Chapter 2

TWO

Chapter Two—Jude

“You’re really going to do this ?” Edmund asked somewhat apprehensively, his gaze darting between Jude’s SUV and Jude himself, as if pondering the efficacy of locking Jude in his house and throwing away the key.

This was Jude heading up into the mountains for some much-needed alone time. An entire month without human contact. Not that he wasn’t always alone anyway, but this kind of alone meant that other people couldn’t contact Jude, couldn’t pester him with stupid questions they should be able to answer themselves, couldn’t disrupt his thoughts.

“Yes, I’m really going to do this ,” Jude replied as he carefully loaded another bag of groceries into his SUV and tucked it next to one of his suitcases. He’d packed enough clothing so that he’d maybe only have to do laundry once, including thirty pairs of brand-new boxer briefs in case there was no washer and dryer, as he’d forgotten to ask the rental agency about that. Heavy coat, check. Computer charger, check. Sweaters, check.

“Um, you do remember what happened when I went to the mountains last year?” Edmund’s tone was tentative.

“I am not going with anyone. The lack thereof will ensure nothing like Owen will happen to me. This cabin will only have me in it, and I cannot wait.” And thank God for that. Owen was definitely not his type.

“I meant that we were trapped up there!” Edmund actually seemed concerned, but he was English and likely wasn’t used to a lot of snow. At least he wasn’t arguing about being left in charge of Canopus for a while.

Jude had kept his sabbatical a secret from his staff and his friends until the very last minute—as in, he’d informed Edmund about ten minutes earlier. His business could run itself for a month and if there was anything that needed specific attention, Edmund Lake was more than qualified to make decisions in Jude’s stead.

“Don’t try and call me, as I’ve been informed there’s spotty cell service, and I specifically rented a place that doesn’t offer internet. Do you know how hard it was to find a place with no internet?”

“You really are going to do this. You know you’re quite mad, right?” The crease between Edmund’s eyebrows became more pronounced.

“Yep, as a hatter.” With a feeling something akin to excitement, Jude grinned at his friend and colleague, shut the back of his brand-new SUV, and tromped to the driver’s side. For the first time in years he was doing something different, breaking the mold—whatever.

He continued his list of reminders to Edmund. “Make sure my plants get watered once or twice, they don’t need much this time of year.” Climbing into the car, he shut the door and started the engine before rolling down the window in order to share a few last bits of advice. Edmund looked at him, befuddled. “You’ll be fine, Edmund.”

His friend continued to frown. “I know I’ll be fine, it’s you I’m worried about.”

“I’ll be fine, too.” Edmund’s worry was a bit heartwarming, Jude admitted to himself.

“You know there’s a storm on the way, right? They’ve been talking about it on the news all week. The year is going out with a storm and coming in with a bang or something like that.”

“That’s what this car was built for.” He patted the steering wheel of his Volvo XC90 hybrid. He’d had it delivered yesterday and couldn’t wait to get it out on the road.

Jude revved the engine, Edmund startled and stepped away from the car. “See you in a month, Edmund.”

Rolling up the window to keep the chill out, he began to back out of his driveway. It was cold, and the local weather forecasters had been talking about snow a lot, but in Jude’s experience, when a snowpoclypse was predicted in the Pacific Northwest, it never actually arrived, or the area only got a few flakes, and he didn’t expect this time to be any different.

Jude watched through his rearview mirror as Edmund shook his head at his retreating car. Jude felt slightly guilty but, in some ways, it was Edmund’s fault anyway. Or rather, Owen and Edmund’s fault. A year ago, Edmund had gone on a road trip with Owen, and they’d come back madly in love, thus proving there was someone for everyone. Except Jude.

But this trip wasn’t so he could feel sorry for himself, it was so he could do something different—the first steps to living his best life or something.

He’d worked since he was a young teen, and he’d worked hard too. Building up a multi-million-dollar business was being successful, right? Except Jude didn’t feel successful; he still felt like that lonely little boy who’d turned to computer programming not because he was good at it (he was) but because it kept him away from places that should have been home.

As Jude drove east and north, the skies darkened. At this time of year there was really only about five hours of true sunlight and he knew it would be close to dark by midafternoon. The cabin wasn’t too much of a drive from Skagit, though—from what the GPS said, about an hour, maybe an hour and a half—and he looked forward to leaving civilization behind him.

Three long hours later Jude pulled into the turnaround of a small gas station just off the two-lane highway that began in Everett, Washington, and snaked across the mountains to Newport, Idaho and beyond. The Volvo’s navigation had been spotty before crossing the pass, and once he’d crossed over, he’d completely lost the signal, which was making him nervous. Now he was trying to remember directions he’d only glanced at in passing. Not only was there no internet up here in the back of beyond, satellite signals apparently didn’t reach either. Maybe it was snowstorm interference? Jude hadn’t planned on being completely unreachable.

The biting cold cut through his new winter coat, his breath created vapor clouds as he jogged across the open parking area to the front doors, his hands jammed under his arms to keep them warm. Damn, he’d meant to get gloves but with one thing and another...

A grizzled older man behind a cash register glanced up from what he was doing as Jude stepped through the front door.

“How can I help you, son?” The man asked.

“I think I need a map.” Jude was starting to re-think this whole month-away-from-humanity plan but it was too late, and too snowy, to turn back.

Next to the register there was a coffee station with a Free Coffee sign taped to an air pot, but no maps he could see.

“Where ya headed?”

Jude explained he’d rented a cabin just off Lake Wenatchee. “I remember there’s only a few cabins in the area because it’s actually inside the National Forest. The website said this family had owned the cabin for over a hundred years, their ownership being grandfathered in. I figured it’d be more obvious when I got here.” He was embarrassed to be so ill-prepared but printing off the directions hadn’t occurred to him.

As he talked, he pulled his phone out of his pocket, trying to bring up the directions again with no luck.

“Well, son,” the man spoke slowly and carefully, as if Jude might not understand him, “there’s a few families that’ve been up here for a while. Do you happen to recall the name?”

What the older man didn’t say, but implied with ease, was what a total moron Jude was for not printing out the directions and instead relying on technology to guide his way. There was a time when a compass was considered new-fangled, Jude fumed to himself. Of course, that was a thousand years ago, but who was counting?

“I believe the owner’s name was possibly Delacombe?” Jude was even questioning that memory now, when faced with the other man’s consideration.

Mitch—Jude spotted his name tag pinned to a ratty t-shirt underneath an army-green vest— brightened, his bristly gray eyebrows lifting and lowering back down jiggling as he grinned. Jude had the odd thought that they looked like dancing caterpillars.

“Ah. That I can help with. Head up the road three miles, take a left at the four-way intersection with the blinking red light. Then head about twelve miles, stay on that road, don’t take the slight curve to the right, that will take you all the way to Leavenworth. You’ll see the lake on your left, follow it a bit until you come to a dead tree, it’s a big one, turn in and the place you’re looking for should be down the road, pretty sure. I don’t recall the forest service road number but that should get you there.”

Should? Pretty sure? Jesus Christ.

Before he left, Jude picked up a ridiculously priced bottle of scotch and then a second—just in case—and filled up a to-go cup with the free coffee. Thanking Mitch, he grabbed the bag with his purchases and headed back outside.

“The hell.” Before he’d pulled off the road the snow had been falling fast but not thick, just enough so Jude had thought it was pretty and very holiday card-ish. In the ten minutes he’d been inside, it had thickened and was now falling fast, plus the wind had picked up, making the flakes swirl in all directions. If he weren’t already so freaked out about the drive, it would have been mesmerizing.

Back on the road, Jude followed the directions he’d been given—slowly. Once he took the turn at the blinking red light visibility was almost immediately worse. Jude could hardly see the road anymore and slowed to a crawl.

The few other cars out on the narrow road sped past him, obviously much more used to driving in the snow than he was. A battered VW bus he could have sworn he’d passed miles ago flashed its lights in his rearview mirror before pulling into the opposite lane and moving around him. Soon enough its distinctive rectangle-shaped brake lights disappeared from sight. Who the fuck would be driving a death trap like that on a night like this?

Jude’s fingers were starting to ache from his panicky grip on the steering wheel, and he could swear his car was losing traction. Where had the road gone? Night had fallen and he couldn’t see the sight-lines, much less the lake. Clenching the steering wheel even tighter, he spotted a left turn and took what he hoped was the correct road, he was fairly sure he’d seen a forest service road sign, but there was still no sign of the lake. If this wasn’t the right way, he was going to have to figure out how to turn around in the snow and backtrack in the other direction.

After what felt like hours, he finally spotted the cabin he’d seen on the VRBO website. He was so relieved to have made it alive, it took him a minute to notice another vehicle parked in the driveway.

Maybe the neighbors shared a drive? Jude didn’t recall the rental agency person telling him that.

He pulled into the driveway; a motion sensor light flicked on and illuminated the snowy front yard and parking area. Jude parked the Volvo behind what looked like the VW bus that had passed him earlier. How many of them were left on the road anyway? Snow blanketed the other vehicle, even its windshield was already covered, but he thought he recognized the distinctive shade of avocado green visible on the back end. It had to be the same camper. How had the driver managed to get here before Jude and, more importantly, what the fuck was going on? He peered through the blizzard toward the cabin.

There were definitely lights on in the small structure. Righteous anger filled his veins. After hours of driving in nearly impassable conditions, defying death, there was a trespasser? The cabin he’d rented, so he could hide away from the world, was already inhabited?

No fucking way.

Climbing out, he slammed the car door shut—and immediately stepped into a snow drift that went over his ankles and filled his impractical shoes with cold snow. Why had he thought regular shoes would be fine for the drive? “Fuck!” He yelled into the cold and darkness. If he’d been pissed off before, now he was furious as he lifted up one foot and then the other, trying to shake the snow out of them

Light spilled across the snowy front yard as the cabin’s front door swung open. Jude squinted at a dark silhouette filling the glowing rectangle, fury and frustration making it impossible for him to focus otherwise.

A deep male voice rumbled into the evening, “Um, may I help you? Are you lost?”

Giving up on trying to keep snow out of his shoes, Jude stomped across the snowy landscape, stopping when he reached where the stranger waited at the threshold.

“I’m not lost, I’m right where I should be! Who are you and why are you in my cabin?”

The man straightened, proving to be much taller than Jude’s nearly six-foot frame. He was also much heavier, not as much of a surprise since Jude had trouble keeping weight on. The stranger stared down his long, straight nose, not bothering to reply. Instead, he appeared to be waiting for Jude to explain himself.

“I rented this cabin.” Jude stated, using all the authority he was used to wielding, even as he felt worry starting to form a little knot of acid in his stomach, making him slightly nauseous.

“Oh, really?” The guy lifted one decidedly well-formed blonde eyebrow. “This is my uncle’s cabin, who, by the way, gave me permission to be here. Also? I’d like to point out, I’m inside the cabin and you are not.” And I can keep it that way , the giant’s one raised eyebrow implied. Jude shivered involuntarily even as he tried to gather his wits around him.

“Well, I’m here now and I paid good money for this place. You need to leave.” The wind gusted, dislodging a clump of snow from an eave above Jude’s head. It landed on the back of Jude’s neck and melted against his skin, sending shivers down his spine to match the ones in his chest.

“First of all, nobody’s leaving tonight,” the giant said staring over Jude’s shoulder.

“And?” Jude demanded.

The man’s gaze flickered back to Jude. “And what?”

“And? You said ‘ and ’.” Jude glared at the giant, only to realize he was looking into the deepest bluest eyes he’d ever seen. He had the fleeting thought he could easily drown in them. Once, when Jude was very young, someone took him to Crater Lake in Oregon. It was long enough ago he didn’t who he’d gone with, when it had been, or what they’d done when they were there. But he always remembered the deep blue of the water. The giant’s eyes gave Crater Lake fierce competition.

Jude cut short his wandering thoughts. “What’s the second thing? You can’t just start a sentence with first of all and not have a second point.”

The guy frowned and sighed but didn’t add anything to his pronouncement. He just shook his head slightly before stepping back and opening the door wide enough for Jude to slip past him into the warmth of the cabin.

Jude hesitated for a heartbeat. What was he thinking, going inside? What if this huge man was a murderer or even worse? Christ, he sounded like one of his long-dead aunts, worrying at every turn about people’s intentions. Statistically it was unlikely the giant was a murderer. But had he come to the wrong place? No, he knew he hadn’t, this was definitely the cabin from the website.

“You’re not going anywhere tonight and I’m not a total dick. You can stay here, I guess.” He looked over Jude again, his blue eyes full of amusement.

“You’re not a serial killer?” Jude couldn’t believe he said that out loud. He must be more freaked out than he realized.

“I’m a lot of things, but, I am not a killer, serial or otherwise.” Those massive shoulders shrugged, and Jude was struck by how much the man looked like a modern-day Viking. Jude refused to find this at all attractive. “Maybe we can sort this out.”

Jude snorted as he stepped into the cabin; he’d be polite and let the other man stay the night, but tomorrow Viking guy was leaving. He didn’t care who the modern-day Thor was related to.

A fire blazed in the small fireplace and a nearby pellet stove was also lit, making the small room warm and cozy. Across from the fireplace was the kitchen area, a small but well-designed space. Music Jude thought he recognized played from an ancient stereo system that sat on top of a set of shelves, where it also looked like there was an actual VCR player. A smallish couch sat in front of the fireplace and the—Jude could not keep referring in his head to the other man as Viking Guy .

“What’s your name?” he asked.

“What’s yours?” Up went that eyebrow again and Jude wanted to smack the guy. The urge was strong.

Viking Guy smirked as Jude ground his teeth. After a beat, he stuck his hand out and offered up, “Cullen Delacombe.”

Jude flipped through his mental rolodex; he did not know anyone with the last name of Delacombe. He still wasn’t entirely sure the cabin’s owner had this last name. He thought, though, that everything had been finalized by the rental agency, anyway.

Viking Guy— Cullen Delacombe —cleared his throat. “Did you forget your name?”

Jude took Cullen’s hand; it was warm and engulfed his own cold fingers.

“Jude Collins.”

“Hey Jude…” the man began in a tone that said he knew it would irritate Jude.

“Do you think,” Jude stated, “that I’ve never had that song sung to me in my life? Maybe you could try and be at least a little creative.” In the past, Jude had even considered changing his given name, but in all honesty, he’d hoped as he aged that those he associated with wouldn’t act like they were twelve.

Cullen was ticking all of Jude’s irritation boxes. It was a good thing Jude wasn’t a serial killer or Cullen Delacombe might not survive the night. Especially since he was humming a different song now.

“Is that…Judy Collins?” Jude asked with grudging astonishment, what rock had this Viking throwback crawled out from under?

He grinned wickedly and shrugged. “The lyrics to Both Sides Now are better than Hey, Jude , in my opinion. Shay probably has Wildflowers around here somewhere.”

Jude huffed a sigh. The man had the audacity to wear only beat-up jeans and a white short-sleeved t-shirt that clung obscenely to his muscled arms and defined pecs. The cabin was warm but not that warm. Jude, however, was having a hot flash, which only further annoyed him.

“Aren’t you cold?” Jude asked as he turned in the middle of the cabin’s living area to take it all in. There really wasn’t anywhere to go, just the tiny kitchenette and main room. Not even a table could fit, only two stools on one side of a kitchen counter. A ceiling fan hanging from cross beams over Jude’s head spun lazily, pushing warm air back down to the ground.

Cullen looked down at himself, and Jude couldn’t help but drag his own gaze all the way down to bare feet and long, elegant toes. Those toes stirred something in Jude he didn’t normally feel, and it made him even angrier.

“I run hot.” That irritating smirk reappeared, and Jude grit his teeth harder. If there hadn’t been seven hundred feet of snow on the ground with more coming down, he might have left. As it was, he’d be lucky to get to the end of the driveway.

“We might as well make the best of this. You want a beer?” Cullen asked as he stepped toward the tiny kitchen area.

Whatever had awakened at the sight of exquisite toes was further seduced by the Viking’s natural grace, the economy of his movement—or possibly Jude was running a fever. He didn’t normally drink much, but something alcoholic sounded like a brilliant idea right now. At least if he was slightly tipsy, he might be able to loosen his jaw. Otherwise, his dentist was going to have a field day at the next checkup.

“I have a couple of bottles of scotch in my car. I don’t drink beer.” Did that sound like he was a complete snob? Probably, but he didn’t. Fucking Care. He was done.

He turned and headed back outside to get the scotch, at least one suitcase, and a bag of groceries. Snow swirled around, making it hard for him to see and dampening sound enough so that, when he opened the Volvo’s hatch, he was startled to realize Cullen was beside him.

Without saying anything, the bigger man grabbed two of Jude’s suitcases and easily carried them inside while Jude stared after him like an idiot. At least he’d slipped on boots —really Jude? That’s where your brain is going? He shook himself slightly.

Pissed off—at what, he didn’t want to think about—Jude grabbed the liquor and some of the groceries. Unless some things weren’t meant to be frozen, he was fairly certain the snowstorm would keep it from going bad. Sighing at himself, he followed Cullen’s rapidly filling footprints back to the cabin, wondering what circle of hell he’d wandered into.