15. Stella

Chapter Fifteen

STELLA

Hudson’s question boomeranged around my thoughts over the following days. I wasn’t sure if he was going out of his way to avoid encountering me in the kitchen at the house, but our paths didn’t cross. As the minutes and hours ticked by, my nerves felt stretched to their breaking point. I felt restless and impulsive. My hormones had already made their vote perfectly clear. They didn’t understand why I was waiting.

He said to give it a few days. I found myself wondering what his definition of a few was. I considered three to be a few, but I knew that wasn’t iron-clad.

Blessedly, I was very busy with work and studying. I had finished all of my coursework for law school and had thrown myself into studying for the bar exam. I knew I could pass it, but this was the most important exam I would ever take. Meanwhile, things at the office were asbusy as ever, offering an escape from obsessing over Hudson.

Late one evening, I was doing a last check of my email to make sure I had taken care of everything for the day when my cell phone pinged with a text.

Tish: We’re meeting for dinner at Wildlands. Meet us there!

Before I could text to reply, another text came zooming in.

Tish: It’s me, Phoebe, Maisie, Jasmine, and Tiffany so far.

Me: I’ll be there!

A mere ten minutes later, I parked behind Wildlands Lodge & Restaurant, facing the lake behind the place. The early sunsets of winter in Alaska were stunners and tonight was no exception. The sky was deep violet with a pink glow shimmering on the snow-capped mountains in the distance. I’d spent all of my life in Alaska between several towns in the Southeastern part of the state, near Fairbanks, and even a short stay up in Barrow near the Arctic Circle. They were all beautiful areas, but Willow Brook just might’ve been my favorite.

Wildlands Lodge was probably the biggest tourist destination in town. It was a full-scale hotel and a starting point for many outdoor and touristy expeditions. Like most places in Alaska, it also catered to locals. The restaurant was one of the favorites in town. They also had local music and an excellent selection of food.

The moon was rising to one side with the fading colors from the sunset glimmering on the frozen lake ahead. I stopped at the front of my car and took a deep breath, savoring the crisp air. An owl hooted somewhere nearby with another answering in the trees. I looped my purse over my shoulder and began to walk inside. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw motion to the side and glanced over to see a moose with two yearlings following her. They were far enough away that I wasn’t too concerned, but I definitely kept my eye on them. Moose were unpredictable and nearsighted. The moose disappeared into the trees just as I reached the door to the back entrance.

“Good night, moose!” I called softly. That was an old habit from childhood. My mom had always taught me to say good morning and good night to animals when we saw them.

I walked down the hallway, weaving through a few other people coming out of the restaurant. The large restaurant had a strong Alaskan vibe with wide-plank hardwood flooring, wooden beams crisscrossing the ceiling, booths lining the walls, and tables scattered about. The kitchen was central with the restaurant on one side and a bar and dance area on the other. Without any music tonight, those tables were filled with overflow from the bar.

After a quick glance around the space, I spied Tish waving from a table in the corner and made my way through the crowd.

“Hey!” Tish curled her arm around my shoulder, giving me a quick squeeze as I sat down beside her.

There was a chorus of greetings, and I slipped out of my jacket, draping it over the back of my chair.

“We’re sharing a bottle of wine. If you want something else, I’m sure the waitress will be here any minute,” Tish offered.

“I’m driving, so I can’t drink more than maybe a half glass. I’ll stick with water,” I replied.

“We even ordered appetizers,” Maisie said, gesturing toward the center of the table.

I was close to starving. I tended to forget to eat when I was working. “This is perfect! I don’t even have to think,” I said as I reached for a small plate.

I was gradually getting to know the group of friends Tish had connected me with, but I still stayed mostly quiet. I was new in town. Old habits die seriously hard and all that. With my life of bouncing around from school to school when I was younger, I usually felt like the new kid. Once again, I was the new kid here in Willow Brook.

Tish was sharing an update on her son’s leaps and bounds in growing through babyhood. “When they’re born and you can’t sleep for months on end, you think it will never change. Next thing you know, they’re crawling and you’re racing to catch up.”

Amelia grinned over at her. “I know, it’s wild. Pretty soon, I’m gonna have to figure out school schedules, and I’ll be posting memes about waiting for summer break to end.”

Maisie laughed softly. “No kidding. They say the days are long, but the years are short. If that doesn’t sum up parenthood, I don’t know what does.”

“We have another new firefighter in town,” Maisie offered in between bites of food.

“There are always new firefighters in town,” Tiffany chimed in.

“Well, now there are four hotshot crews. That’s twenty-five to a crew, so it’s one-hundred firefighters,” Maisie replied with a shrug.

My eyes went wide as I stared at her. “Seriously?”

“That’s a lot of men,” Tiffany commented.

“It’s not all men,” Maisie corrected. “Susannah’s on the town crew. Paisley is about to transition to the town crew and Phoebe used to be a firefighter.”

“There’s Harlow,” someone else chimed in. “She’s only in town part-time and doesn’t do that anymore though.”

“Firefighting sounds exciting,” I said.

Tish let out a sigh. “Falling in love with a firefighter is kind of stressful.”

Tiffany cast her a quick smile. “It is. But then, statistically speaking, driving a car is riskier.”

Tish chuckled before taking a bite.

“Statistically speaking, being a backcountry pilot in Alaska is really risky,” Holly said.

“Does Nate enjoy being a pilot?” I asked.

Holly’s blond ponytail bounced with her nod. “He loves it, but I worry whenever he handles the longer flights. He promises me he will always be careful when the weather is bad. He will probably fly for the rest of his life unless I can persuade him to change careers. He’s looking into investing in that ski lodge that’s being planned.”

“Oh, he should totally do that!” Madison enthused.

“With Fireweed Industries expanding here and planning to open up a full-service location with the restaurant and winery, they are going to have tons of potential new customers. The only other ski lodge nearby is over four hours away in Diamond Creek. I love that one, but it’s a drive,” Holly explained.

“I’ve never even gone downhill skiing,” I said.

“Never?” Holly glanced over.

“Never had a chance, and it’s pretty pricey to go.”

“I can hook you up with some passes at the lodge in Diamond Creek,” Holly replied. “I’m friends with one of the owners.”

“I have to get through my bar exam and then maybe I’ll have time to breathe,” I said.

“Well, let me know anytime you’d like to go. We could even plan a weekend trip there,” Holly offered.

Tish met my eyes. “You are going to kick that exam’s ass.”

I took a quick breath. “I hope so. I do better under pressure, so I’ve scheduled it in a few months. In the meantime, my face will be plastered in textbooks when I have time to study.”

Holly’s husband, Nate, stopped by the table to greet the group. As he was walking away, I felt a prickle on the back of my neck and instantly knew Hudson was nearby. I tried to convince myself I was crazy, but then I heard his voice. Nate stopped and grinned. “Hey, cuz!” He threw an arm around Hudson’s shoulder and gave him a quick squeeze.

They continued walking. Just when I thought Hudson probably hadn’t noticed me, he glanced over his shoulder, his eyes instantly locking with mine. My pulse catapulted forward at a breakneck pace. For a few seconds, it felt as if there was a flame racing between us with sparks scattering high in the air.

My breath felt shaky when he finally looked away. Once again, Hudson’s words echoed in my thoughts. Four days had passed, so what did that mean? To me and to him.