Sara in Montana - A Christmas Wish

Copyright 2013 Changing Culture Publications

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Chapter 1

Sara pulled up in front of the small drug store and leaned her forehead against the steering wheel for a brief moment. She was somewhere in eastern Montana, not sure exactly where, but she had been driving for two days straight. She had seen the sign for the little town and pulled off the highway in desperation, hoping to find a place to hole up for just one night.

Exhausted, she pushed herself back from the steering wheel, reached across the console for her purse and turned to open the door. The harsh winter wind rushed into the car as she pushed the door open. Shivering, she pulled her thin shirt around herself and carefully navigated the snow and ice until she reached the sidewalk. Thank goodness someone had shoveled the surface. Her thin tennis shoes were no match for the snow and she could already feel the moisture seeping through.

Pulling the door open, she hurried inside and then paused. On any other day, she would have stopped to appreciate the Norman Rockwell-like scene before her. The sounds of Christmas music filled the air and the old fashioned soda fountain was decorated with garlands and tiny Christmas lights. A tinsel Christmas tree stood atop the bar and fake snow had been sprayed around the mirror, which made up the bar’s back wall. Black and white tile and red vinyl booths completed the picture.

Christmas was still several weeks away but the festive atmosphere in the store just augmented Sara’s situation. She should be baking cookies with her niece and fighting the crowds at the mall. Instead, she was in the middle of nowhere and running out of options. Right now, her only goal was finding a restroom.

As she scanned the back of the store looking for a sign that would direct her to their bathroom facilities, she was once again wracked by a coughing spell that had her holding her ribs and bending over at the waist in an attempt to control the pain. She had begun coughing yesterday morning, and the coughing fits had gotten so bad, she had been forced to stop driving several times during the day.

Managing to get control of her breathing once again, she straightened and started to move forward, only to run into a wall of muscle. Quickly glancing up, she moved back as she looked into the bluest eyes she had ever seen.

“I’m sorry,” she told the man in front of her hoarsely. Swallowing, she tried to find her voice again, “I didn’t see you there. Excuse me.” Sara attempted to walk around the man only to find her path blocked as he moved with her.

“That cough sounds pretty nasty. Are you okay?” Trent Harding asked. He had been sitting at the bar talking to Jeb Matthews, the drugstore owner, when he had seen the strange vehicle pull up in front of the store.

As the town sheriff, Trent knew every vehicle the 1,356 residents of Castle Peaks, Montana drove. The silver Camry parked out front wasn’t one of them.

“I’m fine,” Sara replied as she looked at her feet. Not quite meeting his eyes she asked, “Um, is there a bathroom here I could use?” Thanks to her latest coughing fit, finding a bathroom was becoming her number one priority.

“Sure. Just go straight back. It’s on your left.” Trent gestured behind him.

Sara cut her eyes back to his briefly and just nodded. Edging around him, she quickly navigated her way through the aisles, finding the bathroom and closing herself inside.

Trent watched the small woman until she located the bathroom. His radar was on high alert as he took in her appearance. Wearing a thin button down shirt over a t-shirt, well-worn jeans, and tennis shoes that appeared to be wet from their encounter with the snow, she was completely under-dressed for a Montana winter.

Puzzled that someone would venture out into the weather like that, especially while they were sick, Trent turned back to look at the vehicle parked out front. The license plates showed the vehicle was registered in California. Making a mental note of the plate number, he turned and took his seat at the bar again.

“That little gal seems like maybe she’s not feeling so well. That’s a pretty bad sounding cough,” Jeb said as he finished wiping down the counter.

“Yeah. Car’s registered in California.”

“California? She’s a long way from home then.”

Trent and Jeb both turned at the sound of the bathroom door opening and watched as the young woman headed back towards the front of the store. As she drew closer, Trent got a better look at her and couldn’t help but smile in approval. She was only around 5’ 6” tall, almost a foot shorter than his 6’ 4” height, with gorgeous baby blue eyes framed by long lashes. Her complexion was flawless and her long blonde hair was pulled up into a haphazard ponytail that was slightly askew. Her clothing did nothing to hide the curves hidden underneath.

Coming around from behind the bar, Jeb wiped his hands on the towel at his waist and held his hand out as she approached him, “Good afternoon, Jeb Matthews at your service. What can I help you with?”

Sara hesitantly shook the older gentleman’s hand. He reminded her of her late Uncle Thomas. His white hair and friendly demeanor helped to put Sara at ease. Swallowing, Sara said, “Would you happen to have any cough medicine?” Coughing again, she held onto her ribs until the fit had passed. She felt light headed as the spell eased, and struggled to catch her breath.

Jeb watched the young woman start coughing again and hurried around the counter, returning with a bottle of water, which he uncapped and pushed into her hands. “Drink some of this and see if it helps.”

Sara took the water and drank several small sips before she felt able to talk once again. “Thank you.”

“Let me show you where I keep the cold remedies and we’ll see if there’s something there that might help you with that cough,” Jeb indicated that she should follow him with a nod of his head.

After looking at several shelves, he bent and retrieved several boxes of cough syrup. Handing them to Sara, “One of these should do the trick. Have you been running a fever?”

Sara took the boxes he held out to her, and pretending to look at the usage directions, she shrugged one shoulder, “I don’t really know. Probably…I…um…” Sara handed the boxes back and once again wrapped her arms around herself.  She needed her glasses. Without them, she could barely make out the large printed brand name, let alone read the smaller typed directions for how to use the medicine. They were in the car but she didn’t have the energy to go get them. It was only cough syrup. They were all alike, weren’t they? Sara didn’t really know. She couldn’t ever remember being this sick. “Maybe you could just choose one for me?”

Something was off here, but Jeb couldn’t quite figure out what. Chalking it up to her not feeling well, he turned to where Trent sat observing their interaction, “Hey, Trent, which one of these would you recommend for her cough?” Jeb held both boxes aloft so Trent could see them.

Trent stood up and walked over to look at the boxes himself. Sara glanced at him quickly and then looked away again. He was wearing a badge. How had she missed that the first time? That was the last thing she needed right now. She wasn’t sure how far David Patterson’s influence reached, but if he had California law enforcement on his side, God only knew whom else he could influence.

Reaching out and removing the first box of cough syrup from Jeb’s hand, she told him, “I’m sure this one will be fine. If you could ring me up I’ll be on my way.”

Sara turned and started to head towards the checkout counter, only to find her way once again blocked by a wall of muscle. Looking up, she found her gaze trapped in that of the sheriff. He was the most handsome man she had ever seen. Luxurious hair that just begged to have her fingers running through it framed a strong face. Eyes that made her think of the night sky and a mouth that made her stomach flip filled her vision. Glancing down, the vision only got better. His shirt did nothing to hide the sculpted muscles of his chest and arms.  Blushing at where her eyes had been headed, she forced her eyes to discontinue their southern perusal. She raised her eyes back up to see him giving her the same visual inspection.

She was gorgeous. Trent watched as her eyes scanned his face and then traveled down his body. He quickly did his own appraisal and definitely liked what he saw. Glancing down at her ring finger, he was pleased to see it vacant. He wasn’t sure whom she was in town to visit, but he hoped she would stick around long enough for him to get to know her a little better.

“Excuse me,” Sara attempted to go around the sheriff again.

Again, he moved with her, stopping her forward motion. “My name’s Trent Harding, and you are?” Trent held his hand out, and when she didn’t seem inclined to take it, he slowly reached up and rubbed his forehead, considering her skittishness all the while.

“Just passing through.” Sara didn’t have it in her to stand and trade niceties with this man. He was definitely someone she would have enjoyed looking at in another life, but now she needed to pay for the cough syrup and find the highway again. There were still several hours until dark and she needed to find some place to hunker down for the night. She should probably fill up with gas before leaving so that she could keep the heater going throughout the night.

For the last several nights, Sara had found secluded rest spots and spent her nights sleeping for short periods before the cold would force her to start the car and run the heater. She hoped that one more night and another day of driving would place her far enough away from San Francisco that she could stop and finally get some much needed rest. She was more tired than she could ever remember being and the coughing spells took every ounce of spare energy she could muster. What she wouldn’t give to curl up in a nice warm bed and sleep for the next 48 hours.

Trent’s radar went on alert even more as she attempted to get around him again. Taking hold of her elbow, he felt her stiffen, but she didn’t try to pull away. He turned her toward the register and together they walked towards it. Looking down at her, he tried again, “I still didn’t catch your name.”

Sara looked up at Trent, and licking her lips replied, “I’m Sara.” Trent watched her tongue come out and wet her dry lips and felt his body instantly respond. What was it about this woman? He’d never felt this instant attraction before.

“It’s nice to meet you, Sara. I see your car is registered in California. That’s quite a ways from here. Are you visiting family for the holidays up here?”

Sara shook her head. “No.”

Jeb took the cough syrup from her and rang it up. “That’ll be $10.83.”

Sara swallowed and forced her sense of dread down. She had been very careful only to use cash since she started running, but that was mostly gone now. Seeing no other way to get what she needed, she asked, “Do you accept credit cards?”

“Sure we do.” Sara handed her card over and then signed for the purchase. Now she really needed to get on the road again. She had no doubt in her mind that David and his goons would be monitoring her credit cards. Within hours they would know exactly where she was. Grabbing the bag that Jeb handed her, she turned and hurried towards the front door, coughing as she went.

Seeing her hurried attempt to leave the store, Jeb called after her, “Miss, don’t you want your receipt?”  When she didn’t turn or respond, Jeb slowly put the receipt in the cash register drawer and watched her exit his store. Concern etched across his face. That little gal was sick and needed someone to look after her. With a raised eyebrow, he gave Trent a look and nodded his head towards the door.

Trent watched Sara stop on the sidewalk and double over when the coughing fit didn’t immediately subside. That was one sick woman who had no business driving around right now. Deciding it was his civic duty to try and talk some sense into her, he went after her. As he stepped outside, he wished he had grabbed his jacket. A winter storm was headed their way, and the wind had been picking up all day long.

Sara hurt so badly she didn’t know how she was going to be able to continue driving anymore. Taking shallow breaths to try and quell the most recent coughing spell, and shivering from the biting winds, she started towards the vehicle only to find her path blocked once again. What was it with this man? She didn’t have the energy to deal with this right now.

“Ma’am, I really think you need to think about getting off the road for the night. You don’t seem like you’re in the best shape for driving on the highway.”

Sara shook her head. She needed to leave town ˗ now. “Sheriff, thanks for your concern, but I really need to be on my way.”