Page 17 of Let it Snow Queen
Chapter 11
At least the snow was soft. Ice was not, though. Within moments, Gallow and Fox were at my side, helping me up.
Koji admonished from behind them, running a hand through his hair. “You could have gotten killed. What were you thinking, taking off so fast?”
“You baited me into it!” I squeaked, trying to stand. Pain shot through my ankle and I fell, limp. Gallow and Fox caught me before I face-planted, holding me up. “My ankle,” I breathed, the pain throbbing.
“It’s okay, we’ve got you,”Fox said.
He signed something to Koji I didn’t catch. Koji signed back, “Her left ankle.”
Gallow scooped me into his arms as if I were light as a feather. I’d never felt smaller than anyone before him. Being tall and curvy, I was always the biggest woman in the room. I was fine with it but didn’t like the extra attention it brought. I’d never realized how safe it would feel to be tucked underneath a largerman. Each of the guys were freakishly tall and I liked it. “We’ll get ye into town and take a look at ye,” he said, stomping down the hill. The townspeople gawked as we entered the square. To be fair, we were quite the spectacle. As big a grizzly bear, Gallow carried me like a damsel in distress, while Koji and Fox had lids and empty duffles for supplies. The guys dusted off their boots as we walked into an empty little diner. Gallow sat me gently in a booth and propped my leg up. Fox took over then, shoving his friend out of the way. He gently rolled up my pant leg. Flinching, he took note and went slow and gentle. When I glanced up, he said, “I’m going to feel it gently to ensure it’s not broken. Is that alright?”
I nodded. It’s what my papa would have done, too.
“Here,” Koji said brusquely as he passed me a steaming mug of coffee. He and Gallow slid into the adjacent booth.
“It’s not broken, but it’s a nasty sprain. We’re going to have to carry her back up.” Fox signed. “I got her,” Gallow replied, his green eyes tender. An older couple stared at him as they walked by, making me grin. He was beautiful.
“We can take turns,” Koji said.
“That’s settled,” Fox said, carefully lifting my leg and sliding into the booth. He sat my ankle delicately on his lap. It felt intimate and precisely like something a boyfriend would do. Boyfriend. I didn’t think I’d ever had one of those. Declan’s dad was unpredictable. I chalked it up to being on-call, rising through the surgery ranks under my papa’s guidance. But he never cared to make time for me during our short courtship. I was sure he’d be involved when I found out I was pregnant. He was such a professional and charming man, I thought. There was no doubt in my naive mind that he would take care of me. I thought he would be my partner. But that wasn’t what happened when I told him I was pregnant in the hospital’s parking lot between his shifts. He wouldn’t even deign to meet me forcoffee. I had to come to him so he could squeeze me in between patients. “And what do you want me to do about that? It’s not my problem. Take care of it,” he’d said so nonchalantly, as if I were telling him about a flat tire. His words were a shock to my hopeful spirit.
I’d stood there, dumbfounded.“I want this baby . . . ,”I’d said weakly, only realizing at that moment how much I wanted a baby.
“You’re, what, nineteen years old? Look, this was fun, but I’m not about to throw away my career on a lay who was stupid enough to get knocked up. Do what you want, but I’m having no part in it.”
The tears that rolled down my cheeks were full of sorrow. My pregnancy was stricken with grief and sadness. Sometimes I stared at Declan, looking for a hint of that despair. Surely it would have seeped into him somehow. But it didn’t. Dec was the happiest, rowdiest little boy. And I loved him dearly. I loved being a mom. But the grief that accompanied being asinglemom . . . was unexplainable. Daily, when I walked to my kitchen and my moms made breakfast and played with Declan . . . I mourned the life I thought I’d have with his dad. When my dad would pull my mom into his lap or when my papa surprised her with flowers, my soul died a little bit. For the first time, my family was a glaring example of a life that seemed far out of my reach. I wanted husbands, but how could I attain that when I couldn’t even get the father of my child to stay?
I wasn’t enough.
Fox interlaced his fingers with mine and brought my palm to his lips, kissing it tenderly as a friendly waitress placed plates of steaming hot food in front of us. However, I’d lost my appetite upon the unpleasant memories of my ex. No, he wasn’t even an ex. Alay, he called it.
Gallow rumbled, “Why the long face, lass? I promise I’ll take care of ye, and we’ll get you home to yer boy in time for Christmas.”
I couldn’t tell them. Koji would tease me mercilessly, and Gallow and Fox . . . they’d feel sorry for me, and that would be worse than the teasing. “I’m just hungry,” I lied, picking up a fried chicken drumstick.
Koji eyed me skeptically but didn’t say anything as he forked his collard greens. Fox groaned and chuckled, setting down his chicken. “They don’t make fried food like this in California. Southern cooking is amazing.”
“Sure is; I’m ordering some to-go,” Gallow agreed.
A giggle escaped my throat, and the ice on my soul thawed slightly. Being near them was like sitting next to sunshine. I couldn’t help but feel warm. “You should try my mommy’s cooking sometime. She and my mama have a catering company.”
“I’d love to meet them sometime.” Fox smiled.
Red flushed across my face. “I’d like that, too.”
Koji loudly cleared his throat, interrupting our moment. “We need to strategize so we don’t waste daylight. The mountain will ice over in a few hours at sunset. I’ll get the food since I’m the only one who knows how to cook. Meet in two hours.” He stood, flicked a large bill onto the table, and stormed off without saying goodbye.
I rolled my eyes. “What is his problem?”
Gallow shrugged, taking a bite of fried okra. “Koji’s a complicated guy. You should two should get to know each other better.”
My blush returned as I recalled just how well we’d secretly gotten to know each other.
After eatingas much as physically possible, I hobbled out onto the front porch of the restaurant and slumped into a rocking chair. Gallow and Fox disappeared to raid the shops, and Koji was nowhere to be seen. To my amazement, I had a bar of service. It was a Christmas miracle. I called my dad immediately. He answered on the third ring. “Hey, Roo-Roo, how’s my girl?”
His cavalier tone sent a wave of confusion through me. “Um . . . I’m fine. Did you see the blizzard on the news? It snowed, like, a million feet up here.”