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Anna Beth choked on her tea. “Jared? Jared works at the police station?”
“He’s an officer now.” Anna Beth’s mouth dropped and her aunt shook her head. “Close your mouth, dear. I know it’s a surprise. I expected him to go the other way, but he’s really made something of himself. He bought a house off River Road a few months ago and has done a wonderful job renovating it, all on his own. You should see the before and after pictures. Extraordinary.”
Anna Beth’s mind raced. Jared was a police officer? He owned a house? Was he married? Kids? She didn’t dare ask. It would make her seem invested. She’d let Jared walk out of her life years ago. It didn’t make sense for her to care about his life now.
“Anna Beth?” Her aunt watched her curiously and she cleared her throat.
“I’m listening.”
“Have I said something to upset you?”
“No, I’m fine. I just…I guess I assumed Jared would have left town.”
Her aunt’s green eyes narrowed. “There is a lot Snowy Springs has to offer. It’s not glitzy and glamorous, but we have a community here that cares. For many, that’s enough.”
Anna Beth knew that. As far as small towns went, she could have done worse.
She’s spent her adolescence going with her aunt to various charity functions. She’d helped prepare holiday dinners for families who couldn’t afford them and wrapped toys for the Angel Tree project. Her aunt taught her to sew so she could assist the women’s auxiliary with repurposing donated clothes into stuffed animals. It’s how she met Jared in the first place. She’d been helping her aunt at a clothing swap when Jared came in with a woman and her four kids, wearing pants several inches too short for his gangly legs and a winter coat with a gaping hole in the side. His brown hair in desperate need of a cut, yet her eleven-year-old heart still skipped a beat the moment she saw him.
Before she could stop herself, she’d blurted, “I can sew that for you.”
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He swung his angry brown eyes her way, piercing her with a scowl. “Who are you? The sewing fairy.”
As dreamy as his outside was, she hadn’t been a fan of his rudeness. “No, smart mouth, I’m just being nice to your ungrateful butt.”
“Ungrateful butt, huh? I’ve been called worse.” His twelve-year-old face split into a wide grin and he shrugged out of his coat. “How long will it take?”
Anna Beth took the jacket from him, examining the tear. “Give me fifteen minutes.”
She’d sat down with his coat in her lap and pulled a needle and thread from her craft bag. It hadn’t taken her long to stitch up the coat and when his family came back to make their exchanges, she’d handed him his jacket with a smile. He’d examined it in awe and to her surprise, he’d held out a tiny wooden bear to her.
“Payment for you fixing my coat. And my mom said you could come to our house for dinner. If you want.”
It was the first invitation she’d received since moving in with her aunt and she’d responded enthusiastically. “I’d love to.”
Sarah sighed loudly, jerking Anna Beth from her memories. “Anna Beth? You haven’t changed a bit. Your mind drifts faster than the snow.”
She shook her head with a laugh. “Sorry, I always have dozens of thoughts rolling around in here.” Anna Beth stood, smoothing down her gray cable knit sweater. “I should probably get going anyway. I don’t want Ernie at The Peaks to be upset with me for bogarting one of his rooms for too long.”
“Ernie Michaelson is a pussy cat,” her aunt said fondly. “I’m sure he’ll be fine with it.”
The familiar way Sarah spoke of the hotel owner gave her pause. “You know Ernie?”
Sarah’s cheeks turned a brilliant shade of red. “Of course, I know him. We went to high school together. We’ve lived in the same town for fifty years.” She stood abruptly and took Anna Beth’s tea cup from the coffee table. “Go, get your errands done, and I’ll make up your old room. No need to worry about a thing.”
“Sure, Sarah.” She watched her aunt bustle out of the room with the tea tray and she shook her head. The relaxed energy surrounding her aunt had to come from somewhere.
Maybe she’d started yoga?
Three
Jared sat in his cruiser off the Snowy Springs Highway, watching the snowflakes fall on his windshield. He hadn’t seen another car for over thirty minutes. Most likely because they were expecting eight inches of snow tonight. He’d hoped to get at least one speedster, but it seemed like a quiet one.
He wasn’t a fan of slow nights. They always took a turn in the worst way possible.
His radio crackled. “Officer Cross, this is dispatch, over.”
