She turned back to Jackson to find him staring at her instead of the snow. Heat swirled in her chest. She was used to having men stare at her, so why was she having such a reaction to Jackson looking at her now?
And then she realized that in her hurry to find out what had caused the massive tremors, she’d rushed downstairs without running a brush through her hair. Unlike his sexy appearance, she must look quite a mess.
How did men wake up looking good? It was frustrating because her hair was always going in far too many directions and sticking straight out in other places. And then she started to wonder if she had drool in the corners of her mouth. A groan started deep inside, but she stifled it. But the heat rushing to her face was unstoppable.
Just then Gizmo moved to the door and started to bark. She made a point of turning away from Jackson as though to talk to the dog. With one hand, she petted Gizmo. With the other hand, she ran her fingers around her mouth. She finally breathed a little easier.
“It’s okay, boy. I’ll take you out in a minute.”
“Out? Where?”
“Lucky for me this cabin is fully prepared for anything. There’s a snow shovel on the side of the porch.”
Serena dressed quickly and then fired up the generator. She stuffed her feet in a pair of snow boots that she’d picked up in the nearby village upon hearing the forecast. And then she put on her coat and pulled a white knit cap over her mussed-up hair.
After attaching Gizmo’s leash, she turned back to Jackson. “After I take him out and shovel for a bit, I’ll get you some breakfast.”
“You don’t have to.”
She shrugged. “I’m going to need some breakfast after I shovel out the driveway. Or at least start on it. Suddenly that driveway looks very long.”
Jackson’s face creased with frown lines. “You shouldn’t do all of that shoveling.”
“Really? I don’t see anyone else around here to help dig us out.”
A distinct frown formed on his handsome face. “I should be doing it.”
“And how exactly would you manage to shovel snow on one leg?”
“Maybe the sun will melt it.”
“When? A month from now?”
He sighed. “Okay. I’ll help you.”
“No, you won’t.” She glared at him, hoping he’d understand her level of seriousness. “You’ll stay right here.”
Not about to continue this pointless argument, she let herself out the door. The snow was light but the wind was still gusting. She could imagine that many of the mountain roads would be impassable and she didn’t even want to think of how the avalanche would delay Jackson’s departure.
At least if she got the vehicle and the driveway dug out, once the roads were opened, she could get him to the village. She just had to hope that would happen sometime today. The longer they spent together, the harder it was to keep her true identity a secret.
CHAPTER SEVEN
HE FELT LIKE a caged tiger.
Moving between the window and the couch was making his ankle throb. His conscience wouldn’t allow him any peace. He shouldn’t be inside this cozy cabin while Mae was outside doing all of the hard work. He felt awful. He’d never had a woman take care of him—not even his wife.
When he’d first met June, she’d been a model and he’d been at the fashion show to do an interview. It was back when he just did spotlight interviews for an evening entertainment show. She was delicate and spoke with a soft voice. She was kind and thoughtful—the exact opposite of his mother.
And in no time, he’d fallen for her. In just a few short months, they’d been married amid her family’s protests. With both of them driven by their passion for life and work, their futures were on the rise. Fueled by his determination and June’s encouragement, he’d taken on the anchor chair of Hello America within six months of their marriage. It appeared that nothing could stop them.
And then a few years later, she’d received the life-altering diagnosis—she had cancer. He clearly remembered that day at the doctor’s office with an overhead light flickering, the slight sent of antiseptic in the air and June’s muffled cry. Jackson’s gut knotted as the memories washed over him. That day was when all their dreams and plans had fallen to the white tiled floor and shattered into a million sharp, jagged pieces.
He’d dropped everything as they’d embarked on the fight of their lives. He’d needed to make sure she was always taken care of, whether it be surgery, a treatment or just being at home recovering from the side effects of her treatments. He’d turned his life upside down and inside out—not because he had to but rather because he wanted to be there for June.
He had her favorite magazines on hand for her to thumb through, her favorite flavored water, chicken broth and movies. He’d never minded. He would have done anything for her. Just the memory of everything she’d endured because of that horrible disease made his stomach turn.
And as much as he’d loved June, he could see now that she was so different from Mae. June never would have waited on him like Mae had the night before. But that was not exactly fair. Because June didn’t know how to cook, she would have called for delivery service.