and I won’t burn down the kitchen in the process,” she counteroffers.

“That works. You really that bad in the kitchen, sweetheart?” I’ve noticed she’s yet to offer to cook. She’ll clean as we go and especially after.

“Well, I can do the basics, but other than that, I’m a lost cause,” she admits without seeming to feel bad about the issue.

“You keep on being you. Now go bundle up and meet me in the mudroom. I’ll flip the part to keep Jasmine inside, so Nala might scratch at the door to get in or out,” I caution her. My Great Pyrenees can be a bit dramatic, a lot like my cat.

“I’m glad because I’m not sure you can teach me how to cook. Lennie tried. It was awful. She told me in no uncertain terms to never offer her a meal that doesn’t consist of spaghetti, Crock-Pot meals, sandwiches, and maybe meatloaf on a good day.” So fucking adorable, and she’s so fuckin’ mine.

“Works for me, cooking you breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It’s not a hardship.” I pause to take a deep breath. “Let’s get moving. The faster I assess the situation, the sooner I can take you to bed.”

“Yes, please.” I drop another kiss to her soft and pretty mouth. From there, we both head our separate ways. Clementine climbs upstairs, I head to the mudroom, and once this fucking snowstorm calms its shit, I’ll be taking her into town and getting her fitted for real snow gear. If my woman wants to be outside, she’ll be doing it while staying warm.