Mistletoe Rescue (Mistletoe Kisses)

Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

Four Months Later

H urrying from the Sheriff’s office, Zack shot another glance at the time on his wrist phone. His shift had run over because of paperwork, and he would have to hurry to reach Holly’s new apartment.

After all this time, the night had finally arrived to help her move into her new apartment in Canyondale. Never, when he’d begged her to stay, had he imagined how little they would actually get to see each other. Between his loving but smothering family during his recovery from the shooting and Holly’s long shifts and commute to Price, their relationship—if he could even call it that—had mostly been long distance. That was about to change.

He hoped.

As he drove to the new complex, Zack tried to keep his nervous excitement to a reasonable level. He was counting on things between them to take off finally now they would be living so close. Like next-door close.

Not that he’d mentioned it to her yet. He only found out about it himself when he’d picked up his keys at lunch. Hopefully, she would take it well.

Zack pulled into the empty stall in front of his new place. After living in a dark basement apartment with a window he could barely squeeze out of in an emergency, he looked forward to this new adventure. Even more now that he was seeing so many people he knew moving in, including some young families in the adjacent building with larger units.

At Kathy’s urging, Holly had given him a key to her place so he could have it open and ready when they arrived from Price with her belongings. He grabbed the housewarming basket his mother had helped him put together. It included a holiday fleece throw, a scented diffuser, and a local hot chocolate sampling box, since he knew how much she liked the gourmet ones.

Stepping inside, he inhaled, enjoying the smell. Sure, it was full of chemicals from the paint, carpet, and wood, but it was new. His second great-grandfather had built Zack’s childhood home, so the closest he’d ever gotten to this new smell was whenever they painted a room. He even owned a used truck.

He had barely put the basket on the kitchen counter when he heard an engine right outside. Zack said a silent prayer that Holly wouldn’t hate having him for a neighbor. Especially since they’d each signed one-year leases.

Zack and Kathy had expected to rent a moving truck, but Holly had assured them a pickup truck would be more than enough. Acting as a guide for Kathy as she backed in, he scanned the boxes in the truck bed. Holly must have sold most of everything she owned before leaving Colorado.

With raised eyebrows, Zack met Kathy’s gaze through the rearview mirror. She shrugged. Did this mean Holly didn’t plan to set down roots here?

She hopped out of the vehicle first, so he asked, “Where’s your bed?”

“I don’t have one yet.” Holly’s cheeks flushed, and she wouldn’t meet his gaze. “I’ve been sleeping on an air mattress.”

Seriously? She had done that for the past four months in a shared apartment with college students? He glanced at Kathy, who had joined them. The look she gave him held a challenge. Well, fine. Zack knew just how to fix the furniture problem.

He undid the latch on the pickup and asked, “Do any of these boxes have books in them?”

“You remembered how much I love to read.” Holly grinned, finally looking at him. “But no. Before I left, I donated all my books to the local library. My collection now is either ebook or audio. I plan to build a new one. So, you don’t have to worry about hurting your back.”

If she only knew how many heavy people he had to lift on rescue missions.

The three of them made quick work of moving Holly’s possessions inside the apartment. As Zack lifted the last box, Kathy grabbed his sleeve.

“I need to get this truck back, so I’ll leave you to help Holly unpack.” She leaned closer. “We all want her to stay here.”

He pulled a face. It wasn’t like he didn’t want the same thing. Why did she make it sound like it would be his fault if Holly left? “You’re preaching to the choir.”

“Then make her want to stay here.” Kathy smacked his arm and wiggled her eyebrows before striding to the driver’s door. “Tell Holly I’ll see her Monday.”

Zack entered the apartment again and found Holly going through the gift basket.

“This is from you? It’s so sweet.” She surprised him by throwing her arms around his neck.

He automatically returned the embrace. It sent him back to those last few days they’d spent together at camp after they finally admitted their feelings. It felt so good to hold her again. Holly’s body must remember too, because she molded herself against him. It took him a few seconds before he realized she was crying.

“Holly?” he whispered. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” She buried her face in his neck, like she used to do when embarrassed.

Zack expected her to pull away, but she didn’t, so he continued to hold her. If this was what she needed, he would stand here all night. What could he do to give her more experiences that made her feel welcome and wanted? Almost instantly came the answer: a Secret Santa.

As soon as she moved, he dropped his arms. “I ordered pizza.”

“You didn’t have to do that,” she said, wiping those glorious blue eyes. Since the first time he’d met her all those years ago, he could lose himself in them.

“I wanted to.” He looked at her round, full lips, wanting so badly to taste them again. But Zack forced himself to keep his hands at his side as he met her gaze instead. “We have about forty-five minutes before dinner gets here. My mom always told my older siblings to get their kitchens and bedrooms functional first. Where do you want to start?”

Oh, my word! Holly’s body tingled from being in Zack’s arms again. It might have been eight years, but her physical attraction to him hadn’t dimmed. Not one bit. If anything, she found him more desirable than all those years ago. Even after recovering from a gunshot wound, he was buff, in a lean sort of way. Strong. Protective.

“Let’s start with the kitchen,” she finally said, picking up a box labeled kitchen . “But as you can see, I don’t own all that much. When I left my old life behind, I dumped anything with memories.” As soon as the words left her mouth, Holly knew she had opened a door she didn’t want to go through. Before Zack could ask for more details, she hurried on. “It was liberating to get rid of it. I’ve even thought about getting a tiny house. I could be a travel nurse.”

He grabbed the other box and hurried after her. “You aren’t still thinking about doing that, are you?”

The worry in his voice sent a myriad of emotions flooding through Holly, including happiness at being wanted and guilt for not having appreciated what he offered. If nothing else, they could be friends.

“No,” she said. “It was just a passing thought. About the traveling, anyway. Though I might enjoy living in a tiny house.”

Zack’s shoulders relaxed, and he opened his box. “I’ve seen a few of those videos. Since having the outdoors as another room, it might work here—unless the weather is bad. And when it’s bad here, it’s bad. Both the heat of summer and the occasional freak cold snap in the winter.”

“Then I’m extra glad I won’t have to make the commute to Price anymore. I’ve had worse drives, but it was boring.”

“Especially when combined with fatigue after a long shift.” As Zack removed a container of hot chocolate, he shuddered. “I’ve seen way too many accidents after people fell asleep while driving.”

“And I’ve helped treat more than enough of them.” Holly glanced at him. “Do you like your job?”

The corner of his mouth twitched. “Which one? I have two of them now that I’m helping with rescue flights.”

“Kathy mentioned how busy those are getting.” Holly placed her few pieces of cutlery in a drawer. “How can you do both?”

“I won’t forever. Eventually, I hope to do the rescue flights full time. The two pilots are former Marines and are always joking about people not shooting at them anymore.” Zack ran a hand over his chest, and something dark flashed across his eyes as he stared off, likely remembering that night.

“I’m sorry,” Holly began, but he shook his head.

“Believe it or not, one of the most dangerous calls we go on is for a domestic disturbance. Even in a town of only about five thousand, we get more than you might think. The guy knocks his wife or girlfriend around, so she calls us, but when we get there and try to take him into custody, she’s suddenly jumping all over us. No one’s ever pulled a gun on me over that, but several of the other deputies have faced it.” Zack’s face had turned grim. “I won’t miss that part of the job.

Holly found herself staring at this grown-up version of Zack. She couldn’t help comparing his bravery to Brett’s lack of it. The coward hadn’t even had the guts to be honest with her.

“Do you have anything else for the kitchen?” Zack asked, pulling her from her thoughts.

“This is it,” she said. “Except for my bedroom and bathroom, I have little else.”

“You need a real bed.” Zack headed toward the bedroom. “I can’t believe you’ve slept on an air mattress all these months.”

Holly hurried after him. “I actually prefer an air mattress over springs. And mine is a double high, so it’s not all that different from a regular bed.”

“Well, you already worked a long shift today and then had to move. Let’s get your bed together so you can get some sleep.” He lifted the rolled-up air mattress from a box. “Where’s the pump?”

“It’s built in. I’ll have you know I spared no expense on that really nice air mattress,” she declared, coming to stand beside him.

Grinning, he glanced down at her, shaking his head like he was trying to figure her out. “Did you sleep on one of these in Denver?”

“No.” At his question, her face closed up, and she said with a tight voice, “I’ll put my bathroom things away.”

Zack grasped the sleeve of her sweater. “What did I say wrong?” He faced her, dropping the air mattress and taking her hand. “I feel like I’m walking on glass sometimes. I’m not meaning to pry, but I need to understand what happened to you, so I don’t touch on sensitive subjects.”

Holly had known this moment would come, but it still made her sick to her stomach. Then a reprieve came via a knock on the door. Zack let out a frustrated huff.

“That’ll be the pizza.” He touched her cheek and met her gaze. “But I still want to know who hurt you.” Without another word, he dropped his hand and strode from the room.

Holly’s eyes stung, and a lump formed in her throat, making it hard to swallow. Zack had shown more concern for her than her parents had. More than her twin sister or the man Holly had been getting ready to marry last December.

She wiped her eyes, put on her big-girl panties, and headed into what was sure to be an evening of topics she had avoided for nearly a year.

“I’m glad you came to Canyondale,” Zack said with a forced nonchalance as he opened the pizza box on the kitchen counter. “I’ve wanted to ask for a while if you remembered I was from here, but I realize now it was wishful thinking on my part.”

Holly had been so worried he would ask for something from her that she’d failed to recognize his insecurity. So much for thinking she was empathic.

“No, I didn’t remember you were from Utah at all.” She selected a slice of pizza with Canadian bacon on it. “I got consumed with college and work and falling in love.” Holly took a bite of her pizza.

“Is he the one who hurt you?” Zack asked softly.

Holly swallowed, but the food settled in her stomach like a lead weight. She’d spent so much time in the past year avoiding talking about Brett. Maybe it was time to just vent.

“Yes. I caught him and my twin sister in a passionate kiss at my rehearsal dinner.”

Zack went still for a moment before setting down his pizza, his face flushing, eyes ablaze. Holly had only seen him angry once in the two summers they worked together, and he’d been fearsome to behold. This mature Zack was even more so. That he was feeling this on her behalf was incredibly gratifying.

She touched his hand. “Thank you for that.”

“I didn’t say anything.” He shot her a confused glance. “But I confess I’d like to punch someone.”

“I appreciate that. It’s more than I got from my family. Now eat your dinner.” Holly picked up her pizza again.

“I have to know one thing,” Zack said.

“All right.”

“Your parents supported the two cheaters.” His words were a statement.

“Yes.” Holly was proud of herself for the lack of hurt in her voice. Maybe time really did heal all wounds.

Zack nodded. “Well, this explains a lot.”

As they ate in silence, Holly wondered if it explained enough. Would she need to tell him more to find the peace she sought? It had actually felt good sharing with him about it, especially since Zack had seemed to understand. Was the little she’d told him enough for her to stop running and finally heal?

“Hey, I’ve been meaning to talk to you about something,” he finally said when they were cleaning up after the meal.

“Something else?” she asked warily.

“Nothing heavy or personal,” he assured her. “You must have heard people talking about the Winter Festival. Has Kathy mentioned needing your help?”

“She did, and I’m excited to get involved finally.” Holly hadn’t expected to look forward to anything related to the holiday, but volunteering to help the community heal appealed to her. “Maybe it will help me want to celebrate the season.”

Zack scanned her empty living room. “I don’t have any Christmas decorations either. We should go shopping together.”

Memories from last year came rushing back. Holly’s throat tightened, making it impossible to speak. If Brett hadn’t been a lying cheater, they would have been preparing to celebrate their first wedding anniversary. But she was done letting him steal the pleasure from her life, so she nodded.

“I would like that.”