Snowed in With My Small Town Billionaire

Chapter 13 Sawyer

13

C H A P T E R

Sawyer

L ucas and Sawyer watched as Gwen tried to get Brent to take another sip of the peppermint tea.

“What do you think it is?” Lucas asked.

Sawyer shook his head. “It’s hard to tell. The hypothermia might have simply messed with his digestive system. He might have the flu or bronchitis. I’m hoping it’s one of those things.”

“As opposed to pneumonia,” Lucas said.

Sawyer ran his fingers through his hair and nodded. “All we can do is try to keep his temperature down and make sure he stays hydrated.”

Audrey and Gwen. “I’m going to grab a quick bite to eat. Call me if you need anything.”

“Sawyer?” Brent called.

“Yeah?”

“Thanks for coming to rescue me. I knew you would.”

“You’re welcome.”

“Sawyer?”

“Yeah?”

“Can I play my video game? Oliver let me charge it for a while.”

“It is perfectly fine, health-wise if you want to play your game,” Sawyer said.

“See, Grandma. I told you.”

Lucas laughed. “I think that he’s going to be fine.”

Millie brought out some pancakes, bacon, and syrup. “I saved some food for you.”

“Thank you. I hadn’t even realized that breakfast hour was over.”

“You’re a busy young man,” Millie laughed. “I bet you never guessed that you would work so hard on a vacation.”

“Nope. I’m going to have to take a week off to recuperate,” Sawyer laughed.

“We could always go to the beach,” Lucas suggested.

Sawyer looked at him in horror. “Absolutely not. There would be an underwater volcano and a tsunami would hit the town. We’d spend the entire time doing cleanup and treating injuries. My happy butt is going home, sitting on my couch, drinking beer, and petting my dogs. I’m not even going to cook. I’m going to have food delivered to my house every night.”

“You could have one of those professional masseuses pay you a visit. They bring their own tables and everything.”

“Nope. She would get sick or trip on something.”

Millie and Lucas laughed and Sawyer dug into his pancakes.

“So, what’s up between you and Gwen?”

Sawyer sighed. “I honestly don’t know.” He looked around the dining room to make sure that no one was listening, leaned in, and whispered. “She actually kissed me the other day. Yesterday, she reached for my hand.”

“And.”

“Honestly, I don’t know. I felt something when she touched me and kissed me, like a flash of electricity. We shared a quiet moment and just looked into each other’s eyes, and it was – I don’t know how to describe it.”

Lucas looked at him, raised his eyebrows, and took a big bite of pancakes, waiting for Sawyer to sort things out in his mind.

“She’s incredibly beautiful and caught my attention like no other woman has in a very, very long time.”

“Well, I’m no Dr. Ruth, but it sounds like there is some kind of spark there.”

“Funny, you look like a little old lady with gray hair who gives out sex advice on the radio.”

Lucas grinned. “Thanks. It’s my new look and I’m working on it. Seriously, though, do you think she might have a case of hero worship? I mean you went from being her mortal enemy to the person who saved her life.”

“I’ve thought about that. She might also think she has feelings because we’re stuck here together.”

“Or, instead of having one of those spring break or summertime romances, she could have a winter break crush.”

Sawyer sighed. “I’ve thought of all of that, which is why I almost kissed her last night but didn’t. The thing is that I felt something with Gwen that I had never felt with anyone else before. That was why I broke off my engagement with Nancy. We were comfortable together. There was no spark.”

“Well, if you feel that way, take it slow.”

“What about you and Samantha. You guys seem to be hitting it off.”

Lucas smiled. “She is a sweet woman with a wicked sense of humor. She’s working on her engineering degree. I enjoy hanging out with her.”

They finished breakfast, took their plates into the kitchen, and thanked Millie. Sawyer went back into the living room to check on Brent. He was lying on the couch with his head on the pillow. Sawyer felt his forehead and Brent seemed as though his fever had come down some. Oliver said that he couldn’t find the thermometer, which was weird because he checked his supplies religiously. He was going to get one from one of the first aid kits from one of the cabins.

“I’m going for a short walk outside. I won’t go far, so I’ll hear you if you need me,” Sawyer told Audrey.

“Thanks.”

Sawyer smiled and nodded at her.

He stepped on the porch and then turned when he heard the door open and shut behind him.

Gwen smiled at him and reached for his hand. He held it as they walked to the side of the lodge toward the trees.

“I’m guessing, since you’re holding my hand that you don’t have a girlfriend.”

“No. I met a woman in college, named Nancy. She was sweet and smart and I asked her to marry me. Then, we both realized that there was no spark. We got along great and had fun together. However, there was no spark. It was more like hanging out with Lucas than someone who was supposed to be my lover and bride.”

“What happened?”

“One day we had dinner together and I told her that I thought we should go our separate ways. She said, ‘Thank goodness you said that. I was trying to figure out how to tell you the same thing.’ The last I heard, she married someone in Denver.”

“That’s nice.”

“Yeah. Ryder and Colton both had women chasing after them who were psychopaths. They were over the top wow.”

“Poor guys,” Gwen said.

“What about you?”

“I’ve dated but never anyone serious. I don’t know. Some of my friends told me that my expectations were too high. I told them that I wouldn’t settle for less than what my heart wanted.”

“That’s a good answer,” Sawyer said.

They heard a noise in the distance. Sawyer’s face lit up when he saw a large moose snacking on some aspen bark.

“Oh, my goodness, he’s so beautiful,” Gwen breathed.

The moose raised its head and looked at them curiously. Apparently, they weren’t a threat so he went back to his meal.

Sawyer looked down into Gwen’s blue eyes. Gently holding her face in his hands, he lowered his head, pressing his lips to hers. The gentle kiss turned passionate. The embers that had been smoldering inside of him exploded and a fire of emotions coursed through his body.

After a minute he pulled away. She looked at him breathlessly.

“I think we should get back,” he said.

“Good idea.”

They walked back slowly, hand in hand. A million thoughts bounced around in his brain like a ping-pong ball. He didn’t know how he felt about Gwen. Obviously, he liked her. She created a spark inside of him that he hadn’t felt with anyone before.

We’ve known each other all our lives, so it obviously wasn’t love at first sight.

The thought startled him. It was way too soon to even think about the “l” word.

It’s just the heat of the moment. The quicker we get off this bloody mountain the better it’ll be for everyone.

A little niggle in the back of Sawyer’s brain told him that it was more than just a temporary romance brought on by close quarters.

Brent was sitting on the couch playing a video game with Zaid. The boy looked a lot better than he did earlier. Oliver had found a thermometer.

“Let me get your temperature, Buddy.”

Brent nodded and obediently opened his mouth. After it beeped, Sawyer looked at it and then cleaned it off with an alcohol wipe.

“What is it?” Audrey asked.

“He’s at a hundred. He’s cooler than he was this morning. I recommend more tea, acetaminophen, and Gatorade.”

“I’m hungry,” Brent said.

“That’s a good sign. Maybe you can stick with some soup and crackers for now. If you can keep that down, we’ll give you something else.”

Brent groaned and rolled his eyes and then nodded. “I want to be a doctor like you when I grow up.”

Sawyer started to respond but Jerome interrupted him. “Your father wanted to be a doctor, too, and look how that turned out. He’s dead.”

“That’s enough, Jerome. I’ve had it with your nasty attitude. You aren’t to talk to anyone unless you can be pleasant.” Audrey’s voice was low and firm.

Everyone in the room looked at Audrey shocked. Gwen’s jaw had dropped and she was wide-eyed.

Jerome glared at his wife and then stormed off into the bedroom they shared.

Audrey looked over at Brent and Gwen who were staring at her in disbelief.

“What?” she said.

“I’ve never heard you talk to anyone like that, especially not Dad.”

Audrey, who was clearly still angry, heaved a huge breath. “I guess it’s about time that I did.”

She left the room.

Everyone in the room was silent. Sawyer wanted to follow after Audrey and give her a gold medal. He suspected that she had put up with a lot of negativity, if not abuse, her entire life, and finally had enough.

“Um, Sawyer?” Brent asked timidly.

“Yeah, Buddy?”

“Would it be okay if I stayed in your room with you and the guys tonight? I don’t really want to be with them.”

Zaid spoke up. “We would love to have you as a roommate, as long as it’s okay with your mother.”

“I’m sure it will be,” Gwen said.

Brent and Zaid turned their attention back to their game while Gwen and Sawyer headed toward the library.

“You know, you are absolutely wonderful with him. Have you ever thought about having your own kids?”

“Absolutely, if I found the right woman.”

A brief thought crossed his mind. Gwen would be a great mother.