~*~*~*~
Lorelai did a quick reality check, but it didn’t make the situation seem any less like a bad dream. With her chin hunched down to her chest against the bitter wind, the only things she could see were a) swirling whiteness; and b) her own snow-encrusted legs taking endless steps through the swirling whiteness. Step after step after step. She could see that her feet were touching the ground, she knew that she must be coming in contact with the planet’s surface, but she had long ago given up on the idea of feeling her footsteps. Why didn’t anyone make boots that were stylish and warm? Did they really expect anyone to dress up like Nanook of the North instead of buying a nice snakeskin print with a flattering heel? Insanity. She was holding the editors of Vogue (en masse) personally responsible for her current lack of sensation below the ankles.
To take her mind off of her frozen extremities, she tried hard to think about things that she would rather not be doing right now. Like, uh, having a root canal. She’d never had one, but imagined must be about a hundred times worse than the regular cleanings that she despised. Oh, and what about getting stitches, like the time she sliced her finger on that can of Spaghetti-O’s (and gave up cooking forever)? Or push-ups. Man, did she hate push-ups! She remembered her sadistic ninth-grade gym teacher, Miss Spitz, who’d made her do push-ups every single time she’d lipped off in class… and that had been a lot. Weird, she thought, that it never occurred to me to just stop being so mouthy. Hmmmmmm. Lorelai hated push-ups more than just about anything else on earth – her arms ached just thinking about them.
Actually, her arms ached because she was gripping Luke’s quilt so tightly around her shoulders that she thought she might rip it to pieces. His right arm was wrapped heavily around her, holding her securely against him. She leaned into his half-embrace and made a quick mental note to be nicer to him from now on. He was bound to blame this on her – like it was her idea to get stuck in a huge snowstorm! Her feet and hands felt like they were made of wood, and the she assumed that the fact that her cheeks had stopped stinging and burning was probably a bad sign. How much farther was it to this stupid cabin, anyway? All she’d wanted was to shave a few bucks off the Christmas décor budget for the inn, and look how things had turned out! It seemed like she was always doing the wrong thing where Luke was concerned, or more often, saying the wrong thing. She tucked herself more closely against his side, and couldn’t help but notice what a perfect fit they were. How is it that she never noticed this before? In spite of the bone-chilling temperatures, Lorelai felt the tiniest bit of warmth leap undeniably into existence, deep inside, where the wind couldn’t reach.
Luke squinted hard into the blinding onslaught of flakes. Shouldn’t they be there by now? He found himself wondering if it had really been this side road where he and Nicole had seen the hunting cabin, after all. What if the cabin was on the other side of the county? What if someone had torn it down since October? His stomach rolled over at the thought of trying to stay alive in woods long enough to outlast the storm. At least one of us had enough sense to dress for the weather, he thought, congratulating himself on his sturdy work boots, double-knit wool socks, thermal underwear, and parka. He’d told Lorelai to dress warmly, but instead she’d shown up in one of those outfits that was supposedly ‘winter-wear’ but was actually designed by some jackass in Malibu who has never seen frost on anything except a martini glass. Her hip-length leather coat was probably unlined, her boots were nothing but high-heeled shoes that came up past her ankles, and her scarf – well, the scarf was probably fairly warm even though he knew she’d only worn it because it was in style. Dumb luck. Likewise with her cashmere turtleneck – chosen for looks instead of warmth, but practical nonetheless. He highly doubted that she had bothered to layer anything underneath her sleek low-waisted jeans, which meant that she was probably – quite literally – freezing her butt off out here.
He sighed. Whenever possible, he tried not to think about Lorelai’s butt. Or her legs… especially not her legs. He forced himself to try to remember what the heck it was he’d been thinking about before his mind took this sudden detour to the Hefner mansion. Was it possible to blush in this kind of cold?, he wondered. As if she could actually hear him thinking suggestive thoughts about her, Lorelai chose this particular moment in time to wriggle more firmly into the protection that his broad upper body provided. Luke couldn’t help but notice something that he’d suspected all along. Their bodies fit perfectly together like this – each of them falling effortlessly into rhythm with the other, step after step. His longer strides unconsciously shortened to match her (slightly) smaller ones. Her head tilted at exactly the right angle to allow his arm to curve comfortably around her sheltering form. So close he could feel her breathing, feel her… shivering. Her whole body was shivering uncontrollably. Damn it, Danes, he chastised himself, get back in the game, you idiot! What the hell are you thinking? The girl is courting frostbite while you run off on a side trip to Fantasy Land! His brow furrowed with determination. Find. The. Cabin.
Nothing, nothing, and more nothing. Luke strained his eyes to find any hint of the hunting cabin in the snow-covered woods, but it seemed futile – the snowfall was so thick that he doubted he’d see a Ferris Wheel parked in the woods right now. Just as he started to seriously consider turning back to the truck, Luke caught a glimpse of something through the trees to his left. It was sheer luck that he spotted it at all – just a flash of slightly-different-shade-of-brown in a sea of tree trunks and snow, but there it was! He could barely make out the door and part of the window that were visible above the underbrush and snow – but there was no mistaking it. He let out the breath he’d unconsciously been holding with something that sounded very much like a laugh, and he squeezed Lorelai to get her attention.
She felt the arm around her waist tighten, and it reminded her of being shaken awake from a long, warm nap. She tried to pay attention to something that Luke was gesturing toward, but she knew she’d fall flat on her face if she stopped concentrating on walking upright for even a minute. When did she get so tired? It couldn’t be all that late, it wasn’t even dark yet. She shook her head to orient herself, trying to remember if she’d been drinking. Only then did she realize that they weren’t fighting the wind anymore. Luke was leading them into the woods to the left of the snow-covered road. A smirk played across her face. Maybe they were going after that bear-filled cave after all, she thought. If it was warm, it sounded pretty damn good right now…
This can’t be good, Luke thought, as he half-dragged, half-carried Lorelai the last ten or twenty yards toward the cabin, through tangles of knee-high underbrush. She seemed sort of… well, out of it. He tried to get her attention, and he pointed through the trees at the little cabin, now fully visible without the driving flurries of snowflakes to block the view. She didn’t even look up. She just gave her head a little shake, giggled, and asked him if he’d brought anything to feed the bears! WHAT??? Excellent. She’s lost it. All he needed now was for the stupid cabin to be locked, and the whole damn picture would be complete! He kicked the snow away from the bottom of the door and grabbed the door handle in his left hand, giving it a firm tug. With a loud groan, it swung easily toward them, and Luke didn’t waste a second getting them inside. The door groaned closed behind them with a bang, leaving them to survey their new shelter in the dim light afforded by the frosted window. It wasn’t much, but it would have to do, Luke thought.
~*~*~*~
Hmmmm… all alone in a cabin in the woods…. what will they do to occupy their time? Any suggestions?
Chapter Three
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