18. Xyla

18

Xyla

T he sun outside was shining brilliantly, and Xyla couldn't resist going outside. She remembered Sawyer's warning but told herself that she wouldn't leave the sight of the building. People were outside doing different things, so she should be fine.

Breathing in the cold air was invigorating. The sun felt warm on her face, and she wondered if the temperature had heated up enough to start melting the snow. William had reported this morning that the radios still weren't working, and no one could get a signal on their cell phones.

Would it be so bad if we were stuck here for a month or so?

She enjoyed the exercise but got tired quickly because she still sank into some of the taller drifts. After a while, she headed back inside and went to the kitchen to see if Franny needed help.

The woman must have sensed her presence as she walked toward the kitchen. "Xyla, would you mind going down to the basement and getting me some of the strawberry preserves on the top shelf? It's to the right as you go down the stairs."

"You preserve strawberries? When do you find the time?"

"Yep. Sara, Ginny, and I have a little garden out back, and we grow our own strawberries."

Xyla raised her eyebrows. "Color me impressed."

She opened the door to the basement and flipped the switch, not sure if the light would come on. Xyla was pleasantly surprised when it did. However, the single bulb only dimly lit the basement.

"Great. I suddenly find myself in a horror movie," she muttered as she surveyed that heavily shadowed room.

Xyla shivered as she walked down the basement steps, her breath misting in the chilly air. "I should have put on my coat."

The light flickered, making the shadows seem like they moved across the room.

Her boots echoed off the concrete when she stepped off the bottom step. The cold air was damp and she wrinkled her nose at the faint musty smell.

"I watch too many so-called true paranormal shows."

She walked toward the shelf and then heard the hissing noise. Looking down, she saw that there was standing water on the floor. Xyla walked toward the noise and saw what the problem was. Water was pouring out of a pipe.

"That's not good." She turned and ran up the stairs, literally running into Sean. "Sorry. Where's Howard?"

"He's outside trying to figure out what's going on with the generator. Some issue with it is causing the flickering lights. What's wrong?"

"One of the pipes burst in the basement and it's flooding pretty fast."

"I've owned Howlers' long enough and dealt with enough plumbing issues, I can probably fix it. I know where Howard keeps his toolbox."

She followed him back downstairs and showed him where the pipe was.

Sean knelt down and examined the pipe. "It must have burst about an hour ago. Good thing you came down here when you did."

He opened the toolbox and rummaged through it. As expected, Howard had a miniature hardware store packed away inside.

"What can I do to help?"

He handed her a flashlight. "Keep it steady on the pipe."

"Can you fix it?"

"This is an easy fix, at least until they can get a plumber out here. Howard probably had this problem before because he actually has some plumbing tape and sealant."

Xyla watched as Sean applied the sealant and then wrapped the tape around it.

He pointed to a tool. "Hand me that wrench."

She passed it to him, their hands briefly touching. Electricity flowed through her fingers at the touch.

Sean tightened the fittings on the pipe, making sure that it wasn't going to explode anywhere else.

"It isn't pretty, but it'll do. I'll let Howard know about it when he gets back in."

He put everything back in the toolbox the way that he found them. Sean grinned at Xyla. "You don't mess with a man's toys without putting them back nicely."

She grinned and grabbed the preserves off the shelf. Sean put the toolbox back in the closet while Xyla went into the kitchen.

"There's a mess in the basement where a pipe burst. Sean fixed it, but we need to clean up the water."

"The pipes are old in this place. Luckily, it happened in the basement. Ginny happens to have a floor squeegee and a mop. There is a drain in the center of the floor. They're in the closet at the end of the hallway marked ‘staff only.'"

Xyla half expected to find the closet locked but the door opened easily. She grabbed the squeegee and mop. Sean was waiting for her at the top of the stairs.

They worked diligently to clean up the mess. Xyla was hyperaware of Sean's presence and electricity snapped in the air around them. She had no idea what it was about him that made her feel this way.

Yes, you do. You are falling head over heels in love with him. The other part of her brain argued. No. You are just in close proximity to him. He saved your life and Edward's life. This is just a brief, enjoyable moment in time.

They finally got the water down the drain, leaving the concrete damp.

Sean looked around them. "It'll dry soon enough."

Xyla looked at the man. He was so incredibly handsome. His shirt did nothing to hide his broad shoulders and thick arms. She pictured what he looked like naked and felt a familiar warmth rush through her.

She dropped her squeegee and walked over to him and put her hands on his chest. Standing on her toes, she brushed a kiss across his lips. He dropped the mop, wrapped his arms around her, and intensified the kiss.

Moaning in the back of her throat, she pressed tightly against him, wanting him. When the kiss broke, she smiled into his eyes.

"You are an incredible man. Thank you for helping me."

"I just do what needs to be done. I couldn't very well let water keep rushing out of the pipe or let you clean this mess up by yourself."

"Just accept the fact that both Edward and I think that you're Superman."

He grinned. "Drat. I was going for the whole Batman angle. Superman has powers. Batman is just a regular guy who does cool stuff."

She gently touched his face and closed her eyes. Their lips touched.

"Xyla, while you're down there, can you bring up another jar of the preserves? I don't think one is enough."

She pulled back and grinned at him. "Sure, Franny, no problem. I'll be right up." Xyla kissed him quickly and said, "Raincheck?"

"You've got it."

Xyla grabbed the jar off the shelf and Sean picked up the squeegee and mop. She ran up the stairs with Sean right behind her.

Elliot walked by and looked at the two of them with pure disgust and continued walking.

"He hasn't spoken to me in a while. Dad does that when he gets mad at me. I don't know whether I should be upset or just be glad to have a little bit of piece for a while."

Sean laughed and headed toward the closet while she walked into the kitchen.

"Thank you. You've been such a blessing," Franny said.

"I'm just trying to do my part. You, Ginny, Sara, William, and Howard are the ones who have been going nonstop to keep everyone here safe, fed, and the resort running."

"It's what we do. Most of what we do is everyday tasks, anyway. I would still have to cook, Ginny would still have to clean, and so on and so forth."

"I don't know how you do it," Xyla said. "Do you need any help right now?"

"No, I'm all good. Go relax."

"Okay. I'll be in the library if you need me."

She picked up the book she'd been reading and stared at the page. After a few minutes, she realized that she had reread the same chapter at least four times and still had no idea what it said.

Xyla pictured herself moving back to Angel's Creek. She and Sean would continue seeing each other and maybe fall in love. He would propose and they would go through the mating ceremony – whatever that entailed. Edward would come to live with them, which would make him extremely happy. She and Sean would have at least three babies.

Would they be wolf shifters or humans? How does that work?

Her father walked by the door, glared at her for a long minute, and then stomped away.

"There is no way that a relationship between Sean and me would work out. We come from two completely different worlds. Besides, anything we tried to build together, my father would destroy."

She thought about Ginny's story and the look on her face when she said that she still loved her tiger shifter. There was a clear warning in her story. Xyla wondered if she was strong enough to defy her father and try to have a relationship with Sean.

"I don't know if I can. Besides, who's to say that Sean wants a long-term relationship with me, anyway?"