Snow Days (The Hope Falls Series) Read online

  “Great, man. See you then,” Justin said as they waved and walked away from the table.

  Sue Ann gave their coffee cups one last top-off and then bustled happily away to see about the rest of her tables.

  “So,” Henry began, turning his attention back to Matt as he took a sip of his piping hot coffee, “we were talking about you maybe finding a lady friend.”

  Matt closed his eyes briefly and took a deep breath in through his nose before correcting his uncle. “You were talking about that. And I was hoping you'd forgotten.”

  Henry grinned, a twinkle in his eye as he said, “I may be an old coot, but I still have my faculties. I can remember the thrust of a conversation that was taking place five short minutes ago.”

  Matt shook his head. “Good to know, but it doesn’t change the fact that it’s not up for discussion.”

  “Well, I’m putting it up for discussion,” Henry declared, taking another drink of his coffee. Matt could tell by the look on his face that he was not going to drop this. He sighed. He just didn't want to talk about it. But it would be ridiculous to sit there without speaking, playing some game of “silence chicken” with his uncle, waiting to see who would crack first.

  Matt resigned himself to the situation, knowing that it was ridiculous and he'd never win. It was probably best to just lay it out there so his uncle knew where he was coming from and then move along, hopefully putting this topic of conversation to rest.

  “Look,” Matt began, striving to keep his voice as even as possible, “I know that people, you included, just want me to be happy. And you, along with my sisters, and my friends, all think that I need to be with someone for that to happen. But I’ve been there and done that. I found my person and I lost her. Jess was it for me. She’s not replaceable.”

  Henry nodded sagely, not looking at all surprised by Matt’s statement, clearly having anticipated that Matt's feelings on the subject were going to be along those lines.

  “I hear ya, son. I do,” Henry said. “Believe me, I understand where you're coming from better than anybody ought to be able to. Losing a spouse, especially one you love mightily, is not something you ever get over.”

  Matt nodded sympathetically. His uncle had been married for over forty years before his aunt passed away, and they had been very much in love. Matt knew how much Henry must still miss her every single day.

  “I know,” Matt said gently. “You know exactly what it feels like. I just… I can’t do it again. I'll never love anyone the same way I loved Jess.”

  Henry looked surprised. “The same way? Hell, son, of course not! There was only one Jess, and so there can only be one person you love in the way you loved her. Relationships are as unique as...oh, I don't know...seashells, snowflakes...some dagnabbed poetic thing. They're as unique as the people who are in them, let's just put it that way. So, no, you'll never love anyone again in the same way you loved your Jess. But that doesn't mean you'll never love anyone again ever.”

  “That is exactly what it means,” Matt stated flatly. He hadn’t been able to talk to anyone about Jess after he lost her—not even his sisters. The topic had been off-limits, and everyone had known it. At first he’d just wanted some time to process it, and as the years went by, he just never got around to talking about it with anyone. But something about Henry's matter-of-fact way—or perhaps the fact that he had been through the same thing himself—made Matt open up to Henry instead of just completely shutting down like he’d done before.

  “That’s a bunch of malarkey.” Henry shook his head emphatically. “You're a young man, Matt! If an old codger like me hasn't given up on love, then I better not hear that a young buck like you has!”

  Matt smiled a little. “Okay,” he conceded in hopes of ending this conversation. “I promise you I’ll think about what you said and not count anything out.”

  “That,” Henry responded gravely, tipping his coffee cup towards Matt in a solemn salute, “is all that I, or anyone, could ask of you, son. And I'm proud of you.”

  Matt nodded. He found himself unable to speak at the moment. His throat was tight with emotion. He was grateful to his uncle for caring so much about him and his well-being. Sure, there was that. But it was more than that simple fact that had inspired this sudden bout of being choked up.

  He missed his wife. He missed Jess. He knew that there was never going to be a day he didn’t miss her smile, her laugh, her touch.

  He turned his gaze back out the front window of the café and took in the stunning view again. Looking out at the breathtaking landscape, he knew this was exactly where he needed to be. A new town, a new life...a new start.

  Chapter Six

  Amy could not stop checking the clock every few seconds. She’d been doing it since the beginning of fourth period because her prep period was next—the prep period she now shared with Matt Kellan.

  Last night after Nikki left, Amy had warmed up a bowl of soup and looked over her notes from all of her interviews. Who was she kidding? She’d mainly looked over the notes from Matt’s interview. His answers had certainly taken her by surprise.

  Growing up with two older brothers, she had just assumed that, when she’d asked what he found sexy, his reply would have been something purely physical, like breasts or legs. But Matt had responded with a question, asking if she’d meant purely physical or in general.

  What she’d found equally as surprising was that, even when he’d been describing the physical attributes he found appealing, it wasn’t at all generic. He’d talked about the curve of a woman’s spine, the slope of her neck, the flair of her hips. He spoke with reverence as he described a woman’s form. It had made all kinds of pictures flash in Amy’s mind about how his touch, his mouth would feel on those spots.

  Her heart began to race just thinking about it.

  “Ms. Maguire.” Looking up, she saw Candice, one of her honors students, standing in front of her desk.

  “Yes?” Amy felt her cheeks get hot with embarrassment at the fact that she’d just let her mind wander to such inappropriate places while she had a room full of students.

  “Will we still be getting extra credit for early turn in?”

  Amy always liked to be ahead of the game. She hated work piling up. So it had been her policy that if a student turned in a paper early and it scored over eighty percent, the student would receive extra credit. She’d had to add the eighty percent caveat due to students rushing through the assignment and turning in less than stellar work.

  “If it meets the criteria, then yes,” Amy smiled as Candice nodded her head and scribbled in her notebook.

  Candice actually reminded Amy a lot of herself when she was in high school. Candice was well liked but not what someone would consider popular. She kept her head in the books but was very friendly. She even volunteered for the buddy reading program Amy had developed where high school kids were paired up with elementary school students at the library after school and helped them with their reading skills.

  Amy thought back to her high school days and wondered if, knowing what she knew now, she would have done anything differently. What would her life be like now if she hadn’t been so studious? If she’d let her hair down and, like Nikki was so fond of saying, let her freak flag fly high, would she still be on a quest to find her true self?

  Or would she have already sowed her wild oats, settled down, and maybe even had a child or two by now?

  The bell sounded loudly and all of her twenty-six students began standing and filing out of the room.

  “All right. See you guys tomorrow. Remember, don’t leave your projects until the last minute.” Amy was consistently surprised by her students’ poor time-management skills. Never in her life had she suffered from that. She’d always been a master at prioritizing.

  Sadly, it wasn’t just mismanagement of time that she saw in her students’ behavior, it was also lack of self-discipline. Although she didn’t share in Mrs. Coolidge’s views on the internet destroying the you
th, she had definitely observed that, as amazing as it was to have so much information at your fingertips, it was equally as distracting. You were always just one click away from a social media site or a funny video or shopping. She would definitely concede that focus was much more of a challenge for youth today.

  “Did you see him?” Amy heard Ashley whisper to Candice as the two girls passed in front of her desk on the way out of the classroom

  Candice, who’d been typing on her phone, looked up and around. “Who?”

  “The new history teacher.” Ashley’s eyes lit up. “He is sooo yummy.”

  Yes, he is.

  “Mr. Kellan?” Candice asked, sounding a little distracted as she again began typing again. If she was, in fact, anything like Amy had been, she was probably scheduling her homework out.

  “Um, yeah,” Ashley emphasized as if she were stating the obvious.

  “Oh.” Candice looked up again. “I didn’t notice.”

  Yep, that would have been Amy in high school. She’d never noticed guys. Nikki, however, even being two years younger than Amy, had always noticed.

  “Seriously?!” Ashley asked in utter disbelief, just as they were about to round the corner to the door. “How could you not notice that Mr. Kellan is four-alarm, fire-scorching hot?”

  “Mr. Kellan.” Candice stopped up short as the subject of Ashley’s comment walked through the door.

  Amy took a moment to just drink him in. Today he was wearing a blue button-up shirt and jeans. The sleeves were rolled up to the same place they’d been the day before, and she had to stop herself from drooling over his toned, muscular forearms.

  “Girls.” Matt nodded at them as he held the door open and let them pass. As soon as the door shut, Amy heard Ashley squeal and start laughing from behind the closed door.

  “Looks like you already have some admirers,” Amy teased as Matt stepped into the room.

  His lips turned up into a half smile as he shook his head. Amy’s heart fluttered at the sight of his deep dimple.

  “I’m the new teacher. It will pass,” he said, brushing it off.

  I wouldn’t count on that.

  “So how is your first day so far?” Amy asked. She wondered what it would be like to move to a new town and start at a school where no one knew you. It sounded amazing to her.

  “So far, so good.” He pulled up a chair next to the work station that was beside her desk. “Do you mind if I sit here?” he asked as he turned to her, his green eyes catching the sunlight that was streaming in from the large windows on the left side of the room.

  “Yes,” Amy answered, staring, mesmerized by the shining emerald color in his eyes that reflected light like a diamond. He began to stand, and she realized that she hadn’t been clear. She quickly corrected herself. “I mean, yes, of course, that’s fine. Please sit there.”

  Warmth spread up her cheeks, and she brought her hand to her nose before immediately dropping it, remembering she didn’t have glasses on. The gesture made her cheeks get even warmer, which meant they were probably a deep blush shade by now.

  She wanted to reach up and cover her face with her hands but she knew that would only draw more attention to her flushed condition. Why couldn’t she be like Nikki? Not once in Amy’s life had she ever seen her sister red-faced with embarrassment. Amy wasn’t sure if that was due to the fact that her sister never got embarrassed or if she just hadn’t received the blushful gene. The involuntary response had always been a source of frustration for Amy. It was like a blinking neon sign advertising embarrassment.

  “Blushing,” Matt said matter-of-factly.

  “What?” Amy blinked in confusion. Was he just pointing out the obvious or…?

  “You can add that to the list of things I find sexy.” Matt’s deep voice vibrated through Amy’s entire body.

  Her cheeks were practically on fire now, and Amy realized that she didn’t just blush when she was embarrassed. It also seemed she blushed when she was aroused. Very aroused.

  Maybe blushing wasn’t so bad after all.

  --- ~ ---

  Matt couldn’t help but smile at the effect his admission had had on Amy. Her cheeks were bright red, her eyes were dilated, her full lips were parted, and her breathing was shallow. He felt his pants tighten and recognized the fact that, no matter what had transpired the night before when Amy had asked him those personal questions, he needed to remain professional now or he just might find himself on the receiving end of a sexual harassment lawsuit.

  Shaking his head, he pulled out his laptop to start working. He hadn’t ever had a problem staying professional at work. Maybe part of the problem he was having now was due to the fact that he hadn’t had sex in over five years.

  After he’d lost Jess, he hadn’t been interested in dating. Then at his friends’ and sisters’ insistence, he’d let himself be set up. The few women he’d gone out with had taken things so seriously, becoming aggressive once they’d found out that he was a widow. It was like they wanted to replace the position of wife in his life or somehow fill the void she’d left. He’d had a woman tell him that she was ready to move in after the first time they’d hung out.

  The experience had made him put an end to being set up.

  He had to admit that, although he knew he’d never be in a relationship again, he did miss sex. Not that he’d considered taking it there with the few women he’d dated.

  There’d been no spark. No pull. He had even thought that maybe that side of himself was gone.

  Until now. He hadn’t been able to stop thinking about Amy since last night. He’d had such a strong reaction to her that he’d pretty much convinced himself it had been a fluke. That when he saw her again he wouldn’t feel anything. He’d been wrong.

  The second he’d walked into the room and seen her seated behind her large desk, he’d been slammed with the same—or perhaps even more intense—sensation that had come over him the previous night. There was something so different, so special about Amy. Not just her appearance, which was stunning. It was her way. The way she not only spoke but communicated. When they talked, he felt like she wasn’t just listening but really hearing him.

  Of course that could have been because ninety percent of their conversations so far had been her interviewing him for her study. That was another thing—her study. He was so curious to find out more about it.

  What was she collecting that data for? A book? A documentary?

  He shifted in his chair, trying to focus on his lesson planning, but his mind continued to wander. He had so many questions filling up his brain, and it was hard to push them down. Couple that with the fact that his body was acutely aware that Amy was seated less than two feet away from him and he was getting about zero work done.

  The same vibration he’d heard the night before sounded and he glanced up to see Amy pulling her phone from her purse.

  “Hello,” she answered in a quiet voice. “This is Amy.” He looked back at his computer to give her some privacy until he heard her say, “Sure, this Saturday is good, and dinner sounds great.”

  Was she going on a date? That was sure what it sounded like. Matt didn’t like the feeling that thought had caused inside of him.

  “No, I’ll just meet you there.” Amy’s voice remained quiet. “Okay, see you then.”

  She placed the phone back in her purse and turned to Matt.

  “Sorry about that.”

  He knew that she was only apologizing for taking the call in case it had disrupted his work. “No problem. I’m having a hard time focusing.” He nodded toward his computer, placing the blame unfairly on it instead of his overactive, over-hormonal imagination.

  Her eyes lit up at his words. “I was actually just thinking about that. How hard it must be for students to stay focused these days with so many distractions at their fingertips.”

  His distraction was sitting two feet away from him, wearing a tan sweater that was not the least bit form-fitting and had a neckline high enough that it di
dn’t even hint at a show of cleavage but was making his mouth water all the same.

  “So you have a date?” He hadn’t been planning on asking her about it. It was absolutely none of his business. But the words had just popped right out of his mouth.

  “Oh.” Amy’s eyes widened at his abrupt question. “I guess, yeah.”

  He felt the corners of his mouth turn up in amusement. “You’re not sure?”

  “No. I mean yes,” Amy stuttered, seeming to be a little flustered. “Yes I have a date.”

  “Have you guys been dating long?” Again, it was none of Matt’s business, and from what he’d overheard of Amy’s end of the call, the answer was no, but he still wanted to hear it from her.

  “Nope.” She shook her head, grabbed a pile of papers on her desk, and began studying them intently.

  Obviously she didn’t want him to pursue this line of questioning further, but did that stop him? No. “So, it’s a first date?”

  “Yep,” Amy nodded as she continued focusing on her pile o’ papers, giving very clear signals that this was not a topic she felt comfortable discussing.

  Still, he found himself asking, “Are you excited?”

  That got her to look up at him. Confusion clouded her face. “What?”

  “For your date?” Matt clarified.

  “Oh,” Amy said as understanding registered on her features. “Um, I guess, yeah.”

  That was the second time she had answered less than enthusiastically about this date. “You’re not sure?”

  She smiled at him. He’d repeated the follow-up he’d used the first time she’d answered him with those words. “You know dating. It’s…dating.”

  He knew he felt that way but he’d had no idea anyone else did. Most of his friends, guys and girls, seemed excited when they had plans with someone. He’d felt like that part of him had been damaged from his loss and that he wasn’t normal. Hearing Amy echo his sentiments made him feel better in some strange way.