Page 9 of Mountain Refuge
Keeping one eye on Henry, I caught her up in my arms and swung her around. She clutched me as hard as she could, burying her face in my shoulder. My little angel. She’d been sostrong. I shushed her as I felt her start to shake. I finger-combed my hand through her hair, noticing it had been recently washed. She was also wearing the spare outfit I’d had in the backpack for her. Most of the clothes inside had been Henry’s but I knew there’d been a spare set of shoes, undies, shirt, and pants for Lydia.
I walked her across the floor, nearing where Henry was bouncing in his makeshift seat. One-handed, I undid the bungee cords keeping him in and lifted him out by his diapered bottom. Henry, all of six months, giggled and baby-cheered at seeing me. He gripped my too-long hair in one fist, his other hand going to my overgrown beard near my mouth. I play bit his hand, making sure to cover my teeth with my lips as I nibbled. He giggled some more, which was the best sound in the world.
There were no words for how I felt in this moment. The terror we’d been facing over the past couple of weeks, over the past couple of years for Lydia and me, was overwhelming. To have this moment of peace, this feeling of security given by this cabin, mountain, and snow, was beyond words. It was everything to have my children happy and healthy. Safe. Whole. Mine.
I sat down on the floor, crossing my legs in front of me. I rested Lydia’s butt on my right leg, keeping a tight grip on Henry with my left arm. I closed my eyes, breathing my children in. The greatest gifts in the world to me were these two kids. I was beyond proud to call myself their father. They were worth every sleepless night, every law broken, every risk taken. They were my whole world. I needed them like I needed air to breathe. If anything happened to them, I would be destroyed.
As a teen, even a young adult, I’d pictured myself as a father…someday. It was the clichéd dream of finding a wife, buying a house, getting a dog, and then having two kids. Never would have imagined my kids being born under the circumstances they had been, or the trials I’d gone through to claim them.
I was their father. At the end of the day, that was all that mattered. It was my job to protect them. I’d been doing a crappy job of that over the past two days, first with getting caught in the snowstorm and then sleeping for over a day.
Lydia’s knee collided with my belly, and I realized for the first time that my bladder was also awake. Damn, I didn’t want to move from this spot.
Movement out of the corner of my eye drew my attention to Brooke. She stood awkwardly in the doorway, almost exactly where I’d been standing when I’d collapsed. She held my jeans in her hands, staring at the floor like it had the secret to life etched in it.
“Thank you,” I said softly. She looked up, shocked that I’d spoken. Her eyes widened when she saw my eyes on her, as if she hadn’t been expecting to be acknowledged. I gestured downward to the little angels in my arms. “You looked out for them when I couldn’t. I owe you everything.”
She shook her head immediately. “You don’t owe me anything. I did what anyone would do coming across your car like that.”
The fact that I knew that wasn’t true, that most of the populace was too selfish to step forward and help a group of strangers, was sad. I’d reached out to Corbin in my desperation to keep my kids safe. He and his friend, Jack, were oddities to help me so selflessly. Brooke, even more so.
It took me a moment to realize Lydia’s shaking had ceased and her breathing had evened out. She was asleep. My little angel, I had to wonder how much she’d slept while I’d been passed out on the couch. With me out of commission, she would have felt it was her responsibility to guard and care for Henry. She likely hadn’t slept while I’d been sleeping.
I kissed the top of her head. Then looked back at Brooke. “She’s asleep.”
Brooke nodded. “She paced most of the night. She barely set Henry down even though I’d made him a little crib out of a plastic bin and blankets.”
My eyes flew to the highchair. “Crafty.”
Her cheeks reddened, and I found it adorable. Damn, what was wrong with me. My kids were on my lap. I could not get an erection right now. And yet, that little blush made my blood pump faster.
I looked around, mainly to get my eyes off of her, and that cute dusting of freckles across her button nose and cheeks, but also to contemplate my predicament. I was sitting cross legged on the floor with a blanket toga around my body and my children asleep against me. I also needed to take a piss like, well, like I hadn’t gone in two days. Some personal hygiene attention was also needed. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d showered. Body wipes were good for the kids or quick gas station bathroom hair washes for Lydia. But I hadn’t washed or shaved in a long time.
I was suddenly embarrassed. Here I was having a cartoon heart throb moment staring at Brooke while I no doubt stank with BO, and who knew what else, looking like a hobo. Not exactly a turn on for her. I didn’t embarrass easily, nor did I consider myself a vain man, but I suddenly needed to get to that bathroomnow. I did not want her seeing me like this longer than she had to.
And why was I even thinking about that? I had to concentrate on my kids, on finding Corbin, on figuring out our next steps. I should not be thinking about how great her long legs looked in those leggings or how I really wished that oversized shirt revealed more about her shape underneath and yet foundthe mystery oddly alluring. Peeling off that shirt would be like opening a gift on Christmas, the anticipation?—
Fuck. I stopped that train of thought before it went any further. I really could not get an erection right now.
“Um,” I cleared my throat, “I could really use some time in the bathroom. Do you think you could…?” I gestured to my sleeping kids. I was prepared to take them into the bathroom with me so they wouldn’t be a bother to her, but I needed help standing with them. I was not what one would call graceful or athletic.
Brooke came forward, draping my jeans over the back of one of the kitchen chairs. For being just her living here, which was the assumption I was going off of, I wondered why there were four chairs around her kitchen table. I could understand one or two, being just her and maybe a guest, but why four? Maybe I was wrong, and it wasn’t just her living here?
Bending down, she took Lydia from me. The perpetual psychology student in me pondered if there was a reason she chose Lydia over Henry. Did it have to do with their ages or gender? Was she uncomfortable around infants? Maybe she felt sorry for Lydia after what I’d put her through the past couple of days?
Regardless, one less child freed a hand to allow me to stand. I went to reach for Lydia so I could take her into the bathroom with me, but Brooke took a step back and shook her head.
“I’ll put her on the couch. Follow me, and I can show you what I made for Henry. Hopefully it’s safe enough for him. I wasn’t sure but I’m also limited on supplies in the house during the storm. My tool shed is out back and difficult to reach in the snow right now. Plus, I didn’t want to leave the kids alone that long to fight through the snow to get there.”
She started walking away, not meeting my eyes. Had she seen the lust in them? I hope I hadn’t made her uncomfortable. Ireally did owe her for giving us food and shelter. The thought of food made my stomach grumble, but I really had to take a piss before I could eat or drink anything.
A shower would be nice too. My hunger could wait. I was used to putting off eating by now. Nerves and a need to make sure my kids had enough to eat first had kept me from consuming much over the past two weeks. If I’d been asleep one plus days then this was day fourteen since we’d run. Exactly two weeks since that awful day.
I followed Brooke back into the living room. Her cabin was quaint. Probably only had one bedroom and one bath. There was a loft that I hadn’t realized before looking out over the living room. I wondered if that was her bedroom. I didn’t see stairs though, which made me ponder if the cabin was bigger than it looked. I don’t recall what the house looked like from when we’d arrived. I’d been out of it and hadn’t been noticing much at that point. When the snow died down some, I’d like to take a walk around the cabin to see the outside.
I watched Brooke lay Lydia on the couch where I’d woken up. Since I had the blanket still around my waist, she reached over the back of the couch for a lighter throw. It looked homemade, maybe knitted. Had Brooke made it? Maybe her mother?
The thought of family made me doubt yet again if Brooke lived here alone. If she did, more power to her. I didn’t know what it took to live on a mountain, but I’m sure it took more guts and brains than I had. But it also made me wonderwhyshe was alone. Brooke was beautiful, strong, and independent. She could be living it up in the city or being the small town’s golden girl. Why was she living in a cabin in the middle of the woods on a mountain? Clearly the snow secluded her. I wasn’t sure where the electricity that was lighting the cabin was coming from, but she had to have a source other than electrical lines. What about water and plumbing? She had to be self-sufficient in a place like this. And, again, I wanted to know why.
