Christmas with a Soldier (Soldier Series Romance Novellas) (2 page)

BOOK: Christmas with a Soldier (Soldier Series Romance Novellas)
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He grabbed a newspaper from his front seat before slamming the door shut and walking back to me.  With his long stride, he quickly made it back
to my side.  “Here you go,” he said, tossing the newspaper at me.

I looked at it, confused,
then glanced back up at him.

“Open it up.  That’s all you need to know.”

Curiosity getting the better of me, I unrolled the paper, glancing at the front page.  In bold, black letters, the headline jumped out at me.  “Local Hero Returns Home.”  Underneath was a picture of my mystery man, along with the caption, “Local Soldier Trent Harrison Returns Home After Saving Comrades in Afghanistan.”  I stared at it, dumbfounded, until Trent reached over and grabbed the paper back from me.

“See?  I’m not a psychopath or a serial killer; I’m just
a soldier on my way home.”

The snow had stopped falling at this point, but the cold, dry air left me chilled to the bone.  It’d be warmer if we got moving, and the less time we spent standing around
arguing, the sooner we’d be home.  Since he obviously wasn’t really a threat, I might as well let him come along.  He’d probably have better luck finding the way through the woods than me since I’d never so much as even been camping before.  He probably knew all sorts of survival techniques for the wilderness, so a quick hike would be a walk in the woods (ha!) for him.

“Fine,” I said, giving in.  “
You can come with me.  I’m Meghan, by the way.”

“Trent,” he said, reaching out and engulfing my hand in his.  His large hand felt warm despite the chill, and I wondered how he wasn’t freezing to death out here
, too.  Before I could say anything else, he quickly released my hand, his face returning to stone, and turned to walk toward the woods.  I silently followed behind him, hoping that I wasn’t making a big mistake.

Chapter 2

 

An hour late
r we were lost, cold, hungry, and no closer to home than when we’d abandoned our cars by the side of the road.  It was well past 5:00 by now, and the sky was starting to darken.  My mom, dad, and Hannah would all be wondering where I was.  I felt a pang of guilt as I realized there was no way Hannah and I would have the special evening that we’d planned.  Tomorrow was Christmas Eve, and I’d been looking forward to getting everything prepared for tomorrow night—the tree decked-out with plenty of ornaments, cookies decorated and ready to set out for Santa.  Hannah’s little eyes lit up over all the wonders of Christmas, and I was sad to take some of the magic away from her by not being there to continue our traditions tonight.

I’d raised Hannah alone since
my ex-boyfriend had decided he wasn’t really the family-man type.  He barely saw Hannah for the first several years of her life and then tragically was killed in a car accident when she was three.  I felt bad that she’d never have a relationship with her father, but we did have extended family around.  My parents still lived in the small town that I’d grown up in, and they were always there to watch Hannah when needed.  My sister and brother-in-law lived close by as well.  They had two kids, a spunky 7-year-old named Samantha, and a little 3-year-old named Alex.  Hannah adored her cousins, and I was happy that despite all of things I couldn’t give her, she had family around that knew and loved her.

“This damn thing must be broken,” Trent muttered, bringing my mind back to the present.  He held
his compass up in the air, then shook it, as if that would somehow make it work properly.

“Are you sure you know how to use that thing?” I asked skeptically.

“Of course I know,” he snapped.  Trent’s mood had been worsening as we walked along, and I was beginning to feel sorry that I’d even agreed to let him come.  He hadn’t helped me navigate the forest any faster, and he wasn’t even very good company.  We still hadn’t found a safe spot to cross over the creek, and the farther we walked away from the road, the longer it would take to walk back once we did.

“Maybe we should just go back to our cars,” I said with a sigh.

“No, we’ll find something,” he said, looking around.  “I have to get into town tonight.”

“Well so do
I,” I muttered.

“Big plans?” he asked sarcastically.

I rolled my eyes.  “Look, I don’t know what your problem is.  You’re the one who insisted on following me out here.  But yes, as a matter of fact, I did have a special evening planned.”

“Figures,” he mumbled, start
ing to walk again.

I ignored his comment and
hurried along beside him to keep pace with his long stride.  We walked in silence for another half an hour as darkness fell.  Leaves crunched under my feet, and I was glad that I at least had on boots and a warm jacket.  Even if we did find somewhere to cross the water, I was worried we wouldn’t be able to find our way back out of the woods until morning.  I remembered the cookies that I’d stashed in my backpack, intending to decorate them with Hannah tonight, and wondered if those would end up being our dinner.  My family would be worried sick by now, and I wondered how long it would be before they contacted the authorities.  I should’ve left a note in my car, instructing them where to come looking for me.  Of course, I’d never considered that I might end up spending the night out here.


So, did you come to town just for the holidays?” I asked, trying to make small talk as we continued trudging along.

“Nope.
”  His face was set in a hard line as I glanced up at his profile, his eyes focused ahead of him.

“Family live here?”

“No.”

I was started to feel a little miffed
at his curt responses.  It almost seemed impolite, like he was brushing me off and couldn’t even be bothered to talk to me. “Well, what are you in town for?” I persisted.


Not all of us have perfect lives like you,” he muttered.

I stopped walking,
slightly insulted.  Where did he get off judging me like that?  He didn’t know anything about me.  I was just trying to be polite and ask him a few questions about his life.  We’d been walking side-by-side for almost two hours now.  It wouldn’t kill him to attempt to carry on a conversation with me.  Trent stopped when he realized that I was no longer beside him.  He glanced back over his shoulder, his dark eyes boring into mine.  There was a hardness to his face, and for the life of me, I couldn’t figure out what he was so angry about.  “I have no idea why you think my life is perfect, but it’s far from it,” I said tightly.


Hey, you’re the one who said earlier that you had a special evening planned,” he said sarcastically.  “I wouldn’t want to keep you from him.”

“Him?”

“Yeah, your boyfriend, husband, whatever.”

“It’s not—” I started to say, but Trent cut me off.

“Look, it’s starting to get dark out, and I’m worried we might have to set up camp for the night.  Why don’t I scout around to see if I can find a good campsite.  You should wait here.  It’ll slow me down, having you tag along.”

It was getting dark
er, and I realized that nightfall would be here momentarily.  The crisp air had a smoky scent to it, and I was sure it would only get colder as the night wore on.  The tall trees in the forest stood as black silhouettes against the evening sky, the light was waning, and I was suddenly feeling more and more alone.  This wasn’t just a quick afternoon hike through the woods anymore.  We were going to be stranded out here for the night.  I certainly didn’t want Trent wandering off and leaving me alone when I had absolutely no idea where I was, even if he would only be gone for a short time.

“I don’t mind
,” I said quickly. “I can come along.”

“Well, I mind,” he snapped.  “I just said it would be faster if I
looked around alone before it gets pitch black out.  Why don’t you go refill the water bottles or something?”

I stepped back,
offended.  Did he really think I couldn’t do anything more than get water for us?  And was he really going to go off alone?  Everything looked the same out here, and if he went off in direction while I went off in another, who’s to say if I would even see him again?  I didn’t want to spend the night alone trying to survive out here.

“By myself?”
I asked, hearing the panic in my voice.

“Do I have to do everything?” he
angrily asked.

I stared at him as tears welled in my eyes. 
He was the one who said he’d help me, who said he didn’t want me getting lost out here all alone.  Now he was going to abandon me?  Who knows if he’d actually be able to find his way back to where I was.  Then I’d be stuck alone in the forest all night.  I felt my chest starting to constrict as he looked at me, exasperated.  “Fine,” I said, not willing to let him see my cry.  “I’ll get the water.”  I dropped my backpack on the ground and snatched his canteen from him, turning and hurrying away.  I wasn’t sure if the shocked lock on his face was from seeing the expression on mine, or if he’d just dreamt up some entire new reason to be angry with me.

I stumbled through the trees, tripping over an exposed root on the ground, as hot tears fell down my face.  I wasn’t even sure if I could find my way to the damn creek from here, let alone find my way back.  This entire day, which I’d imagined so differently, was turning into a nightmare.  I tripped over something
else in my haste to get away from Trent and finally just sank to the ground, giving in to my tears.  I dropped the water bottles beside me and lowered my head into my hands, sobbing quietly.  I hadn’t sat down since we’d left our cars, and I was exhausted.  I was cold, hungry, and upset that I wouldn’t get home to my daughter tonight.  And now, on top of everything, I had to deal with this jerk of a guy who I’d agreed to let come along with me.  Could my day really even get any worse?

I heard a twig break a few moments later and knew that Trent had followed me. 
I wondered why he hadn’t gone off to find shelter or a good place for spending the night, but at this point I didn’t really care.  He hesitated for a moment before coming over and crouching down by my side.  I could smell the spicy scent of his cologne, and while I wondered for a moment why I hadn’t noticed it earlier, I realized that he’d never been close enough for me to catch a whiff of its scent.  He’d done everything he could to keep his distance from me and push me away.  I pressed my face farther into my hands as my body shook with sobs.

“Meghan?” he asked gently, reaching out to touch my arm.

“Just leave me alone,” I said, tears streaming down my cheeks.

“Meghan, please don’t cry,” he said, his own voice suddenly sounding pained. 
He took off his camouflaged jacket and placed it over me, and despite myself, I let him because I was freezing.  His hand hesitantly stroked my hair, and he whispered “Shhh” until my tears begin to slow.  After a moment of him comforting me, I finally glanced up.  A look of alarm passed over his eyes as a few more hot tears slipped down my cheeks.  I realized that he was wearing nothing but a white tee shirt now, tucked into his camouflaged pants, and I knew he must be freezing in this cold weather.  The fabric of the shirt hugged his biceps nicely, and I noticed his broad shoulders and strong chest beneath the soft cotton.

“You must be freezing,” I blurted out.

“I’m okay.”

I shivered just thinking about it, and he wrapped his coat more tightly around me, encasing me in his strong arms.  His hand gently touched my cheek, turning my head toward him.  “I’m sorry for being
such a jerk today, Meghan.  I have a lot on my mind, and I’m having the bad day to end all other bad days, but I shouldn’t have taken it out on you.”

I didn’t respond, my mind too
distracted by his sudden closeness and the burning touch of his fingers against my skin.  He lowered his hand, firmly gripping his jacket, so that he was holding it closed around me.  “I just want to go home,” I whispered, another fat tear trailing down my cheek.

“Right,” he said, suddenly looking a little uncomfortable. 
“Your big romantic evening.”

“Romantic?” I asked, letting out a small laugh.  “I had an evening all planned out with my five-year-old daughter, but it was far from romantic.”

Now Trent looked slightly embarrassed.  It was different from the arrogance and attitude he’d shown all day long, and I rather liked seeing a softer side to him.  “When you said you had a special evening planned, I assumed you meant with a boyfriend or something.”

“No,” I said with a resigned sigh. 
“Just a special night with Hannah.”


Well, I don’t know if I’ll be able to get you home to her tonight,” he said slowly, his voice deep and smooth.  “But I promise that you’ll see her tomorrow.  Right now we need to go find a place to camp for the night, and morning will be here before you know it.  What do you say?”

“Okay,”
I whispered, knowing we didn’t have any other options.

He stood and extended a broad hand out to me.  I took it, and felt his firm grip as he pulled me to my feet.

“Here,” I said, pulling off his jacket and handing it back to him.

“You keep it,” he said.  “I’m going to be busy chopping firewood.”

“Chopping firewood?” I asked, confused.  I assumed he had some supplies in the big rucksack he was carrying around, but an axe didn’t seem likely.

BOOK: Christmas with a Soldier (Soldier Series Romance Novellas)
5.97Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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